My aim is to prevent tarót reading pitfalls and enhance how therapy is done
Tarót Reading Pitfalls: Navigating the Challenges
Tarót readings can be a powerful tool for self-reflection and guidance. The imagery, symbolism, and intuitive interpretations often illuminate our inner conflicts and provide a framework for decision-making. However, there are significant pitfalls that can undermine the value of a tarót reading, particularly when the reader lacks certain psychological and emotional tools. This article highlights three key issues to consider before your next reading, as well as a roadmap for using tarot in a way that promotes genuine growth.
Pitfall #1: Is Your Tarot Reader Also a Trained Therapist?
Most tarót readers, no matter how talented or intuitive, are not trained to handle the emotional distress or deep psychological anguish that often arises during a reading.
Therapy training equips practitioners to manage emotional crises, hold space for difficult emotions, and avoid imposing their own discomfort or biases on a client’s experience. Without this training, tarot readers may unintentionally skew their interpretations in two common ways:
- Avoidance of Discomfort: A tarót reader might soften, ignore, or over-simplify their intuitive message from the cards to avoid addressing the querent’s emotional pain directly.
- Desire for Repeat Clients: To ensure future sessions, some readers might focus on reassurance rather than exploring the challenging truths the cards reveal.
While these tendencies may come from a place of good intention, they can dilute the power of the reading. Tarót, when used effectively, invites us to confront our inner conflicts and work through them — not bypass them with overly positive interpretations or incomplete insights.
Pitfall #2: The Reader’s Values Shape the Interpretation
A less obvious, but equally important issue, is how the values and personal development level of the tarot reader influence their interpretation. Many readers operate at what can be called Level 1: Prioritizing Personal Happiness (PPH). At this Level 1, readings often focus on immediate desires, such as career success, romantic fulfillment, or avoiding discomfort.
While this is not inherently bad, growth requires moving to Level 2: Equanimity — a state of integration where we embody our Ideal Parental Archetype (IPA). At Level 2, the focus shifts from satisfying our reactive parts, like the Negative Free Child (NFC) or the Negative Adaptive Child (NAC). As the IPA, you are nurturing and integrating these parts with acceptance, acknowledgment, compassion, and a beginner’s mind.
Failing to reach Level 2 can leave the querent stuck in Level 1 behaviors:
- NFC: Trying to conquer, rebel, escape (reject constraints).
- NAC: Over-accommodating or rigidly following rules and expectations (fears existing without constraints).
These childlike parts, while not inherently bad, are polarized and lack the wisdom and flexibility needed for sustainable growth. The goal of an effective reading is not to judge nor suppress these parts but to guide the querent toward individuation — a concept from Carl Jung where we integrate all parts of ourselves into a cohesive whole.
Pitfall #3: Misunderstanding of Infinity
At the heart of many emotional struggles is what might be called the “original sin”: the subconscious assumption by the NAC and NFC that they understand the Infinite (Spirit, the divine, or ultimate truth). The word “sin” doesn’t mean “bad”. It means “without” which reflects the absence of humility when parts (subconsciously) start claiming to understand the infinite (see my ouroboros post). This misunderstanding fragments our psyche, creating the war between NFC and NAC.
Thus, you ideally want your tarót reading to address both the presenting issue (anxiety, career, relationships, etc.) in the context of acknowledging the root cause — original sin — is our parts claiming to understand infinity. By humbly admitting that we don’t know (a practice encapsulated in THANK: To Humbly Appreciate Not Knowing), we can invite Level 2 as our parts are finally feeling understood. More on THANK can be found here.
Pitfall #4: Not Valuing Level 3
The ultimate aim is to reach Level 3: Wishing Happiness for Others (WHO), which aligns with practices like Tonglen in Buddhism. It’s been said, all our suffering is from wishing ourselves happiness and all joy is from wishing others happiness. But you can’t go there from Level 1. To get there, you must first reach Level 2 by integrating your NFC and NAC parts and embodying your own IPA. Only from this foundation can you genuinely open your heart to others without it being reactive or performative.
My Hope
You want to be — or work with — a tarót reader who understands the psychological and spiritual frameworks necessary to guide effectively. Ideally, one who reads cards should have knowledge of:
- Parts Work and Internal Family Systems (IFS): Understanding and integrating fragmented parts of the self.
- Gestalt Therapy: Emphasizing present-moment awareness and ownership of experience.
- Hakomi Method: A mindfulness-based, body-centered therapeutic approach.
- Carl Rogers’ Humanistic Approach: Creating a space of unconditional positive regard.
- Byron Katie’s The Work: Challenging limiting beliefs.
- Enneagram: Identifying core motivations and growth paths.
- Karpman’s Drama Triangle: Recognizing patterns of victim, rescuer, and persecutor dynamics.
Without these 7 tools, even an accurate reading may inadvertently reinforce Level 1 patterns, leaving you split between NFC and NAC dynamics rather than guiding you toward your IPA.
Conclusion: A Reading That Supports Mental Health and Growth
Tarót is a valuable tool, but unlike pharmaceuticals, surgery, and therapy, it’s not regulated. Thus, it is “on us” to use it responsibly. You want a skilled reader who understands (and has been trained on) these principles. That person will be better able to help you address both the finite challenges in your life and the deeper misunderstandings driving them. It is likely that few will get beyond PPH (Level 1) into equanimity (Level 2), but I believe we’re here to try our best to reach Level 3: wishing for the happiness of others.
In addition to reading cards, I am a psychotherapist and Speech-Language Pathologist. When clients are open to it, I can use what’s been shared above to help my clients heal, grow, and perhaps even raise their level of consciousness.
