Lessons 1-16

1. Introduction
a. What is Tarot?
b. What can it do?
c. Why are you here?
d. The structure of the course
e. Choosing a Tarot deck
Handouts: Structure of the course
        Recommended websites for decks – looking and buying
Extra Credit: Get a Tarot deck
Choose one card from it that appeals to you, and identify two or    three of the main symbols in it.

2. The Language of Tarot: Symbolism, Imagery, and Myth
a. Tarot Origins: History and Myth in Conflict
b. The Nature of Symbolism (including exercise)
c. How Tarot Works
d. Learning Tarot Effectively
i. The Tarot Journal
ii. Practice Readings
iii. Book Learning
iv. Exercises
e. Myths Surrounding Tarot
Handouts: The Tarot Journal
        Practice Readings: Fictional Victims and Subjects
        Exercises for Learning Tarot
        History Timeline of Tarot
        Symbolism Exercise
Extra Credit: Start a Tarot journal
           Store your deck
           Create a blessing ritual for the deck (if so inclined)

3. The Major Arcana: Introduction and Progress Cards
a. The Order of the Majors – Norms and Variants
b. Ideas of Importance
c. The Fool’s Journey: “Two Majors Walk into a Bar…”
d. 0 The Fool
e. I The Magician
f. VII The Chariot
Handouts: Colour Your Own
        3 x 7 Major Arcana
        Questionnaire
Extra Credit: Find a story/myth/deity that fits one of the studied cards.
Make one entry in your Tarot Journal of your intuitive response to    one of these cards.
Look at your deck’s order of Major Arcana.

4. The Major Arcana: Feminine Archetypes
a. Maiden, Mother, Crone and other feminine archetypes
b. XVII The Star
c. III The Empress
d. II The High Priestess
e. Intuition and the Tarot, Psychic Ability, and Clairvoyance
f. Developing Intuition – Exercises
Handouts: Colour Your Own
          Developing Intuition – Exercises
          Questionnaire
Extra Credit: Try at least two of the exercises for developing intuition, and record 
the results in your Tarot journal
Make a Tarot Journal entry about one of the cards studied
Write a Tarot Journal Entry about a feminine archetype in your life
and how it has affected you.

5. Reading Tarot: Beginnings
a. The Purpose of a Reading
b. Types of Reading: for self
      for others
      problem solving
      decision making
      brainstorming
      future divining
      present assessing
c. The Physical Process of Reading
i. Shuffling
ii. Dealing
iii. Formation
d. Saying the Meanings Aloud
e. Less is More: The One-Card Spread
Handouts: The One-Card Spread
Extra Credit: Work out the best way to shuffle for you.
            Shuffle your deck every day and get used to it.
            Start doing a Daily Draw and record it in your Tarot Journal
            Bring an item that represents each of the Four Elements to you to the
            next lesson.

6. Major Arcana: Masculine Archetypes
a. IV The Emperor
b. IX The Hermit
c. V The Hierophant
d. Intellectual Study: Recommended Reading
e. The Four Elements:
i. Show and Discuss
ii. Exercises
Handouts: Colour Your Own
          Four Elements
          Recommended Reading
          Questionnaire
Extra Credit: One Tarot Journal Entry about one of the studied cards
             One Tarot Journal entry about a masculine archetype in your life and   
             how it has affected you.
             Take the Major Arcana we have studied and apply an element to it.

7. Major Arcana: Virtues and Vices
a. Medieval Virtues and the Minchiate Decks
b. Thelemic Retellings and Anti-Christian Propaganda
c. Beauty and the Beast – VIII Strength
d. The Judgement of King Solomon – XI Justice
e. Winnie the Pooh – XIV Temperence
Handouts: Thelemic Retellings
                Questionnaire
Extra Credit: Journal entry for one card of choice
           Would you put any other virtues in the Tarot? Have you seen any in other cards that we have studied so far?
           Find a story/myth/film that expresses one of these cards
           Have a think about how you feel about fate vs. freewill

8. Major Arcana: Abstract Concepts
a. Abstract Concepts in the Tarot
b. Fate vs. Freewill
c. X The Wheel of Fortune
d. XIII Death
e. XXI The World
Handouts: Cycles of Life
         Questionnaire
Extra Credit: Journal entry for one card of choice
             Colour one card of choice
             Write about a “Death” experience you have had

9. Major Arcana: The Dark Side
a. The Dark Side: Learning How to Deal
b. Negative into Positive-  becoming a proactive Tarot reader
c. The Dark Night of the Soul
d. XII The Hanged Man
e. XV The Devil
f. XVI The Tower
Handouts: William James’ stages of mystical experience
          Negative into Positive exercise
          Questionnaire
Extra Credit: Journal entry for one card of choice
             Colour you own one card of choice
             Identify a Hanged Man, Devil and Tower moment in 3 films OR 1 film.

10. Major Arcana: What’s Out There?
a. Cosmology and the Influence of the Ancient World
b. Astrology and Tarot
c. XVIII The Moon
d. XIX The Sun
e. XX Judgement
f. Your birth card
g. Your numerology lifepath card
Handouts: Calculating life/name/birth cards
          Neoplatonic cosmology
          Astrology and Tarot
          Questionnaire
Extra Credit: Journal entry one of them
             Think of a myth/story that expresses one card of choice
             Find a Tarot spread and bring it with you next time.

11. The Tarot Spread
a. The Purpose of Spreads
b. Pre-Written vs. Created
c. Example Spreads
d. Playing with the Spreads
e. The Earliest Recorded Spread
Handouts: Example Spreads
          Websites for Spreads
          How to create a spread
          Earliest recorded spread
Extra Credit: Think of 3 questions you might ask a Tarot reader and bring them next time.
             Do a 3-card reading in your Journal.

12. Creating Your Own Spreads
a. Questions we might asks a Tarot Reader
b. Group work: Create a spread for one of those questions
c. Discussion
d. How to create spreads
i. On the spot
ii.   Special occassions
iii. Inspired by festivals
iv. Inspired by deities
v. Inspired by concepts
Handouts: Example Spreads
         Parts of a Spread
Extra Credit: Create a spread “inspired by” something, no matter how whimsical.
              Do a short reading for a character of your choice from any book, TV show, film, etc, using a spread you create on the spot. Majors Only. OR just create the spread and explain why you made that spread.

13. Minor Arcana #1
a. Evolution/names of suits
b. The elements in the suits
c. The Four Worlds in Kabbalah
d. The suit of Coins
e. Elemental Spread
f. Spreads for money, business, plans, etc.
Handouts: Four Worlds
         Suit of Coins
         Elemental Spreads
Extra Credit: Look at the Majors and identify cups in the cards. Why are they there? Journal this.

14. Minor Arcana #2
a. Numerology and the Minor Arcana
b. Rider Waite vs. Thoth
c. Sephiroth and Elements = Minors
d. Suit of Cups and discussion of last time’s homework
e. Spreads for Love and Relationships
Handouts: Numerology
         Sephiroth and Elements = Minors
         Rider Waite vs. Thoth exercises
         Suit of Cups
         Spreads
Extra Credit: Pick 3 cards from the suit of cups and apply a myth, figure, or film to it.
             Journal entry 2 of the cards

15. Minor Arcana #3
a. Academic writings on Tarot
b. The suit of Swords
c. Spreads for the Mind, Studies, and Brainstorming
d. Kabbalah and the paths of the Tree of Life [Guest Speaker]
Handouts: Bibliography
         The suit of Swords
         Spreads
Extra Credit: How do you do magic? What for?

16. Minor Arcana #4
a. The suit of Wands
b. Magic in Tarot
i. Explain
ii. Spells
iv. Affirmations
c. Pathworkings with tarot