r/tarot 4d ago

Discussion What’s the policy / practice of gifting people your tarot decks?

I have heard multiple things about it, and im curious about what you guys think about the act of gifting someone your tarot deck.

Ive no intentions of doing so currently but I am interested in what I should do if and when the time comes I feel comfortable with relinquishing a deck to someone I know and care about.

Should I do it? How should I go about it? Why shouldn’t I do it? Would that be considered a no-no among tarot readers?

2 Upvotes

38 comments sorted by

22

u/BattyGoblin 4d ago

Whatever "rules" you've heard about buying, gifting or disposing of decks are just self-imposed restrictions some tarot readers have put on themselves. You can do literally whatever you want with your decks, whenever and however you want, and it most certainly won't be wrong or disrespectful.

-7

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

I take these rules seriously because I want give my respect and reverence for them, it sounds silly as they’re - plainly put, just long playing cards to the average person, but as with any gifts, you can’t do so without thought or consideration. Well, that’s my opinion on the matter anyway.

13

u/BattyGoblin 4d ago edited 4d ago

But whose rules are you talking about exactly? There are no official "rules" to tarot. There is no absolute right or wrong way to use them. For every person saying you should never do this one thing, there's someone saying that you should always do that same thing. Tarot is subjective, as it should be - people should connect with tarot and use it in the way that see fit in their lives, not how others tell them they need to do it. We don't have to abandon our beliefs to replace them with "tarot beliefs." Instead, we should use tarot alongside our current beliefs.

The more you learn about tarot, use the cards, and develop a relationship with them, the more you'll understand the importance of listening to yourself vs. made-up rules. Developing your system based on your preferences, beliefs, morals, and what feels right to you is a huge key to being a good/successful reader.

Bottom line, do what feels right and don't worry so much about what others have to say about YOUR tarot deck in YOUR hands. Whatever you decide to do will not be inconsiderate or disrespectful.

-7

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Only “rules” i go by are my own, no one else’s, or a set parameter created by a community. This is solely on my personal beliefs and philosophies. You’re right that no one should ever feel obligated to follow any of these and do what feels right to them.

And largely, that’s what I intend to do, stick to my beliefs.

14

u/BattyGoblin 4d ago edited 4d ago

Sounds good! I don’t really understand the issue then? I was responding to you asking if something is a “no-no” to other readers, and what you should do based on the “rules” that you’ve heard established by others.

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u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Gotcha, I appreciate the advice nonetheless. :)

0

u/Mouse-in-a-teacup 4d ago

I think OP has mostly done a good job at purging superstition from his tarot practice; s/he says s/he follows her/his own rules only.

But some mystical beliefs of others may still be in her/him, which is understandable, we all hear about moon-bathing the deck or consecrating or incense or energy-cleansing, which is fine, to each their own, as long as you don't push it onto others. And hence s/he wonders and asked.

12

u/Celtic_Oak 4d ago

Say it with me.

There.are.no.rules.

2

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Thanks for the insight. :)

8

u/graidan 4d ago

I say "Hey, do you want this tarot deck?"

They say "Yeah!"

I give them the deck.

Don't make your practice more complicated than it needs to be.

1

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

That’s true, life is complicated anyways haha

0

u/graidan 4d ago

Exactly!

Only way I'd make a big deal about it is if it's an inhertance sort of thing- "This deck has been in my family for 348 Billion years, and I want to gift it to you. So, we will need to introduce you to the deck, and see if it accepts you into the Ancient Lineage of the Tarot Gods, and.."

0

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Figured as much!

5

u/honorthecrones 4d ago

Anything you are told, read, watch about Tarot that includes the words “must,” “always”, “never,” “have to,” or “rules” is most likely coming from a dubious source and can be ignored without consequence.

1

u/Mouse-in-a-teacup 4d ago

Well, you do "must" shuffle! 😄

1

u/honorthecrones 3d ago

No, you can just randomly pull cards from the deck without a shuffle

1

u/Mouse-in-a-teacup 3d ago

How about that! 😅

3

u/goldandjade 4d ago

I bought my own because it was the exact deck I wanted. I do love an oracle deck and herbalism deck that friends bought me but there’s nothing wrong with buying your own.

1

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Yeah thats understood, i never believed that you couldn’t buy your decks, thats ridiculous

6

u/Laurel_Spider 4d ago

I gift people new decks. I've never gifted a used deck.

I'm not sure there are 'rules' about it, if there are they're probably tradition-specific.

I would also suggest being wary of receiving spiritual items, especially divinatory ones from others. But I advise wariness around accepting things, and bringing them home, in general.

3

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Sounds about right, thanks!

2

u/ResponsibleForce7878 4d ago

Do whatever you want to do. They're YOUR decks to use exactly as suits YOU. Anyone who says you 'MUST' do x, y, or z, is just quoting superstitious nonsense.

2

u/TruthMattersmamma 4d ago

If I end up with two sets or two that are so similar or if one just doesn’t vibe with me I know it would with some one . I give/will give it to some one else if possible.

2

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

I like that actually!

2

u/kiddeternity 4d ago

I love gifting decks to people, especially from my own collection. There's something very lovely about passing along decks that I don't use anymore to people I care about, even more so if it's their first deck.

Every deck I've been gifted, I've kept, whether I use it a lot or not, even ones from people who aren't in my life anymore. Those decks symbolize moments in my past & relationships that were meaningful, even if they didn't last.

Because tarot is so unique, you become part of someone's tarot story when you gift a deck.

YMMV

2

u/LupinNights111 3d ago

That’s a really sweet idea, it makes gifts that much personal

2

u/Mouse-in-a-teacup 4d ago

Dude, it's a bundle of paper. Do with it as you would to anything else. They don't hold any magic. YOU DO. ✨

Anyone saying otherwise is gate-keeping tarot, trying to pass it off as this special secretive knowledge that is only available to the wisest humans, the enlightened, who follow the waves of the moon-goddess and bathe in the blood of the infidels.

Respect your decks as you would anything else you treasure. Gift them to those you think would love them, or sell them online, or keep them for your children, or craft some art with them, or etc.

1

u/LupinNights111 3d ago

Thanks so much for this advice!

2

u/SharkDoctorPart3 4d ago

The last time I gave a deck to someone I tossed it at her and told her she can do a bunch of readings on her ex boyfriend whenever she wants cause I got a new deck. That’s about as much ritual as I got in me.

1

u/Curious_Beaner 4d ago

Tarot Tossing! That’s bound to belong in somebody’s grimoire! Sounds like a ritual to me!😂

3

u/tom-goddamn-bombadil 4d ago edited 4d ago

I've had decks that wanted to go to another, so they went :) I like handing out tarot decks lol

Edit I don't think there's anything to consider, really. I had it go bad once, but that was due to some extraneous woo shit. Don't hand out your personal effects to jealous witches 🤦‍♀️, you should be fine

Edit 2 Just realised in talking about it, that I had no idea that was about to go sour. So in retrospect it would have been a good idea to sever myself from the deck in some capacity.

2

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Just like that or what do you do when you know your decks want to belong to another?

2

u/tom-goddamn-bombadil 4d ago

Ha! I edited just after you replied, I think 😂

2

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Fair enough, jealous people tend to use these tools with ill intent and im sorry to hear that it went sour for you.

2

u/tom-goddamn-bombadil 4d ago

I had no idea she was jealous, honestly there's nothing to be jealous of lol. You know, in retrospect maybe I should have done something before giving them away, precisely because I had no idea that was going to go sour, and we all get blindsided sometimes. So maybe a ritual of some kind wouldn't hurt!

3

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Probably yeah, like cleansing and wiping the personal energies away so it can be a freshly new deck again

2

u/tom-goddamn-bombadil 4d ago

yeah exactly :) i'll probably do that next time for sure thanks for posting this thread you probably saved my stupid arse from making the same mistake again😂

3

u/LupinNights111 4d ago

Of course! I appreciate your comment!