How Long Ago Was Tarot Utilized As A Divination Tool?

Tarot cards have their roots in the late 14th century when European artists created the first playing cards for games and fortune-telling. In the 1430s, Italian occultist Jean-Baptiste Alliette (Etteilla) invented the first tarot deck specifically for divination, esoteric, and ritualistic use. Each card had a specific meaning and revealed a hidden truth.

Tarot cards were initially used for playing games and as a status symbol, but their association with occult and divination practices began to emerge in the late 18th century. The first tarot deck was published by Etteilla in 1788, and it closely mirrored the playing cards of the time.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, tarot experienced a significant shift in perception and usage, evolving from a mere playing card game into a tool for divination and esoteric. The 62-card Tarocco Bolognese from the 15th-century was among the first decks to be used as a means of fortune-telling. By the 1780s, tarot cards were also used in modern (occult) tarot divination cards that first appeared in the late 18th century.

The first signs of tarot divination can be traced back to around or just before 1750. In 1791, French occultist Jean-Baptiste Alliette released the first Tarot deck designed specifically for divinatory purposes, rather than as a status symbol. The adaptation of tarots to occult and fortune-telling purposes first occurred in France around 1780.

In summary, the origins of Tarot cards can be traced back to the late 14th century when European artists created the first playing cards for games and fortune-telling.

What is the origin of divination cards?

Tarot decks were invented in Italy in the 1430s, adding a fifth suit of 21 specially illustrated cards called trionfi (“triumphs”) and an odd card called il matto (“the fool”). These cards bore Italian suitmarks and belonged to an experimental period of card design when queens were often added to the series of court cards previously consisting of only a king and two male figures. In standard cards, the four figures were subsequently reduced to three again by suppressing the queen, except in French cards, which suppressed the cavalier (knight).

The trionfi each bore a different allegorical illustration instead of a common suitmark, possibly representing characters in medieval reenactments of Roman triumphal processions. They were originally unnumbered, so it was necessary to remember their order. When added to the pack, trionfi functioned as a suit superior in power to the other four, acting as a suit of triumphs or “trumps”.

What are the oldest divination cards?

The Visconti-Sforza Tarot, painted in the mid-15th century for the rulers of the Duchy of Milan, is the oldest surviving tarot cards. In 15th century Italy, the set of cards included in tarot packs, including trumps, was consistent, with two main exceptions. Some late 15th century decks, like the Sola Busca tarot and the Boiardo deck, had four suits, a fool, and 21 trumps, but none of the trumps match tarot ones. The Visconti di Mondrone pack, one of the Visconti-Sforza decks, originally had a Dame and a Maid in each suit, along with the standard King, Queen, Knight, and Jack.

The pack also included three trump cards representing the theological virtues of Faith, Hope, and Charity. Despite a Dominican preacher’s criticism of the evil inherent in playing cards, no routine condemnations of tarot were found during its early history.

When did tarot cards become divination?

Tarot cards, originally used for playing games and status symbols, gained popularity in the late 18th century with the publication of Etteilla’s definitive guide to tarot card reading. This laid the foundation for using tarot as a tool for spiritual and personal growth. In recent years, tarot has experienced a resurgence due to accessibility of decks and the rise of online communities. Tarot reading is an art form that requires a combination of interpretation and intuition.

Each card in a spread interacts with others, creating a narrative reflecting the querent’s life and circumstances. Skilled readers use their knowledge of the cards’ symbolism, intuition, and connection with the querent to provide meaningful insights and guidance.

When was divination first used?

Divination is a universal phenomenon found in almost all cultures, and it was prevalent in the ancient world. Written evidence for divination dates back to the early 2nd millennium in Mesopotamia and is attested to various parts of the ancient world, including the Near East, Egypt, the Levant, Greece, Italy, and China. Despite being forbidden for religious or political reasons in some ancient societies, divination remained pervasive in the Roman Empire and continued after the advance of Christianity.

Research into divination began in the late 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century, with many primary sources from Mesopotamia, Greece, and China published for the first time. However, interest in divination grew again from the late 1980s onward, with an abundance of research and the publication of new primary sources.

Divination is a means of gaining knowledge that is not obtainable by normal modes of investigation, serving to handle uncertainty, warn or reassure a person or a whole people about what the future will bring, and illuminate past events. It can be divided into “artificial” and “natural” divination, with natural divination referring to prophecy and other kinds of theophany revealed in plain language or comprehensible visions. Artificial divination relies on a hermeneutic apparatus, which can be complex or simple code, sometimes combined with the diviner’s intuition.

In the early 21st century, there has been a movement toward considering divination and prophesy as two sides of the same coin, in line with Plato and Cicero. Prophecy is left out of consideration in this context.

Divination is a cultural activity that serves multiple purposes and is attested to in a myriad of variations. The history of their manifestations, development, and cross-fertilization in the ancient world is still a work in progress.

When did people start reading tarot cards?

Tarot packs were first written references between 1440 and 1450 in northern Italy, where additional cards with allegorical illustrations were added to the common four-suit pack. These new packs were called carte da trionfi, triumph packs, and the additional cards known simply as trionfi, which became “trumps” in English. One of the earliest references to tarot triumphs is given c. 1450–1470 by a Dominican preacher in a sermon against dice, playing cards, and ‘triumphs’.

References to the tarot as a social plague or exempt from bans that affected other games continue throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, but there are no indications that the cards were used for anything but games.

Claims by early French occultists that tarot cards had esoteric links to ancient Egypt, the Kabbalah, Indic Tantra, or the I Ching have been frequently repeated by authors on card divination. However, scholarly research reveals that there is no evidence of any significant use of tarot cards for divination until the late 18th century. Historians have described western views of the Tarot pack as the subject of the most successful propaganda campaign ever launched.

What culture started tarot cards?

In English-speaking countries, cartomantic tarot cards are available for novelty and divination. Early French occultists claimed tarot cards had esoteric links to ancient Egypt, Kabbalah, the Indic Tantra, or I Ching. However, scholarly research shows that tarot cards were invented in northern Italy in the mid-15th century and no significant use of tarot cards for divination until the late 18th century. Historians describe western views of the Tarot pack as a “successful propaganda campaign”.

The earliest evidence of a tarot deck used for cartomancy comes from an anonymous manuscript from around 1750. The popularization of esoteric tarot started with Antoine Court and Jean-Baptiste Alliette (Etteilla) in Paris during the 1780s, using the Tarot of Marseilles. French tarot players abandoned the Marseilles tarot in favor of the Tarot Nouveau around 1900, and the Marseilles pattern is now mostly used by cartomancers. Etteilla was the first to produce a bespoke tarot deck specifically designed for occult purposes around 1789, containing themes related to ancient Egypt.

How did tarot become spiritual?

This study examines the religious dimensions of Tarot, a mystical tool for divination, enlightenment, and spiritual self-help, which has been significantly influenced by occult and alchemical thinkers from the 18th and 19th centuries.

Is tarot ok for Christians?

The notion that tarot cards can exert control over one’s life is a pervasive one, yet there is a paucity of empirical evidence to substantiate this claim.

What did Greeks use for divination?

Ancient Greece and the Middle Ages saw the use of hydromancy, or divination by water, and capnomancy, or divination using smoke. Hydromancy involved throwing a pebble into a body of water and observing its ripples, flow, and color. Bread was another variation of hydromancy, with believers placing a loaf into a fountain dedicated to Ino in Epidaurus, Greece, to receive a positive or negative omen. If the loaf sank into the fountain, it was considered a positive response, while if it floated, it was considered the opposite.

Capnomancy involved an animal being sacrificed and placed on a fire, with the smoke rising and drifting away. A slim plume indicates favorable omens, while a big, billowing smoke indicates misfortune. Smoke blowing away and hitting the ground was a warning of impending catastrophe.

What are the five ancient methods of divination?

Ancient methods of divination, such as tea reading, sand divination, tarot, scribing reflection divination, and divination with grains of corn, have been used to interpret signs, details, fantastic objects, and hidden geometry for advanced notice of omens. These practices, as old as philosophy itself, allow humans to reflect on the present, as it serves as a midpoint between past and future. The divinatory arts have found numerous channels for expressing intuition, such as oracles in temples and reading objects like books, calendars, planks, and timelines.

However, the desire to articulate universal and personal portents goes beyond the ancient trade. Giovanni Papini once suggested that fate doesn’t reign without the secret complicity of instinct and will. From this perspective, we should appreciate and admire divinatory practices for their analytical ability and precision, as well as their ability to reveal the secrets of fate.

Is tarot a divination?

Tarot card decks have been employed for the purpose of divination since the early 15th century. This practice enables individuals to make predictions about the future through the use of magical or mystical rituals.