Thoth Tarot: 5 Essential Tips

5 Tips for Learning the Thoth Tarot

Dec 12 / Joe Monteleone

If you’re drawn to the thoth deck, I’ve got good news: you have great taste–and not just counter-culturally or aesthetically, but spiritually. The thoth deck is no entry level spiritual tool. It’s full of complexity, syncretism, and depth. So . . . here are 5 essential tips in studying the Thoth Tarot.

I’m Joe Monteleone, bonafide mystical misfit and head of Tarot Mysticism Academy. I’m building an army of Tarot Readers to save the world, find the holy grail, and mass produce the philosopher's stone. (It’s much simpler than it sounds). Let’s do it.

1 - Don’t Be Scared, Be Curious

This deck appears scary or intimidating to some because it’s HEADY. It’s extremely brainy and extremely nuanced. Now if history tells us anything, it’s that spiritual nuance often yields . . . fear. That’s because the more complicated something gets, the more difficult it is to understand, the more easily people can project their fears onto it. I think we can all agree that Aleister Crowley was no saint, which was very much reflected in his personal branding and infamy. But honestly, if you see everything as black and white, you’re only going to get so far. The mystical quest itself is the journey towards the attributeless gray area, which is pure consciousness, and the thoth deck curates some of the most sophisticated mystical ideas to show us just that.

2 - Get Comfortable With Abstraction

Sometimes . . . it’s just a vibe. Many tarot decks today, like the Rider Waite Smith, use illustration to communicate their meaning (and it’s brilliant). A lot of the Thoth deck leans more towards ethereal abstraction, presented to us through the hauntingly beautiful synthetic projective geometry of Lady Frieda Harris. This abstraction suggests to us the general energy of the card, which is itself a unique overlap of kabbalistic and astrological correspondences.

3 - Learn Correspondences

The tarot deck, especially the Thoth tarot, corresponds to astrology, hermetic qabalah, and other systems. Learn the planets. Learn the signs. Learn the elements and the tree of life. If you need help, check out the free classes on this site. Though I do believe it is possible to read with the Thoth deck without knowing any of the esoteric correspondences, doing so would be the equivalent of using a flamethrower to light a candle. Not only is it unnecessarily showy, it might be . . . dangerous! Just kidding. There’s really nothing dangerous about 78 pieces of card stock, but I will say that the thoth deck is, like a flamethrower, fiery. It’s literally a deck created for the new aeon of Horus, which brings us to our next point.

4 - Know a Thing or Two About Aleister Crowley and His “New Aeon”

Hero or villain, Crowley amassed quite a contribution to modern magic and alternative spirituality. There’s a lot to Crowley, and his views and contributions change depending on what you’re reading from him, and there is a LOT to read. It is by researching the man that you have more freedom in subscribing to or rejecting his unique updates to western esotericism. For this blog, I am going to encapsulate his philosophy into his Thelemic catchphrase: “Do what though wilt shall be the whole of the law. Love is the law, love under will”. The general philosophy of Crowley, and his tarot deck, is to fulfill your true purpose. This aeon, according to Crowley and his deck, is all about following your true will, which might be compared to your true dharmic purpose, and the thoth deck is going to push you to do that. This brings us to our last point:

5 - Enjoy the Long Journey, Make It Your Own

Nothing worth doing is easy, but it can be done with ease. The Thoth deck is not just another tarot deck. It’s the final masterpiece of one of the most notable ceremonial magicians of the modern world. It introduces a worldview that combines the most advanced concepts from western esotericism and eastern mysticism. Not only that, but it is infused with Crowley’s own personal revelations, (the Book of the Law. . . aliens?) The deck is truly an intellectual hydra. Everything you learn will split off into several other topics to research. But that’s the joy of it. If you go far enough, you will start drawing connections from so many mystical traditions.

Don't hesitate