Okay so people kept asking about this tarot book called “The Alchemical Tarot” guide thing. Easy? Free tips? Hah! I figured I’d actually try it out myself today instead of just talkin’ about it. Here’s how it actually went down.
First Glance & Initial WTF Moment
Right, so I grabbed my dusty Alchemical Tarot deck – haven’t touched it in months, felt kinda bad honestly. The guide book was sitting there looking all mysterious and… thick. “Easy guide”? The cover said that. Flipped it open quick, scanned the pages. Big words, weird symbols, paragraphs longer than my Monday to-do list. “Alchemical symbolism”? “Transmutation of base metals”? Mate, I just wanted to pull a card and see if I should order pizza tonight. This felt about as easy as assembling IKEA furniture blindfolded. Free tips my foot, seemed like needing a PhD.
Actually Trying to Use the Damn Thing
Forced myself to slow down. Decided on a basic single-card question: “What energy should I focus on today?” Smelled the old-book smell, tried to focus past the fancy talk. I shuffled awkwardly, feeling clumsy. Pulled a card – The Seven of Cups. Nice. Okay, book… where are ye?
- Found the page number… page 89? Jeez.
- Started reading the entry. It’s talking about “a plethora of spiritual paths” and “choosing the golden chalice amidst illusions”. My brain started to glaze over like a donut. Seriously? What does that mean for my Tuesday?
- Got frustrated. Threw the book down gently. Okay, less reading, more looking. Just stared at the card picture. Lots of cups, different things floating in ’em… a face? A castle? A snake? Hmm. Choices. Too many options? Feeling distracted? That actually… kinda clicked.
- Flipped back to the book, but this time only looked at the super short “Keyword Phrase” they had squeezed at the bottom: “Illusory Options”. BOOM. That made sense instantly. Yeah, I was totally scattered, trying to do ten things at once!
Stumbling Onto What Actually Worked
Turns out, trying to swallow the whole long explanation first thing? Terrible plan for me. Learned fast that day:
- Ignore the Big Blocks of Text (At First): Seriously. Just look at the damn card picture properly. What jumps out? What feels weird, happy, scary, boring? Trust that gut feeling more than the alchemy lecture.
- Hunt for the Tiny Bits: Buried treasure! The “Upright Keywords/Phrases” section? Usually like 3-5 words? Pure gold. Like “Illusory Options” or “Unexpected Change” or “Creative Stagnation”. Way less confusing than the essays.
- Picture + Tiny Bit = Win: Got my card – Seven of Cups. Picture looks chaotic, many choices. Tiny bit says “Illusory Options”. Put ’em together: “Ah, I’m probably overwhelmed by too many choices, maybe some are fake-out distractions? Focus!” That actually felt useful. Didn’t need the long ramble about base metals.
- Only then glance at the longer text: After getting that initial punch of meaning from picture + keywords, then I skimmed the big block. Parts of it suddenly made more sense, like “oh, they mean distraction when they say ‘false paths’”. But honestly, I wouldn’t force it if it feels like homework.
Is It Actually Easy?
“Easy” like riding a bike with no training wheels the first time? Nah. But figuring out my own cheat way made it way, way less painful. That book is dense. It’s got cool stuff in it… maybe? But expecting easy breezy interpretations is setting yourself up. What actually worked was flipping the script:
- LOOK at the card picture. Really look. What mood?
- FIND the Keywords/Tiny Phrase. Quick meaning.
- LINK picture mood + keywords = Your lightbulb moment.
- SKIM long text if curious, not required.
Would I recommend someone buy the book JUST for easy learning? Probably not, it felt overpriced for the headache factor initially. But if you already have it, don’t let it intimidate you like I did. Skip the lecture, hunt the keywords, look at the pictures, let your own brain connect the dots first. Maybe that “alchemy” happens when your own thoughts mix with the symbols, not just reading the darned book cover to cover. Works better than forcing myself to be a scholar before breakfast.
