For those who don't already know this, the tarot deck was originally conceived in northern Italy in the 15th century for the playing of a card game and nothing more. The fortune telling practices are an abuse of this artifact based on nothing more than hoaxes concerning its supposed Egyptian origins and spurious Kabbalah connections.

What the new age and metaphysical publishing industries have been telling most of the world regarding the use of tarot cards in connection with fortune telling and the occult is in fact a misrepresentation of an important aspect of the world's gaming heritage. Tarot, in its genuine form, has yet to be properly imported into most countries.

There is indeed a more intelligent use for tarot cards than for superstitious excercises. The true tarot tradition is in no way connected to psychics, astrology, "pop psychology" or other such mumbo jumbo. The genuine tarot is actually a classic European trick taking card game quite often mis-marketed to many parts of the world as some occultic or new age device. It is in France, where this tarot card game is currently most popular. It has also gained a foothold recently in French speaking parts of Canada. There is also a similar game played in Austria and surrounding regions most often under the name of "Tarock"

The players of tarot card games, nowadays, use a more modern deck with double-ended court cards and conventional playing card suits of hearts, spades, clubs and diamonds and the trump cards sport arbitrary scenes of 19th century Europe. Not only do these games excercise one's thinking and memory skills, they are quite wholesome and suitable for all family members.

I invite the reader to further investigate the more authentic tarot tradition by doing a Google search on "jeu de tarot" or "tarock" Although many of the pages encountered may be in the French and German languages, a number of players have recently started to translate their works into English so we may all enjoy a more enlightened century of game playing.