The History of Tarot

Tarot cards seem to be popping up everywhere, yet they’re far from being new. This intriguing deck of cards with the images packed full with imagery, has consistently been making appearances in every century for many, many, many years.

So, what are Tarot cards exactly, and why do they tend to show relevancy every 200 years?

myth vs. reality

Picture yourself sitting across from someone who’s talking about Tarot cards. Perhaps they recently  had a reading from someone in a tucked away corner shop, and they’re going on and on about what an incredible experience it was. Maybe they’re encouraging you to experience a reading for yourself, but you can’t see yourself ever doing that, and you feel weird about the conversation. What is that weird feeling about?

Maybe you…

…grew up hearing that Tarot cards were witchcraft, and witchcraft is for delinquent weirdos…

…have gathered that they’re a scam, only used to freak people out…

…think they’re used for creepy stuff, liking trying to predict the future or talk to the dead…

…have heard it’s a silly card game…

…think the images look a little strange, so it feels easier to reject the concept altogether.

Whatever camp you fall into, it’s clear that Tarot cards always have, and perhaps always will, have specific assumptions attached to them. But, if they’re inaccurate, then what is the truth about Tarot cards, and what were they originally intended for?

Brief history

It’s worth noting that I am not a history scholar. I don’t claim that everything written here is iron clad with truth, because it’s only my interpretation. There are multiple names and influences that have been associated with Tarot’s history, and this is a watered-down version of it, at best. I’ll try to cut to the chase.

In the 15th century, a set of unnamed, unnumbered cards were created by an artist named Bonifacio Bembo, which he presented as a gift to a royal family in Milan. This would have been important, because during that time period, for an artist to be allowed in the presence of a king and queen was a huge honor. For the king and queen to also accept the artist’s work as a prized possession, well, that was a fast pass to influencer status.

One account claims that Bonifacio Bembo was an initiate of the occult, so when he offered the cards to the family, his goal was to slyly and secretly introduce the esoteric meanings that were congruent with the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Bembo’s work proved to show stunning correspondences with the Hebrew Bible, also referred to as the Kabbalah.

Keep reading to understand how the Kabbalah, the Bible, and Tarot cards share very similar fundamental values.