Heart of Tarot

Heart of Tarot

So there was this respected Pagan elder, John McClimans, who taught Amber’s teachers a really cool Tarot system called “Gestalt Tarot,” and they shared it with Amber back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Later Amber met John, and said “Hi, please write it down, write a book!” And John said, “You write it.” Then, sadly, he passed. So we wrote it. Honestly, the reviews are all over the map; some professional Tarot readers hated the idea that Gestalt Tarot minimizes the reader’s role and requires a lot more from the querent. But for many of us, it’s still a very cool way to read Tarot, very personal and empowering to the querent. It’s currently out of print, but used copies can be purchased. It will be back! P.S. We would not have chosen this subtitle; the publisher gave us no choice. We would have said: Readings for your unique clients.

Heart of Tarot  presents a unique and powerful way to do Tarot readings that doesn’t involve memorizing card meanings, using psychic skills, or learning occult lore. Rather, it offers an amazingly accurate but little-known intuitive technique, developed by John McClimans, called “Gestalt Tarot.” Once you discover the secrets of this approach, it is easy to learn and master.

All the information you seek is already present in your subconscious, and gestalt Tarot simply helps you bring it to the surface of your conscious mind. A gestalt Tarot reading provides completely original and personally relevant interpretations, and can be used with any Tarot deck. With this guide, you will learn specific techniques to help yourself or others discover their own answers in a reading. Step-by-step instructions are illustrated with sample spreads and interpretations.

This guidebook is a complete Tarot resource, with chapters on Tarot magick, teaching Tarot, and reading the cards professionally. Gain a better understanding of any situation and make intelligent decisions based on your own insights―it’s simple when you listen to your heart.

A Few Reviews

A great book and a new perspective

I am enchanted by this book and intuitive approach to working with the Tarot! I am a counselor, and I am also a certified Gestalt therapist! SO learning about how to do Gestalt Tarot readings thrills me!! As a long-time student of the tarot for more than 20 years, I have long said that I do not “do” tarot readings for others, but help them do their own readings. Using questions rather than predictions, I find people discover their own meanings in the cards!
–CT

Great for non traditional decks

I don’t read many Tarot books, but this one I read cover to cover. It approaches tarot readings not from symbols in an external guide, but from the querent’s own subconscious. In this way I feel it is a more flexible system, especially since the deck I favor uses Ancient Egyptian and not western tarot symbolism. This method of reading is freeing in a deck like mine (The Ramses: Tarot of the Ages deck.) I did my first reading using this method and the Ramses deck and had a lot of “whoah!” moments. Some of which still echo almost a year after purchasing this book and doing that first reading. There’s also some good stuff on ethics which I have come to expect from Amber K and Azrael K. It’s well worth picking up!
–S

A new and unique approach

So, have the authors carried out their intention of honouring John McCliman’s memory and presenting his method of Tarot-reading? Perhaps only the man himself could truly answer this but what is apparent is that this book presents a new and unique approach to the Tarot which could be seen as a challenge to the more traditional reader – a challenge to be faced and tested. There is undoubtedly a lot to be learned from this book and as such it is highly recommended – a fascinating read.
–MWM

Giving you options

I think this book teaches a method of using tarot cards that is essential for people that do memorize card symbols and readings. No two people see the exact same thing when looking at an object. When a person comes in for a reading they usually have an issue they want to learn how to understand and resolve. Sometimes they don’t know what the true issue is themselves. And if you just read the cards to those types of people you’re basically seeking them the idea that something you memorized knows their problem and this is how to avoid it. That doesn’t always set well. But if you have several *tools* in your parlor to utilize and if you are truly empathic, or just cognitive to the plights of other human beings you can guide them by asking the right questions and help them unlock their own answers. I feel that once I learned the gestalt method my clients were more relaxed and open or receptive to the symbology and meanings in the cards. I use The Pagan Tarot for this type of reading because it has more modern themes mixed with the symbolism. Nothing in the book suggests you should give up standard readings they’re just giving you options. What would an artist be if they only had one color in their palette?
–DM