In 1985 I bought my first pack of Tarot cards, along with the book The Pictorial Key to the Tarot. While it’s mandatory reading for the serious student of Tarot, it’s not the ideal book for a beginner. The writing style is archaic, and the author’s rambling, condescending tone is annoying.

The writer of this book is Arthur Waite, the designer of the modern Tarot. In conjunction with the artist Pamela Colman Smith he created the popular Rider-Waite-Smith deck. Waite was a scholar who explored Theosophy, the Order of the Golden Dawn, Freemasonry, and Rosicrucianism. Esoteric symbolism from all of these influences fills his Tarot deck.

In The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, he intended to explain the interpretation of the cards, but he did this through obscure metaphysical notions irrelevant to many card readers. Waite learned the meanings of arcane symbols through occult organizations; however, he made oaths that kept him from divulging them. Even though this book was supposed to explain the meanings of the esoteric symbolism incorporated on the cards, he could only do this in veiled terms, which does little to enlighten its readers.

It may seem like I am disappointed by this book, but that’s not true. While it was not helpful during my initial stages of learning about Tarot, it has since become a valuable resource. I appreciate that it was one of the first to debunk the fictional history of Tarot’s origins. And when I open its pages for further research on a card, it often references details I overlooked for many years.

I’m giving it four stars out of five because it’s an essential reference book, but you have to be prepared to sift through a lot of mystical musings before you eventually discover the nuggets of wisdom you were searching for.