Archive for the ‘tarot community’ Category

Talkin’ Tarot With Paul LeBars

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

Talkin’ Tarot With is a monthly feature designed to introduce my readers to different tarot readers from our wonderfully diverse community!  Each month, I’ll be asking various tarot readers 3 questions about their tarot philosophy and style, plus pointing you to their websites and blogs so that you can learn more about them!

This month, I am excited to share a very special tarot reader with you, my personal healer and friend: Paul LeBars.  I’ve had the pleasure to meet him personally and he holds a very dear spot in my heart.  Paul helped me through some difficult transitional periods in my life and I will always be grateful to him for his compassion and gifts.  Learn more about him below:

I started connecting with Paul through Twitter (it’s a fab resource for meeting fellow tarot peeps).  We both participate actively in the tarot community, so it’s not a surprise that our paths would eventually cross.  Paul is an Intuitive Counselor, Tarot Reader and Reiki Healer (a Japanese hands on healing that helps to balance mind, body and spirit) who guides his clients with gentleness and clarity.  I have found him to be a trusted friend and an incredibly talented (yet humble) healer.  In fact, he’s the my go-to person when I need a healing boost.  My experiences with his gift for Reiki has been life altering to say the least.  He helped me deal with the passing of my father and a few other major transitions.  If you are ever in need of a Reiki healing or just curious, I would heartily recommend that you use his services.

He was trained in the Usui Traditional Reiki Method and is a certified Reiki Teacher.  Paul also studies Kabbalah through the Kabbalah Center and lists Astrology, Metaphysics and other healing modalities as his interests.   In addition to all that, he is a weekly cohost on The Love More Project’s Blog Talk Radio show: Everyday Wisdom with Megan and Paul (Tuesday‘s at 11am pst), and volunteers at Reiki free clinics. He’s also a monthly contributor to The Love More Projects monthly E-zine, Love Letters (which can be found at http://thelovemoreproject.com)  Paul has a BA in English Literature with a minor in Cross Cultural Studies in Language and Art from San Francisco State University, as well as holding Certificates in all three levels of Reiki training. His mission is to empower and guide his clients to unleash the power of their Soul, have greater clarity, and lead balanced lives.  Paul offers Tarot/Oracle readings, Reiki sessions and soon – workshops on The Power Of Our Thoughts!

You can find more about Paul through these sites:

Website:  http://paullebars.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/PAULLEBARS

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/PAUL-LEBARS/130285720341708

Check out his answers to my questions below:

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1. What is your philosophy about tarot reading?

My philosophy about Tarot reading is that it’s an amazing tool for personal growth and guidance on our soul’s journey. It carries with it timeless wisdom that includes astrology, numerology, Kabbalistic symbolism, and a range of archetypical symbols. For personal readings its great for getting a broader perspective on an issue and can help you get to know yourself better.  I believe the Tarot reader has a responsibility to share information with the querent that is for the highest good of all concerned. A good reading will confirm what the client already knows, and give guidance on how to make the best possible choices for the future. That said I don’t believe anyone should ever use a divination tool in place of their own intuition. Our intuition is our connection with the Creator/ our higher selves and is our personal GPS system in life. A good use of a Tarot reading is when you need clarification and guidance, and to build an even stronger intuition. A good Tarot reading gets you back in touch with your intuition, your own personal power.

2. How do you feel a client might get the most out of a reading with you?

A client would get the most out of a reading from me by coming to it centered, grounded and with an open mind. Sometimes we get messages during a reading that may not make sense at the time, or that we don’t want to hear. I know I’ve personally had readings that were like this, that ended up being very beneficial and powerful because they helped me make the wisest decisions. The Universe and our guides work in perfect ways, so what we are supposed to hear we will hear, however we also will only get what we are looking for by the law of attraction, so keeping an open mind is very important.

3. What is your best piece of advice for an aspiring tarot reader?

My advice for aspiring Tarot readers is to take time to learn the language that is Tarot by reading books, taking classes and getting readings yourself, then put it all away and follow your intuition when reading. It also helps talking to other readers or listening to Tarot shows such as Psychic Friends Live, or The Tarot Lady’s show to hear various perspectives on the cards, this has helped me immensely. Another tool I use is keeping a Tarot journal by pulling three cards a day for myself and seeing at the end of the day how they reflected events in the day. This was inspired by Mary K Greer’s book, Tarot For Yourself. Ultimately your relationship with the cards and deck are what matter. Every Tarot reader is a unique person with a unique life experience. How they interpret the cards is what sets them apart, otherwise the cards are just neutral with a one dimensional message. The reader brings them to life and uses them to help empower you.

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A big hug and thank you to Paul for taking time out of his busy life to answer my questions!  Make sure you visit his site, Paul LeBars to purchase a reading or Reiki session with him (he does Distance Reiki if you live outside of California).  Paul will be my guest on my Blog Talk Radio show on October 17th – be sure to tune in!

Blessings!

Theresa

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Posted in Paul Lebars, Talkin' Tarot With, tarot, tarot community, tarot readers | 4 Comments »

A Town That’s Right For Me

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

One of the hardest things about working in the tarot field is the isolation that some of us feel.  Often times we find ourselves without peers – especially those who may live in a rural area.  It’s not easy to connect but thanks to the advent of the internet and social media in particular, the game has begun to change.  Many of my fellow tarot readers have been delighted to find each other through this medium – and it has made our world a little more inclusive and a lot less lonely.

Recently, a new site launched that has stepped it up a notch and created a true community for us tarot lovers.  It’s called “Tarot Town” and is the brainchild of Marcus Katz and Tali Goodwin of Tarot Professionals .  Tarot Town is fun but don’t be fooled by the light tone – there is some SERIOUS tarot stuff going on here – classes, forums, discussions, groups and more!  Not only can you connect and make friends here – you can improve your skills, ask questions, learn about events and more.  If there was ever a Tarot Nirvana for us tarot freaks, I think I have found it here!

Of course, I had to ask Marcus and Tali about the creation and inspiration behind Tarot Town and this is what they had to say to me:

We were inspired to create Tarot Town by listening to the members of Tarot Professionals. We had been asked to provide a service to allow our members to network and socialise outside of the focused studies of Tarot such as Gated Spreads, the Diploma Course, Tarot Houses and other projects. When we looked at our existing forum we realised that it did not fulfil this purpose, although it is where we will continue to hold our Tarot course discussions.

We then considered our vision to promote high levels of Tarot education, and realised if we could find a way of providing such a social network, we would serve our own vision by opening it to the wider community. We also recognised that as our members had such a great deal of Tarot knowledge and experience we could connect them to those looking for help in their studies in an open and friendly fashion.

This resulted in us looking at many ways of accomplishing this aim – we reviewed existing sites, new technologies, voice/video systems, on-line teaching systems, and much more. We decided on a package of the “best of the best” even though this required a significant technical and financial investment. The site TAROT-TOWN was born from this research and our desire not to re-create the wheel.

With regard to what can we offer, there’s a line in Keat’s Hyperion which asks of the Titans, “What benefit canst thou, or all thy tribe, to the great world?” We asked ourselves the same question – as Living Oracles, what is it we bring to the world? In Tarot we remind ourselves that the Story is bigger than the individual images that arise in front of us – whether it be life or cardboard. In every divination, we are divined. We hope that Tarot Town will lead to more people coming to that experience of Tarot sooner, and deeper, through an accessible introduction. We are also shaking off the cobwebs – the Tarosophy book is all about mythbusting, and promoting brand new ideas, and Tarot Town is a reflection of that ethos, research and experience.

We’ve primarily aimed to make the Town vibrant, fun and free. There’s an optional Citizen rate of $1/month which ensures we can start to make the Town viable in the long-term and at the same time not exclude anyone on the basis of cost. Participants get access to great teaching experiences, video lessons, a one-stop window on selected Blogs and news, and most importantly peer guidance in a supportive environment. Citizens get special courses and privileges.

We are delighted that Rachel Pollack (age 13!) and many of our other Hon. Members of Tarot Professionals have joined to assist in connecting and sharing their wisdom. Our Deck Study groups are likely to have the deck designers and artists themselves in residence – such as Emily Carding in the Transparent Tarot Study Group.

There’s a readers exchange which has the unique feature of double-blind requests (you offer a reading to someone, but they don’t get informed of the request unless they offer a reading to you also) and peer-review feedback system – the Tarosophy STARS rating. We are also privileged to feature Beyond Worlds Radio Show as the Town’s official Radio Station!

Most important to our hearts is that we have provided a space for Tarot Townsfolk and Citizens to make their own home. The future of Tarot Town is in the hands of its inhabitants – it is an agile environment which will respond to the requirements of its citizens in an organic manner:

There once was an architect who did not build roads, or paths, or paving. He did not even include them in his plans and drawings. He laid grass down between the buildings which were open for all to walk.  Then as time went on, he watched where the grass was thinnest, and for where the beautiful curves and shortcuts, straight lines, dells and grooves that the passage of many people created. This was where he then created his paths – where feet naturally walked.

We have exciting plans already in pre-production for Tarot Town. We will be integrating our existing WIZIQ Learning Environment from Tarot Professionals into the Town Hekademia very soon for online courses in the Town. We are already well advanced in a 3d-Avatar environment for Tarot Conferences, Rituals, Discussions and Socialising! If you watch our promo video, you’ll see a sneak preview of the 3D world which will be ready by 2011.

Marcus Katz is the author of Tarosophy: Tarot to Engage Life, Not Escape It (pub. Salamander & Sons, August 2010) and the founder of Tarot Professionals. He is an MBA graduate, M.A. holder (Western Esotericism, University of Exeter) and currently 3-years into a 6-year PhD Thesis on the Teachings of Occult groups in the Western Esoteric Tradition. He is a therapist and trainer.

Tali Goodwin is the Marketing Director of Tarot Professionals and a member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing. Her career has also involved healthcare and occupational therapy. She has also practised Reiki healing.

No matter if you are a tarot professional, a newbie, or just curious, I’d invite you to stop by and take a look around.  You can find me as what else?  The Tarot Lady.  Hope to meet you there!

Blessings!

Theresa

Image property of Tarot Town

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Posted in Tarot Town, forum, learning tarot, reading tarot, tarot, tarot blogs, tarot community, tarot lessons, tarot reader, tarot readers, tarot reading, tarot readings | 11 Comments »

Guest Blogging At TABI Tarot Blog

Saturday, June 5th, 2010

Recently,  Alison Cross at TABI (Tarot Association of the British Isles) asked me if I would write a post for their blog.  I was very honored by her request – but have to admit that it took a while for me to formulate an idea of “what” I could write for them.  The end result is a post on “Creating A Healthy Tarot Community”.  I am very passionate about community and hope that my simple guidelines give people positive food for thought – no matter what community they are part of.

You can read the post at TABI Tarot Blog.  Please check it out!  And I’d love to hear your thoughts – what do you feel could make the tarot community healthy and thriving?

A big thank you to TABI for giving me the opportunity to write for them!

Blessings!

Theresa

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Posted in TABI, tarot, tarot community | 2 Comments »