Six divination decks à la the Read like Devil way

€240.00

The course offering here is based on the enrolment that took place in the fall of 2024. What you thus get is the archived form in its entirety.

For 6 weeks we investigated six divination decks that have been historically significant.

We looked at the Marseille, Thoth, and Rider/Waite/Smith tarots alongside with Etteilla, both the grand and the petit cards, the Lenormand oracle, and Playing Cards.

Each of the six sessions focus on one deck and we read the cards used in that tradition by applying the ‘Read Like the Devil’ method to it.

This simply means that we don’t read the popular, standard decks, such as the Rider/Waite/Smith deck or Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot according to the esoteric method that relies on a map of corresponding symbolic associations dating back to the tradition started by Etteilla in the 1760s.

What we do instead is look at what works in context, how a visual text communicates its message beyond symbolism, and what pragmatic functions images acquire when used in divinatory contexts.

The course offering here is based on the enrolment that took place in the fall of 2024. What you thus get is the archived form in its entirety.

For 6 weeks we investigated six divination decks that have been historically significant.

We looked at the Marseille, Thoth, and Rider/Waite/Smith tarots alongside with Etteilla, both the grand and the petit cards, the Lenormand oracle, and Playing Cards.

Each of the six sessions focus on one deck and we read the cards used in that tradition by applying the ‘Read Like the Devil’ method to it.

This simply means that we don’t read the popular, standard decks, such as the Rider/Waite/Smith deck or Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot according to the esoteric method that relies on a map of corresponding symbolic associations dating back to the tradition started by Etteilla in the 1760s.

What we do instead is look at what works in context, how a visual text communicates its message beyond symbolism, and what pragmatic functions images acquire when used in divinatory contexts.

 

Format

This course features pre-recorded lectures followed by live Q&A‍ encounters dedicated to practicing reading the cards and answering questions related to each of the six modules we go through.

A pdf of the course slides is also available.

Each Q&A session has a duration of about 1 hour. In total, the pre-recorded lectures and the Q&A sessions amount to about 12 hours of viewing time.

There is a Facebook group dedicated to the course where students can further practice the reading of cards and perform the suggested assignments.

The teacher feedback in the FB group for the first enrollment is generous on all the shared practices, each comment aiming to advance a clear point of practical application.

Note that the teacher feedback is only available for the first cohort on its first enrollment in October 2024. While you’re welcome to post in this group past the initial course run, you get comments or impressions from your fellow-students, if they’re still active in the group.

 
 

Curriculum

Session 1: Marseille Tarot like the Devil

Session 2: Playing Cards like the Devil

Session 3: Etteilla like the Devil (petit and grand)

Session 4: Lenormand Oracle like the Devil

Session 5: Rider Waite/Smith Tarot Like the Devil

Session 6: Thoth Tarot LIke the Devil

 
 
 

The familiar and the new

The sessions dedicated to the Marseille, Lenormand, and playing cards may be familiar to students who have taken the 3 foundation courses at Aradia Academy. Here, in addition to the basic principles of reading the cards like the Devil, the lectures feature new examples in fresh recordings.

The sessions dedicated to Etteilla, the Waite/Smith, and Thoth tarot are brand new contributions to cartomancy whose aim is to surprise.

What makes the sessions dynamic are also the live Q&A encounters and the reading practice followed by feedback in the Facebook group dedicated to the course.

The students who have taken a foundation course before can benefit greatly from being reacquainted with the Devil, so to speak, and learn from the new demonstrations that now also serve a comparative function.

The aim is to see the 6 decks across reading disciplines and practices, and apply to them the method of reading like the Devil.

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What they said

‘Wonderful. Concise as ever!’ – Markus Pfeil

‘I'm Baaaaack! Excited for another AWESOME class! Never too many!’ – Debi Ann Scott

‘I’m having a blast.’ – Em Bee

‘I dig this course.’ – Clay Waller

‘I’m enjoying this course immensely. A fantastic course.’ – Ian Khoo