I picked up my first Thoth deck years ago and immediately felt like I was holding something that wanted to fight me. Every reading felt like getting scolded by a brilliant teacher with zero patience. The accuracy was there, but the delivery always stung. Last month, I bought a new copy and cleansed it properly. First question: “How do we begin this relationship?” The deck threw me The Tower, and I just sat there laughing.
I know this is one of the most popular decks everyone seems to get, but this can’t be the experience everyone has with it… right?
I’m curious if this deck treats everyone like they need a reality check, or if some of you have actually managed to work well with it?
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The Thoth is one of the gold standard decks and I think many of us here (and I count myself in that number) have it in heavy rotation. It’s one of the decks that ignores all this modern stuff and just gives us the message straight.
I think it got a lot of press back in the day because of the “dark” messages it was giving. It’s a deck that tells it like it is and I think that’s more important than people think.
Probably not the deck I’d use to do readings in a light-hearted event, but if I really wanted to get to the meaning of the cards, it’s an easy choice.
However, this also isn’t a deck I’d suggest if you’re just getting into Tarot for the first time and you’re just dabbling. You need more than a little guidebook with the card meanings for this one and as well as a lot of practice, you’ll need this:
Yeah decks do seem to have personalities. When I asked my Mystic Mondays deck what card represented it, I pulled The Fool. Made sense, it’s got this playful vibe that works well for teaching beginners. I’ve been using it to teach my sister and cousins since it doesn’t feel as serious as some other decks. Pretty much my go-to when someone wants to learn the basics.
My Thoth deck has been interesting to work with. I feel like I notice different things in the cards depending on where I’m at with my reading skills.
I liked this deck but those captions stressed me out every time I used it.
So I trimmed them off. The messages come through fine without them. Those captions were confusing the readings anyway. Like pulling FAILURE when I was just in a waiting period between starting something and seeing results. That word staring at me created worry where there wasn’t any real problem.
Cutting off those borders helped. I can work with the deck without the negative labels throwing me off. The art looks better without the borders too. Plus the trimmed cards fit my hands better for shuffling, which was a nice surprise.
Did a side by side reading with RWS and Thoth at my tarot group last week. The difference really stood out - RWS has all these built-in stories in the images, but Thoth strips that away. You’re basically dealing with pure symbolism and energy. Kind of overwhelming at first. Been approaching Thoth readings differently now. Less looking for specific messages, more just seeing what comes through.
I’ve done yes/no readings with Thoth before. Works better than I expected, even though it’s not really designed for that. Give it a shot if you want.
I use the Thoth deck for pretty much everything, including yes/no readings. I know some people don’t like using tarot for yes/no questions, but it works well for me. The deck is based on Thelema, so some of the Qabalistic stuff is different from regular decks.
This actually helps with direct questions once you get used to it. For learning the deck, The Book of Thoth by Crowley is the main source. He’s controversial, but the book has good info.
The way he set up the deck works well for binary questions if you understand the elemental dignities. If Crowley’s writing is too hard to get through, Lon Milo Duquette’s Understanding Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot explains things more clearly. He covers practical stuff that works for yes/no spreads with this deck.
Getting The Tower right away, that’s your deck telling you to throw out your expectations. It wants a clean slate between you two. Your deck has this intense, fiery personality.
It’s going to be direct with you, which can feel harsh compared to gentler decks. But that’s just how this one communicates. When people tell you a deck is ‘difficult’ or whatever, it can mess with your own connection to it. Your deck seems to want you to figure things out together without all the outside noise. Some decks whisper, some shout. This one shouts. Whether that works for you or not, only you can decide.
I believe that people often apply what they know about the Rider-Waite when reading the Thoth deck, which can cause confusion since the two decks have different meanings and methods. It could be more effective to view the Thoth deck independently from other decks. At least, that’s how it seems to me.
Same thing happened to me.
The Thoth deck really does feel like it has Crowley’s personality baked into it. Every reading feels like getting lectured by someone who needs you to know how smart they are. I put mine away for months. The cards seemed more interested in showing off than actually helping with anything. Getting the Tower as your first card is pretty typical for this deck, it’s like it wants to drag you through shadow work whether you’re ready or not.
Some people like that intense energy. For me, the deck only works if I treat it like dealing with a brilliant but irritating mentor.
Some traditions use it for major rituals and ceremonies exactly because that intense energy works for them. The shadow work aspect is a big deal for some practitioners.
They want that direct confrontation, not something sugar-coated. But I’ve seen people who are used to gentler decks get pretty overwhelmed by Thoth. It can be jarring when you’re expecting something more introspective and you get hit with all that raw intensity instead.
Your Tower story made me laugh - classic Thoth deck behavior.
It’s entirely normal I wouldn’t worry about it.
This deck works for me in a way that regular Rider-Waite decks never did. The energy and symbolism just feel more… balanced (for lack of a better word).
One thing though, don’t get too caught up in the keywords printed on the cards. Like when the Ten of Swords says ‘Ruin’ or whatever dramatic title they put on there. Each card has a range of meanings, both difficult and helpful.
Pay attention to how the cards relate to each other in your spread and what story they’re telling together. The scarier-looking cards can teach you a lot if you spend time with them.
When I first started using the Thoth deck after years with RWS decks, I was thrown off by the ‘off’ readings I kept getting. It felt like the deck was speaking in a completely different language.
Crowley changed up the symbolism in a way that gives each card its own distinct vibe. I had to stop trying to force my RWS knowledge onto it and let the Thoth show me its unique perspective. I found it to be more like a stern but fair teacher.
If you’re just looking for a quick answer or some basic guidance, the Thoth deck might be too much. It’s not really designed for simple yes/no questions or surface-level readings. This deck wants you to really spend time with it.
You can’t just pull a card and get an instant answer. It asks you to sit with the imagery and symbolism for a while. When you just need a straightforward message and don’t have the energy for deep analysis, the Thoth can feel overwhelming.
Sometimes you just want clarity, not a whole philosophical experience.
The Thoth deck can definitely be intense. I try to work with it like a partnership, sometimes I lead, sometimes I let it guide me. Still figuring it out tbh.
The color saturation in different Thoth editions really varies. My friend has an 80s edition and the colors are way more muted than my newer printing. The Hanged Man in the older deck has these soft, faded tones, almost like watercolors. Mine is much brighter and the colors are really intense. It’s the same artwork but they feel different when you’re using them.
After years of working with Thoth, it never really softens up.
It stays that sharp but honest mentor who doesn’t sugarcoat anything. That’s why I keep my Rider-Waite decks around when I need something a bit softer. The intensity doesn’t fade with time, and you learn to appreciate it when you’re ready for that kind of truth.
