Healing Through Spiritual Practices: A Tarot Journey

By Marianna Defendini

Exploring tarot as a tool for self-discovery, reflection, and personal growth. 🔮

In a world filled with constant noise, uncertainty, and distractions, many people are searching for ways to reconnect with themselves. For me, tarot has become one of those tools.

While tarot is often associated with predicting the future, I have come to view it differently. Tarot offers an opportunity to pause, reflect, and listen more deeply to our inner wisdom. The cards do not tell us who we are. Rather, they help us remember what we already know.

At Wildflower Collective, tarot is one of the practices I use to support intentional living, self-discovery, and personal growth. Whether through a personal reading, journaling, or simply pulling a card for reflection, tarot can become a meaningful companion on the healing journey.

A tarot card spread inviting reflection and insight.

🔮 Understanding Tarot

What is Tarot?

Tarot consists of a deck of 78 cards, each with its own imagery, symbolism, and story. While tarot is often associated with fortune telling, many modern practitioners use it as a tool for reflection, personal growth, and spiritual exploration.

The deck is divided into two primary sections: the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana.

Major Arcana

The Major Arcana consists of 22 cards that represent significant life lessons, archetypes, and transformative experiences.

Cards such as The Fool, The Lovers, Death, and The World often point toward larger themes unfolding within our lives. These cards frequently appear during periods of growth, transition, and personal evolution.

One reason I love working with the Major Arcana is that these cards remind us we are moving through chapters of a larger story. Even challenging cards can offer reassurance that transformation is part of the journey.

Minor Arcana

The Minor Arcana consists of 56 cards divided into four suits:

• Cups — emotions, relationships, intuition, and matters of the heart.

• Pentacles — work, finances, health, and the physical world.

• Swords — thoughts, communication, beliefs, and challenges.

• Wands — creativity, passion, inspiration, and action.

While the Major Arcana often reflects life’s larger lessons, the Minor Arcana speaks to the everyday experiences that shape our path.

How Tarot Works

Tarot reading involves drawing cards and exploring their meanings in the context of a question, challenge, or area of growth.

Some people view tarot as a spiritual practice, while others approach it as a psychological tool for self-reflection. Regardless of belief system, the cards often act as mirrors—reflecting thoughts, emotions, patterns, and possibilities that may already exist beneath the surface.

In my own practice, tarot is less about predicting the future and more about creating a conversation with myself. The cards often highlight perspectives I may have overlooked, emotions I haven’t fully acknowledged, or strengths I need to remember.

Rather than asking, “What will happen?” I often find myself asking, “What am I being invited to learn?”

🌿 The Healing Power of Tarot

Self-Reflection and Awareness

One of the most significant benefits of tarot is its ability to foster self-reflection.

When we sit with the cards, we are invited to look honestly at our experiences, beliefs, emotions, and patterns. This process can help us identify limiting beliefs, recognize emotional triggers, and better understand our desires and fears.

For example, drawing The Tower may encourage us to examine areas of life where change is occurring or where we are resisting necessary transformation.

Awareness is often the first step toward healing.

Emotional Healing

Tarot can also create a safe space to process emotions.

The imagery and symbolism within the cards often help us access feelings that may be difficult to put into words. Cards such as the Five of Cups can invite us to acknowledge grief and loss, while cards like The Star remind us of hope, healing, and renewal.

Rather than avoiding difficult emotions, tarot encourages us to witness them with compassion.

Guidance and Clarity

Many people seek tarot during periods of uncertainty.

In my own tarot sessions, I encourage clients to approach the cards with curiosity rather than fear. The goal is not to predict a fixed outcome, but to explore possibilities, gain perspective, and reconnect with their own intuition.

Often the most valuable part of a reading is not the answer itself, but the questions it inspires.

Tarot and Intention Setting

Tarot also plays a role in the Intention Jar Consultations I offer through Wildflower Collective.

During these sessions, the cards help identify themes, opportunities, strengths, and areas of growth. Those insights can then be woven into a personalized intention-setting practice, creating a bridge between reflection and action.

📖 Tarot and Journaling

One of the most transformative ways I have worked with tarot is through journaling.

After a reading, I often write about the cards that appeared, the emotions they brought forward, and the lessons they may be offering.

Sometimes a card makes perfect sense immediately. Other times its message unfolds over days, weeks, or even months.

I especially enjoy pulling a card at the beginning of a new month and reflecting on how its message may support the season ahead. Combined with journaling, tarot becomes less about finding answers and more about developing a deeper relationship with yourself.

Looking back through old journal entries and readings can reveal patterns, growth, and moments of transformation that may have otherwise gone unnoticed.

Incorporating Tarot Into Your Practice

Setting Intentions

Before beginning a reading, take a moment to set an intention.

You may be seeking clarity on a relationship, guidance around a decision, or insight into your personal growth. A clear intention helps focus your energy and creates a more meaningful reading experience.

Remember that tarot often responds best to open-ended questions rather than yes-or-no questions.

Instead of asking, “Will this happen?” consider asking, “What can I learn from this situation?” or “How can I best move forward?”

Creating a Sacred Space

Creating a sacred space can help you enter a more reflective state of mind.

This does not need to be elaborate. A candle, a favorite crystal, a journal, or even a quiet corner of your home can be enough.

The goal is simply to create an environment that encourages presence, mindfulness, and connection.

Choosing a Tarot Deck

One of the most common questions beginners ask is which deck they should purchase.

My advice is simple: choose the deck that makes you want to pick it up.

The Rider-Waite-Smith deck is often recommended because many modern decks are based on its imagery and symbolism. However, the best deck is ultimately the one that sparks curiosity, inspiration, and connection.

Tarot is a relationship. The more time you spend with your deck, the more meaningful that relationship becomes.

Tarot Spreads

There are many ways to work with tarot depending on your needs.

Some popular spreads include:

• Three-Card Spread — often used to explore the past, present, and future of a situation.

• Celtic Cross — a more detailed spread offering insight into influences, challenges, and possible outcomes.

• Daily Card Pull — drawing a single card for guidance, reflection, or affirmation.

You do not need complicated spreads to begin. Often a single card can provide enough insight for meaningful reflection.

✨ Common Misconceptions About Tarot

Tarot Is Only for Fortune Telling

Perhaps the biggest misconception about tarot is that it exists solely to predict future events.

While some readers incorporate predictive techniques into their practice, many use tarot primarily as a tool for reflection, self-discovery, and guidance.

Personally, I see tarot less as a way to tell the future and more as a way to understand the present. When we better understand ourselves, we often make different choices—and those choices help shape the future.

You Need Psychic Abilities to Read Tarot

Many beginners worry that they lack the intuitive gifts necessary to read tarot.

The truth is that anyone can learn tarot.

Like any skill, it develops through practice, curiosity, observation, and trust. The cards provide a framework, but your personal experiences and insights bring the reading to life.

Tarot Is Superstition

Some people view tarot as superstition or something mysterious to be feared.

Others see it as a symbolic language, a storytelling tool, or a way of accessing the subconscious mind.

Regardless of your beliefs, tarot invites reflection. Its greatest power often comes not from predicting outcomes but from helping us understand ourselves more deeply.

Future Explorations

One of the things I love most about tarot is that there is always more to learn.

Future articles here on the blog will explore topics such as:

• Understanding the Major Arcana in greater depth

• Working with each tarot suit

• Shadow work through tarot

• Building a relationship with your deck

• Tarot and manifestation

• Tarot and journaling practices

• Intuitive reading techniques

• Spiritual symbolism and archetypes

Tarot is a lifelong journey, and I look forward to continuing that exploration together.

Building Community Through Tarot

Historically, spiritual knowledge was often shared within communities. Stories, symbols, rituals, and wisdom were passed from one person to another.

Today, blogs and social media offer new ways to continue those conversations.

One of my hopes for Wildflower Collective is to create a welcoming space where people can explore tarot, spirituality, creativity, and intentional living without fear of judgment.

Through this blog and on Instagram (@wildflowercollectivetarot), I share tarot reflections, intention jars, recipes, garden updates, seasonal living practices, and simple ways to bring more mindfulness into everyday life.

Wildflowers grow together, supporting one another while remaining beautifully unique. My hope is that Wildflower Collective becomes a place where people can gather, learn, share, and grow in their own authentic way.

Like wildflowers, may we continue to grow freely—rooted in who we are, connected to one another, and open to the wisdom that unfolds along the path. 🌿

Final Thoughts

Tarot is not about having all the answers.

It is about becoming willing to ask deeper questions.

It is about slowing down long enough to listen to yourself, trust your intuition, and engage with life more intentionally.

Whether you pull a single card each morning or sit down for a full reading, tarot offers an invitation to reflect, grow, and heal.

May your journey be filled with insight, curiosity, and a little everyday magic. ✨

With love and magic,

Mar 🔱🐉😇