Tarot and the Abrahamic Occult

Tarot enjoyed a resurgence in western interest in the 19th century, during the Romantic era. Romanticism was a pendulum-swinging reaction to the stoic rationalism of the Enlightenment. Remember, it was the Age of Enlightenment that created the framework which has protected the United States from tyranny for nearly 250 years. Romanticism sought to bring back emotion and spiritual awakening. It was in this movement that several Christian factions were created, including Jehovah's Witnesses, Christian Science, and Mormonism.

At the same time, there was an increased study of Abrahamic mysticism, which includes Jewish Kabbalah, Muslim Sufism, and Christian Gnosticism. All of these movements seek to better understand and commune with the Abrahamic deity. The trouble is, this deity isn't native to the west, or to white, European-descended peoples. One of the challenges of reading Tarot as someone who wholly rejects Abrahamism is sifting through available information to identify what was influenced by such mysticism, particularly Kabbalah - which is the arbitrary assignment of numerical values to abstract concepts and material things in an attempt to divine the future, and what was influenced by more sincerely western philosophical theories about humanity and the human condition.

The traditional Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot deck is heavily influenced by Abrahamic mysticism. For many people, this is incidental, a nonissue, or even an important part of reading Tarot. I, however, much prefer decks with symbolism and imagery that is evocative of western ideals and philosophical concepts. I don't read with Pamela Colman-Smith's cards, because the artwork heavily favors a Kabbalistic view of esotericism and spiritual enlightenment.

If you are of a similar mind, and you want to learn Tarot without the corrupting influences of foreign mysticism, I can again confidently recommend Robert M. Place's book on Tarot. He clearly details the various mystical and spiritual influences of both Tarot and the greater 19th-century occult world, which will aid you in discerning how to best approach Tarot in a way that aligns with your own spiritual and esoteric beliefs.