Hands on · 5 min read
How to shuffle and draw tarot cards
Shuffling is where a reading begins, and the only rule is that the cards end up in an order you did not choose. Everything else is preference. These are the ways readers do it, what each one gives you, and the small questions people ask once the deck is in their hands.
Ways to shuffle
Overhand: hold the deck in one hand and drop small packets from the back into the front with the other, over and over. Gentle on the cards, slow to mix, the most common method. Riffle: split the deck in two and interleave the halves, as with playing cards. Fast and thorough, hard on large tarot cards, and it bends them over time. Wash: spread the whole deck face down on the table and swirl the cards around with both hands, then gather them. The best mix, and the only method that reverses cards on its own.
Tarot cards are bigger than playing cards, so most people settle on overhand or the wash. Use whatever your hands like.
How long to shuffle
Until it feels done. Readers who want a number say seven overhand passes; readers who do not say shuffle while you think about the question and stop when you stop thinking. Both are right. The deck is sufficiently mixed long before it feels mixed, so the extra shuffling is for you, not for the cards.
Cutting the deck
Optional. The traditional cut is three piles with the left hand, gathered in a different order; one cut in the middle does the same job. Some readers cut, some ask the person they are reading for to cut, some never do. It changes nothing about the reading except that it marks the end of shuffling and the start of drawing.
Drawing the cards
From the top of the deck, one at a time, into the positions of the spread in order, is the plain method. Fanning the deck face down and pulling cards from anywhere is the other; it feels more chosen and reads exactly as well. Lay each card face down in its slot, then turn them in order, or turn them all and take in the picture first.
Decide before you start whether you are reading reversals. If you are, turn the cards over sideways rather than end over end, or you will reverse every card as you turn it.
Cards that jump out
Sometimes a card falls out of the deck while you shuffle. Some readers put it back; many set it aside and read it as a note in the margin of the reading, a card that wanted to be heard. There is no rule. If it falls out twice, read it.
Shuffling on the table
If you are reading on this site, the table can shuffle for you: pick a spread and let it deal the cards face down, each upright or reversed at random, then turn them one by one. Or shuffle a real deck and lay the cards you drew onto the table as they lie, which is what it was built for.
Questions
How many times should I shuffle tarot cards?
Until it feels done. Seven overhand passes is the traditional number; the deck is well mixed before that. Shuffling while you hold the question in mind is the point.
Do I need to cleanse a new deck?
Not for the cards' sake. Some readers like to sort a new deck into order and shuffle it from there, or to sleep with it or leave it in the sun; these are ways of making the deck yours, and they are optional.
Can I shuffle like playing cards?
You can riffle shuffle a tarot deck, but the cards are large and the method bends them over time. Overhand or spreading the cards on the table and swirling them is kinder.
What if a card falls out while shuffling?
Put it back, or set it aside and read it as a note beside the reading. Either is fine; if the same card falls out again, read it.