Tarot cards are a divinatory tool that some psychics, mediums, and ghost hunters use to make contact with ghosts. However, we never use them as a primary research tool. As we explained in Ouija Boards and Ghost Hunting, it’s like using a cellphone to talk with someone who’s standing right in front of you.

If you can communicate directly… why bother with anything like the Tarot? We prefer to try to contact the ghosts by talking out loud to them, and waiting for signs or impressions from them.

In addition, some of our researchers have used Tarot decks during ghost hunts and told us great stories that they cards conveyed… but we’ve never been able to confirm any of these stories.

(We’re generally able to research direct psychic impressions and–using historical sources–confirm a significant number of them.)

After a ghost hunt, or at the very end of it, we sometimes use a Tarot deck for a ’second opinion’ to clarify a ghost’s history.

However, we also try to be very sensitive to members of our team who aren’t comfortable with divinatory tools such as the Tarot. It’s important to make that clear: It is never necessary to use divinatory tools. We’re just explaining how you can use them, if you want to.

USING TAROT CARDS FOR A ‘SECOND OPINION’

Our lead researcher, Fiona Broome, generally relies on a three-card reading for this. She draws three Tarot cards at random from the shuffled deck, and places them side-by-side. The card on the left indicates the ghost’s history. This is usually the event that led to the haunting. Often, this is a card featuring swords. In fact, we often see–more often than is statistically probable–the ‘nightmare card’ which is the Nine of Swords. This card usually indicates betrayal, or something that the person considers a ‘nightmare’ or a complete tragedy.

The middle card suggests what’s going on right now. However, keep in mind that ‘right now’ can be whatever the ghost thinks that it is. Often, it’s a past event that they’re stuck in, or some irrational reason why they linger as a ghost among the living.

We’ve seen all kinds of cards in this position, reflecting myriad goals and excuses that the ghost is clinging to.

The card at the right indicates what’s next for the ghost. Often, that’s an Ace, which suggests a new beginning. In that case, it can be helpful to tell the ghost that his or her time is completed here, and it’s time to cross to the other side now.

If it’s another Swords card–which can mean power struggles or conflicts–the ghost probably isn’t ready to cross over yet. Most of them remain here for specific reasons, and there’s not much point in trying to help.

SAMPLE TAROT READING

Here’s a typical three-card reading, from left to right: Ace of Swords, Three of Swords, and Five of Cups. Ace of Swords can mean a new beginning, but it can also mean death. Swords often refer to issues of power and sometimes conflict. In this case, Fiona read it as a sudden, new conflict, perhaps unexpected.

Three of Swords, also called the ‘Lord of Sorrow’ indicates extreme pain and heartbreak.

Five of Cups usually means that it’s time to accept the inevitable. This can involve sorrow or separation, but what’s offered on the other side of this can be worth the pain.

In other words, the person was taken by surprise by a conflict or even a hidden enemy. He died, and is still mourning this. His next step is to accept what’s happened and cross over, because better things await him.

(And, in case you wondered, Fiona drew these cards at random from the Vision Tarot for the purpose of this article. It ‘just happened’ that they are a perfect example of a Tarot reading about a ghost.)

We suggest the Tarot only as a supplementary tool for ghost hunters. If you’re not comfortable with it, don’t use it. If using divinatory tools conflicts with your religious beliefs, don’t use them.

We believe that some ghosts–not all of them–are better able to communicate through more traditional divinatory tools. So, since Tarot cards have been around for centuries, the ghosts may already be familiar with them, and be able to communicate with them.