As told to Sreeparna Mazumder by Mahima Bhatnagar, Psychotherapist, Arts Based Therapy & Integrative Somatic Trauma therapy practitioner. Bhatnagar is also a tarot card reader.
As a psychotherapist, I involve the Indian framework into my practice. For instance, Buddhism and Indian psychology offer a lot of insight into mental health, which is also being talked about in the West now. The recent talks about mindfulness, somatic practices, and yoga for mental health and emotional regulation have come from eastern schools. Earlier, the West saw humans in terms of their mind and that’s why we treated the mind. Now, holistic or integrated psychology sees you in a bigger perspective. You are a combination of your body, mind and consciousness. It’s your inner guidance system, which is also being recognised by western schools.
Image Credit: iStock
In psychotherapy, we don’t work with just the mind but also your consciousness. Tarot borrows from the same school of thought. It’s a divination tool that taps directly into the higher consciousness. As a professional reader, I am able to break away from my ego mindset, which is just my conscious awareness, and get into a different level of consciousness.
To give you a broad understanding, we know that we have subconscious and unconscious levels. But there is also an understanding that there are levels above the conscious mind. Tarot readers tap into that higher level of consciousness to provide answers.
How are tarot cards associated with mental health
Image Credit: iStock
Reading tarot cards is like interpreting dreams. Even in psychology, dreams continue to be an elusive and mysterious case that we haven’t been able to fully understand yet. There are multiple theories of what happens when you are dreaming, and where they occur from. Tarot reading comes from a similar perspective.
When you are in a state of uncertainty, it automatically generates disbalance, anxiety, or mood swings. In such cases, getting a tarot reading may give you a sense of control and agency, knowing that irrespective of good or bad outcomes, you have the space to prepare yourself for what’s to come. It can be an empowering thought.
Tarot reading is not an alternative to therapy
Having said that, I don’t use tarot in my therapy sessions. For me, tarot reading is a completely separate profession. I don’t take up my tarot clients for therapy sessions. As a psychotherapist, my sole job is to use my tools to empower the person to find their own way. That’s my main objective. When I am doing a tarot reading, I’m giving straightforward answers because that’s what my clients want. Even though I am skilled in both, combining them won’t be a good approach. I don’t think it would work.
Image Credit: iStock
Let me explain. Mental health is a deeper issue. For example, if someone has anxiety and control issues, I do a tarot reading and give them answers. After three days, they would want an answer again because it’s not a solution to their mental health problem. It’s temporary and it might bring them relief in that moment but it’s going to be triggered again. It can’t replace therapy, a much deeper way of understanding emotions, tracing their origin, being able to deal with them, and finding answers.
Image Credit: iStock
Tarot reading and therapy have different goals. If someone has trauma from sexual abuse, I don’t see how a tarot reading can help them, even if the question is as straightforward as ‘How do I get over my trauma?’. To be able to help them, I have to give them the tools that will assist them in getting over the trauma. Similarly, if someone is having a marital issue, the emotional and mental repercussions can’t be handled with tarot. As a psychotherapist, I have to sit with the clients and help them process their grief and whatever else concerns them.
So, in my opinion, use tarot card readings as a guidance. There is no right or wrong way of life. After a reading session, ask yourself: ‘How can I support myself better?’. Whether it’s a good or bad reading, take it as a roadmap of a probable way in which life could flow. And how you make that work is up to you because you are in charge of your life.
However, if you have mental health issues, it’s best to approach a therapist to heal.
Social and lead image credit: iStock
