When Cathy was a little girl: the healing praxis of Tarot images

Abstract

This paper is a sequel to an earlier article that presented an argument for Tarot symbolic system functioning as a techne that can serve as a valuable educational aid. The present paper shifts the focus from techne to praxis as a practical art of interpreting images and creating imaginative narratives in the context of counselling and therapy. This praxis can heal human psyche and lift human spirit. The paper presents a documented empirical case study as an example of an unfolding narrative for ‘Cathy’ who consented to making her reading public for educational purposes. The process of reading and interpretation as grounded in the ‘art of memory’ can empower us with an ability to understand the meaning of some traumatic events that may have occurred in our lives but remain dormant at the level of the unconscious. We become able to resolve problematic situations and to grow spiritually from these experiences.