I can’t believe I hadn’t thought about this sooner. I had recently digitized a few Tarot decks by using my phone to take pictures of each card. I intended to post these on social media in some way. Instead, I got a little experimental.
I ended up doing hose keeping on my computer’s desktop. I moved a bunch of icons I didn’t use into folders and deleted some things. I realized that I had not changed my background image for some time. It has been set as the circle of fifths since university. Somehow the idea got into my head that I should change my background image.
In a second “Tarot Wallpaper” was born. I had moved all the digital photos into a folder. I went to the personalized options for my desktop’s background image and I selected all the photos. Windows 8 has an option to shuffle background images. This is like a random slide show, but for your desktop image. I am sure most or all operating systems can do this.
I set the background image to shuffle every few minutes. A new card would appear on my screen for me to gaze at and contemplate. Here is an interesting thing. I have a second monitor, a TV right beside me. Each monitor has a different random image on it. By having two monitors I have effectively created a random two-card spread.
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Tarot Machine
My computer is now a Tarot machine that works for me. No effort is needed to shuffle the cards. The image is crystal clear, and I can get access to it at any time.
Every moment I am working at my computer I am tapping into universal energy. I can check in with myself and stop and think for a moment. I can also go into the zone and allow my subconscious to absorb universal energy.
If I am anxious about something I can look to my desktop to see what’s there. Why am I anxious? Oh, I see the Five of Swords, ok. I can take time out to think about it for a second.
Results
I have had Tarot images on my desktops wallpaper for only a few weeks now and already I can see the benefits of it, and the strange anomalies that come with it.
For one, it is a nice way to gauge yourself throughout the day. I noticed that if I start to enter a negative state I can come back from it by looking at my desktop background. No matter what card is there I have an answer to work with.
The constant stream of tarot images acts as a thermometer for my mood whenever I am near my computer. I have some kind of reason for what I am feeling at all times.
With tarot images as my wallpaper, I quickly understood the physical limitations of the cards. You have to handle them, shuffle them, and draw them out to receive their effects.
The act of clearing your deck through ritual and shuffling is meant to set your intentions and put the deck into a randomized state. Now that the Tarot images being fully randomized by a computer, I don’t have to worry about physically clearing the cards or handling them. I can skip all of that and focus solely on my intentions, and the cards I see.
Here is the thing. I enjoy handling the cards and feeling them. There is a quality to that physical experience that cannot be digitally replicated. For that reason, this method of using the Tarot shouldn’t replace anything. It should be added to your repertoire.
So far, this method of using the Tarot has added a lot of value to my day. This is like a mood thermometer. I know somewhere in psychology there is a descriptive list of words to describe your mood, but why not lets the universal archetypes do that for you?
I wonder what else I will end up seeing from the Tarot as my background images. Right now I am using Crowley’s Thoth deck. What a wonderful deck this. This pictures are vivid as they are visceral.
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