Tarot cards and an open mind to mysticism and discovering our own spirituality continues to grow in popularity amongst all generations. In a world of instant satisfaction, our desires being just a click away, reading tarot cards is surprisingly not about what you want to know but what you need to know. Discovering a better understanding of yourself, and gaining a new perspective. Sometimes all we need is to look at something from a different angle, and a solution tends to bubble up to the surface that you hadn't thought of before. 

Arthur Graye, Owner of The Green Man Studios, and his partner Eloy are bringing  Intuitive Tarot classes to Denton on a monthly basis, with the first class having kicked off this past Monday at The Bearded Monk. Reading Tarot cards isn’t out of reach, anyone can develop a knack for the craft, and you don't even need your own deck! There are always ones you can test out, borrow, and even purchase. The class drew several first time card readers, and those just beginning to hone their skill. "The energy at the class was unbelievable and it was beautiful to see all the passion that just spilled from everyone around. Arthur and Eloy were so incredible and welcoming, as a near beginner, I felt welcomed with open arms and no judgement was passed my way," says Michele Pointdexter, who has been regularly attending the newly founded Denton Mystic meetups. For Donnie Levings it was his first time ever picking up a deck,"Everybody was extremely friendly, and the different skills levels kept it interesting and informative. As someone who has just recently begun reading tarot cards I feel I have a great base of understanding just from one class. "

Graye first picked up a deck of cards 18 years ago, and then set them right back down and didn’t touch them for another decade. While drinking and enjoying the company of friends 8 years ago, he jokingly picked back up the deck, threw out some cards, read the insight from the helpful how-to book that comes with most of the deck, and was blown away by how spot on the reading was. “The next day I found a meet up for intuitive tarot, and I just started going and within 6 months of practice it was like I had people whispering in my ears all kinds of secrets about whoever I was reading for,” says Graye.

He founded The Green Man Studios in 2010 to help people on their journey of self-discovery, creating jewelry for meditation, artwork, chakra sprays utilizing essential oils, and his own class format to aid people on their spiritual path. Reading Tarot cards is a great foundation to start from, and Arthur’s favorite, “tarot classes are one of the base classes, what I like most is it’s about more than just tarot, it’s not about the cards, but connecting with your higher self.” Learning in a classroom style format helps create a safe environment where you can learn from others and discover a way to interpret the cards intuitively.

More recently Tarot classes have been sporadically popping up around Denton but no one has committed to a regular schedule like Arthur has done. For college students, who enter into the new school year to “find themselves”, discovering a passion for the Tarot could be just what they need to help them on that path. When you are truly at home with yourself, the desire to do things out of character to want to fit in doesn’t seem so necessary because you are firmly grounded in who you are. “If I would have had this outlet in college it would have helped so much, this is a handy alternative to turning to substance abuse to help figure yourself out,” says Graye. His intuitive tarot classes are just $15 and you don’t even need your own cards, theirs will be borrowed sets and even ones you can purchase. You can stay up to date on future classes and also learn more about monthly meetups and other events in the Denton Mystics Facebook Group.

Header image by Brittany Keeton