How to Shuffle Tarot Cards (and Why the Same Card Keeps Flipping)

There's no wrong way to shuffle tarot cards, but some ways cause more problems than others. The large cards are awkward in small hands, which is why people end up with cards flipping, falling or sticking together.

Four ways to shuffle

• Overhand. Move packets of cards from hand to hand. Easy on the cards, but it keeps them in the same orientation, so reversals only appear if you turn packets around yourself.
• Riffle. Split the deck and let the halves fall together. Quick, but hard on large decks and bends the cards.
• Wash. Spread the cards face-down on a table and swirl them around. Rough on the cards but very thorough, and it flips cards freely.
• Cut. After shuffling, cut the deck into piles and restack them in a different order. Good for the ritual, and it breaks up sticky pairs.

If one card keeps landing reversed

Check how you hold the deck. With an overhand shuffle, a card that stays on the top or bottom may be flipped by how you grip it. Try a different method or wash the cards once and see if it still happens. If it still does, read the card as a theme. See why the same card keeps coming up.

A new deck needs more shuffling

Fresh decks come in order. If you pull a lot of major arcana in your first readings, that's the reason. A dozen proper shuffles, and a wash, will usually fix it. More in lots of major arcana in a reading.

Tip: Pick a shuffle and stick with it for a week. If you change method every time you'll never know which patterns are yours and which come from the shuffle.