Is Tarot Evil, and are Tarot Cards Satanic?

It’s one of the most common questions people ask when they first encounter a deck of Tarot Cards:

Is tarot evil? Are tarot cards satanic? Are tarot readers devil worshipers? 

As an experienced tarot reader, I think it’s important to answer this honestly, because these fears don’t come from nowhere. They’re rooted in religious teachings, cultural myths, and sometimes in cheesy horror films that have painted tarot as dark, dangerous, or forbidden.

So let’s unpack where this idea comes from, what tarot actually is, and why it has been branded “evil” for so long.

What the Bible Actually Says About Divination

The simplest answer is that yes, tarot is a form of divination. And divination is expressly forbidden in parts of the Bible, particularly the New Testament. This is why some Christians will automatically say tarot is of the devil, without ever having touched a deck.

But if we look more closely, things are less straightforward. In the apocryphal texts and in older parts of scripture, divination is described with more nuance. Prophets, dream interpreters, and people seeking signs were essentially practising forms of divination. The line between “divine guidance” and “forbidden practice” has always been blurry.

So when people ask if tarot is satanic or of the devil, they are really asking whether it’s included in those prohibitions. And the truth is, the Bible’s concern was less about pieces of card and more about who held the authority to interpret divine will.

The Myth of Tarot as Satanic

Popular culture hasn’t helped here. Films and TV shows love to use tarot as a shorthand for something spooky or demonic. And for centuries, the church described all forms of divination as evil, satanic, or dangerous.

But tarot has nothing to do with devil worship. The first tarot decks were simply playing cards. Only later were they enriched with symbolism drawn from astrology, Kabbalah, and Hermetic philosophy. Even the best tarot readers would tell you: it isn’t about summoning spirits (although some tarot readers do claim to have a spiritual connection) and it's certainly never about communing with demons. Tarot is about working with symbols and archetypes — universal patterns that help us reflect on our lives.

Many tarot readers work from a completely secular worldview - tarot is just a tool for introspection or even a way into psychotherapeutic counselling.

The Hermetic Tradition is Monotheistic

Another point often overlooked is that the esoteric societies that developed tarot into the form we recognise today were not devil-worshippers. In fact, the Western Hermetic tradition is monotheistic and specifically Judeo-Christian in its outlook. Groups like the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, from which the Rider–Waite–Smith deck emerged, saw themselves as working with divine energies.

AE Waite and other members of the Golden Dawn called themselves CHRISTIAN mystics.

Their rituals and prayers often echoed Catholic liturgy and in fact, there's a startling overlap between ceremonial magical rites and the Catholic mass for example.

The difference in these mystery traditions was that you didn’t have to be ordained by a singular central religious institution to participate. You could study, dedicate yourself, and be initiated into the mysteries without belonging to a large church “franchise.”

As an experienced tarot reader and one who grew up in the Catholic tradition, I find this part of history fascinating. It shows that tarot was never about rejecting God. It was about approaching the divine directly, through symbols and ceremony, rather than through the hierarchy of priests and bishops.

Why Religion Branded Tarot ‘Evil’

And this is the real crux of it: tarot, like other forms of divination, was seen as a danger to religious institutions.

If you can pick up a deck of cards and find guidance from the divine, you don’t need a priest to mediate for you. You don’t need to tithe to a church to have access to spiritual truth. You can connect directly.

From the perspective of organised religion, that’s a huge problem. How do you control people who have their own access to divine wisdom? How do you maintain authority if anyone can interpret signs without your approval?

The answer was simple: brand it as evil. Say it’s of the devil. Instil fear so people stay away, and return to the “approved” channels of guidance. It wasn’t about the cards being dangerous — it was about the institution protecting its power and income.

What Tarot Actually Does

So what does tarot actually do?

Tarot provides insight, clarity, and reflection. The cards are a symbolic language that bridges different levels of reality: the physical cards in our hands, the symbols they depict, and the archetypal truths they point to.

When I lay out a spread, I’m not conjuring spirits. I’m reading a symbolic map of forces that shape our lives — love, conflict, growth, restriction, hope. It’s about seeing patterns and making meaning. Check out my previous blog on 'how tarot works.'

Even the best tarot readers can’t tell you your future with absolute certainty. But a good tarot reader can help you see your situation more clearly, recognise archetypal patterns at play, and find a path forward.

That’s not evil. That’s empowerment.

So is tarot evil?

No. Tarot is a spiritual tool — and like any tool, it depends on how it’s used.

For me, and for many others, it’s a practice of empowerment and reflection. It connects us to archetypal forces and to the divine without fear, superstition, or hierarchy. That’s why people are still drawn to it, and why the myths of evil have never quite stuck.

If you’re curious to experience tarot for yourself, don’t be afraid. Seek out a good tarot reader who approaches the cards with respect, empathy and an understanding of their mystical power. And remember: the cards aren’t evil. They’re mirrors, maps, and guides, here to help you on your journey.