Iliana Smilyanova was born on 1st August 1965 in Dupnica. She graduated from Sofia University, Bulgarian philology. She worked as a teacher of literature until 1996. Then she studied psychotherapy for three years. Since 2000 she has been studying, being engaged in research and practicing the philosophy of tarot. She is a representative of AGMüller – one of the biggest producers of tarot cards. She holds consultations with tarot. Mrs. Smilyanova lives in Sofia.

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Tarot is an esoteric system popular mainly with its prophetic aspect. However, one of its basic values is in the fact that it gives us the opportunity to structure and get to know the world around us, and, mostly, ourselves. Tarot helps us to see, realize, understand the connection between everyone and everything; regularities, which they cause and we ourselves create. Its significance is not only in the view that gives us direction back / the past/ and forward /the future/, but as well as in depth, to the essence of the problem. Tarot is an original mirror in which if we have the necessary honesty and bravery, we can reflect our true nature, we can see the invisible behind the ordinary daily view; our positive and negative sides, which very often remain hidden for us and which we project on the others, making them responsible for our success and failure.

Tarot builds a bridge between conscious and unconscious, makes possible “lighting up” the unconscious processes; reveals hidden forces and regularities, gives a hint of  unexpected directions – exits in confusing life situations; lends a helping hand at crucial moments. Turning to tarot for advice doesn’t deprive us of choice, as it is often fatalistically thought, but just the opposite – it increases many  times our opportunities to choose, showing us the whole and total observation or a concrete, detailed view on the given problem or situation. Tarot gives us information and this information helps, heals the soul – confused, deprived of losing sense and direction. Tarot gives us the possibility to give a meaning to the world outside and inside us, to turn the chaos into harmony – first in ourselves, and then, regularly, in the world around us. Each event and human being in the life of people has their own meaning and significance, its place in the whole “puzzle” of their existence. So the system like Tarot /or astrology, numerology, I Ching/ - philosophical, analytical, and prophetic – gives us the possibility to have a look behind the visible side of things, to see the contents behind the form, the Devine sense behind the apparent chance.

Tarot is not a heal-all, it is not a means to hand over our responsibility to someone or something else – nobody and nothing can solve the problem instead of us. Like any other esoteric system tarot is not and cannot turn into purpose in itself. It is a means to receive a “roadmap” with signs on it. Tarot is one of the ways to see new opportunities, new viewpoints, new understanding of the essence of things, causes and consequences about which we have not even suspected, which we have neglected or dared to acknowledge to ourselves. Communicating with Tarot gives you the answers which are in yourself, shows you the roads, which only you can and should go. Tarot is an esoteric system that protects, prevents those who use it, making accessible for them just such information, which they can understand and perceive. Working with Tarot helps us understand causes and consequences. It connects past, present and future in a whole, helping realize our role, our responsibility and great opportunities. In this way we can see our “today” as an echo from “yesterday” and “tomorrow” as an echo of ”today”. Tarot offers us help which we can take advantage of, without giving it too much value and becoming dependent on it.