Getting Started
Zero to first draw — the grounding you need before laying a card.
I know nothing about tarot. Where do I start?
Start with a three-card reading on a real question you actually carry. Skip the memorization phase — the cards teach themselves through use. Read the position labels, look at the image, speak the keywords aloud, and let the first honest sentence that comes through stand.
Once three or four readings are behind you, circle back for the why.
Do I need to buy a physical deck?
No. A physical deck is lovely — the shuffle, the weight, the ritual — but it is not a prerequisite. Many seasoned readers work exclusively digitally now. Start with what you have; buy a deck later only if the ceremony of paper calls you.
Can Lunarcana replace a physical deck?
For the reading itself — yes, fully. Lunarcana preserves the ritual: question, centering, deliberate draw, reveal, interpretation. What it cannot replace is the sensory ceremony some readers love — the riffle, the smell, the gesture of laying cards on cloth. If that is what you want, use both.
How long does one reading take?
A single-card daily draw takes about two minutes. A three-card spread, with the full ritual and a read-through, runs five to ten. The larger Celtic Cross or Tree of Life spreads take fifteen to twenty-five. Most of the time is reflection, not clicking.
Do I need to draw every day?
No. Daily cards are a rhythm, not a requirement. A weekly reading on a real question is often more useful than seven rushed daily pulls. Let the practice match the life you actually have.
Reading Practice
How to actually use the cards, by yourself or with others.
Can I read for myself?
Yes. Self-reading is the primary use case — the cards are a mirror and you are both the one holding it and the one being seen. The trap is reading the same question repeatedly in different phrasings until you get the answer you wanted. Draw once, sit with it, and let the day finish the sentence.
Can I read for a friend? Do I need their consent?
Yes — always ask first. Reading someone without permission, even kindly, is a boundary violation. If they consent, let them hold the question and speak it aloud. You are a translator, not an authority. Offer the reading as one possible frame, not a verdict.
Can I draw on the same question twice?
Not immediately. Drawing again within minutes usually means the first answer didn't match your hope — which is itself the answer. Give it a week, let life move, and re-ask only if the situation has genuinely changed.
How long should I wait before revisiting a question?
A week for everyday questions, a month for life-direction ones, a season for identity questions. The card's meaning takes time to be tested against reality. Re-reading too soon reads the anxiety, not the arc.
What do I do if I don't know a card?
Look at it first — before reading anything. What is the figure doing? What is their face saying? What stands out on the edge of the frame? That instinctive read is often closer to the truth than the textbook definition. Then open the card page for the canonical meanings and hold both.
About Lunarcana
What this app is, what it costs, and where it keeps your data.
How is Lunarcana different from other tarot apps?
Most tarot apps are slot machines with tarot skins — tap, receive, repeat. Lunarcana is built as a moving alchemical manuscript: a ritual draw, a centering pause, a streamed interpretation written in the voice of a thoughtful companion. It treats the cards as a thinking tool, not a slot payline.
What can I do on the free tier?
Four beginner spreads (single card, three-card, yes-or-no, and past-present-future) are free forever with unlimited readings. The other twenty-four spreads allow three trial reads per month. New accounts get fourteen days of unlimited access to every spread. History holds the last ten readings from the past seven days; you can save up to five favorite cards.
Is the Grimoire membership worth it?
If you read once a week or more, on spreads beyond the four beginner layouts, yes. Grimoire removes every cap: all twenty-eight spreads unlimited, permanent history, unlimited saved cards, all four interpretation voices, and the angle re-roll feature. If you read occasionally, the free tier is designed to fit you.
What languages does Lunarcana support?
English, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese — fully translated, including card meanings, spread layouts, and AI interpretation. Switch anywhere via the language selector in the header; your preference persists across sessions.
How is my data handled?
Readings, saved cards, and preferences are stored in a Cloudflare D1 database under your account. We do not sell data, do not use it to train models, and do not share it with third parties outside the services required to run the app (auth, payments, AI provider). Anonymous analytics are opt-in at the infrastructure level and can be disabled. You can delete your account and all associated data at any time from the profile page.
Philosophy & Doubt
Honest answers for the skeptical and the curious.
Is tarot superstition?
It depends on how you hold it. Used as a prediction engine — "the cards say X will happen" — it behaves like superstition. Used as a mirror — a structured way to surface what you already half-know — it is closer to journaling or therapy. Lunarcana is explicitly built for the second use. The cards do not cause outcomes; they give your own reflection a vocabulary.
Can tarot actually predict the future?
No, in the literal sense. The future is not fixed and the cards have no causal link to it. What tarot can do is reveal the trajectory you are already on — the patterns, tensions, and choices you have been avoiding naming. Seeing that clearly often changes what you do next, which of course changes what happens.
Can I use tarot without believing in anything mystical?
Yes — most modern readers do. You can treat the deck as a structured prompt library: 78 archetypes, randomly sampled, asking your mind to find meaning. The psychological mechanism (projection, pattern recognition, narrative framing) is real and well-studied. Belief in a hidden force is optional.
Can I use tarot if I am Christian, Muslim, or Jewish?
This is a personal question between you and your tradition — Lunarcana does not take a position. Practices around divination vary widely even within each of these faiths, with devout practitioners on every side of the question. If your tradition or community forbids it, honor that. If you are uncertain, ask a teacher you trust. Lunarcana treats tarot as a reflective journaling tool rather than a supernatural service, which some find helpful framing; others will still decline, and that is entirely reasonable.
Can tarot become a psychological dependency?
Yes, and it is worth watching for. Warning signs: drawing multiple times a day, not making decisions without consulting the cards, feeling panic when you miss a draw, or using tarot to avoid the work of actually living. If any of those describe you, pause the practice for a few weeks. The cards will still be here.
Health & Boundaries
Where tarot helps, and where it absolutely must not replace care.
Can tarot diagnose my anxiety or depression?
No. Lunarcana is a reflective journaling tool, not a medical or mental-health device, and it cannot diagnose anything. A card that keeps appearing may point you toward a conversation worth having with a professional, but the diagnosis itself must come from someone licensed. If you are struggling, please reach out to a qualified clinician.
Can tarot replace therapy or counseling?
No, never. Tarot can complement therapy — many therapists are comfortable with clients using it as journaling between sessions — but it cannot replace the trained, relational, evidence-based work a therapist does. If you need support, please seek a licensed mental-health professional. The cards are a companion, not a clinician.
When should I stop reading and seek professional help?
Please consult a qualified professional if any of the following are true: persistent low mood or loss of interest lasting more than two weeks; thoughts of self-harm or suicide; panic attacks that disrupt daily life; disordered eating or sleeping; substance use that is escaping your control; or any acute crisis, trauma, or bereavement. Tarot can sit alongside that work but cannot be the whole of it.
I drew a scary card and I'm frightened. What do I do?
Take a breath. Cards like Death, the Tower, and the Ten of Swords look dramatic and mean something far less literal: endings, structural change, the bottoming-out before recovery. None of them predict physical harm. Read the card's page slowly, notice what in your life the image actually fits, and remember that the cards describe inner weather — not outer events.
Can I use tarot instead of a doctor?
No, absolutely not. Lunarcana is not a medical device and must not be used in place of medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have a physical symptom, a medication question, or any health concern, consult a qualified doctor or pharmacist. The cards have nothing useful to say about blood pressure, lab results, or prescriptions.
Technical
Install, offline, sync, export, account — the practical edges.
What is a PWA? Do I need to install it?
A Progressive Web App is a website that installs like an app — icon on your home screen, full-screen view, faster launch. Installation is optional; Lunarcana works perfectly in a regular browser tab. On iOS, use Safari's Share → Add to Home Screen; on Android and desktop Chrome, an install prompt appears automatically after a short delay.
Can I use Lunarcana offline?
Partially. The service worker caches card images, icons, and fonts, so browsing the card library and reviewing past readings works offline. New readings require an internet connection because the interpretation is streamed live from our AI provider. Plan accordingly on a flight or in low-signal areas.
Will my data sync if I switch devices?
Yes. Sign in with Google on the new device and your readings, saved cards, preferences, and subscription status appear immediately. There is no manual export or transfer step. If you ever create a second account by mistake, contact support and we will help merge them.
Can I export my readings?
Yes. Every reading has an export menu offering JSON, PDF, and PNG (SVG) formats via /api/readings/[id]/export. JSON is available on every tier for portability and GDPR compliance. PDF and PNG are Grimoire-only because they require server rendering of the spread image. JSON captures everything — cards, positions, question, interpretation — in a format you can archive forever.
How do I delete my account?
Visit your profile page, scroll to the danger zone, and use the delete-account action. You will be asked to type DELETE to confirm. Once submitted, every row tied to your account — readings, saved cards, preferences, subscription — is removed immediately via database cascade. This action cannot be undone, so export first if you want a copy.