Deck Review - Wizards Tarot

I have waited years for the Wizards Tarot by Corrine Kenner and John Blumen, and I was breathless with anticipation when I got the shipping notice for it.  This was easily my most anticipated deck in a year full of great ones.  You can explore the Wizards Tarot more fully here on the website.

This deck is computer generated images, CGI, and done in the traditional style of 22 Major Arcana with 56 Minor Arcana divided into four suits, which are Wands for fire, Cups for water, Swords for Air, Pentacles for earth, nothing surprising there.  The backdrop is a school for magical arts, a wizarding school, if you will, and the tagline for the deck is "Welcome to Mandrake Academy, where you are the student and tarot is the teacher."  The Major Arcana are stunning and original, truly adding a new flavor to the archetypes of tarot.  Chiron, the ever suffering centaur from Greek mythology, strikes me as a particularly brilliant choice for taking the place of the more traditional Hierophant in this deck.  Many Waite Smith derived decks have a harsh and cold looking man of God to represent him, but I feel much more comfortable approaching Chiron for the wisdom of the cosmos than a stuffy ol’ bishop.  Another amazing choice is Odin as The Hanged Man,  surrounded by runes and ravens.  These images make me want to delve deep into the myths that surround them, and the book is very obliging, giving a great start to any student.  Traditionally “difficult” cards, like Death, here renamed Transfiguration, the Devil, The Dark Lord here, and the Tower, are all rendered powerfully, but without scary images.  They are not needed to make the point.

The Minor Arcana are heavily Waite Smith based, which is great for those new to tarot, as so many decks today are based on that deck.  Generally, I urge my students to go to the source, and learn on a Waite Smith deck, but some people really do not get on with the art, and since tarot is all about images, enjoying the art is key to learning.  The art of the Minors varies, from as stunning as the Majors, to at times being slightly stiff and awkward.  I feel this is common is CGI decks, and in readings has not proved problematic.  The court cards are represented by elemental beings - fiery, salamander/humanoid beings for Wands, merfolk for the watery Cups, fae for airy Swords, and gnomes for the earthy suit of Pentacles.  I take personal issue with my significator card, the Queen of Pentacles, not being as traditionally beautiful as I would like to see myself, but that is personal preference only, and I am growing fond of her other charms.  I find the court cards to be very expressive, which is helpful when trying to read these cards that generally represent people or facets of personality; just what they are expressing does not always jive with what I thought I knew about them, and that is okay.  It’s good to stretch and grow and see things from new perspectives.

The book is one of the best I have ever read on tarot, and being that I have read hundreds, I think that is high praise.  I prefer my students refrain from reading any books as they learn to read tarot, but the given meanings are concise and to the point.  The real gem of this companion book, in my opinion, are the extra tidbits of information, mythos and magic, rune lore and astrology, that accompany each Major Arcana.  The Minors are written about with affirmations, as well, and the spreads in this book are amazing.  I want to try them all, all at once!  The book is written in clear language, is well researched, and is one I would purchase on its’ own were it not a companion book.  It’s that good!

My readings with the deck have been accurate and flowing.  The previously mentioned awkwardness of some of the Minors did not seem as evident when laying cards down side by side as it did when assessing the cards individually.  I would read for anyone with this deck, although there is no denying The Moon is sensual and lovely, and the Queen of Cups is a mermaid in traditional mermaid garb, which is to say nothing but shimmery scales, so those who are opposed to the suggestion of the female breast might take issue with those cards.  Personally, I would prefer my children to see pictures of nudity, of which there is none overt in this deck, than pictures of violence.  Many of the professors of this school are beautiful, and I do not take issue with that.  If I had the power to make myself look however I chose, I would appear physically beautiful as well.

There has been a lot of online chatter about this deck, and people seem to either really love or hate the possible correlation to the world of Harry Potter.  I would just like to say that while using this deck, there is a feel of the Harry Potter world, but I think describing that world as a wizarding school world would be more apt.  J.K. Rowling was  not the first writer to take on the idea of a school for learning magic, nor will she be the last.  It wasn’t a unique idea for her, nor for the creators of this deck, but their take on it is what makes it special, in both cases.

Physically, the deck and book comes packaged in a flimsy box that fell apart before I even opened it.  The glue seems to be bad, and Amazon shipped it poorly packaged, so the box was smashed as well.  This disappointed me, as a collector, but I also have a copy that came from Tarot Garden, in perfect condition.  The inner box is basically useless, being extremely flimsy and far too large for the cards.  I hope Llewellyn will get with the program soon and at least give us decent packaging for its’ decks.  They can look to Lo Scarabeo, who they distribute for in the US, for good ideas of snug fitting boxes and box sets with cunning spaces for the deck, or even better, Schiffer, with their sturdy boxes.  The cards are backed and bordered with cobalt blue and gold scrollwork, and I think  you would be able to tell if they are reversed or not, if that matters to you.  The titles are unobtrusive, and the Majors are left unnumbered for those who like to order them in a particular way.  The cardstock is satiny, not heavily laminated, and shuffles beautifully.  The cards are what I would term a “typical” tarot size, about 4.5” x 2.75”, and they fit nicely in my average sized hand.

I think this deck would be good for beginners to tarot who enjoy the world of Harry Potter, and I feel like people who enjoy CGI of all reading levels would like this deck, for the most part.  More experienced readers who want to add more astrology, runes, myth, and magic lore to their readings will benefit greatly from the companion book, no matter what deck they may use.  What keeps this deck from being 5 stars, for me, is that I would have preferred interpretations of the Minor Arcana to have headed in a new direction in tarot, being based on but not exact replicas of the decks that have come before, and I feel the Majors demonstrated that the creators were fully capable of doing that.  Overall, I find this to be an enjoyable, easy to read deck that will grace my shelves forever, and I, as ever, I find Corrine Kenner’s writing to be succinct, knowledgeable, and relevant.  Thank you!

 

The Wizards Tarot by Corrine Kenner and John Blumen is published by Llewellyn Books, and has a dedicated website, as well as being available wherever books are sold, including Amazon.

Monday Majors- Theme for the Week: The Moon

Interestingly, to me at least, I have not drawn The Moon for blogging in all this time, which is not to say that I have not drawn The Moon at all.  The Moon and me, we have a great relationship.  I ask questions, and she teases me with shadows of thoughts and whispers that almost make sense, and then I have to chase them down the fairy trail, eager for more, silvery tendrils caressing my face.

I love The Moon.  I think she is beautiful, and I love to bask in her light.  I am not sure the artist of this card loved her as much as I do, though.  The tattered wings of the angel don't seem to be good for much, just a painful reminder of what was, and is no more.  The colors of the card are discordant to me, jarring even.  The wolf on the right and the dog on the left are scruffy, mangy, not seeming to care for themselves as such noble animals usually do.  The valley of shadow the angel is about to pass through seems to be made up of wayward spirits and lost souls.  No help comes from the distant towers, which look on, cold and unfeeling.

I may have some dark places to walk through this week, not inherently evil, but dark nonetheless.  I will have to lean on my own intuition, and I will have to walk through, because my wings are useless, for the moment.  I am filled with fear, but I know the Lord of Light can restore all that has been lost, if only I am brave and true enough to follow where He leads.  The Moon appears to teach us to trust in our deepest knowing, to cause us to stretch and grow, to strengthen our vision in the weaker light of the reflected sun.  I kneel, and I pray, and I remember, "To thine own self be true." and "I will never leave you nor forsake you."

Update: March 28, 2011- The Moon has chosen to manifest itself in my life in interesting ways this week.  I have had several incidents of deeply claircognizant experiences, which my logical mind wants to talk me out of.  Sometimes, I just know things, and there is a feeling of calm over my entire body when that is happening, and what I pay attention to in order to learn to trust.  Sometimes it happens when I am reading for people, but it often just comes unbidden, and I am learning to trust that feeling, because when I follow it in my own life, I always do better, and when I follow it in reading for others, those readings are better.  I'm not gonna lie, though, it's scary as hell...

This card is from the Templar Tarot by Allen Chester, available here.

Stroke of Luck Reading - St. Patty's Day 2011

Top o' the morning to you, and kiss me I'm Irish... Not really, I am Mohegan Indian and Scottish, got my last name from a German ex husband, about to be married to an Irish boy, so close enough, right?

Today I am using Eowyn's Stroke of Luck Spread, with the gorgeous Deirdre of the Sorrows tarot deck, which is not sorrowful at all.  The first card is your next stroke of luck, the second how it will come about.  I drew a third one to add some information to the King of Swords.

My next stroke of luck will be the Nine of Cups, the Wish Card!  How cool is that?  It's validation that exactly what I wish for is exactly what is good for me, and what is going to make me happy.  It has long been my theory that God puts the desires on our hearts that reflect His deepest plan for us, and I am all too happy to try to oblige.

So, what would make me most happy?  I am with the love of my life, every single day, and my kids are all happy, healthy, working on getting wise.  I have a home I love, bright and airy, and a family that makes me glad to be alive.  I have a man that's home every night, a best friend that loves me and unequivocally has my back.  Those are the main things I have ever wanted.

My deepest desire that is so far unfulfilled is to write.  No, I take that back.  I already write.  It is to write and be published.  It's to create beauty, to create emotion, to touch and change the world in ways both tangible and not.

It will come about through the King of Swords and the Ace of Cups- the phrase that comes to mind to describe these cards together is infinite mercy.  The King of Swords is powerful and just, and the Ace of Cups is overflowing with love and deep emotion.

The Ace of Cups strikes me as a very good card to temper the colder, more logical side of the King of Swords.  It makes a person seem well balanced, seeking the truth, but not placing it above love and kindness.





These cards are from the Deirdre of the Sorrows tarot self published by Deirdre O'Donoghue.

Daily Draw - Four of Swords, The Empress, The Devil

I gotta be frank with y'all, The Obstacle card, Four of Swords, doesn't really look like all that much of an obstacle to me.  You have Hecate lying there with her man, looking pretty peaceful, if not overly passionate (and no, that's not the problem *grin*).

I think this card refers to the general lack of motivation I feel today.  It's overcast, and springtime in the Rockies means it's either bitter cold or searing hot, none of that gentle spring rain most of you seem to enjoy.  Today it's cold, and I would very much like to curl up in bed with someone else's book and read the day away.  I would very much like to take that break.  But this would not be a good day for that.  I have a project I am working on, and duties call.

It's very easy for me to get confused about productive downtime and just plain procrastination, because for a writer, daydreaming IS part of the work, sometimes, and to write well, and to read tarot well, I need quiet times of contemplation and connecting to Source.  The difficulty comes when I do not differentiate well, when I am dishonest with myself and I let my meditation time turn into nap time, or watching trashy reality tv time.  I have to be aware of that today.

The Way Through the Obstacle, The Empress.  Just as I suspected - it's time for me to let creativity flow, not time to rest.

The Empress is associated with Venus, goddess of love and beauty, fertile and nubile.  Today is a good day for me to focus on the birthing process of the creative project I am working on.  I am reluctant to turn to my writing this morning because what I wrote yesterday made me cry, big fat wet tears, not pretty sedate ones, but the kind that wrack your body and leave you snuffling and weak, headachey and thoroughly wrung out.  I don't want to do that again today, but birth IS painful.  Worth it, but painful.

This Empress is advising me to armor myself in beautiful things, beautiful thoughts, and to go ahead and get on with it.  If it warms up enough I will take my writing outside and sit in the grass, feel the sun upon my face, smell the breeze as it wafts against my skin.

The Devil as The Outcome makes me chuckle.  This is a great example of how "difficult" cards aren't always, and how every single card has a range of meaning, light and dark, and why having specific intentions about the position of each card in a reading works for me.  If I was just doing a free form reading, no positions, I could very easily fall into the trap of thinking this card holds doom and gloom for me, that no matter what I do today I am not going to be able to escape the shadow of the Devil.

But, since this card is the Outcome of following the good advice, I can be assured that I can look for its' light meaning.  The advice card, The Empress, and The Devil, are both sensual cards, excessive cards, of pleasure and enjoyment.  Once I have completed my tasks for the day, I can join my honey for dinner and a glass of wine, and maybe we can cut loose a little, and really enjoy the fruits of our labors.  A couple hours of Devil energy is good for the soul.  It's when we let our desires rule us, instead of ruling them, we get into trouble.

As an alternate, somewhat evil reading, these cards made me think of a relationship going down the tubes, and getting pregnant accidentally-on-purpose, resulting in a whole host of other problems, not really addressing the main one.  This is not the case for me, but I like to illustrate how cards can be read differently at different times.  The Man and I are solid, and our baby is nine years old.  If we had the resources we would probably have five more kids, but our hands are quite full with what we have, thank you, and while I am completely crazy about my children I am also looking forward to the far off day when I am free to travel and make love and live my life on my own schedule alone.  And He feels that even more strongly than I do, haha!





Update:  I was able to maintain concentration through the time I needed to, and make some progress on important projects.  Then we went to dinner, where all of our senses were thoroughly indulged - crisp white wine, creamy tomato caprese, ravioli filled with cheese, fried potatoes, tiramisu.  It was a good reward for a good day's work.


These cards are from The Kingdom Within Tarot by Juno Lucina and Shannon Thornfeather for Schiffer Books.

WTF Tarot - Why Am I So Grouchy?

Welcome to a new section in my blogging, WTF Tarot.  Many, many times I shuffle thinking exactly that, and I get good answers!

So, WTF, tarot!  Why am I so grouchy tonight?  Nine of Cups... Seriously?  I am in such a foul mood because I pretty much have everything I ever wanted?  What kind of ungrateful brat am I?  The Man is in the kitchen, doing dishes, an act I would normally find unbearably sexy, but it is just annoying me now.  I should be doing the dishes.  I am the one that works at home now, and it's my kids that dirtied the dishes, and I hate that he feels like he should do them even though he worked all day.

But... I worked all day too.  That is actually my biggest hurdle I am finding, separating work from relaxing time.  And I don't want to do the dishes tonight.  I would rather do them with the bright morning sunshine streaming in the window, listening to the radio, planning the evening's meal.  Right now I just want to read, and lay in bed with a bowl of popcorn and a soda and something mindless to distract.

Second biggest hurdle - Here I am, safe and warm and loved, I am so loved right now, just me as I am, warts and ridiculous number of tarot decks and moodiness and full Taurean-ness and all, and this is probably the first time in my entire life that has been the case.  Even my mama didn't love me unconditionally.  I am pursuing my life's dreams, writing, tarot, and I have my family all together every single night, and those are the only things in life I have ever really wanted.  And I spend sooooo damn much time worrying about losing it.

So what can I do about that?  Temperance- I get this stupid, stinky ol' card when I am not doing a good job of actively managing the details of my life.  I get this card when my anxiety is flaring and I know moving my body and eating right and meditating and yoga-ing out would help and I know that but sometimes it just seems like so much work to go through just to function as a normal human being.  I get this card because that angel is not going to do my work for me.  He has his own.  I have to actually do it myself, and in the practical application of good ideas is where I fall apart.  Inspiration I have in spades.  Or maybe Wands.  But I struggle with the details.

I guess I gotta go to bed now.  The yoga isn't going to stretch itself come 5am.  Any possibility that angel over there is mixing me a Cosmo?





These cards, on whom my foul mood should not be blamed, are from the Morgan Greer Tarot by Bill F. Greer and David Morgan for U.S. Games.

Tea Leaf Tuesday - March 15, 2011

My intention is to draw seven Tea Leaf Fortune Cards every Tuesday to gain insight into what the week ahead may have in store for me.  Who knows how this will turn out, because I do not use cards for divination all that often; more like cheap therapy.

I will probably take whoever is leaving my life pretty hard, which is just like me, because once people are in my life, I like to keep 'em, but it is actually for the best, as I will  move forward spiritually through it and the problem will not be long lasting.

The "Broom" refers to the fact that this is spring cleaning week in my new-to-me-house.  Thanks, Tea Leaf Fortune Cards!  I knew that, though!

I'll be back next Tuesday to look this spread over and make comments on its' accuracy.

Update, March 22, 2011: My major challenge to overcome and sorrow over a loss manifested in the taxes not quite going the way I thought they were going to, but that is okay.  Something is better than nothing, fo' sho!  The person leaving my life is a social worker, who while sweet, compassionate, and doing a great job at what she does, I feel is unnecessary, and she has exited our family scene, forever, I hope, and I do wish her well!  It's good to have these kinds of services for people who need them, but I don't think that applies to my family.  Still, I am grateful that they came, even if I am resentful of the false claim that brought them.  The temporary problems speak of that, and the money situation, as well as a tiny misunderstanding type spat between The Man and I, but they were swept away quickly, like always with us.  My spiritual development is coming from committing to a course in study of The Inner Temple Of Witchcraft: Magick, Meditation, and Psychic Development by Christopher Penczak, which if nothing else I believe will strengthen my reading abilities for tarot, and enhance my creative flow for writing.  I am also honored to be a student in my friend Joy's class, Intuitive Astrology, which seems to be the only way I can learn the stuff, and I would like to so that I can enhance my tarot reading as well.  Spring cleaning goes on, and on, and on...

I am most pleased with the Tea Leaf Reading for this week, and I think as I learn to speak the language of these cards I will get better at interpreting them in advance.  Stay tuned!

These cards are the Tea Leaf Fortune Cards by Rae Hepburn and Shawna Alexander.

Daily Draw - Two of Swords, Six of Pentacles, Four of Cups

Again, with The Obstacle - The Way Through the Obstacle - The Outcome spread for today.

The Obstacle: The Two of Swords is generally a card I feel good about and enjoy, it usually feels peaceful to me, and this one is labeled with the keyword "Harmony", which should be comforting, but this card in this deck, in this reading, makes me decidedly uncomfortable.  The jester character in the forefront seems like he is about to wreak some serious havoc on the peace the couple in the background seem to have come to.  The castle makes me feel like this has to do with our home, as in our home is our castle.  The Man and I are peaceful together, and are generally in complete agreement on how to run our life together.  This shady character peeking out from his blindfold, though, is an interloper.  I have the impression he is about to rip his blindfold off, turn to the couple, sword in each hand, and launch an attack.

This card is the Moon in Libra, which I can see as being difficult because the Moon is not always what it seems, and Libra energy prefers everything be on the up and up, bright Sun shining, no secrets, no intrigue.

The Way Through The Obstacle: I often associate the Six of Pentacles with charity, and sharing of resources, but the resources in this card are not necessarily material.  They aren't coins trickling from careless fingers to needy ones.  What I see here is pure, uncensored love, and "Prosperity" that does not always have to do with what we have and what we can buy.  This is a rendition of generosity that has more to do with our spiritual gifts than or material ones.

As an advice card, I take this to mean that the problem I may face today should be met with compassion, and creativity.  I can see the answer being something I can do, write, or perform a reading on, or perhaps the empathy I can share will be helpful and remedy the situation somewhat.  I think those things might be part of the answer because they are what I see as my gifts, what I have to share with the world.  Metaphorically speaking, possibly I am meant to snatch that creepy ol' jester up and love on him as much as either one of us can stand.  *smile*

Outcome: Four of Cups.  In this card, the female figure looks resigned.  She is neither thrilled, nor gutted by the result, which is sometimes the best we can ask for in a difficult situation.  It's just okay, and sometimes that has to be just okay.

So my summary of this reading is to be aware of some outside force disrupting the harmony of my home or partnerships today, and to meet that force from a place of love, to apply my unique talents to situation, resulting in an outcome that is improved, and certainly livable, for the moment at least.




Update:  It turns out that the Interloper up there had nothing to do with any person outside of my house, but had to do with me, my foul mood in the late afternoon and evening, and my flaring anxiety that likes to eff with my head.  Anxiety is all about thoughts, unjust ones, usually untrue ones, as it were, and sneaky to boot.  I shoulda seen that coming!  I did not do a good job of caring for myself and turning my own thoughts around, but The Man was exceedingly careful of me and tried very hard to share his good feelings with me, and in a strange juxtaposition my NicNoodle decided to use some oracle cards to give me a reading, which was amazingly accurate as well as unbearably sweet!  She proclaimed reading the cards made her feel close to me, and calmer herself, which is often the case, and mirrors the image of the Madonna and child as advice, though not the way I would have expected.  I was the one being cared for.  My daughter is so deeply empathic, and a Scorpio to boot, that she does not always know how to deal with these emotions that come from outside herself.  I ended the evening feeling better, content, if not well satisfied, and resolved to sleep well, curled up against the love of my life, and to wake this morning better able to cope with the world at large.  So far, so good!

These cards are from The Kingdom Within Tarot by Juno Lucina and Shannon Thornfeather for Schiffer Books.