Le Tarot de la Grande Ourse by Lise Abbadie. Nine years in the making. NO AI. The accompanying book is in French and English.
I only found out about this stunning deck yesterday, and the campaign has just 9 days to run. It's fully funded, almost 4 times over, so no fear there. I just don't want you to miss it.
I need to tell you all* (optimism) about this fabulous new-ish deck (2024). Maybe everyone else already knows about it, but I don't get out much these days, social media-wise, so it was a Wow! moment for me when I first saw it.
The Tarot of Individuation [link], by Arpheros (Irina Chirita)
From the intro -
"The Tarot of Individuation it was born first and foremost, from a quest to bridge the gap between art, psychology and magick, aiming to guide the seeker on their own path of self-knowledge...
[It] is rooted in Jungian theory, drawing inspiration from mythology and dreams, while also incorporating astrological, alchemical and kabbalistic references to enrich its symbolism."
Irina is a self-taught artist from Romania, with studies in clinical psychology and the history of religious ideas, and a deep-seated interest in the occult.
I'm totally infatuated, and this deck has quickly become a favourite. If it has been flying under the radar, I want to help make it better known!
*US-based readers, please be aware that Irina has had to temporarily suspend shipping to the United States due to ongoing tariffs negotiations. She will announce as soon as she is able to lift the restriction.
When You're Ready to Stop Being a Control Freak [link]
I appreciated this post. I'm a strong advocate of having conversations with your cards.
A mojo/talisman for you. ❤️
Be safe, be well, be happy.
The Ace of Diamonds from Portable Fortitude Cards, by Corina Dross (2018)
Today’s Energy is one of wanting to hide away and not think about “it”. The Challenge is: I still have to do all the mundane stuff but, Gift: it will go quickly.
Spread: Plan the Day, from “Tarot Zine 01 – Everyday Spreads” by Tarot Magpie, available on Etsy.
deck: Hayworth Tarot
An example of Jase's "Here and Now" spread, aka a 'Carto-GPS'.
"A GPS for taking a quick look at where I’m going and what I need to avoid".
The Sun card (from "22 Arcanos de la Muerte") in the centre was my addition as a significator for "Today".
Top left: 1 More Of Top right: 2 Less Of
Bottom left: 3 Head Towards Bottom right: 4 Avoid
I'm not giving an interpretation. It's a reading for me. But it was on point, and reminded me what a good little spread this is. So I thought I'd share it.
deck used: Spolia
This is how I read. I've struggled to get this idea across. Cynthia Giles - Tarot | An Exploration Project - on the other hand, has done a much better job.
12.31.23 On the cusp of a new year . . .
Anyway . . . that started me thinking about pattern recognition, which I believe is the most important element in the art of Tarot divination (emphasis mine). And though you can look up a card meaning, there’s no Little White Book for pattern recognition.
Yes, a spread or layout is a pattern—but it’s a pattern chosen by the reader. And it’s meaningless without the Tarot cards themselves. A Celtic Cross laid out with pieces of blank pasteboard doesn’t convey any information.
Once a deck of Tarot cards is shuffled, then laid down in whatever arrangement, a meaningful pattern emerges. But it can just lay there, unnoticed, unless the reader is looking for it, and able to recognize it.
There might be one big pattern in a reading, or there may be many patterns. If many, they might be separate, or connected, or overlapping. So there’s a lot involved in identifying not only the patterns but their relationships and levels of energy.
Free Palestine 🇵🇸
Lenormand & Logic - As usual, Stella is spot on. A copy of this, and the Philippe LeNormand sheet (pictured), should be included with every Lenormand deck sold!
John Beckett's post Magical Ethics: How You Do Anything Is How You Do Everything is possibly the most clear and rational examination of the topic I've yet come across. Here are some of my favourite 'moments' -
"... ethics don’t exist to help people avoid punishment. Ethics exist to help people do the right thing in the first place."
"I can’t give you a bunch of rules to follow. If you need rules you're in the wrong religion."
"Ultimately there are no special ethics around magic. There are just ordinary ethics applied in a magical context."
Chris Egon Searle is not just the “hardest” man in tarot, he's one of the most sensible.
“People... want very spiritual answers that only apply to them...
They want [advice that’s really complicated] because they know they can’t follow it...
They can... use the complexity as an excuse of why it didn’t work.”
I think this goes some way towards explaining why many people who have something that’s concerning them are unwilling to ask a direct question about it and opt instead for a random spiritual message. If they got a clear and actionable answer to their question, they’d either have to do the thing or deliberately ignore the advice.
On the variations in meanings inherent in all card systems, and how and why we should find our own way.
Seasons Tune: Ad Astra (blog post)
Update - The deck is still available for download but is now behind a minimum pay wall.
The lovely Kristen, teacher of art-meets-oracle classes and maker of tarot and oracle decks, has added a FREE TO DOWNLOAD "Spooky Season" themed 32-card oracle over on Ko-Fi.
link: Blood Moon Oracle
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| image by Kristen - Over The Moon Magic |
I'm having an "Easter" break from RRs today. Instead, I've set up another
for your entertainment.
I chose an appropriate card from the Magdalene Oracle
by Toni Carmine Salerno.
"The question of using tradition or intuition is one I see often in various cartomancy and tarot groups. Being a traditional reader or an intuitive reader. Well, most people use these terms without even defining them..."