Review of Tarot of the Bones Deck & Companion Book by Lupa The Tarot of the Bones is a “natural history-themed” divination set created and published by Lupa. I was looking forward to receiving this deck because of its author and creator, who I first discovered years ago when researching therianthropy. Because of her long history of working in an honorable way with the hides and bones and fur of animals, I could not think of a better person than Lupa to create a bone-themed Tarot deck. I’m pleased to say that Lupa did not disappoint me. The Tarot of Bones deck has 79 cards with beautiful images of bones…

The Queen of Wands (The Queen of Wands Card is from the artist Ciro Marchetti http://www.ciromarchetti.com/)** Welcome to the year 2018! We have one more Queen to talk about, the Queen of Wands, so let’s get started. First, let’s review some information about the royal family of the Tarot. A Tarot deck has 78 cards. There are 22 Major Arcana cards, with numbers from 0 to 21; the Majors usually deal with broader and more far-reaching life experience issues, archetypes that are easy for us to identify with and connect with at some point in our lives. There are 56 Minor Arcana cards that are customarily grouped into four categories or…

The Queen of Cups   (The Queen of Cups Card is from the artist Ciro Marchetti http://www.ciromarchetti.com/)**   We haven’t talked about the Court Cards of the Tarot in a while, so this month we will examine a Tarot “royal,” the Queen of Cups. First, let’s review some information about the royal family of the Tarot. A Tarot deck has 78 cards. There are 22 Major Arcana cards, with numbers from 0 to 21; the Majors usually deal with broader and more far-reaching life experience issues, archetypes that are easy for us to identify with and connect with at some point in our lives. There are 56 Minor Arcana cards that…

The Hanged (or Hanging) Man We in the Northern Hemisphere are currently in a fallow time, pausing between the Third Harvest of Samhain and the return of the sun at Yule. Since we are in an energetic pause, this might be a good time to look at the Major Arcana card known as The Hanged (or Hanging) Man. First, we should quickly define and describe some terms. There are 22 Major Arcana cards in a Tarot deck, with numbers from 0 to 21; the Majors usually deal with broader and more far-reaching life experience issues, archetypes that are easy for us to identify with and connect with at some point…

The Goddess Tarot Deck created and Illustrated by Kris Waldherr Published by U.S. Games Systems, Inc., Stamford, CT; the deck is printed in Italy. Inside the softly-colored box are the 78-card deck, a 3 ¼ x 4 ½ inch “Little White Book” containing an introduction by the author, card meanings, and a description of the Celtic Cross spread, a 207 page 4 ½ by 7 inch softcover companion book, and a 20 inch by 17 inch template or layout sheet for a Celtic Cross spread, showing card positioning and position meanings. The theme of this deck as indicated by its title, The Goddess Tarot, is the Divine Feminine, and Ms.…

  Ten of Pentacles/Disks/Coins   Let’s continue with our exploration of the Tens of the Tarot Minor Arcana, this time talking about the Ten of Pentacles. If you haven’t already read the articles on the Ten of Cups and the Ten of Swords, now might be a good time to check them out. As always, here is a bit of basic foundational information about the Tens of the Tarot Minor Arcana. A Tarot deck has 78 cards. There are 22 Major Arcana cards, with numbers from 0 to 21; the Majors usually deal with broader and more far-reaching life experience issues, archetypes that are easy for us to identify with…

  Instant Tarot: Your Complete Guide to Reading the Cards by Monte Farber and Amy Zerner, published in 2017 by Weiser Books, Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC, Newburyport, MA 01950, soft cover, 259 pages. Instant Tarot is published as a paperback, with a color cover printed on typical soft-cover stock, measuring 8 ½ by 5 ½ inches. The interior pages consist of black and white card images and nicely-sized typeface printed on white paper. Instant Tarot is different from most of the how-to-read-the-Tarot books available to students and enthusiasts of the Tarot. This book uses a system for understanding and interpreting the cards in a traditional Tarot deck that is based on…

Death (The Death Card is from the artist Ciro Marchetti http://www.ciromarchetti.com/)** This month, since we are heading toward Samhain and Halloween, we will return to the Major Arcana, and talk about Death. The Tarot Major Arcana card Death, that is. Once we take a closer look at this card, you will come to understand that the Death card rarely foretells death of the physical body, and it really is something to be celebrated, not feared. Before we begin, let’s remind ourselves of some terms. If you know them, go ahead and skip down to where we talk about the traditional image of the card. There are 22 Major Arcana cards in a…

Ten of Cups (The Ten of Cups Card is from the artist Ciro Marchetti http://www.ciromarchetti.com/)** Last month we finally talked about the Tens of the Minor Arcana, discussing the Ten of Swords. Let’s reexamine the Tens, this time looking at the Ten of Cups. If you haven’t already read last month’s essay, now might be a good time to check it out. As always, here is a bit of basic foundational information about the Tens of the Tarot Minor Arcana. A Tarot deck has 78 cards. There are 22 Major Arcana cards, with numbers from 0 to 21; the Majors usually deal with broader and more far-reaching life experience issues, archetypes that…

Tarot Mysteries: Rediscovering the Real Meaning of the Cards by Jonathan Dee Published by Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc., Charlottesville, VA (previously published in 2003 by Zambezi Publishing, Limited, Devon, UK) Soft Cover, 321 pages The Tarot Mysteries is published as a paperback, with a glossy cover printed on typical soft-cover stock, measuring 8 ½ by 5 ½ inches. The interior pages consist of black and white tables and card images and nicely-sized typeface printed on a cream-colored paper that feels substantial under my fingers, as if it will stand up to lots of turning back and forth to revisit pages in the book. That is good, because in my…