Today’s featured Tarot deck is now kept inside this sweet, slightly beat-up old box. I don’t currently remember the source of the box, nor do I remember when I got this deck.
The Tarot of the Spirit is dated 1992. It’s possible I bought it at one of the many metaphysical shops I used to visit. I think all but two of those are gone now, and I mostly shop at only one of them because I so love the vibe there. There are more shops scattered around Houston, but again, This Pandemic™ keeps me home or mostly frequenting places closer to me where the merchandise and layout is familiar enough for me to get in and out quickly. (This reminds me: My favorite antique mall is moving further away. [sad face])
The reason I think I bought The Tarot of the Spirit at a shopkeeper’s recommendation is because the little book that came with the deck isn’t very detailed, so I was likely upsold this 400-plus-page book written by the deck’s creator, Pamela Eakins.
Eakins offers several different layouts for readings. If I ever did readings for myself or anyone else, I don’t remember anything about them. The deck has the usual 22 major arcana cards, here called the Tarot Keys. I pulled four of them to give you a sense of the art.
The Wheel of Fortune, The Lovers, The Star, and The Moon
The 56 minor arcana cards are in suits called Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth. The book provides a divinatory meaning, meditation, and interpretation for each card. I pulled these four to show you that after the 1 to 10 cards, the higher cards are Mother, Father, Sister, and Brother. I chose from the four different suits.
If this deck interests or intrigues you, and you want a deck that can be further enhanced by a detailed book to help you understand or use it, you can see all the cards on this site.
There’s one other card in the deck, called “the Mystery Card.” There is also a divinatory and meditation explanation for it.
Disclaimer: I am no expert on this subject. Because I no longer study and practice with any decks, and because “a little knowledge is a dangerous thing,” as my mother used to say (likely derived from Alexander Pope’s “a little learning is a dangerous thing”), I no longer do readings for anyone. If I do a rare reading for myself, it’s mostly to prompt introspection and perspective about something that has me puzzled. I particularly like pulling cards for characters, when I’m a little stuck while writing, to help me think more about who they are and how to show that. I enjoy the art, beauty, and symbolism of many tarot decks (most recently, the Crow and Muse decks both piqued my interest) and how they reflect the personalities and journeys of their creators. In that way, they are like other things that can inspire me and engage my interest, such as books, music, and art.
I like this deck.
I think it’s far better to interpret the cards for oneself, rather than someone else – unless the interpreter really knows what they are doing.
I agree. A writer with a story each in two of the collections Tim and I edited was once told by a card reader that he’d never be published. So…
However, most of us probably see the answers we WANT to see, and a good reader can help us understand that’s what we’re doing and offer a different perspective.