Spirit Within Tarot

In my last post, I mentioned a Tarot group that I participate in once a month (or more). When our group meets, we all read on the same subject and share our cards and interpretations with the group. A few of the members have inquired about some of the decks I use, so I thought I would post a few of them here for anyone in the Tarot group or anyone else who is interested.

This is not a deck review. I just want to share a few details about the deck and check on the availability of it since some of the decks I use are rare, hard to find or out of print.

The Spirit Within Tarot is a Waite-Smith based deck that uses silhouettes for the figures in the cards. In my experience, the cards stimulate intuitive readings by using the shadowy but familiar figures and carefully chosen colors and details.

The Empress and Page of Swords from the Spirit Within Tarot

The images are easy to read and do not overwhelm you with information. The cards seem to get right to the point when you ask them a question.

Justice and the Ace of Cups from the Spirit Within Tarot

The deck comes in a nice magnetic box with a full-color booklet. It has a “voice of the card” blurb for each card in the deck. For example, the sentence for the Justice card is, “I am the one who will reward or punish you for the seeds you have sown, whether you still remember them or not!” Then there is a description of the images on the card, a paragraph about how to think about or interpret the card, and some keywords. Keywords listed for Justice are: fairness, balance, karma, the truth.

The deck was published by Red Feather in 2018, but is still available. There are copies on Amazon for $20, or you can get one for $25 if you prefer to support a small business like Tarot Garden.

https://tarotgarden.com/spirit-within-tarot/

Benebell Wen did a great review of this deck and her images are waaaaaay better than mine. She wisely chose not to photograph the deck in a dark house during a thunderstorm with white Husky fur on her reading mat.

https://benebellwen.com/2018/06/26/spirit-within-tarot-by-steven-bright/

My June 2024 Tarot Reading

For a long time, I’ve been meaning to write a blog post about how to tell a good Tarot reader from a fake one. I haven’t written that post yet, and will not do it now, but I do have first-hand information about what getting a good Tarot reading is like.

I’m part of a group of Tarot readers who get together once a month (or sometimes more often) to talk about current events and practice Tarot reading together. One of the readers in the group offered to do practice readings for those in our group in one-on-one settings, so I volunteered. The reader, G.C., set up a Zoom meeting for us, and we met this evening for my Tarot reading.

In order to prepare for the reading, I had to think about my question. There are at least five areas of my life that are competing for attention right now, so I wanted G.C. to look into least one or two of them during our reading. I told her that I had a lot going on in at least five areas of my life, and I was thrilled to hear that G.C. wasn’t overwhelmed by all I have going on. She said she’d throw cards on all five areas to get a general sense of what’s going on currently each situation. I ended up only asking about four areas of life/situations, and G.C. still read for me for almost an hour. For each question, she focused on the area of inquiry, shuffled, and laid the cards down in front of her. Then G.C. picked each card up one at a time and held it in front of the camera to show me the card and describe her interpretation of it. (Note: G.C. pulled several cards for each situation. After our reading and using my own deck, I pulled three cards from my notes about each of G.C.’s readings. I’ve photographed and uploaded them to highlight a few for this blog post.)

“Situation 1.” This situation is a potential opportunity to return to something (work) I did earlier in life. The opportunity arose in a convoluted way, and also out of nowhere, it seems. I have a lot of history with this work “thing”; some experiences were really good and some were absolutely terrible. I’m excited about it when I think about the good times, but I’m also cautious about re-engaging with it. I’m also somewhat concerned that I’ll be pressed to make a quick decision about whether or not I choose to act on the opportunity.

Situation 1 cards: The Devil, Death, Ten of Wands

G.C. pulled several cards (three lines of five cards, if I remember correctly) for this situation and the cards that appeared are troublesome. When she showed them to me, I felt like they reflected my concerns. There weren’t many cards that spoke to the good history I had with the work “thing”. The Ten of Wands really shows how burdened I was by all of the responsibility (and other negative aspects), and that card may be cautioning me that I’d be overly burdened by it again.

Sign of a good Tarot reader: When reading about a concerning situation, they pull cards that reflect your concerns. The cards may reflect your fears or concerns back to you. They may confirm that your intuition or gut feelings about the concerning situation are right on.

Some of my worries about re-engaging with Situation 1 have to do with problematic things that transpired in the past, and the way it burdened me. I told G.C. that Situation 1 is “the Devil I know”. In other words, if I find myself there again, I have a good idea of the problems I may encounter. In response, G.C. made it clear that she would not tell me what to do (in terms of acting on the opportunity or not), but it was obvious to both of us from the cards she pulled that this is something that doesn’t look like an especially attractive offer at this time. G.C. told me to trust my intuition.

“Situation 2.” G.C. asked if I had any questions or needed any additional cards thrown for Situation 1. When I said “no”, she said she’d read on Situation 2. G.C. said she had another deck handy and would use it for reading about the next area of inquiry.

Sign of a good Tarot reader: The reader is prepared. G.C. was so prepared, in fact, that she used FOUR different decks to read on each of the four different situations I described. While this is not meant to imply that every Tarot reader should have multiple decks, or use multiple decks for readings, but in this case all four decks were very helpful. There were certain cards that appeared multiple times. The Sun, Queen of Wands, Nine of Cups and Six of Wands each appeared more than once. G.C. explained that because she used multiple decks, we could be certain that those cards that showed up more than once were absolutely meant to appear. We did not need to wonder if they appeared multiple times due to insufficient shuffling because G.C. used a different deck for each situation.

Situation 2 cards: The Empress, Three of Pentacles, The Sun

The cards for Situation 2 had a much better feel to them. The Empress represents abundance and, as G.C. mentioned, a mother figure who, in this case, appreciates me. The Sun card appeared to represent happiness and joy. The Three of Pentacles shows a positive collaboration. The most negative card that appeared in the reading on this topic was the Two of Swords (inner conflict). G.C. and I both felt that the Two of Swords popped up in the reading only because of my own indecision/anxiety about Situation 2 as a whole.

G.C. told me her interpretation of each card based on what she was hearing (she’s clairaudient) and the feel of the energy of each card as she pulled it. It was super helpful to get her take on the situation since she’s an objective person reading the cards (as opposed to a person close to the situation with biased opinions).

“Situation 3.” I didn’t really plan to ask about this topic, but did so on a whim. G.C. pulled another deck to use (all were variations of the Waite-Smith deck) to read about this area of my life. When she was shuffling, it was as if I could feel her tapping into the energy of the situation.

Situation 3 cards: Ace of Wands, Ten of Swords, The Hanged Man

Sign of a good Tarot reader: You can feel them accessing the information that answers your question. Or, put another way, you can feel them accessing the situation so they can access the information that will answer your question.

G.C.’s body language and facial expression changed when shuffling the cards to read about each situation. For this Situation 3, the energy I picked up from her was different than when she read on the other topics. It was almost like she was sitting next to me, looking at all things related to my business (which was Situation 3, the question I asked). G.C. didn’t need to travel the entire universe, turn around and come back again to get the answer to my question. She just needed to tap into the energy of my business, focus on the cards, shuffle and interpret what she saw, which is exactly what she did.

Many, if not most, of the cards for this topic were favorable. G.C. didn’t know anything about my business, and I didn’t tell her anything about it prior to her shuffling, but the cards she pulled seemed exactly right. Two cards that appeared next to each other were the Ace of Wands (new ideas, beginnings) and the Ten of Swords (a card of loss). G.C. gave me her interpretation, which included the word “growth”, but also “something coming to an end”, which referred to the Ten of Swords. This is exactly in alignment with some of my (hopefully) evolved thinking about my business based on recent advice from teachers and other business owners and practitioners. My plan is to focus on what’s currently working in my business including new areas of growth (Ace of Wands), and temporarily discontinue or simply no longer offer (Ten of Swords) some of the other services I’ve provided to clients.

Interestingly, G.C. mentioned meditation when the Hanged Man card appeared in the reading. Key words for the Hanged Man include surrender, hindrance, and delay, but it can also mean a change of perspective. G.C. said she saw me meditating on something. Again, I didn’t tell her about my business or anything I offer (with the exception of Tarot readings, which I only mentioned as something that I may discontinue based on the Ace of Wands + Ten of Swords combination). But she was right on with her interpretation. Meditation is an important aspect of my practice so I can provide some of the services I offer here. Certain healing techniques require weeks of meditative practice before I can offer them to another person (or animal). Even then, I must regularly use the technique to keep that certain vibration in my auric field or I will temporarily lose the ability I gained through practice. At that point, I would have to start over again from scratch, and meditate daily again until I can hold and then transfer that certain vibration to the client. Other techniques are done entirely with focused conscious awareness and are then “sent” to the client remotely, which obviously takes practice. At any rate, this meditative skill is obviously an area of continued focus since I do so much healing through distance, so G.C. got it right.

“Situation 4.” I was laughing out loud when G.C. started shuffling with the intention to see what I need to know about this situation. Her face and body language changed again while she focused and shuffled. I felt like I could tell she was tapping into the energy of the situation, and my thought was, “That seems about right!”, meaning that I felt that she was there, actually IN the situation. She turned over cards that were mostly favorable, with a hint of something else. She turned the first card over (it was the King of Pentacles) and asked a question that was right on.

Situation 4 cards: Queen of Swords, Two of Pentacles, King of Cups

Sign of a good Tarot reader: They ask questions that let you know they have tapped into the energy of your situation. G.C. pulled the King of Pentacles and I immediately knew who the card represented. G.C. asked me if the person involved in the Situation (the person I thought of) was male, and I confirmed it. This gave me confidence that she understood the question I asked, tapped into the energy of the situation, and pulled the right cards. You should have this “good” or “yes!” feeling when someone reads cards for you, regardless of whether the cards are “good” or “bad”. That’s not to imply that you should feel “yes!” if the cards are positive. It just means that you should feel that the Tarot reader, the cards, the situation and you are all in alignment. The reader and the cards should resonate with you in a way that makes you feel understood.

The reading from G.C. about Situation 4 and all other situations were very much in alignment with my own thoughts, feelings and beliefs about them. That isn’t to say that they weren’t helpful readings because they absolutely were. The readings were helpful and useful because each set of cards had a meaning attached that helped me progress in my thinking about each of the four situations.

For example, in Situation 1, the reading helped me realize that I was probably putting a bit of lipstick on a pig in terms of how I was thinking about the thing and the opportunity. I was doing so in an effort to be forgiving or at least objective. That’s fine, but the reading helped me realize it is probably a good idea not to re-engage with it. That’s not a decision I felt I should make because the reading or the Tarot reader said not to do it; it is a conclusion I’ve drawn based on the information the cards provided. There’s a difference. My decision is my own, based on my own thoughts and feelings, and I take responsibility for it.

For Situation 2, G.C.’s reading helped me understand that I probably don’t need to be as cautious as I have been about it. G.C. mentioned positive aspects of the situation that I know are there, but I tend to overlook. The reading helped me evolve my thinking on the topic.

For Situation 3, the reading confirmed that I need to re-think what I’m offering in my business and make adjustments based on what I know now. This is something I’ve been considering, but I hadn’t finalized the decision until today.

And for Situation 4, the cards confirmed that it just is what it is. While there aren’t any monsters hiding behind Door 4, Situation 4 may never be what I want it to be. That is truly helpful. I don’t need to expend any energy to try to change it.

I hope this post was helpful in terms of illustrating what the experience of getting a good Tarot reading can look like.

A good Tarot reader will help empower you, but will not tell you what to do. They should not attempt to take your power away. A good Tarot reader will provide you with insight into the energy of a situation that will help you make an informed decision on your own.

If you are in alignment with your reader, and your questions are answered and you feel understood, getting a Tarot reading can be tremendously helpful. It can assist you with clarifying your thoughts and provide you with insight to help you make informed decisions in all areas of your life.

Crow Tarot

The Crow Tarot deck was originally self-published in 2018. It was subsequently released in a mass-market version by U.S. Games in 2019. Although I purchased the U.S. games version a while ago, I didn’t start to work with it until this week. The deck features digital collage artwork by Seattle-based artist MJ Cullinane.

Crows and ravens are the characters in each of the cards. In the 86-page booklet that comes with the cards, Cullinane wrote that, as an artist, she finds herself mesmerized by crow’s feathers. She writes, “When the sunlight washes over their bodies, they appear vibrant and iridescent, as shades of purple, deep indigo and soft caramel play in the light. Then, poof - in an instant the bird will turn pitch black as if creating a hole in space before my eyes.”

Her goal was to create a deck that honored crows and ravens, and to do so in the style of the Rider-Waite-Smith deck imagery. This was because she wanted both beginning and experienced Tarot readers to be able to use the deck easily, rather than have them have to learn an entire new system of symbolism.

My daily reading for November 25th.

In the booklet, Cullinane mentions that crows hold grudges, never forget a face and warn their young about potential danger by passing down knowledge through “stories”. I became aware of this many years ago after watching a documentary film by Nature called “A Murder of Crows”, which I recommend. The clips from the documentary about facial recognition and passing down information to their young are a little strange out of context since it involves researchers putting on masks, climbing up trees to scoop out the young birds, banding them and then going back years later to see if the younger birds react to the masks. Instead, I’ll include the entire video here in case you’re interested. (Edited to add: video no longer available.) The documentary illustrates the crows’ high intelligence; one segment shows Caledonian crows using tools, something that the researcher says only three species (aside from humans) are known to do: chimpanzees, elephants and Caledonian crows.

My daily reading for November 23rd.

MJ Cullinane won two International Tarot Foundation’s 2019 CARTA awards for Best Tarot (Crow Tarot) and Best Tarot illustrator (MJ Cullinane for Crow Tarot).

My daily reading for November 22nd.

This is not a sponsored post; I just like the deck. You can purchase it on Amazon or via the creator’s website.

https://www.mjcullinane.com/crow-tarot

About this blog

I intend to use this blog to write about topics such as energy work and other services I provide, but I also want to use it to write about anything that interests me.  Tarot is a topic that I love.  Tarot decks, Tarot reading and Tarot interpretation all interest me.  There may be times when I will post a photo from my daily reading and discuss my interpretation of it, but there may be other times when I will simply post the photo and not provide a written description.  For example, I took this photo from my reading with the Isidore Tarot this morning:

Images from a reading with the Isidore Tarot

I am sharing the photo, but do not necessarily want to provide an interpretation (there's nothing interesting enough to share, honestly).  Instead, I just want to share the image with anyone with an interest in Tarot, symbolism, cartomancy, art, animals, the Victorian era  and/or anthropomorphic characters.

Other topics I may write about include spirituality, new age concepts, holistic health and healing, bodywork, and psychology.  I'm also interested in the Western Esoteric Tradition, consciousness, personal growth, self-help topics, magick, NLP, crystals and animal health and healing.  It's all sort of a big eclectic mix, but I suspect that it will all come together and make more sense after I've posted for a while.

The purpose of this blog is to share information, ideas, resources with you.  I hope one of my posts will resonate with you at just the right time. I'm hoping this blog or one of my posts will lead you to solutions, help you feel validated, and/or inspire you somehow. It isn't intended to be a one-way monologue at all; my intention is that it will be interesting and useful to you.  So if you have questions or comments about something I've posted here, feel free to reach out to me.  I'd love to hear from you.

Gratitude and a friendly reminder

I have been using Tarot for guidance, personal development and as a spiritual tool for over ten years.  Every morning I draw two cards to find out how my day will play out; and every Sunday I work with a different deck to keep all of my decks in use.  I also like to change it up so I can use decks that match my mood or frame of mind during that particular week.

Since today is Sunday I reached for a deck that I haven't used in a while.  I pulled out my Tarot Illuminati since I haven't worked with it for almost a year.  I like the deck a lot but haven't used it much since it hasn't given me good readings.  When I pulled it out of the bag this morning it felt dirty, so I cleansed and re-programmed it.  Then I drew my two cards and immediately knew I would meet three incredible people today.

I had three new clients scheduled today for EFT sessions and it was clear that the cards were referring to the clients and our upcoming sessions.  

I was not surprised when all three clients turned out to be amazing, deep and talented women.  All three were intuitive, friendly and incredibly smart.  They all have gifts and talents to help others in so many ways.  It was an honor to be able to work with each of them, and I am grateful for having the opportunity to meet three shining stars all in one day.

Without revealing much about their identities, they have walked a path that I am walking on now. They were the ones that came before me.  I like how the cards reflect this with the clients on the left ("before me") and the card that represents me on the right.  I also like how everyone's arms are raised - theirs and mine.  This was symbolic because during the session they tapped and I tapped along with them.

So the cleansing and re-programming of my cards gave me a much better reading than this deck has given me in the past.  If you are a card reader, this is a friendly reminder to cleanse your decks!

Much gratitude to the clients I spent time with today.  You know who you are and you are an inspiration to me.