Cult of Tarot Forum

As you might remember, I collect tarot decks that specifically associate a species with each card (as opposed to decks that simply depict a lot of animals, like the Wild Unknown). (I’m just realizing I might need to add Madam Clara’s 5-Cent Tarot to my collection . . .) So far, Animal Wisdom is my favorite because the attributions track Golden Dawn ideas, and make sense to me. The fanciful artwork could be a bit of a disconnect with the earthy animal theme, but that’s not a deal-breaker, and it’s pleasant, simple art.

The majors have titles. The suits are Branches, Shells, Feathers, and Fossils; courts are Guardian, Nurturer, Seeker, and Seer (king, queen, knight, page). See the attached table for all the attributions.

Happy to be back with tarot this week! On to the shuffling and interview!



Of 6 cards, 4 are Fossils/Coins, 2 are Feathers/Swords. And 2 are aces. Hopefully, I’ll get better representation in the rest of the week’s readings!

Most important characteristic: Ten of Fossils, Dog
The deck is a faithful reworking of the RWS and GD tradition. And it’s a comforting companion I can trust. A part of the family!

Strength: Two of Fossils, Monkey
Its strength is that it’s both down to earth depictions of animals and symbolic, too. See the tai chi in the bottom right. One can read it either way or both!

Weakness: Ace of Feathers, Stork
Maybe it promises more than it can deliver. The stork brings something new, that’s why it’s the ace. Maybe the deck is too intellectual after all. And that’s why I like it! But that can be a weakness. Why is the moon waning?

What can deck teach me? Five of Feathers, Blue Jay
Blue jays are very pugnacious birds, and they do steal from cardinals and other birds, mostly by being bigger and obnoxiously loud. The deck can help me understand that bullies exist, but hopefully also ways of overcoming them, or not letting them get us down.

How can I learn it? Ace of Fossils, Bison
Bison have endured through a genocidal extermination campaign, along with other manmade challenges, like habitat destruction. While this has been done by humans, humans have also helped them survive. I can learn the lesson of how to deal with bullies by listening to their story. Some people are destructive a-holes with an evil agenda, and some want to help and make things right. The card is also about steadfastness and standing ones ground. Tough times don’t last. Sometimes you just need to outlast them.

Outcome of our work together: Four of Fossils, Rat
Here’s another survivor, one we wish wouldn’t be so good at it! This deck will survive as a favorite for me and one to go to when I want down-to-earth information and advice. I’ll keep it closer than I have so far!

Well, I found it very easy to read the animal part of these cards. Thanks for listening! Have a fun week ahead. See you tomorrow with more animals!

Monday
A light reading today: What do I need to know about my collecting and collection?
All-Purpose Spread



2 courts, both bears. 1 major, 1 pip.

Me: Guardian of Fossils, bear
King of Coins. I like to own the things I like. And I like to take care of them. I’m a bear, so no one is going to mess with my stuff. But I don’t let my things control me. I’m in charge of them, and organize and weed out when I want to.

Issue: Seeker of Shells, polar bear
Knight of Cups. Collecting is a combination intellectual (seeker) and emotional (shells) activity for me. I like keeping a list and categorizing decks. But I usually only want decks that appeal to me, either visually or intellectually. But I admit sometimes I get them to add to a particular subcollection I’m working on.

Outcome: IX Keeper of the Light, owl
Hmm, the owl is nocturnal but keeps the light? I’ll have to think about that. It looks like he’s keeping the light of the moon. Oh, maybe he has night-vision eyes like cats, so he collects light and uses it at night! As an outcome: I am unique and have my own way of going about collecting and recording. Not many people, if anyone, is going to follow my lead on what I’m doing. But that’s ok. I enjoy sharing here about my new acquisitions, and maybe someone will look at my collection list someday.

Advice: Ten of Branches, scarab beetle
The advice is don’t let my things overwhelm me. I have 327 decks, and I feel like that’s not too many. I’ve been trying to stay at 300 for a few years now, but things creep up! The key is to enjoy them and not get bogged down by them. I have actually considered what will happen to my collection when I go, but that’s part of a larger question of what will happen to my house and it’s junk accumulated over 30 years, and how I really don’t want to make my son have to deal with all that. And THEN I start to feel overwhelmed! But the advice is don’t do it if it’s not fun anymore. And right now, it’s fun!

Tuesday
I don’t know what I need to know, so I’ll ask the cards!
All-Purpose Spread again.



A three cats reading, auspicious for me! Let’s find out!

Me: Nurturer of Branches, Leopard
I’m someone who can take care of people by getting stuff done. I might seem a bit standoffish up there on my branch, but I do care, and I do what I need to do.

Issue: Three of Feathers, Grosbeak
For some reason, I’m seeing this as depression. Even though I’m usually a pretty energetic, or at least efficient, person, and a total introvert, I am sometimes feeling a little lonely and down these days. But the answer is in the card, 3 of swords, manifestation of thoughts, is communication. If I feel lonely, all I have to do is reach out and communicate with family and friends. And that has been enough for me, so far!

Outcome: Nine of Branches, Lynx
Did you know there are four lynx species, including the north American species, the bobcat? I love the way they always look like they’re smiling. I think that is the key to this outcome. I will come out of the slight depression smiling, knowing I’m safe and protected because protecting myself.

Advice: Guardian of Branches, Tiger
I’m a nurturer, but I should become a guardian. The tiger is the largest of cat species, with the Siberian variety weighing in up to 600 pounds or more! Now that’s a chonky kitty! We cat parents know the damage a 6 pound housecat can do. Just imagine one 100 times larger! Now back to your regularly scheduled reading: A King of Wands is an established leader, not a visionary who can excite people, but an administrator who can organize and delegate so everyone is encouraged to do their part. So maybe the advice is, instead of making sure I do what needs to be done, I should delegate and organize so that everything goes smoothly. Sounds good. I’m on it!

Have a happy rest of your Tuesday!

Wednesday
Today I’m going to do two things we’re not supposed to, or maybe three, or four! It’s a health reading, not for me, but for a cat! Not even my cat!

On the other hand, it’s a serious reading. I really am concerned about my son’s cat, Little Dude. He’s had terrible skin problems and has been in the cone of shame off and on since before Thanksgiving. The vets don’t know what’s wrong. Is it food allergies? Flea allergies even though he’s an indoor cat? Other allergies? Psychological problems? Rare infection? He’s just so miserable, and my son is miserable because we don’t know when or if kitty Dude will get better.

Let’s give it a try.



What’s wrong? Five of Feathers, Blue Jay
Hmm, maybe it is psychological. Depression. I wonder if I should suggest that he go back to his other cat grandma (girlfriend’s mom) for a while. Maybe he’s not ready or cut out for apartment life. Or maybe he’s feeling bullied in some way, maybe because they’re both working from home in a small apartment. Maybe he needs to have more alone time.

What will make it better? Ace of Branches, Snake
They have to do something different right away. They’ve been trying different things the vet suggests and then waiting to see if they work. But that’s not working. Something more drastic needs to be done. A big change, or at least a quick one.

What can we do in the meantime to make the cat and his humans feel better emotionally? V. Keeper of Sacred Tradition, Bull
Pray. We need to stay calm and have faith that this will pass. Our calm will help kitty feel better too. Cats can definitely feel tension if it’s in the air.

What else do we need to know? Seven of Shells, Sea Lion
This is reiterating that this is an emotional problem. He’s awash and overwhelmed by sadness or discomfort. We need to address that issue, and then he will let himself heal.

Ok, I think that’s the answer! Now I have to decide if I should relay this to my son. I don’t want to say “you’re stressing him out and making him sick,” but if it is an emotional problem, no number of visits to the vet is going to fix it. I’ll just tell him about this reading and let him take it from there.

Have a happy rest of your day! I’ll be back tomorrow with a full moon reading.

Thursday
Full moon in Leo, Wolf Moon



The spread is a wolf (first 3 cards) under the moon (last 3 cards).

Me: X. Sacred Spinner, Spider
I’m at a place in my life when I can pretty much do anything I want to. I mean, we’re quarantined, and I have to work, but I have money and I have plenty of vacation time, so really I’m in a very open place. But I don’t think of myself as the kind of person who will take total advantage of that . . .

My ego motives: Five of Feathers, Blue Jay
Consciously, I’m very aware of all the things that can go wrong. I’m not a pessimistic person, but maybe too cautious. I’m all about protecting myself and what I care about.

My instincts: Nine of Branches, Lynx
And my instincts go that way, too! I think self-protection is a very reasonable and smart idea, but really it comes from a much deeper place than my mind.



My fears: Seer of Branches, Fox
But what am I so afraid of? Doing something (branches) that I don’t know everything about or without being prepared (seer/page). This is really more of the same. Who knew 3 cards in a row could mean the same thing?

Hidden: 1. Messenger of Magic, Raven
What I don’t know about this potential failure to engage is that the magic is in the doing. I can read and learn about stuff until my eyes fall out, but doing it is the proof of the pudding. I can be more and be more powerful that I think.

My guiding light: XI. Bearer of Justice, Elephant
What should lead me forward is the strength to do what’s right. Whatever it is that I can do should have some relation to doing something good or helping people. Yes, there’s nothing wrong in doing something for me that I want to do, but the guiding light should be is it good or helpful?

Interesting how the question or topic is posed by the majors, and the blocks are posed by the minors. Hmm, this is all a bit random and nebulous, but there’s good advice in there somewhere! I’ll work on it during the month ahead.

Have a wonderful Thursday!

Friday on Saturday
Yesterday was a busy, busy work day. Don’t you hate it when work gets in the way of tarot?! So I’m catching up today.

What do I need to know about our tarot society presentation next Saturday?
Four Noble Truths Spread



The presentation: XVI The Quickener, Serpent
Oh, good, we start off with the Tower! The presentation will be a disaster, but that will be an opening for other people to volunteer to present instead of just depending on me.

Why am I worried about it? Six of Shells, Manatee
Because it’s a good group but very touchy feely, not a very intellectual group, so I want the presentation to be interesting but also accessible. I don’t want to alienate anyone.

Outcome: Nine of Branches, Lynx
I’ll be strong and push my way through it.

Advice: V Keeper of Sacred Tradition, Bull
Interesting. I should keep to the tried and true and not get too far out in the weeds. I should give solid information they can use, not my flights of fancy.



How to put that advice into action: Six of Feathers, Pelican; Ten of Branches, Scarab Beetle; Ten of Shells, Hippo; X Sacred Spinner, Spider; XX Masters of Discernment, Crocodile and Butterfly
Organize logically to put my pelicans(!) in a row.
Work on it conscientiously.
Keep my audience in mind.
During the presentation, be open to unexpected insights and participation.
Try to make it something that will really be useful and make a difference to the people in the group.

All good advice! I’ll try to put it all into action.

Be right back with today’s reading!

Saturday
What about the alchemy deck?



Pro of deck: Seer of Shells, Penguin
The deck is good for an open, curious beginner in alchemy.

Con of deck: XIX Call to Awakening, Rooster
I would quickly outgrow it.

If I buy it: Ace of Feathers, Stork
The deck stork! would bring me something new to learn and work with intellectually.

If I don’t buy it: Five of Fossils, Donkey
I’d save the money.

Hmm, even though the con is a major, the reading still makes me lean toward buying . . . Maybe I’ll wait a day or two and see how I feel then.

In the meantime, I’ll see you tomorrow with new decks, including my first DoW lenormand! Have a happy weekend!