Various Paganism, Tarot, Etc

#shoppingfortarot (non) VR to LadyKnight of Avalon

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Back in October, LadyKnight of Avalon on YouTube did a video where she talked about deck collections and how we go about the process of curating our personal collections over time.    The fact is that I have a rather large deck collection, and not just of tarot but also playing cards, oracle cards, lenormand, and other game cards and cartomancy cards. I love decks of cards.  I love the diversity of artwork available and the variety “voices” that the different styles of artwork speak with.

Anyway, she devised this list of questions for those that shop for and collect decks, no matter the size of your collection.  So here we go….

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1. What was the last deck you bought and why that one?

The last deck I bought was the Divine Muses Oracle.  I actually saw this one on Kickstarter when it was being launched, and I waffled on it and ended up not backing it because some of the cards didn’t appeal to me all that much (Ancestors, Astral Ascent, and the Muse of Art cards, for example).   But since then I have seen this deck on many videos and images, and I’ve been SUPER attracted to it and had some of the cards really stand out to me super strongly (such as the Totem of Water, Lattice of the Soul, and Raven King).  In the end, I decided that the cards that really spoke to me outweighed the cards that I was a bit “meh” on and I picked it up to see how I could get on with it.

2. What’s your decision process when you buy a new deck?

Does the imagery on the deck speak to me?  Will the words get in my way? If so, can they be removed?  Is it worth (to me) what they’re asking for the deck?  Can I afford to buy it?  Is it something I want to buy right now, or do I want to wait and see if I still want it in a few weeks?

3. What are deal-breakers in a deck that keep you from buying it?

Well at the top of the list is if I can’t connect with the imagery.  If the imagery doesn’t speak to me then there’s just no point in buying the deck.   Other deal-breakers include a Hanged Man card or Two of Pentacles card that I just can’t work with, super crappy cardstock (I’m a riffle shuffler… if it can’t handle being riffle shuffled then there’s no point in me owning it), too few cards for too much money, or well… too much money in general because if it’s out of my price range?  Then it’s out of my price range.

4. Little white book or big guide book?

I don’t really care as long as there is quality content.  I’ve seen some spectacular little white books…. and I’ve seen some big guide books that are just sheer crap.

5a. Do you have new deck rituals?

Yes.  When I get a new deck, I like to do a cleansing and a deck interview.  Unless I allow others to handle the cards, or for some reason the deck’s communication starts to feel “muddled”, chances are  that this is the only time the deck will ever be cleansed while in my possession.

5b. How do you break in a new deck?

By using them.   Also, meditative shuffling.  And, sometimes, with deck modification as well such as edging and/or trimming the deck if  feel that it needs it.

6a. Have you ever been disappointed after getting a deck because it looked/felt different than expected?

Yes.  Usually this has to do with how it communicates with me.  There have been times I’ve purchased decks and when I get them in my hands I just can’t get them to communicate as clearly as I’d like.   The most prominent example of this is the WildWood Tarot, which has artwork of a theme and style that I felt should have spoken to me very clearly, but even after years of trying, I couldn’t manage to work with them very well.    (It turns out, cutting off the titles on the cards so that it is artwork-only finally solved this issue for me.)

6b. Have you ever been pleasantly surprised by a deck after getting it?)

Yes.   Most recently?  The This Might Hurt deck, which I backed on Kickstarter in the spring and just arrived this week.  It was far and above the quality I was expecting and I’ve been avoiding walk-throughs and other images of the cards, etc because I wanted it to be a surprise.

7. Do you interview new decks?

Usually just when it first comes into my collection, although if I feel that the “tone” of a deck’s readings have changed over time then I will do it again to re-familiarize myself with the energy of the deck and it’s “voice”.

8. Do you ever buy decks for a specific purpose (only using it for that one?)

Yes.  I have a few decks that are solely for my personal use.  I have a few that are solely for shadow work.  And I have a few that I’ve purchased solely to use in one-card draws.

I have also occasionally bought a bootleg deck or two for the purposes of spellwork, because often in those cases the deck is destroyed in some way in the process of the spell casting.  Destroying a $5 deck in a spell is one thing.  Destroying a $50 deck in a spell is quite another.

9. Do you differentiate between decks you buy for yourself and decks you would use for other people?

Only in a few special cases.   The vast majority of my decks are open to be used for both.

10. What is one thing you wish deck creators would do, do more of or stop doing?

Do:  I wish more deck creators would consider cardstock as a top priority. (Hello Llewellyn, I’m talking to you.)

Do More:  I’m all for more illustrated pip cards.  I hate it when you have glorious and beautifully done Majors, and then the Minors are just sparingly done pips; or else they are illustrated, but in a way that makes it clear not as much effort was put into them as the Major Arcana.

Stop Doing: This one is specifically for creators on Kickstarter.  A lot of creators on that platform add on “Stretch Goals” which is great, but I really wish that they would focus less on little trinkets, pins, fancy boxes, etc….. and more on upgrading cardstock and making the actual CARDS nicer.

Seasons and Holidays

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This week’s question from the Pagan Perspective YouTube channel is about the holidays we choose to celebrate.

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Topic for the Week of 11/04:  “How did or do you decide what holidays to celebrate?”

Although in the wheel of the year there are eight holidays, I really only dependably celebrate two of them from year to year.  My family, as I was growing up, has always celebrated all eight.

In my case, the holidays mark seasonal transitions, and although I appreciate them and even enjoy spending time recognizing them through hiking and other activities in order to appreciate the transitions from one season to the next?   I don’t celebrate all eight holidays on a dependable year-to-year basis.

I guess, then, that I should first begin by defining “celebrate” since I did just mention that recognize each shift in seasons regardless of “celebrating them” in a traditional sense.

So, for the purpose of this post, celebrating means to include ritual and/or activities that are performed on a specific day or days surrounding the holiday in question.

The holidays that my family celebrates are Samhain, Yule, Imbolc, Ostara, Beltane, Midsummer, Lammas, and Mabon.   Of these holidays, I dependably celebrate Samhain and Beltane every year without fail.   These are the two points in the year where the veil within liminal spaces is at its thinnest, and for me they are not just the most powerful days of the year, but also the most sacred.

So there you have it!  Although I consider the entire transition of season to season sacred and enjoyable, and appreciate them all in my own way.   As far as holidays go?  I really only go “all out” to celebrate just two of them.

Post Script Edit:    As you just pointed out to me, I also celebrate both Thanksgiving (US) and Christmas (in a far less religious way).

These two are celebrated for specific reasons.

Thanksgiving involves visiting my mother’s house, and is celebrated because it’s a holiday she loves.  A core part of her faith involves feeding others, and there is a lot of ritual and spellcraft that goes into the cooking on that day in her home.   Each year, my sister and I visit her because this day is so very important to her (and the food is so goddamn good doesn’t hurt either).

Christmas on the other hand, is not a religious holiday for me.  Instead it is something fun.  It’s a chance to give friends and loved ones gifts, show appreciation and gratitude, and get gifts from them in turn.  It’s a time for absolutely spectacular crooners music and amazing scents and sparkling lights.  I do decorate (alibi sparingly usually), and we do exchange gifts, but it’s more like the holiday is an excuse to do these things rather than a spiritual experience.

So you’re right.   Although they are not pagan holidays, nor spiritual in the sense of the other holidays that I sometimes incorporate into my year, they are absolutely holidays that I celebrate.

 

The #LunaAndOwlAndBones Challenge for November

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I think that I need to precursor this post by saying that these are my answers at this moment.  Many of the questions are about favorites and preferred decks for different things.  These types of answers can easily change over time.

1. First Deck – Gypsy Witch Fortune Cards
2. Newest Deck – The Circle Lenormand
3. Deck You Want To Know Better – Rust Belt Arcana (I’m still familiarizing myself with the imagery and symbolism.)
4. Deck Gifted To You – Mystical Shaman Oracle
5. Deck You’d Gift to A Beginner – Borderless Smith-Waite Tarot
6. Deck with the Deepest Connection – Tarot of the Hidden Realm
7. Favorite Majors Deck – Sad Story Tarot
8. Favorite Animal Deck – Anima Mundi Tarot
9. Favorite Deck for Artwork – Stolen Child Tarot
10. Most Unique Deck – Again, the Stolen Child Tarot
11. Most Whimsical Deck – Annnnnnd again, the Stolen Child Tarot
12. Full Moon – I like using the Anima Mundi for full moon readings.
13. Deck for Reading for Others – I actually love using my Dixit decks for reading to others. That’s my favorite.
14. Deck for Personal Readings – Tarot of the Hidden Realm
15. Deck for Clarity – Dixit Deck v.6 Memories Edition
16. Deck for Decision Making – Herbal Tarot
18. Deck for Career Readings – 1889 Lenormand
19. Most Blunt Deck – Visions of Life Tarot
20. Most Positive Deck – Skele-Tarot for advice. Guardian Angel Tarot for a gentle, positive feel for others.
21. Favorite Oracle – Brian Froud’s Faeries’ Oracle
22. Deck for Meditation – Again, the Stolen Child Tarot
23. Deck for Spiritual Work – Cheimonette Tarot (or the Ghosts & Spirits Tarot)
24. Deck for Shadow Work – Tarocchi di Connessione
25. Deck on your Altar – At the moment, the Slow Tarot and the Tarot of the Unknown.
26. New Moon – I also like using the Anima Mundi for new moon readings.
27. Deck to Travel With – Any of the Dixit decks and/or the Morgan Greer in a Tin
28. Deck for Thanksgiving Ritual – I don’t have one, but I think the Slow Tarot would work really well for this.
29. Deck You Learned the Most With – Herbal Tarot
30. Deck Used – Ok, so I’m going to take this one as the decks used/am using this month, which I already have set out. Those are (and will be)… Herbal Healing Tarot, Distant Past Tarot, Children of Litha Tarot, Chelsea Lenormand (red), Herbcrafters Tarot, Bottanical Deck, Delos Tarot, Tarot of Pagan Cats, Heart of Faerie Oracle, Illuminated Earth Oracle, Dixit #8 Harmonies Ed, Oracle of Mystical Moments, Lenormand Wahrsagekarten Mit Astrologischen Symbolen, L’oracle des Murmures, Rust Belt Arcana, Dixit #4 Origins Ed, Wooden Tarot, Pagan Otherworlds Tarot, Tarot of the Unknown, Slow Tarot, Sasuraibito Tarot, Badger’s Forest Tarot, Pam’s Vintage Tarot, Earthbound Oracle, The Moon Deck, Brian Froud’s Faeries’ Oracle, and the Gravity Tattoo Tarot.

 

Coming Out as Pagan

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This week’s question from the Pagan Perspective YouTube channel is about coming out as Pagan later in life.

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Topic for the Week of 10/28: “So how to start a conversation of coming out of the broom closet if I became a pagan later in life and I need to tell my husband? How can I bring this up. This is the right path for me. But I’m scared. (Neither of us are church goers either).”

Obviously, this topic doesn’t really apply to me all that much, as I was raised pagan and have never been in the closet about my beliefs (aside from briefly while traveling for personal safety reasons).

That said, I do actually have an opinion on this and I’d like to share that here, but I would like to precursor my opinion by stating that IF coming out with your faith to others is going to put you in danger?  I don’t think it’s a good idea.

If it is not going to put you in danger, though?  I think it’s important to be your authentic self with those you love.   Even if you aren’t shouting from the rooftops what you are (which doesn’t really happen all that often unless it’s someone coming out of the closet, before they realize that most people outside of their loved ones really don’t care LOL), I think that letting your loved ones know what is near and dear to your heart is important.  One of those things should (naturally) be your faith.

If they can’t accept that, it’s really their problem.  Not yours.  Let them deal with it, process it, and find a way past it.   If they love you, even if it matters?  It won’t matter.   That is to say that yes, they might have an issue with it, but it won’t change how they feel about you.   If it does?  Well then they don’t really love you after all.

That takes bravery tho, yes?  Because some people don’t want to find out if there really are conditions to being loved by those that they love.

It doesn’t change my opinion tho.   We need people in our lives that accept us and love us for who we are, not for who they want us to be.

As for how you bring it up, it really depends on who you’re telling.  Some people process things better when it comes from an off-hand comment and they can then ask questions.  Other people need the “sit down and have a heart to heart” approach.  You know your loved ones best, and if you think about it, should know which approach they’ll respond best to.

And lastly… do not confuse fear of telling someone your path with doubt on if the path is right for you.   They are two separate issues.

If you’re not sure if it’s the right path yet, but you still want to tell them?  I suggest approaching it along the line of “I have started to explore…..” or “I’ve begun to have an interest in….”   That way you are not committing to the path, but still giving them a heads up about what’s going on.

 

The “Your Universe” Spread by Reien

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To say goodbye to October, I decided to do an extra reading today for self. I used a spread made by Reine in a Discord server that I visit.

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1) Who I Am Now – Death and Skull of Flowers – There is a lot of endings and change going on, and the Death card indicates this. I’m struggling with a new level of emotions right now. A depth I’ve not experienced before. The Death card is indicating this is the new norm, and that I will adjust. The Skull of Flowers is an assurance that in the ashes of what I’ve left behind, this new level of emotion will develop into a new level of creativity and skill.

2) Forces Protecting Me – King of Wands and Herbs – There is strength in my passions and acting upon them in ways that foster their growth. The key words here are “foster their growth”… which indicates the ability to take the lead and assist these passions and interests in coming into fruition.

3) Forces Opposing Me – Justice and The Pact – I need to examine my promises, responsibilities, and the contracts (verbal and otherwise) I have entered into, and make sure that they are not just serving me in the moment, but will continue to do so into the future as well.

4) Who/What I’m Running Away From – Four of Wands and The Serpent – A situation that includes someone on a power trip using selfish motivations to get their way. This relates to one of my employers at the moment, or rather one of the new managers at this place of employment. I have been considering moving on and finding another job to replace it in order to avoid this situation. The job itself is very steady and comfortable, so I have been hesitant to move on from it.

5) Who/What I’m Running Toward – Queen of Wands and Revenge – This also refers to the situation in #4, as my other option in this situation is to discuss the situation with the owner in a collected way and appeal to his love for his business and how the new manager is a detriment to it.

6) Negative Experience of Past – Six of Cups and The Hermit – The inability to let go of shit that happened in the past is making it difficult for me to remain open and approachable. I feel that this ties into my shadow reading from yesterday, and the contact within it from my father. It brought up some negativity that made me want to close off. We managed to get through this hurdle, but that past experience is still there lingering under the surface and looking for opportunity to surface again.

7) Positive Experience of Past – The Lovers and Apple – This ties in with what I was saying about #6 and the relationship we have with each other. The choice that I made to pursue a relationship with you was a huge risk, that provided huge rewards. My past could have influenced me to pull away and, essentially walk away. Instead, I made a choice to let you in and to pursue what we have together.

8) Future Warning – Eight of Wands and Ancestors – I need to remember to take what resonates with me from the past and the lessons I’ve learned, and move forward with them, leaving the rest behind me where it belongs. There is plenty I have learned along the way that I can bring forward to enrich my life without bringing the pain and negativity with it.

9) Future Opportunity – The Empress and Skull of Light – It’s time to shine a light on my more nurturing qualities, not just directed outward, but also within myself. In doing so, I will provide myself with an encouragement strength that I cannot obtain through external sources.

Realms of Existence

Top Row – The Spirit World – There is a lot of strength to be found in connecting with my roots and learning from those that came before me. Just make sure to do so from a safe place of understanding and with nurturing energy. Don’t linger so long in thoughts of the past that the experience turns negative.

Center Row – The Mind’s World – It’s time to channel that pessimism that lives in my head into a creative endeavor. Letting it sit and stew will only allow it to fester and come out in ugly ways. Instead, direct it into my drive for creativity and it will transform into a positive.

Bottom Row – The Known World – I’m going to have to work on balance between retreat and togetherness. It’s important to keep that balance, even during times when my responsibilities are at their height and I feel incapable of untangling myself from them. ie: Don’t let the holiday rush create an imbalance in myself or our relationship that will be difficult to recover from.

Take Away

Lean into my creativity and my strengths, listen to my moral compass, and do what is right for me right now. Don’t worry so much about if it’s right for others, your moral compass will ensure no one gets hurt.

Make sure you are leaving the negatives from the past in the past for now, and using what you’ve learned along the way to deal with the present in the best ways possible. Shadow work will come later. Now is not the time to dip my toe in that pond.

 

Spooktober Quiz Reply

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So, this question is a few days old, but I liked it and think its a fun one, and so I decided I wanted to include it here as a post.

Spooktober Challenge Decor – Decorating is a must. I love Halloween decorations, so on October first, they come out and get put up. Some years are more involved than others, but you can always bet I have some decorations up on the first and often more will follow along the course of the month.

Candles – In the summer months, I have the windows open and I’m getting all the fresh air I can. Once it starts getting cold, though, I have to limit that, and I start using candles inside, usually charged with intentions (for example, I have the Bath and Body Works Leaves scented candle at my front door. I have added cedar tips to the candle and charged it with a protection spell for the entry and front door).

Incense – I change up my inscense from season to season. Usually it’s NagChampa mixed with something else. In the summer this year, I used Nag Champa and Frankincense. For Autumn I’m using Nag Champa mixed with the “Purification of Sage” incense that came in the September Witches Moon box.

Tarot – I pull out all of my Halloween themed (and spooky themed) decks and usually use some sort of monthly challenge to give me more time with my cards so that I get a chance to work with them all a bit.

Personal – I spend a LOT of time in liminal spaces during this time of year when the veil is thin. This means I do a lot of hiking (and meditating, and napping, and just overall spending time) in the deep woods and rainforests, in the space between sleep and awake, and in other places I feel the veil is at its thinnest. These places feel very welcoming and good to me, and I get energy and nurturing from them.

Family – Throughout the month, my sister and I work together to plan our Samhain ritual. This and Beltaine are the only rituals that we dependably do together every year.

Samhain – After the trick-or-treaters are gone and the partying (if either of us go to any) has come to an end, my sister and I get together to perform our Samhain ritual.

Nov 1 – We have a mum supper together to reflect on and respect our ancestors and those we have lost and spend time with their energies.

So there you have it!  All the different little celebrations I do in October to celebrate the season.  I’m sure there are a few more I’m forgetting to list, but I think I did pretty good at bringing it together for the most part.