Deck of The Week: Sign-up Thread: Week 249 : April 16 - April 22

[VGimlet]

This thread is for those who would like to work through their collection of decks.  Each week we will be picking a deck (or decks) to work with for the week.

 

All are welcome. Please join us!      The only rules we have are the Tarot Tea & Me rules; be respectful to each other.    

 

You can drop in and out anytime,   time and real life permitting.   New to tarot?  Long time reader?   Come on in.  

 

1. Please post with your chosen deck for the week. 

 

2. Chat away about your deck, how you're finding it etc., or not - it's all up to you.  

 

Participants:

1. VGimlet - Sugar Skull Tarot + Mystic Martian Oracle

2. sweeneyish - Jean Dodal (Flornoy) this week, and the Garden of Lucid Daydreams

3. Amberjune - El Goliath Tarot and the Spirit Messages Daily Guidance Cards

4. AnomalyTempest - Gilded Tarot Royal

5. Bodhiseed - Sacred India Tarot paired with the Land Sky Oracle

6. Wyrdkiss - Pixiekins Oracle

7. vulprix - Trionfi della Luna, Paradoxical Blue

8. Rachelcat - Splendor Solis

9. AJ-ish/Sharyn - Minchiate Etruria

 

(559)

Edited April 18, 2022 by VGimlet

[VGimlet]

Staying with the Sugar Skill and the Mystic Martians, even though I HAVE finally used them this week.  

 

Hope spring is spronging where you are.   Today we had snow, rain, sun, thunder and lighting,   Hmmm,  

[sweeneyish]

I’m in with the Jean Dodal (Flornoy) this week, and the Garden of Lucid Daydreams, which I used in one of the reading circles this month and really enjoyed again.

[sweeneyish]

For my reading with the Dodal this morning, I used one of Ben-Dov’s spread techniques. You draw cards for the first position in the three card spread until you draw a major, and then repeat for each position. You read the three majors as the main story, but the minors underneath each major help flesh out the story behind them. 

 

 

There were 15 minors under the Moon! Too much to interpret every card, but it does

show an extremely complex background for the card, which supports it as representing the past. I am having a bunch of family

over today, including my parents and my brother, and that will certainly lead to the welling of emotions and memories from the past,

as represented by the large lake in the Moon. 

 

Moving to the Devil, it is interesting to note

that it is 15, the same number of minors that were under the Moon. The past creates

the present. There were 5 minors under the Devil:

 

 

 

This is kind of the story of my current family

situation. I haven’t quite figured out the V of Wands yet, but Ace of Wands for me was the potential of having another child, the Page of Swords my reluctance and concern about doing so, the III of Swords the breaking through of my partner to decide that we would go for it (with the other two swords being my son and I), and the IV of Cups being our new family composition in a few months.

 

So the Devil first of all is a feeling of being trapped, and perhaps a slave to the situation.

It is also the fruition of the my past memories and emotions influences on me. At the same

time, I actually kind of like the Devil in this card. He can break free and fly away with those wings, and he goes against the grain of his past.

 

Finally, the future, the World - No minors under this one! I think that is super telling. That perfect completion, oneness with reality and complete integration, requires letting go of the past, and living in complete and pure freshness. The World can look back at the past, but it has no influence or power on them. 

 

The whole picture reads as past/present/future to me. The water of the Moon lowers in the Devil,

and finally disappears in the completion

of the World. In general, I see this as the force

of the past (the Moon) manifesting in the present as habitual tendencies and impulse (the Devil) but with the potentiality of letting all of that for the simplicity and completion of the World.

 

I might focus more on the oracle this week, so as not to burn myself out on complex

tarot de marseille stuff, but in general I really

like the Dodal - the cards are so strangely depicted, and the faces are very unique and expressive on the characters. 

 

With all the pip reading I’ve been doing lately though, I am really looking forward to working with some more illustrated cards this week too! 

 

[Amberjune]

thank you for the thread, VG!

Yes, spring has sprung! (there were a couple of weird days with snow in early April) And just couple of weeks ago I saw the first elder leaves, now the beech leaves have come, every day, more and more green. Cherry blossoms everywhere.

It is so beautiful...

 

My decks for the week are the El Goliath Tarot and the Spirit Messages Daily Guidance Cards.

 

Wishing all a wonderful week and blessed Ostara/Passover to all who celebrate.

 

 

 

 

[AnomalyTempest]

A friend gifted me a mini version of the Gilded Tarot Royal. I think I'll jump in with this deck. I love the vividness of the artwork. It's just breathtaking to me.

[Bodhiseed]

I'm in with the Sacred India Tarot paired with the Land Sky Oracle. 🌻 🐇

[Wyrdkiss]

My Trionfri della Luna Illustrated is coming form Deviant Moon! But won't be here this week just yet.

 

I think I'll do somethin' cute this time  -- the Pixiekins Oracle. Need to decide if I'm going to keep or sell.

[Wyrdkiss]

On 4/15/2022 at 6:43 AM, sweeneyish said:

For my reading with the Dodal this morning, I used one of Ben-Dov’s spread techniques. You draw cards for the first position in the three card spread until you draw a major, and then repeat for each position. You read the three majors as the main story, but the minors underneath each major help flesh out the story behind them. 

 

 

There were 15 minors under the Moon! Too much to interpret every card, but it does

show an extremely complex background for the card, which supports it as representing the past. I am having a bunch of family

over today, including my parents and my brother, and that will certainly lead to the welling of emotions and memories from the past,

as represented by the large lake in the Moon. 

 

Moving to the Devil, it is interesting to note

that it is 15, the same number of minors that were under the Moon. The past creates

the present. There were 5 minors under the Devil:

 

 

 

This is kind of the story of my current family

situation. I haven’t quite figured out the V of Wands yet, but Ace of Wands for me was the potential of having another child, the Page of Swords my reluctance and concern about doing so, the III of Swords the breaking through of my partner to decide that we would go for it (with the other two swords being my son and I), and the IV of Cups being our new family composition in a few months.

 

So the Devil first of all is a feeling of being trapped, and perhaps a slave to the situation.

It is also the fruition of the my past memories and emotions influences on me. At the same

time, I actually kind of like the Devil in this card. He can break free and fly away with those wings, and he goes against the grain of his past.

 

Finally, the future, the World - No minors under this one! I think that is super telling. That perfect completion, oneness with reality and complete integration, requires letting go of the past, and living in complete and pure freshness. The World can look back at the past, but it has no influence or power on them. 

 

The whole picture reads as past/present/future to me. The water of the Moon lowers in the Devil,

and finally disappears in the completion

of the World. In general, I see this as the force

of the past (the Moon) manifesting in the present as habitual tendencies and impulse (the Devil) but with the potentiality of letting all of that for the simplicity and completion of the World.

 

I might focus more on the oracle this week, so as not to burn myself out on complex

tarot de marseille stuff, but in general I really

like the Dodal - the cards are so strangely depicted, and the faces are very unique and expressive on the characters. 

 

With all the pip reading I’ve been doing lately though, I am really looking forward to working with some more illustrated cards this week too! 

 

That's a cool deck @sweeneyish. I struggle with the Marseilles, and can relate to liking tangible imagery. The Thoth suites are enough abstraction for me, although they are so intense and evocative that I have no issue with accurate readings there. But I digress. Keep the posts coming I appreciate your dedication. 

[vulprix]

@Wyrdkiss (and @sweeneyish), I too rejoice at the illustrated🌛 Trionfis🌜 arriving soon! So I’ll be using the Trionfi della Luna, Paradoxical Blue. 
 

Happy full moon, y’all!

[sweeneyish]

3 hours ago, vulprix said:

@Wyrdkiss (and @sweeneyish), I too rejoice at the illustrated🌛 Trionfis🌜 arriving soon! So I’ll be using the Trionfi della Luna, Paradoxical Blue. 
 

Happy full moon, y’all!

 

Yaay, can’t wait! I’ll probably have to wait a couple weeks up here in Canada to receive it - So excited. 

 

@Wyrdkiss I’m enjoying learning about the Tarot de Marseille, though I don’t think it would become my main deck for reading. I’m learning a lot about reading in general though, and I think it’s helped my reading of more illustrated cards too. 

[Rachelcat]

Hi!  I'm in with the Splendor Solis again, while I figure out what I'm doing in my tarot life as my schedule changes!

[Bodhiseed]

This week I'll be using the Sacred India Tarot, a deck and book set created by Rohit Arya with Jane Adams and published by Yogi Impressions. Along with it, I'll be using Theresa Hutch's Land Sky Oracle: A Journey Through Patanjali's 8 Limbs of Yoga, now published by U.S. Games. Today's draws are the Devil and Devotion:

One should battle Mara with the sword of insight.

~Dhammapada

India does not really have a Devil, but it does have Mara - the personification of the ego-bound part of us that craves pleasure and becomes frustrated when it isn't in our grasp. Our inner Mara is sly, using nicely wrapped packaging that hides the poison inside. It may be a gift of rage cloaked by justification, over-indulgence concealed as self-care, or arrogance and sanctimoniousness disguised as scholarship or spirituality. We can't eliminate Mara, but we can learn to see through his tricks. Hanuman represents devotion due to his spiritual love for Rama as recounted in the Ramayana. A steadfast companion, he helped Rama retrieve his kidnapped wife from a demon king. Hanuman asks if the deeds we do for others are simply out of kindness or if we are seeking attention and accolades. True devotion would reflect the words of the Bhagavad Gita: do your duty, but do not concern yourself with the results. 

[sweeneyish]

I had fun doing my daily reading with the Garden of Lucid Daydreams today. 

 

 

Daydreaming  Neglect  Dragon Flower

 

Both the Sun and the Dragon Flower look directly at Neglect, each bringing a different energy to the issue. 

 

Neglect: The untended flowers are falling into ruin and decay. They represent something worth saving - If someone is willing to put in the effort. 

 

Daydreaming: Imagination, visualization, reflection, meditation. He brings a calm, peaceful, and imaginative perspective to resolving the neglect.

 

Dragon Flower: The Dragon Flower brings wild courage, drive, and dedication to whatever issues it faces. 

 

The reading certainly speaks to me! I know what the Neglect card is about, and there is good advice here from Daydreaming and Dragon Flower. A good reading from

the garden today. 

[Bodhiseed]

@sweeneyish, the Garden of Lucid Daydreams is so cool. That reading reminds me I need to step away from the computer and get back to some yard work before the weeds take over. 😂

[sweeneyish]

15 minutes ago, Bodhiseed said:

@sweeneyish, the Garden of Lucid Daydreams is so cool. That reading reminds me I need to step away from the computer and get back to some yard work before the weeds take over. 😂

 

Ha, me too! The cold weather keeps driving us back inside before we get an opportunity to do ours! 

 

Love your quote and your card selections today. Devotion is such an important part of the Buddhist (and Hindu) traditions that we really struggle with in the West (maybe just in the modern world in general). I hated the idea of it for a long time but it has unlocked a lot for me now that I have let it in. 

[AJ-ish/Sharyn]

I'm using my beloved Minchiate Etruria this week, thank you VG.

Spring full blown here too...if you don't count the 16" of snow we had Monday.

[AnomalyTempest]

@sweeneyish That deck is really cool! Getting back into this forum really exposes me to too many things to want. 🤤

 

I was going to do a spread with the Osho Tarot before remembering about my deck of the week so I did the Osho Flying bird spread with the Gilded Royale deck. I'm still getting really distracted when reading with this deck.  For instance the layout is as below. I got distracted by the color scheme after recording my initial reactions. I felt like either the Devil/3Cups needed to be switched or the 2Swords/Fool needed to be switched with which pair? I went with the Fool moving up because I wanted the brighter cards on top. Then I noticed they looked like different times of day.  This made me want to rearrange them again as Morning, Noon Night, but then WHEN is the 6 of wands?. None of this really had to do with the positions or the spread itself (or could it?) but this is a problem I keep having. I can just go deeper and deeper and deeper. And now I'm noticing that I think the 2 of Swords might have been in every reading I've done with this deck so far. Hrmmmm.

 

 

[Wyrdkiss]

Working with my Oracle. Pictured below is a message that encouraged me to have someone over for a chat and visit today. I also included the back as I am not fond of the stencil style drawing but wanted to a show everyone. 

Been in a glum mood today. I dislike Easter and everything shut down has made the weekend feel even shorter.  

[sweeneyish]

19 hours ago, AnomalyTempest said:

@sweeneyish That deck is really cool! Getting back into this forum really exposes me to too many things to want. 🤤

 

I was going to do a spread with the Osho Tarot before remembering about my deck of the week so I did the Osho Flying bird spread with the Gilded Royale deck. I'm still getting really distracted when reading with this deck.  For instance the layout is as below. I got distracted by the color scheme after recording my initial reactions. I felt like either the Devil/3Cups needed to be switched or the 2Swords/Fool needed to be switched with which pair? I went with the Fool moving up because I wanted the brighter cards on top. Then I noticed they looked like different times of day.  This made me want to rearrange them again as Morning, Noon Night, but then WHEN is the 6 of wands?. None of this really had to do with the positions or the spread itself (or could it?) but this is a problem I keep having. I can just go deeper and deeper and deeper. And now I'm noticing that I think the 2 of Swords might have been in every reading I've done with this deck so far. Hrmmmm.

 

 

 

This super interesting. I’m not familiar with this spread (or deck) at all, but just looking at the colours, it almost looks like the Six of Cups belongs with the Chariot (which certainly makes sense thematically), and the Ace of Pentacles really stands out from the rest of the spread, with its own colour scheme.

 

With the Two of Swords coming up so much, it might be interesting to hone in on what it means - especially in relation to Death in the way you set up the cards in the second photo.

 

11 hours ago, Wyrdkiss said:

Working with my Oracle. Pictured below is a message that encouraged me to have someone over for a chat and visit today. I also included the back as I am not fond of the stencil style drawing but wanted to a show everyone. 

Been in a glum mood today. I dislike Easter and everything shut down has made the weekend feel even shorter.  

 

The art and content here is very Wind of the Willows to me. Did the conversation with a friend help the glum mood? 

[sweeneyish]

My daily reading today:

 

April 18th - Influences

 

 

Preparation  Masquerade  The Gift

 

No card here is a central focus, although there is a general movement towards the centre.

 

Preparation: An inhabitant of the garden collects fruit off a tree in preparation for the long winter ahead. He is aware that a storm is coming, but with the hard work he is putting in now he will be well equipped for whatever comes.

 

Awareness is a key word for me. The more I can keep a continuous, relaxed awareness through-out the day, the more ignorance stays at bay and I am able to act in a conscientious and compassionate way. Today is a day off with my son that should be pretty relaxed, so I should practice awareness as much as I can. It is much harder to be aware when things are crazy and busy. 

 

Masquerade: Three inhabitants of the garden participate in a masked ball. They enjoy taking on new personalities and playing strange characters under the light of the moon.

 

I’m going heavily with an intuitive reading for this one. Trungpa Rinpoche often told his students that one of the best gifts we can give our families our presence, even when it’s doing something we don’t like. For example, maybe we hate football, but whenever we go to visit our father, all he wants to do is watch football.

 

Maybe the best thing to do in that situation is meet him where he is - just sit and watch football with him. It is a truly precious gift to do this for someone. 

 

And with this card, maybe there’s a way to even enjoy it - To put on a mask, to play a character, to ‘fit’ in as a gift to those around us. 

 

I’m not always the best at doing things I don’t want to do without a great deal of resistance. Maybe today I can try to enjoy the masquerade, and play within it.

 

The Gift: An inhabitant gifts another with a flower. He didn’t get the flower without some

pain, as shown by his wounded finger. The other inhabitant is delighted by the gift. 

 

Generosity is the heart of many spiritual practices, and tying into the card above, the best gift I can give today is my presence. Even if I feel some resistance and struggle doings things I don’t feel invested in, the gift will be much appreciated by those around me. 

[Wyrdkiss]

@sweeneyish -- I think realizing one's resistance is key to getting through it more effectively.  Nicely done.

Tell me, do you read this oracle in a Lenormand fashion?

 

and it was certainly nice to have a friend over for an hour to shoot the breeze, yes.  The next few cards I pulled were for a different friend as well as one for myself.

I'll post those after work, as they show a different artistic approach (slightly different) and also hold a bit of a deeper message.

[AnomalyTempest]

9 hours ago, sweeneyish said:

 

This super interesting. I’m not familiar with this spread (or deck) at all, but just looking at the colours, it almost looks like the Six of Cups belongs with the Chariot (which certainly makes sense thematically), and the Ace of Pentacles really stands out from the rest of the spread, with its own colour scheme.

 

With the Two of Swords coming up so much, it might be interesting to hone in on what it means - especially in relation to Death in the way you set up the cards in the second photo.

 

You are right about the 6 of Wands and Chariot and of course both are "driving" themselves somewhere. Both are seen as victorious. Now I'm gonna have to play with this more. It'll be a nice break from researching the Strength/Justice numbering debate I've been doing all day.  I'm currently in an 8 year and can't decide if it's Strength or Justice. 🤔 First time I've cared about this ever.🤣

 

I like how you interpreted the Masquerade. I used to be in a similar situation with Aunt who loved bingo. I always went with her and had fun even though I hate Bingo, gambling in general, and crowds. i LOVED my aunt however and she LOVED bingo. Those memories will be cherished and remembered for their fun and not how much you did or did not enjoy the activity yourself. I think that is reinforced with the other card as well. Sometimes we have to hurt a little to bring joy to others but like childbirth (if you have done it) the pain is quickly forgotten and only the joy of the experience is remembered.

[Wyrdkiss]

There are some that are a bit deeper and more abstract -- affording one the opportunity to reflect, vs direct guidance like, "Take a walk to clear your mind" which I also pulled.

Not bad advice, but I enjoy this one that I drew for a friend:

 

 

[Wyrdkiss]

On 4/16/2022 at 10:20 AM, vulprix said:

@Wyrdkiss (and @sweeneyish), I too rejoice at the illustrated🌛 Trionfis🌜 arriving soon! So I’ll be using the Trionfi della Luna, Paradoxical Blue. 
 

Happy full moon, y’all!

I'm so stoked --- can hardly wait. Looking forward to your posts. I got the traditional, not the paradoxical. We'll have to compare.