Round decks! Your favorites, how you store them, how you use them...

[Raggydoll]

I thought we could have a thread dedicated to round decks. 

 

What are your favorites? What round decks do you know of?

How do you store them?

How do you use them?

 

I am experimenting with the directionalities that is described for the motherpeace tarot and I have found them very useful. 

I am sure most of you know about them but here is a quick one:

 

If its upright then it is upright

If it is reversed then the energy is blocked or felt unconsciously

If the card is tilted to the right then the energy is being pushed harder than necessary

And if the card is tilted to the left then the energy is being held back 

 

I have also noticed that when a card is almost reversed, then its tilt will give clues as to why the energy was blocked. So it could be the energy was pushed so hard that it became blocked (that you perhaps worked too hard on something and tried to force it), or that it was fear/reluctance/control issues that held it back so far that it was blocked. 

 

I would also love to see any storage solutions you have found/made for your round decks. I know that some people have sewn round bags or found tins of the right size. Right now I am looking out for different options. 

 

Other than the Motherpeace I have been eyeing the Daughters of the Moon tarot. I know that this deck is back in print but sadly it doesn't seem to be available outside of the US (on the creators site). I also saw that there was an aboriginal round oracle deck that looked intriguing. It is called oracle of the dreamtime. I love Laura Bowens decks so I am thinking it might be something for me. But it looks like it may be hard to get hold of too. 

 

I found this list of some round decks: 

http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/round-decks.shtml

[Flaxen]

I have a few round decks:

Tarot of the Cloisters

Gorgon’s 

Circle of Life

 

I swirl them around to mix them up as I’ve never  got the hang of shuffling them. They just get kept in their box until I come to use them - apart from Circle of Life which came with its own bag. 
The subtle variations in orientation make them quite interesting to read with. 
 

The Motherpeace is one I’ve always meant to get but never quite got round too. 
 

@PathWalker has quite a few round decks I think? Hopefully, she’ll chip in. 

 

[PathWalker]

Another deck is Thayer Tarot.

I have big hands, and so I can overhand shuffle all of mine.

 

I did make some pouches, square rather than oblong, to fit my decks.

 

No coffee yet, sorry, so nothing else comes to mind right now :classic_smile:

[Raggydoll]

1 hour ago, Flaxen said:

I have a few round decks:

Tarot of the Cloisters

Gorgon’s 

Circle of Life

 

I swirl them around to mix them up as I’ve never  got the hang of shuffling them. They just get kept in their box until I come to use them - apart from Circle of Life which came with its own bag. 
The subtle variations in orientation make them quite interesting to read with. 
 

The Motherpeace is one I’ve always meant to get but never quite got round too. 
 

@PathWalker has quite a few round decks I think? Hopefully, she’ll chip in. 

 

I thought that shuffling would be hard but it turned out to be easier than expected. I overhand shuffle. The Motherpeace deck is really clicking with me and I am so glad to finally be able to start working with it on a deeper level. Like you, it was a deck that I never got around to getting until Pathwalker so kindly gifted it to me. And I not only got the deck but also three of the books to go along with it and I am really loving them too! 

[PathWalker]

Oh, an oracle - Celtic Messages 

[PathWalker]

A round Moon Oracle deck - https://www.spiritdelalune.com/about-the-deck

[PathWalker]

There's a Japanese majors-only deck called the Nature Tarot - I have this - it's really just a RWS clone.

 

Also I see a new deck - called the Accurate AF tarot - but I've never had this one myself.

 

I have or have had all the AT list apart from Rishis - I'm not sure that ever made it to print.

 

There's another South American one I'm trying to recall  . . .

[PathWalker]

Oh more and more pop out of the woodwork - I am out of touch LOL

 

There's the Wild Unknown Archetypes

Round Forest Oracle

A Rune Oracle

 

The list goes on - I suspect that printing and cutting round cards has become cheaper in the last few years.

 

My favourite has always been Cloisters. It's OOP now but there are a lot of pirated copies on the market in the last year or so, beware if you're trying to find a genuine copy.

I love the feel of round cards in the hand, but I know not everyone likes them.

 

[stephanelli]

Pssst...it'd be awesome if anyone has some of these decks to post them in the deck library!

 

I don't have a round tarot set but I have a very well loved and battered deck of round Harry Potter playing cards!  They work well for a playing card reading actually!

[PathWalker]

18 minutes ago, stephanelli said:

Pssst...it'd be awesome if anyone has some of these decks to post them in the deck library!

 

 

Could do - will check out the 'rules'

Edited June 15, 2020 by PathWalker

[PathWalker]

Photos of a couple of pouches I made for circular decks, and a commercial bag which will hold decks up to about 4" diameter.

[PathWalker]

If you like the aspect of reading the sideways and reversed aspects, I would also recommend A.T.Mann's "Mandala Astrological Tarot". The cards are square, with the art in roundels.

 

http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/mandala-astrological/

 

Helps if you have a grasp of astrology though (which I don't really)

[PathWalker]

Some more majors-only (and vintage) round decks to add. How could I have forgotten:

 

Dragon Tarot by Lyn Secrist

Sumeremilun tarot by Kanzanlar Emil Alkotasa

The Book of Aradia

 

I will post photographs of all those I still have in my collection in the deck library

PathWalker

[AJ-ish/Sharyn]

I've had many over the years, the two that remain and are very dear to my heart are Oracle of the Dreamtime by Donni Hakanson and Songs For The Journey Home tarot. http://www.tarotjourney.co.nz/

I don't fool with orientation, too complicated, like pulling clarification cards 😉 

[Mi-Shell]

I do have the Motherpiece - from when it first came out. I never warmed up to it - the art for my liking is just too clumsy.- and the male devaluating thing  feels "unbalanced to me. So I never used it in readings.

I also have 2 of the Songs For The Journey Home, the small deck is no our motor home and the larger one I use for readings here at home.

Then I have the Daughters of the Moon , beautiful vibrant large cards!

Then there is in a round decorated Sweetgrass basket my "the Star that never walks around Tarot" - a Native themed deck 

 

[Flaxen]

19 hours ago, PathWalker said:

Photos of a couple of pouches I made for circular decks, and a commercial bag which will hold decks up to about 4" diameter.

Love your home-made pouches - that blue one is gorgeous fabric!

[PathWalker]

Thank you. You know I like making special bags

 

I have uploaded photographs of my circular decks to the deck library, they are waiting to be moderated into view.

Perhaps folks who have other decks can do theirs too. I photographed Sumeremilhun, Book of Aradia, Nature tarot, Dragon Tarot, Cloisters, Songs for the Journey Home, Circle of Life, Daughters of the Moon - B&W, Daughters of the Moon - colour, Gorgons, Thayer. Also Celtic Messages Oracle, Mandala Astrological Tarot - round art, square decks, and TaRocca - hexagonal.

[geoxena]

What would any of you say a round deck can bring to a reading that a rectangular deck doesn't?  Or, are there certain types of readings/topics that you would prefer using a round deck for?  Just curious - thanks!

[Raggydoll]

7 minutes ago, geoxena said:

What would any of you say a round deck can bring to a reading that a rectangular deck doesn't?  Or, are there certain types of readings/topics that you would prefer using a round deck for?  Just curious - thanks!

For me it has definitely been the directionality. I only read reversals some of the time with regular decks but with when I use a round deck it feels like a wheel and the nuances fascinate me so much. At first I wasn’t sure if it would add anything but I have found that it really does. It’s interesting that Sharyn compared it to clarifiers because while I do see that it is technically adding more information, the intent behind it is something entirely different. I don’t use clarifiers. I see those as being used mostly when someone struggles to interpret a card in a certain context. Most experienced readers seem to not use them. But other techniques, such as quint cards and directionality are most often used when a reader simply enjoys getting even more layers in a reading. I personally don’t use quints because I have never felt that it added that much to the reading for me. But so far, the reading of directionality on round cards have proved to genuinely add something more. I don’t use it for every reading but I have used it for almost all the readings I’ve done for myself with the motherpeace. I have also been using a similar technique with my round wooden runes for quite some time, so it’s not an entirely new concept for me. But I don’t do it all the times with runes either, it’s a technique I use for certain type of readings. So for me, that’s the biggest difference between regular and round decks. 

[PathWalker]

26 minutes ago, geoxena said:

What would any of you say a round deck can bring to a reading that a rectangular deck doesn't?  Or, are there certain types of readings/topics that you would prefer using a round deck for?  Just curious - thanks!

***Oops, cross-posted with Raggydoll, so I think I've repeated some of what she'd already said  . . .

 

If you like reading reversals anyway, then round decks give you graduations of meaning depending on how far to the left or right they may be tilted. And if you like to consider which of the people on the cards is staring at who, you've got lots of choice happening

There is also the history of some of the feminist decks being created on round card stock. If you want that deck, then round it is..

 

For me though it's that I have loved the artwork of the decks I've chosen. They are often created with a circular shape in mind, and that lends and fluidity and shape to the line of the art that I like.

Not sure what attracts others - but a good question, thank you for making me articulate my thoughts 

PW

Edited June 16, 2020 by PathWalker