Monday 30 January 2023

Barbieri Zodiac Oracle

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Barbieri Zodiac Oracle, published by Lo Scarabeo, text by Barbara Moore, artwork by Paolo Barbieri, 26 cards and information in multi lingual booklet. £14.99 

With emphases on the constellations, planets and elements, (and a house spread) this astrology deck is interesting and the artwork is very glamorous. All decks use synchronicity, and this deck emphasises its importance. The cards have exceptional individual artworks featuring exotic body art, extended rams' horns, slim young naked women and young men with muscles. The cards are given titles and a symbol. In the booklet, the cards also are given a number, an element, a key phrase, relevant dates and a short message. The cards are divided into fire, water, earth and air, and cardinal,  fixed and mutable energies. Information on how to use the cards and 5 techniques are provided. If you are looking for a sexy oracle deck, you will love this artwork. Though the booklet provides adequate information for each card, if you have knowledge of astrology, you can expand on the information provided about each card to make your readings individualised and more entertaining. I love Pauli’s artwork - first class!

Sunday 29 January 2023

Wisdom of Hafiz


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Car Deck Review: Wisdom of Hafiz - An Art Oracle Deck with Poetic Renderings by Daniel Ladinsky, Art by Silas Toball, Oracle by Angi Sullins. Published by US Games Systems Inc., on 11th July, 2022 Boxed set of 45 cards (9cm x 13.5cm) and full colour guidebook. $23.95 : £17.99 

“We’re all just walking each other home.”

Sufi poet Hafiz takes centre stage with the theme of this charming deck with a Persian influence. Cards are presented in a magnetic closure box, the cards edged with gold leaf. Information is provided on Hafiz, and how this deck was created, how to use the deck. Each card has an image, number and title. The guidebook provides additional subtitle and 60 words of good advice for each card. 

Saturday 28 January 2023

Whispers of the Ocean


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Whispers of the Ocean Oracle Cards by Angela Hartfield, published by Blue Angel Publishing, Boxed set of 50 Cards and Guidebook, £17.99

How relevant this topic is! Ideal energies for an oracle deck! Oceans are the life blood of our planet, of the goddess Gaia upon which we all live and have our being. Three quarters of the surface of our planet is composed of water. The oceans produce a quarter of our precious oxygen supplies. We must care for our seas and not pollute them. Save the oceans! 

The guidebook provides information about the relevance of our oceans. Water is a symbol for our collective unconscious and helps us to imagine our emotional depths. The oceans are our ancient mother as all life is thought to originate in the seas. Under the oceans are mountains, volcanoes and trenches and a huge number of life forms that are yet to be discovered. When we connect with the wisdom of the ocean, we learn to appreciate and understand the immense importance of water and the beauty and wisdom that lies there. 

Friday 27 January 2023

Dream Interpretation Oracle


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Dream Interpretation Oracle, by Luigi Di Giammarino, Text by Pierluca Zizzi. Boxed set of 36 cards plus instruction leaflet. Published by Lo Scarabeo £14.99
 

The box is attractive with silver lettering. This deck is not for divination. You don’t ask questions and get answers. The cards help you to be more receptive to dream symbols, images and concepts. 

Information is provided in English, Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Russian. 

A dream diary is recommended. Go over your dream, remember as much as you can of the physical and emotional aspects. Take the entire deck of cards and lay them out, faces up. Select the cards that best apply to your dream. Put the most relevant at the top and read from the book the keywords for those cards.

Thursday 26 January 2023

Divine Circus Oracle Cards


Mind, Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Divine Circus Oracle Cards by Alana Fairchild, Boxed set of 44 cards plus instruction book, published by Blue Angel Publishing £17.99 

I like Alana Fairchild’s work and I have a love of the circus; the two are nicely combined in this deck of oracle cards. The philosophy is that of the playful and joyful party, the rebel, the creative, the spontaneous and the daring. Breaking free of the hum drum, the deck provides an alternative way of being confident, trusting your intuition and living an inspired life. For the irreverent, the naught and the risk takers! 

Information on how to use the deck, a ritual for blessing the cards, four suggested spreads: The Clown Nose 1 Card, the Strong Man 5 cards, the Flying Trapeze 5 cards, and the Bearded Lady 5 cards. 

Tarot Nuages


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Tarot Nuages By Gniedmann, published by US Games, 79 cards with accompanying booklet. £17.99 19th April 2022

Based on the Marseilles Tarot - you will be able to read from these cards if you are a tarot reader, so don’t be put off! This is a terrific deck! Witty, creative, unusual, snazzy! You can give a serious reading, but make your clients laugh when applicable! I’ve used these cards and been able to draw my clients’ attention to the funny motifs within the cards! 

This is a concept deck, a story that takes place within a turreted, royal town that is both ancient and modern, real and imaginary, fun and serious, tarot archetypes and fantasy people! The Majors have their titles and number and image, and we find in the booklet, names for these strange looking characters. The Minors are Wands, Chalices, Swords and Coins with Court Cards of Page, Knight, Queen and King all with new Nuages names. 

Friday 20 January 2023

Bach Flower Inspirational Cards Review


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Bach Flower Inspirational Cards by Gianmarco Canapini with artwork by Antonella Castelli, published by Lo Scarabeo, 38 cards with booklet in English, Italian, Spanish, French and Dutch.


Quality box with flip magnetic lid contains individually created cards, 3.25 inches by 5.75 inches in size, with the instruction booklet. Explanation is provided about flower and tree essences which were devised by medical doctor, Edward Bach 100 years ago in the U.K., known as Bach Flower Remedies. He was influenced by homeopathy and personality profiling, and his remedies relate to twelve behavioural characteristics. A short biography about him and his work is supplied, with information on how to read the cards. 

Thursday 19 January 2023

Da Vinci Tarot

Mind, Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: An interesting deck titled "Leonardo Da Vinci Tarot" with Artwork by Iassen Ghiuselev and Atanas Atanasov and the text of the little white booklet included in the pack by Mark McElroy. Published by Lo Scarabeo. 

The basis of the 78 images in this deck are artworks of Leonardo da Vinci which have soft muted and sepia tinted tone. Computer graphics have been added to Leonardo's artwork to create this tarot deck and I enjoyed the cards and was transported back in time to Renaissance Italy. As Leonardo might have met Ludovico de Sforza who commissioned the earliest tarot decks of his time, maybe there was a consideration of the tarot in Leonardo's mind. 


 

Wednesday 18 January 2023

Mystical Tarot Review

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Mystical Tarot by Giuliano Costa, published by Lo Scarabeo, 78 cards plus information leaflet in pack. £17.99 

This Mysticaly Tarot provides images that open a magical door that brings the mystical world into our ordinary lives. There is no wrong way to interpret the cards. With foundation meanings provided on the Major and Minor Arcanas, there is a succinct message for all but the Court Cards. We are encouraged to use our own innate abilities to interpret these cards which offer new and advanced symbolism. There are no reversed meanings provided, but the reader has the opportunity to include these as the card backs are suitable for a reading that includes reversals. 


Tuesday 17 January 2023

Mantegna Tarot





'Let the virtues direct you, the Liberal Arts guide you and the Muses inspire you'. 

Mantegna Tarot – Medieval Cosmology prepared the World for Human Understanding. This pack contains 50 lluminated cards and 25 additional cards which support them for the purpose of a card game. Published by Lo Scarabeo with tarot influenced artwork by the esteemed Bulgarian artist, A.A Atanassov who based the cards on the work of Venetian painter, Andrea Mantegna (1431 - 1505). A little white booklet contains instructions for ‘The Chessboard Game’ of 20 cards. The information provides card interpretations in English and 5 European languages.  

Monday 16 January 2023

Earth Wisdom Oracle


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Earth Wisdom Oracle Cards by Barbara Moore and Cristina Scagliotti, 32 cards published by Lo Scarabeo with multi lingual information booklet, £14.99


These cards have a Celtic influence which honours the Earth, spirits of plants, stones, water, and other species who share their wisdom for our readings. Ask a question in the here and now, not for the future. For self use, one card at a time,you should get the greatest sense of each card before choosing another one. Imagine you are in the setting of the card image. Meditate on the scenery around you, and when you feel connected, ask your questions and listen for responses. A delightful deck! 

Review: Wendy Stokes. https://wendystokes.co.uk 

Saturday 14 January 2023

Lo Scarabeo Tarot


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: 'Lo Scarabeo Tarot - The art of divining begins a new chapter' by Mark McElroy with artwork by Anna Lazzarini and published by Lo Scarabeo £17.99 

Lo Scarabeo are my favourite card deck publishers. These are  slim-line cards 4.70" x 2.60". If someone has only one deck, this is the one to have! It is a combination of three premier tarot decks: The Waite-Smith, the Thoth, and the Tarot de Marseilles, and is introduced by Lo Scarabeo as a "flagship" deck. It can be used for reflection and study or as a divination deck and the traditional meanings apply. It offers a flexible approach to divination suggesting the use of intuition though a good tarot book will be necessary for beginners as contained in the pack with the 78 cards is a little white instruction leaflet that gives just the card titles and two keywords, one for upright readings and one for reversed readings. A sample reading of the suggested 9 card 'Lo Scarabeo' spread is provided.



Friday 13 January 2023

Gems Oracle

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Gems Oracle Cards by Bianca Luna, 32 cards published by Lo Scarabeo. £15.99 cards and booklet in English and 6 other languages. Information on how to read the cards, each gemstone has a profile with a title, number, astrology symbol, chakra and yoga asana. Also included with each card is a 30 word message, ideas for meditations with suitable questions, and the general energy of the gemstone. Excellent card stock. Cards are arranged in element suits of fire, water, earth, air. Also included are use for a talisman and ritual for charging the cards. A suggested spread for a 4 card Treasure Chest. I found this deck precise, and it condenses a great deal of information into the space available. A pleasant surprise! 

Thursday 12 January 2023

Tarot Botticelli

Mind, Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: The Golden Botticelli Tarot is published by Lo Scarabeo with images by the Italian Early Renaissance Florentine painter, Alessandro Filipepi known as Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510) with tarot artwork by A A Atanassov.

It is a most fabulous deck with 78 gold embossed and decorated card images that will delight all who see them. Included in the pack is a little white booklet in English and other European languages. There is a 7 card suggested spread titled The Star of Solomon with a sample reading. The lwb contains a few words on both upright and reversed meanings. The backs do not reveal whether the cards fall upright or reversed.

This is an opulent and glamorous tarot deck, one of Lo Scarabeo's specialities. When handling these cards, I feel a sense of reverence they carry power within their production. If this is your only deck, you will need no others! 

Wednesday 11 January 2023

Ancient Italian Tarot


Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Ancient Italian Tarot.


This is a highly ornate deck from the specialist publishers, Lo Scarabeo and is a joy to work with. The Major cards have Roman and Arabic numerals and the title of each Major card is in Latin. The Minor cards are Rods, Cups, Swords and Pentacles, with seasons allotted for each. They were once related to the lion, bull, eagle and man, and to the elements, fire, earth, air and water. All cards below 6 were removed from the deck. Court cards probably finally called 'coat' cards. Mediaeval monks used a system of memory training known as mnemonics, with pictures to aid recollection. The Romany word for card deck is 'tar' from Sanskrit 'taru'. Eliphas Levy considered the tarot and Cabala were related. Papua, a doctor of medicine, published Tarot of the Bohemians, and he considered the major arcana to be a spiritual journey through ups and downs of life. A superb deck! 

Monday 9 January 2023

African American Tarot Review




Mind, Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: African American Tarot - The legendary cultural identity of the Afro-Americans. Written by Jamal R with artwork by Thomas Davis, 78 cards with instruction leaflet. Published by Lo Scarabeo. Cards plus instruction insert.


The little white booklet is written in five languages (English, Italian, French, German, Spanish). The cards tell of a creation story with key concepts about traditions and associations. Each painting is traditionally African, but many cards have a smaller monochrome image of modern life and work, providing two levels of reading. There are many African animals, including rare species, beautifully produced. The artwork is original, enjoyable and stimulating. 

Friday 6 January 2023

Tarot of the Thousand and One Nights

Mind, Body and Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Tarot of the Thousand and One Nights, 78 individually illustrated cards with decorative miniature images from the stories of this name by Leon Carre, published by Lo Scarabeo. A little white booklet is included in the pack with a few words of divinatory meaning for each card in English and 4 other languages. 

The wonderful collection of Middle Eastern tales which came from Antoine Galland in 1700s to the French court of the Sun King have inspired this deck. The wicked Sultan has an endless stream of brides who come to his chamber each night. After the wedding night is over, he kills them. But the clever Scheherazade weaves an endless story of Aladdin, Sinbad and Ali Baba that hold his attention night after night. He falls in love with her and spares her life and they live happily ever after - so the story goes! The original Arabic texts were translated in 1949 by Francesco Gabriela. 

There is a suggested spread of 15 cards called 'The Garden of Scheherezade' with 3 major arcana cards and 12 minor arcana cards. This deck is a magic carpet ride of wonder and delight. Every card has an individual image. Readings are very dependent on the readers' ability to connect to the Otherworld though the images and the stories the cards pertain

Monday 2 January 2023

Tarot Apokalypsis Review

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Tarot Apokalypsis, published by Lo Scarabeo, text by Kim Huggens, artwork by Erik C Dunne. Boxed set of 79 cards and full colour hardback book 464 pages. £27.99

Who are you today in the Land of Apokalypsis?

This is the follow up to the award winning Tarot Illuminati, which was the first collaborative tarot deck between these two great tarot specialists, Kim Huggins and Erik Dunne, and is produced by the prestigious Tarot publishing house, Lo Scarabeo. It offers rich symbolism, astrological and kabbalistic meanings, and takes us across the world to ancient myths. To this deck, a new card has been added, creating 79 card deck.