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Reviews: Tarot Decks
Tarot & Cartomancy
Deck & Book Reviews
by Bonnie Cehovet, CTGM
Tarot Master
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Sol Invictus – The God Tarot
review by Bonnie Cehovet, CTGM
Author: Kim Huggins & Nic Phillips
Illustrated by: Kim Huggins & Nic Phillips
Schiffer Publishing
2007
ISBN #978-0-7643-2761-2
“Sol Invictus” was brought into being for a specific purpose – to explore the Divine Masculine, or God. The author’s see the Divine Masculine in the guise of trickster, father, sorcerer, lover, creator, sustainer, antichrist, traitor, death, lust, nature, war, compassion … and more. They believe that this deck is for men and women, young and old, Pagan and non-Pagan, using the archetypes of the Tarot as a tool for exploring and promoting the Divine Masculine, as well as bringing balance between Masculine and Feminine.
The deck is traditional in nature, following the 22 card Major Arcana and the 56 card Minor Arcana stricture, with each card fully illustrated. The traditional card titles are used, with the following exceptions: The High Priestess (Inner Wisdom), The Empress (The Creative), The Chariot (The Quest), The Hanged Man (The Mystic), Temperance (Alchemy), The Devil (The Underworld), Judgment (The New Aeon), and The World (The Universe). Strength is VIII and Justice is XI. The Minor Arcana suits are Wands, Cups, Swords and Coins. The Court Cards have been renamed: Page (Awakening), Knight (Quester), Queen (Nurturer) and King (Master).
The deck comes as a set – deck and 264 page companion book. The box is solid, and opens cigar style. The background color for the box is red, with scans of The Creative and The Universe on the front, and publishing information on the back. The deck contains two extra cards – an informational card, and a Tree of Life Diagram.
The companion book begins with a little background on why the focus was on the Divine Masculine, as well as the road to publication. (My friend Cynthia Giles introduced Kim and Nic to the Schiffer publishing company – and the rest is history!). There is a short discussion on mythology, and its place in expressing archetypes. The choice of the name – “Sol Invictus”, or Unconquered Sun – was made in an effort to not mislead people into thinking that this was a deck referencing only a Christian God. This is truly a multi-cultural deck, with some cards merging images and Gods from very different pantheons and cultures. The aim was to keep the deck traditional in nature, and to follow the traditional archetypes for each of the cards.
“Sol Invictus” reflects Hieros Gamos, or the sacred marriage between the Masculine and the Feminine. You will see this in its alchemical imagery, and in its application to Kabbalah and the Tree of Life.
Each card is presented with the card title, the God/character on the card, the legend behind the imagery, (As Above), and the divinatory meaning of the card, along with keywords (So Below). There are no scans presented with the cards.
In the introduction to the Minor Arcana we are presented with a five-card spread that uses the 40 Pip (numbered) cards to highlight the balances and imbalances in the Seeker’s life. In the section on the Court Cards, there is a four-card spread that uses the Court Cards only to help pinpoint where the Seeker is in their progress in different areas of their life.
The Court cards themselves have been renamed, and are intended to show a progression from Awakening (Page) through Mastery (King).
Suggestions for working with the Tarot at the end of the book include reading books, practicing, discussion, Tarot games and journaling. In the section on reading with the Tarot, topics such as psychic reading, books, intuition, fate and free will, Tarot and ritual, astral pathworking and creating your own spreads are covered.
Several spreads are presented, including the Warrior Spread (for facing challenges), the Lover Spread (addressing the creative process), the King Spread (foundation and choices), the Sorcerer Spread (the Magic Mirror of Self-Reflection), the St. Nectan’s Spread (descent into the underworld), the King Arthur Alchemical Spread, the Elementary Protection Spread (the Four of Coins), the Nine Blessings Spread, the Death of Taliesin Spread, and the Expanding Consciousness Spread.
There is an appendix that includes a graphic of the Tree of Life, a graphic of Mithraic Cosmology, and an extensive bibliography.
The cards are approximately 2 3⁄4” by 4 3⁄4”, and of quality, glossy card stock. The backs are white, with a red Sun, and are reversible. The faces show a 1⁄4” white border, with the card number, in Roman numerals, at the bottom, along with the God/character portrayed on the card. The Pips show the suit and number (in text) along the bottom of the card, along with the God/character portrayed on the card. The Court Cards show the title and suit at the bottom of the card, along with the God/character portrayed on the card.
The art style resembles pen and ink drawing, with color added. The style moves from simple drawings to fantasy, with attention to detail and a great deal of esoteric imagery. One of my favorite cards is the Fool, represented by Percivale (from the Arthurian legend). We see a figure standing on a hill, at the end of a path, with a staff in his right hand, and a swan under his arm. He looks down on the Knights as they follow their journey. The sky in the background is a beautiful blue, with a colorful rainbow traversing it.
The Magician is an eye-catching card, entitled Creator Gods, and referencing several Creator Gods and Creation myths. There is a dark night sky in the background, with a white dove coming head down, wings spread, representing the Holy Spirit hovering over the waters below. Three shafts of light, representing the Awen, descend over the waters of creation. Above the white dove is a Kabbalistic lightening bolt, symbolizing the descent of spirit into matter. At the top of the card is chaos, coming from which is formed the Greek word LOGOS.
The Emperor is a combination of Gods – Freyr, Tyr, Cernunnos, and Atlas. The figure on the card is in an Atlas like stance, with the world balanced on his shoulders, kneeling on a cube of stability and order. Representations of the Norse gods Freyr and Tyr below him. The paving stones under the Emperor are ordered until the approach the primeval forest where Cernunnos dwells, where they become uneven and wild.
The Quest (The Chariot), features Sir Galahad from the Arthurian legend. The Hermit is Nietzsche’s Zarathustra. Alchemy is King Arthur and Merlin, from the Arthurian legend. The Tower is Shiva. The Universe is Buddha’s Enlightenment. The Two of Wand is Alexander The Great. The Five of Wands is the Oak King and the Holly King. The Eight of Wands is Na-gah. The Awakening of Wands is Eros. The Ace of Cups is Saint Frances of Assisi.
This deck would appeal to all levels of Tarot readers, and would be a significant deck to add to decks being offered to Seeker’s as a choice for a reading. The colors and imagery take one slightly outside of the bounds of traditional imagery – just enough to open the mind to new possibilities.
© January 2009
Tarot of the Cat People
review by Bonnie Cehovet CTGM
Illustrated by: Karen Kuykendall
ISBN 0-88079-078-4
copyright 1985 by U.S. Games
Suits: Wands, Cups, Swords, Pentacles
Court cards: King, Queen, Knight, Page
One thing that you need to know: I am a cat person. Karen Kuykendall, in the introduction to the LWB (little white booklet), is described as being called "The Cat Lady" by her friends. It is not to wonder that this deck found its way into my hands! I bought it because of the cats, even before I knew how to read a traditional deck, and it remains one of my personal favorites.
The figures and felines portrayed in this deck are incredibly done, set in the fantasy world called the "Outer Regions." They were originaly done as acrylic on board measuring 9 1/2" by 15 1/2" with a splatter background. The color, style--and beautifully portrayed kitties--make this a wonderful combination of Tarot and science fiction/fantasy.
The LWB itself is one of the better ones that I have seen. The Outer Regions themselves are defined, with each suit becoming one of the kingdoms, with a physical and emotional picture of each of the characters peopling the different kingdoms given. The majors are defined as a separate Kingdom. A basic description is given of each card, along with the divinatory (upright) and reverse meanings. (The meanings are traditional.) At the end of the LWB is a short section on the Celtic Cross--how to lay it out and how to read the positions.
One of my favorite cards in any deck is the Sun. Depicted here is is the Sun in the form of a giant Lion's head, radiating physical strength and a wonderful golden aura. In front of the Lion's head, basking in the aura, are a male and a female figure, holding hands.The cloaks worn by the figures are beautiful shades of pink and blue. The overall feeling of this card - peace and happiness between the couple, and between the couple and the Sun.
Another stunning card is the Empress. She is shown as a tall, forcefull figure, dressed in white with symbolic "eyes" of light blue/green on her robe, holding a sceptor in her hands. She wears a helmet-like headdress to show her no-nonsense attitude towards life. At her feet lies a large cat, behind her is a large multi-color characature of a cat.
This is a fun, entertaining deck. The meanings are traditional, the cards playful and easy to read. I would not recomend this as a beginning deck, but it does come in under the heading of "I like that." It is also a deck that can be readily used when reading in public or reading in general.
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Bonnie Cehovet,
Tarot Educator, Reiki Grand Master/Teacher
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Bonnie Cehovet is a Certified Tarot Grand Master, a professional Tarot reader with over ten years experience, a Reiki Master/Teacher and a writer.
Bonnie holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology from the University of Hawaii, Manoa campus, and is certified as a Tarot Educator with the American Board For Tarot Certification.
She has served in various capacities with the American Tarot Association, to include Secretary on the ATA Board. She is co-founder of the World Tarot Network, and former Vice President (as well as Director of Certification) for the American Board For Tarot Certification.
Her articles and reviews currently appear in the World Tarot Network newsletter (www.worldtarot.com),
The Meta Arts Magazine (www.themetaarts.com),
the Aeclectic Tarot site (www.aeclectic.
net/tarot),
and on her own site,
www.tarot.
thecrystalgate.com.
For several years she has edited her own quarterly Tarot newsletter - Gateway to Tarot. She also has articles appearing in the 2004 and 2005 "Llewellyn Tarot Reader".
www.americanboard
fortarot certification.org
www.tarot.
thecrystalgate. com |
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