Card Review: The Goddess Oracle

Happy Birthday to me! Before we get into this week's Card Review, I wanted to let you know about a little secret I'm only sharing with a few people. Well, I guess it isn't just a few. Several, in fact.

When I turned 29 last year, I promised myself that I would be a published author by the time I was 30. That meant I only had 12 months to put a book together and get it published. With approximately 17 days to spare, I managed to get Learn Tarot With Durriken in print and Kindle form. Now, for today only, the Kindle Version of Learn Tarot With Durriken is free. No strings attached. Visit Amazon today to download your copy.

Think of it as a reverse Birthday gift.

Today, we'll be reviewing The Goddess Oracle, by Amy Sophia Marashinsky, and illustrated by Hrana Janto. From the back matter:

The Goddess Oracle Celebrates the many faces of the Goddess worshiped in cultures around the world since the beginning of time.

First thing's first. Let's talk about the book that comes with the cards. And boy, is it a book. A good portion of Tarot decks come with a guide to reading the cards, usually a flimsy paper booklet. Sometimes, the booklet is a little more substantial, but still contains only the most basic of information.

Oracle Cards are a little different than Tarot Cards. The images, and the interpretations are usually artist specific and few, if any Oracle decks are similar enough to one another to create a universal system of interpretation and reading. This is why the book that accompanies Goddess Oracle is so thick and, I might add, useful!

The first part of the book, as with most Oracle decks, goes over some basic information about the artist and author, their inspiration, and the ritual that works best for them when starting a reading session. Of course, all rituals should be personalized, especially any that come out of a widely distributed deck, like the Goddess Oracle. 

The second section goes over the Goddesses depicted on the cards, explaining the image on the card, the meaning of the card, the mythology from which the Goddess comes, and a suggested ritual. 

Part Three is a handy reference chart, giving you the Page Number, Goddess, Quality, Ritual Suggestion and the Culture/Country of the Goddess' origin.

The Cards themselves, which total 52, are slightly wider than a standard Tarot deck. They're not the easiest cards to shuffle, but everyone has their own form of mixing the cards up, and shuffling is only one of my preferences. 

The images on the cards are stunningly beautiful, and might have been drawn with several agents, such as chalk, water color and pencil. The Goddesses depicted are modern interpretations, so if you're looking for "authentic" representations, you'll need to look elsewhere. That contemporary style adds to the power of the images, however, and allows the individual a moment of reflection, meditation and finally entrance into the card itself.

Admittedly, this is not a deck I use often. I will occasionally pull it out for my own edification and I've only given a few readings with it to other people. But, the power of these cards is overwhelming, and using them should not be taken lightly.

If you're interested in the Goddess Mysteries, then this is definitely a deck I can recommend!