Right. I like  RWS-style deck as well as the next person. I like cat decks pretty well (which is good, considering I designed the Pagan Cats Tarot) even though I am more of a dog person. I certainly did not expect to fall in love with the fabulous felines of the Black Cats Tarot. Seriously. In. Love. I like novelty decks just fine. I like it better if a deck that could be novelty reaches further and achieves more. The Black Cats Tarot does that. I have picked out oodles of images that either charmed me or made me think or delighted me with their cleverness. I’ll comment on some, but I am sure these expressive creatures can speak for themselves. This must be the most serene High

With this post I'm beginning a basic course in ceremonial magick. From the beginning. It may be too basic for some readers, but if you're advanced enough to think that, then perhaps these occasional posts will help expand your ideas when teaching others. Getting Ready for Magick Among the mystics of India it is said that the path of the Tantric magician is not for everyone. Rather, it is only for the vira, the "hero." According to this tradition magick is not for the common person, but only for those who are brave. In the nominally more egalitarian West, to quote the archetypal mage, Aleister Crowley, "Magick is for all." So is magick for everyone or just for the heroes? To follow

This card has changed a lot throughout history. It originally meant a traitor; someone who had betrayed someone or something. Later, it meant sacrifice, and some still read it as that. But more commonly, now, people read it as being in a kind of comfortable limbo waiting for a revelation or realization of some sort. In this image in particular, there is a sense of balance. Many tarot cards suggest balance: Lovers, Chariot, Justice, Temperance. Even the cards with pillars, such as the High Priestess, or the Moon with its two towers. Examining all the different flavors of balance in the tarot...now that would be an interesting study. I usually read it as a kind of time out, a

The Tarot of the New Vision is a fascinating deck from the fine folks at Lo Scarabeo. This deck shows traditional Rider-Waite-Smith images from the back. Finally, a glimpse of what is going on behind the scenes. On Tuesday, the blog entry was about making meanings and one of the suggestions was to consider what happened just before and what might happen just after the scene in the card. Well, add to that list: what is going on behind the scenes? Since we are talking about seeing things from a different point of view, what better card to explore than the Hanged Man? Wow. This really changed the energy and feel of the card for me. What are your thoughts? Here are some