The World Spirit Tarot [Cards]

This deck, illustrated by Lauren O'Leary, with accompanying book by Jessica Sczuka Godino, was published in June last year by Llewellyn. With the number of decks being published these days, it takes something special to rise above the noise and attract my attention. This one did it; it is simply one of the most evocative and useful tarot decks to appear in recent years.

O'Leary's medium is block printing, with the light areas of the prints subsequently colored in rich hues. The result is bold and dramatic, almost overloading the senses. The block printing moves far enough away from realism to give the deck an archetypal quality without compromising earthiness and character.

When I get a new deck, I always run through it quickly to check out how the artist's interpretations of the different cards strike me. Mostly, interpretations seem good but unoriginal. Sometimes there are real duds. Other times there are "zings"-visions that leap out and tell the meaning of the card in a new and exciting way. This deck has no duds and lots of zings, from the incredible Tower card drawn from the perspective of one of the falling figures (How many centuries have we waited for a Tower card that didn't make it look like somebody else's problem?) to the gorgeously sensual Strength card, with a slender, nude African woman cradled in the body of the lion, to the hauntingly wise, comfortable, and self-confident Sybil (queen) of Swords on her mountaintop.

The imagery is also wonderfully multicultural, but unlike many decks that attempt this, there is little sense of clashing worlds-the block printing technique gives the whole deck a totally unified look and feel; we are drawn into some kind of alternate reality where people of all races and cultures live in interconnection, sharing a single vivid spiritual landscape.

The real magic of this deck is that for all its beauty and originality, it is immediately readable. The themes of the cards will be instantly familiar to anyone who has used a deck drawn from Waite-Smith images and images (which most are). Even if you are new to tarot, it's hard not to get clear messages from these images. The book is nicely done, but almost superfluous. I used this deck, straight out of the box, to give free readings at Pagan Pride Day last year, and it rocks.

I got this deck, maybe five hours ago. I was so impressed I instantly wanted to share my feelings about it. I've done two readings with it already, and I know that this is going to become one of my most used decks. The art is, in a word, as close to perfect as I've found in a deck so far. Hand-coloured linoleum carved prints, with a very multiculteral feel. If you're at all familiar with a Smith-Rider-Waite based tarot deck, you probably won't have any problem using this deck. A lot of the pictures are similar . There are also some major departures from what has become standard Waite imagery on the cards. What better way to gain new insite on the cards? Also, it's a very "inclusive" deck. I doubt that there will be many, if any, feeling alienated from this deck, as one may with other "theme" decks, or a deck that has it's base in any one particular religious belief system. You'll find nearly everything in this deck. As an extreme example, the lovers card is ostensibly a man and woman - but could easily be two women or men - and why shouldn't it be? This is one of the reasons that I immediatly found this deck intersting. But the more I look at the cards (and in the next few days as I study them) I see more and more things - the amount of detail in the cards is amazing, which can only help in your readings. This seems to be a great deck if you like "intuitive readings" - where you base what you see on what is pictured in the card. Looking at the Ten of Swords right now, there are many possabilities. Is the figure in the cards *removing* the swords from the victem? Or is it stabbing her? Is the figure in the background celebrating a victory? Mourning a death? Calling for help? Invoking healing powers? Is it sunset or sunrise? Is this the beginning or the end? The booklet (*not* the little white booklet of most decks, but a small 192 page book with b&w pictures and brief bibleography and biography of the creators), which I have not explored much yet, discusses upright and reversals as the "Gift" and the "Shadow." -which seems a very positve and pro-active approach. This is seems like a great method for the "right here - right now" approach to tarot. "What's going on right now, and what light can the shed on what's to come. How can I change it? How can I keep it?" A downside of the deck, for me, is the back. The art is beautiful. However, you'll know if the card is upright or reversed. If you're a beginner who's apprehensive about using reversals, you may be tempted to not pull a card you know is reversed. I know I would have in the beginning - and even today, would probably rather deal with an upright card, holding on to some of the hang ups from my starting with the cards. Depending on what method you use to deal the cards, this may or may not be an issue. Also, the cards are pretty big - not overlarge like the Voyager Tarot - but still pretty big. This makes it a bit difficult to shuffle. This is truly an interesting deck, and these are only my immediate reactions to it. Further study will probably yield more. I'm convinced it'll be more positive, as it's rare that I react with such enthusiasm to any deck I look at. I'm quite sure this will become a major deck in my readings. If you're a collector, the artwork alone is worth the price. If you're looking for a new, interesting, beautiful alternative to a usual deck, or if you're looking for more insite into the cards - I think you may want to consider this one. It's really superb. Already as important as my usual deck.

I ordered this deck on "accident" confusing it with the "Wild Spirit Tarot"... Now i realize it was no "accident".........
I immediately connected with this deck.... It's pictures are detailed, dramatic and literally pull you into another world and time-frame.....

I have been working with Tarot for several years and am a professional reader. Normally when I get a new deck to read with, I will work with it for a couple of weeks or a month if I decide I want to use it with clients.....

However, with this deck, I was using it to give reading's to my clients the very next day. It has proven to be a clear, accurate and percise deck.....

Intuition just flows with this deck. It's beauty is breath-taking and amzing, and all the many cultures and paradigms it incoroprates into the cards really helps one to tune in to situations...

For the beginner or the advanced reader, I highly reccommend this deck...............