The Tarot Room – Georgianna

I’ve been reading two Tarot books this last little while that are quite different from one another. Both though, are very interesting.

The first is Ancestral Tarot: Uncover Your Past and Chart Your Future by Nancy Hendrickson. As might be clear from the title, It’s focus is connecting with ancestors using the cards.

The second is The Neuroscience of Tarot: From Imagery To Intuition To Prediction by Siddharth Ramakrishnan. Again, an apt title. This book explores the neuroscience of intuition.

Both books have a lot of exercises to work through, and I’ve been trying every one. I’ll probably write some short reviews when I finish, but for now I just wanted to share the titles. They really are interesting books.

Today we’re looking at the book Divine Your Dinner: A Cookbook for Using Tarot as Your Guide to Magical Meals by Courtney McBroom and Melinda Lee Holm. It was published by Clarkson Potter Publishers in 2021.

8 Points About This Book

1. Artwork – The graphics and photos are simply gorgeous. The way they mixed Tarot imagery with food makes both seem more delicious. The whole book is really nicely put together – super stylish.
2. Methods of Use – You can use Divine Your Dinner as a regular cook book, looking up recipes you like and just making them. Or, you can actually Divine Your Dinner, by pulling cards to see what the deck suggests … or, choose a card intentionally and prepare the associated dish or drink to bring that card’s energy towards you, or …
3. SpellWork – Another way to use Divine Your Dinner is by using the ‘Spells’ chapter where full menus are laid out to bring forth particular goals … things like Abundance, or Clarity, or Fresh Start, or Empowerment … there’s quite a few to choose from.
4. Full Deck – There’s both a recipe and upbeat positive Tarot advice for each and every card in the deck.
5. Minor Arcana – Cups are Seafood, Swords are Poultry, Wands are Meats, and Pentacles are Veggies … as a vegetarian myself, that leaves me with mostly Pentacles (and the Major Arcana and Court Cards – see below) … but I’m happy to use meat substitutes for the other suits. And besides, the magical ingredients aren’t necessarily the meats or veggies, but rather the spices used to prepare them.
6. Court Cards – The Court Cards are all desserts … I’m all for that.
7. Major Arcana – All the Major cards are associated with a specific ingredient, a recipe, and a mantra … these Major recipes are mostly for cocktails and desserts, delicacies that truly are full of spirit(s).
8. Magical Pantry – There’s a chapter listing out all the ‘magical’ foods and spices used in the book, describing what they are, where to get them, and their magical properties.

I just love this book. I love the idea of it. I love what it looks like, how it’s put together, and I love how it makes me want to actively add magic to my meals. Oh, and the recipes are good too.

________________________________

For another look at Tarot and Food … check out my review of the Food Fortunes Deck.

Today we’re going to take a quick look at the book Tarot For Troubled Times by Shaheen Miro & Theresa Reed. It was published back in 2019 by Weiser Books, but is certainly as relevant today as ever.

5 Points About This Book:

1. Tarot Guide – Tarot For Troubled Times is not a how-to guide for Tarot reading, and I expect that most people drawn to it already read cards to some degree or other. Working through the book and doing the exercises though, will likely deepen your relationship to the cards whatever level of Tarot reading you’re at.
2. Main Themes – This book focuses on both personal development and confronting one’s shadow self, as well as looking at our individual roles and actions in the grander outside world.
3. Journaling – Throughout the book, Miro and Reed highly recommend the process of journaling your thoughts, and provide many helpful prompts in every chapter.
4. Exercises – Tarot for Troubled Times contains multiple Tarot spreads, and self-reflection question prompts. It also includes directions for finding and using personal and yearly Tarot archetypes, as well as providing ideas and suggestions for magic work like rituals and spells. I love this stuff!
5. Allies and Activism – The book closes with a focus on the outer community and societal themes, offering constructive advice on what it means to be an ally and an activist and how you might use the Tarot to help guide you on your path.

I really like Tarot for Troubled Times. It’s self-empowering without being unrealistically positive, has tons of interesting and fun exercise suggestions, and encourages us to recognize we have a valuable part to play in both our personal lives, and the larger world outside ourselves.

It’s not part of Georgie’s Magic Card Collection, but it is part of my Magic Book Library, and it is Tarot themed … The Lost Tarot by Sarah Henstra, published in 2024 by Doubleday Canada.

5 Points About This Book

1. Genre: The Lost Tarot is a novel, fiction, not a how-to guide on how to read Tarot (but it’s good anyway!)
2. Chapter Titles – Tarot anchors the book with chapters running from the Fool through the World, finally ending with the Fool again.
3. Themes: Not only does the story of The Lost Tarot swirl around Tarot themes, it also features a couple of my other obsessions – cults and art. Not to mention, two of the main characters are from the University of Toronto … my own alma mater. If you were putting together a novel that I might be interested in – this one is almost too on point …I love it
4. Story: Tells the story of a search for a surrealist Tarot deck thought to be either a fake, or mostly burnt up in a terrible fire. It’s a fabulous tale taking us from Toronto to England to Wales, and across time from 1938 to today… through cults, galleries, psychedelic trips, and university politics. The Lost Tarot explores the idea of what it means to be a Seer.
5. Tarot: Not much actual Tarot reading in the story (I think there was a three card spread in the Devil chapter), but some of the cards being searched for are described. Wow, I’d love to have a copy of the Ringold Tarot (the name of the deck in the book). I wish they’d made one as a companion piece… sounds gorgeous, if not a little disturbing.

All in all, I think Tarot enthusiasts (and non-enthusiasts alike) will really enjoy The Lost Tarot. Plenty of unexpected twists and some absolutely beautiful imagery. And of course, underneath and above it all, the inspiring magic of Tarot.

Today’s Tarot Reading suggestion is a book by Paul Huson called Mystical Origins of the Tarot: From Ancient Roots to Modern Usage. It was published back in 2004 by Destiny Books/Inner Traditions/Bear.

5 Points About This Book:

1. History: As the title suggests, this book is focused on the history of Tarot… or more specifically, the history of the use of Tarot for divination and the meanings assigned to each card.
2. Major Arcana: After revealing his theory on the provenance of the whole series, Huson goes through each of the Major Arcana card by card, attempting to identify the origins of each image … Spoiler Alert: Huson believes that Tarot’s Major Arcana began as a representation of the ancient Mystery, Miracle, and Morality plays. He makes a compelling case.
3. Minor Arcana: For the Minors, Huson goes suit by suit, and card by card comparing the interpretations of historical Tarot heavyweights: Ettellia, Mathers, the Golden Dawn, and Waite.
4. Spreads: Mystical Origins includes a whole chapter on historical Tarot spreads. Some of them are straight forward, some very, very complicated, but I found all of them quite interesting. Huson includes a sample reading as well.
5. Tarot Reading Advice: Though this book isn’t so much a Tarot learning guide as it is an historical dissertation (with lots of illustrations), I think it could be quite helpful to new and seasoned readers alike. There’s some excellent advice on doing readings (though, obviously, everyone has their own style), and of course, as already described, there are detailed descriptions of each card, as well as some Tarot spreads to try … if a new or practiced reader is interested in learning the context from which Tarot evolved, as well as how it works, and general instructions on how to use it, this is a great book.

Overall, I very much enjoyed reading Mystical Origins of the Tarot. Don’t know why it took so long for me to get to it, but I’m glad I finally did.

Wow! I’ve been waiting since March, but my Tarot Lo Scarabeo Tarot Encyclopedia set (with Etteilla deck) has just arrived!

Perfect timing. I know what I’m doing this holiday break. Can hardly wait to dive in!

Take a look at the video below to see Sasha Graham talking about Lo Scarabeo’s Tarot Compendium, the third and final book in this incredible Tarot Encylopedia project.

It looks really good. I can hardly wait till mine arrives!

Tarot For One took me longer to read than I expected, but not because it’s difficult, or heavy, or in any way hard to read. In fact, it’s just the opposite, Courtney Weber has written an extremely accessible Tarot guide that’s a true pleasure to read.

It took me so long to get through because instead of just breezing through a collection of card definitions, Tarot history, and sample spreads (all of which are included in the book and are very well written), I actually worked through every exercise while using a new deck I wasn’t at all familiar with.

The time taken was well worth it, as not only did I really get to know my new deck, but I also deepened my own relationship with Tarot and how I use it to read for myself.

What’s especially wonderful about Tarot For One is how it helps you to develop your own personal connection to the cards. Working through the exercises shows you how you can build a language using the images on your cards that reflects your own life, something memorizing other peoples’ definitions can never do.

And the process of creating that personal language is super fun!! I was having insights left, right, and center the whole way through the book. Even an exercise asking readers about their last meal was unexpectedly interesting and enjoyable.

If you decide to get this book (which I recommend), I strongly suggest you do all the exercises, and most definitely use your Tarot journal. I started a new one just for the book and I’ve already filled more than 160 pages!

Tarot For One: The Art of Reading for Yourself is a book I think both new and seasoned readers will enjoy. I know I’m going to be gifting it to some of my Tarot buddies. Whether they’ve been reading for a long time, or just starting out, it’s the type of book that can help everyone become a better reader.

______________________________________

Tarot For One: The Art of Reading for Yourself was written by Courtney Weber and published by Red Wheel/Weiser Books

Yay!! I just received my copy of The Tarot Coloring Book by my friend Theresa Reed, aka The Tarot Lady.

It’s not only a coloring book, but also a fabulous Tarot guide, filled with clear explanations of what each card represents, and with special attention paid to the coloring and primary symbols found in each card.

The pictures are large, with lots of room to color as you wish. You can follow with tradition, or take things in a whole new direction. Either way, the whole process of coloring in the images helps solidify their meaning, and forges a mind-body connection to the deck that simple memorization could never achieve.

As a longtime fan of both coloring and Tarot, this is a particularly fun book for me. I can hardly wait to dive in.

Check it out for yourself! Copies of The Tarot Coloring Book are available through Amazon.com.

4 of Cups

Tuesday, June 14, 2016
4 of Cups

Today it might seem like you’ve got it all, and yet there’s still something missing.  Emotionally, you’ve got plenty of support.  People around you love you and you love them back.  Despite it all though, there’s a nagging feeling that it’s just not enough.

Perhaps you’re fantasizing about a new love, a new friend, or at a new spark to make what you’ve already got even more special.

Examine these feelings carefully and determine what it is that leaves you slightly unsatisfied.  Are you being reasonable – or a bit of a brat.  Pay attention to what you’ve got and don’t forget to give thanks.

At the same time – if there is something missing, it’s missing and there’s no getting around it.  Meditate on what it is that leaves you wanting more and figure out whether or not it’s something you should pursue.

Remember though, what you wish for might just appear out of thin air – make sure you really want it?

comment on this post