boudica_'s Full Review: Lisa Hunt - Animals Divine Tarot
I am a big fan of Lisa Hunt's artwork, so it seemed natural to review her new deck. I received the box set which contains the deck, a companion book, a bag to store the cards in and comes in a nice, attractive box featuring her artwork.
The deck itself is a breath of fresh air. First, the reverse color of the deck is a pale yellow with a gold stamped design of three flying birds and a triple spiral, reminiscent of Celtic designs. Very attractive and a much needed relief from the dark or black reverses on many decks. It sets the theme for the rest of the deck. Bright, colorful and airy is the description to give to the overall look of the deck.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. The deck size is 2 ¾" by a little over 4 ½". Nice hand size, the deck shuffles agreeably and fits well. There are 78 cards in the deck, plus two cards which illustrate "spreads" suggested for use with the deck.
There are 22 "Major Arcana" cards, numbered 0 to 21. Each illustration is bordered by a gold and white border, with the name of the card and number at the bottom, and the subject of the card at the top, to make correspondence easier for folks used to using the traditional tarot deck. The similarities stop here. This deck now progresses off on the path that Ms. Hunt wants to proceed on, which is the influences of animals and various Deities. The Coyote is depicted as the Fool, Cerridwen as the Magician, Bast as the High Priestess. Except for the Wheel, which is labeled “All Animals” the Major Arcana's focus is upon Deity and it’s animal association. Referencing the book, which accompanies the deck, the artist explains "Each card showcases a different myth connected to the animal and god or goddess. The art serves to elicit certain feelings or functions. Animals can help us connect with our own psychological and emotional exploration." This is a new focus for a tarot deck, very original and very intriguing.
The artwork itself is stunning; very detailed and lifelike. If you take the focus the artist has for the deck, you can see the stories, as outlined in the book, and reflection upon these does give you insight into the meanings of the cards.
The "Court Cards" consist of 4 cards, starting with the Queen, King, Knight and Page. They are themed, with Cups representing Water, and using water Deities and animals. The Swords represents Air and uses birds and Deities with bird symbols. Wands is Fire, and uses reptiles and insects and Deities with these symbols and Pentacles is Earth, with mammals and Deities with mammals. While the Queen and King retain their traditional male and female aspects, the Knight and Page seem to cross between the male and female, offering a nice change from the usual forced role models. So, Venus shows up as the Knight of Cups, while Sadrapa is the Page of Wands.
The Deities and animals represented cross various cultures and spiritualities, creating a large base to work from. Every spiritual path is represented here: Celtic, Hindu, Phoenician, Green, Native American and more. Everyone will find something to identify with in this deck, and there will be plenty of fresh, new material for you to learn. Ms. Hunt did her homework, with the book being a good reference and background work for those not familiar with the Deities or animals depicted on the cards. Again, it gives this work a very interesting aspect.
The Minor Arcana is split up the same way the Court Cards are, and each card has an animal representation, in addition to the usual suit assignment. But here again, there will be a learning curve, as the cards do not depict the traditional tarot designation. The artist sums up her focus very nicely: "How can thinking about animals help you to address needs of day-to-day life and thus help you to improve the quality of your life?" She continues: "Animals can be your teachers and guides."
Each card, when referenced back to the book and the "meaning" indicated, presents a point of reflection, and you tie in the importance of the card to your everyday life. Take, for instance, the Ten of Cups, the Whales. She uses the following meaning: "the achievement of goals and dreams, happiness and contentment reign, a feeling of wholeness permeates one’s being, renewed familial ties and friendships" She goes on to explain the timeless perfection of the whale, and how they are connected with the mysteries of the ancients. Reading through her explanation, the connections becomes clear, and the meaning is simple and very personal.
Working with the cards themselves was easier than I expected, though, as I said, I needed to work with the book a bit. However, as I become more familiar with the way the deck works, I became more comfortable in "listening to the cards" and following what they were telling me. The meanings are not really all that far off from the traditional meanings; you are just looking at the meanings in a different way.
This would be a great deck for those who are working closely with animal guides or with the animal aspects of Deity. It is an excellent deck for anyone who enjoys variations on the Tarot. And it is a wonderful deck for someone who is very shamanistic in their spiritual path.
This is a lovely deck, from it's concept to the artwork. Presentation is everything, and this deck presents us with some new ways of seeing the Tarot. The artwork is outstanding, a perfect effort from Ms. Hunt, and a deck that I will be working with again and again. boudica
To guide readers on reconnecting with the natural world and tuning into animal energies for a more intuitive, insightful outlook on life, this boxed k...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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