I didn't realize I had so many! The one I use the most by far is Stephanie Pui-Mun Law's Shadowscape Tarot, but it was really helpful to use the Steampunk Tarot deck for my steampunk novel. That deck had originally been Jeff's, but it kind of adopted me, so I've liberated it from its cardboard box and given it its own beautiful bag. It struck me how useful it was to have multiple decks for different purposes, as the steampunk deck definitely has a different energy from the Shadowscape deck. I still use the Mystic Faerie Tarot for teaching, since its minor arcana cards are so useful in creating storylines in each suit (not that I'm doing as much teaching now that the kids aren't with us on weekends), and it's imagery is pretty appealing to the girls.
But all of the decks I owned up until today were based on the original Rider-Waite deck, my first deck, and I'd never really worked with either the Marseille deck or the Crowley/Thoth deck. Frankly, I was a bit intimidated by the Crowley/Thoth deck, in part because the only folks I'd ever known who were into Crowley were assholes (not like I knew all that many), and partly because I knew that he designed his deck to reflect his personal approach to occultism, which I'm just not that familiar with.
But I've been really enjoying tarot and wanting to push myself with it, so I decided to ease into it by getting the Lo Scarabeo Tarot (I'm not sure if this has another name, but it's their N-th Anniversary edition, sold as a "deluxe" edition with its own bag with a scarab beetle embroidered on it). This deck combines symbolism from all three of the traditional decks, Rider-Waite, Marseille and Thoth. I'm not sure if there's any rhyme or reason to how they managed to combined the symbolism, but I figured it might provide a good bridge between the traditions. Plus, it's not exactly a "pretty" deck, and sometimes I need a deck that's more neutral and more overtly symbolic (in an almost comic-book style) than the Shadowscape deck. So I'm pretty pleased with that deck, and it might become my new teaching deck, or I might even use it as a "public" deck if I ever get around to giving readings to other people.
The other deck I got, called the Sun and Moon Tarot, popped up randomly while I was searching for the Lo Scarabeo deck. It's also published by Lo Scarabeo, but the artwork is by Vanessa Decort. I think I read somewhere that she is also an illustrator for children's books, and you can definitely see that influence in her work. This deck is amazing! I find myself loving every single image. The deck has a very simple, almost folk-art kind of style (you can even see the texture of the canvas she was painting on, and among other stylistic choices, none of the figures have faces). This style really works for me, and I really connect with the deck. It's beautiful, but not in the ornate, watercolor way that Shadowscape is. Instead, it has a rich, textured kind of feel, with lots of use of primary colors, though they're somewhat muted. The images are also stylistically simple, which I find refreshing after using the Steampunk deck for a while, with its gritty realism. So I'm super psyched about this deck in particular! It might become my primary deck for a while...
But one thing about it is that it is heavily based on the Thoth tarot rather than the Rider-Waite. Some of the differences I've picked up on right away, but most of them (like including the Hebrew letters in the Major Arcana images, which relate to the Cabala Tree of Life, and associating the minor arcana with astrological correspondences) leave me feeling like I really need to familiarize myself the Thoth tradition created by Crowley.
I've already cleansed and consecrated the Sun and Moon deck this afternoon, and did an introductory "meet the new tarot deck" reading using a spread cobbled together from various suggestions I've seen others share online. Here's a (somewhat sloppy) diagram of the spread below:
And here's a quick shot of the spread itself from this afternoon:
Unfortunately, this deck doesn't come with a full book, only a tiny booklet with about a paragraph or so for each card. (I've gotten spoiled with Barbara Moore writing all these awesome books to go with every deck I happen to buy!) So I'm already feeling out of my depth with the unfamiliar Thoth symbolism, and I didn't get much help there. Just a brief interpretation, then, which I may need to come back to:
1. Art/Temperance (XIV) - The deck's defining characteristic is a balance of opposites: light and dark, stability and fluidity, yin and yang. Not much surprise there, since it is the Sun and Moon Tarot after all.
2. The Universe (XXI) - Not at all shy about letting me know that its strength as a deck is enlightenment itself; not just a Major Arcana card, but the culmination of the Major Arcana, the dancing god Shiva who is creator and destroyer, surrounded by the unlimited energetic fires of the universe, of divine inspiration and insight, and in the corners the symbols of the four elements/directions. Again, this card is about uniting opposites (creation and destruction, life and death, universe and self).
3. The Star (XVII) - An interesting card to draw to represent the deck's weakness. I initially interpret this as suggesting the deck might lean a bit too much towards the lighter, more hopeful and comforting side, eschewing the difficult aspects (since the Star is a card of hope and peace, especially the respite that comes after a darkness or tragedy like the Tower). However, when talking with Jeff about it, he suggested that perhaps the pairing of the Universe and the Star indicates that while this deck might be good for the study of "higher" spiritual work, it might be indicating that it will not be all that helpful at providing direction or guidance in the more mundane sense. This interpretation makes a lot of sense to me (and the very fact that I seem to be having trouble interpreting some of these cards might indicate that this meaning is on the right track).
4. King of Cups - Again, a card about balancing opposites: this time in the figure of the King of Cups, a masculine expression of feminine energy in a way that is natural and healthy. It's interesting that the King of Cups also made an appearance in my New Year's reading when using the Shadowscape deck, as the thing I needed to take forward with me into the new year.
5. Three of Swords (Sorrow) - The deck's minor arcana draw on Crowley's system pretty heavily, and this card seems to suggest to me not the tragic bloody sorrow of swords piercing a heart as depicted in other decks I've worked with, but more the sorrow of ideas or ideals that have started to drift into negativity. The booklet that came with the card notes that this card is associated with Saturn in Libra, which happens to be where my natal Saturn is, so that's interesting. I take this card to mean that this deck will help me deal with negative thinking and cynicism I've been noticing creeping up on me a lot lately.
6. Eight of Pentacles - As for how it will challenge me, it seems that this deck will provide the challenge of self-discipline and learning, working diligently towards a goal with an eye for detail and organization resulting in productivity. I'll be curious to see how this challenge plays out, but I can already guess it will have something to do with going back to my old studies of some of the more occult/ceremonial approaches to magic and divination and digging deeper into that again.
7. Seven of Cups - What a card to draw as the "final outcome"! The booklet notes that this card, titled "Debauch," suggests self-indulgence and addictive behavior along with fantasies and delusions, but also the opportunity to see through illusions about the self, to break through self-deceiving patterns and identify truly worthy goals. I certainly hope it's more of the latter than the former! Since the strength of this deck and its defining characteristic seem to me solidly on the side of balance, wisdom and divine harmony, I think it's a fairly safe bet. (But then, if the deck were leading me into self-delusion and fantasy, isn't that exactly what it would say?! ::insert dramatic orchestral sting::)
And on that note, I'm calling it a night.