TAROT Unveiled - The International Tarot Foundation
Transcription
TAROT Unveiled - The International Tarot Foundation
February 2016 TAROT Unveiled Tarot News, Reviews, Articles, Spreads, Views, Tips and Advice The monthly newsletter of the International Tarot Foundation website: International Tarot Foundation Facebook: The Tarot Readers Development and Study Group VALENTINE ISSUE This Month: Deck Review of the Steele Wizard Tarot Deck Special Valentine Tarot Spread New Astrology and Tarot Section Lara Houston continues looking at Business and the Tarot Plus much more ... Previews: Tarot Pink The Chalice Tarot Welcome to the February Edition of 'Tarot Unveiled' 3 My True Valentine In the wet and windy UK, we are seeing the first hint that Spring is nearing and with it, the blessings of some warmer weather! 4 Steele Wizard Tarot Review I trust our readers and our members who are worldwide are enjoying the prospect of more Sun or are already enjoying it. 9 Pt 2 Tarot Business Special And so, we move forward with 2016 with some great news. We have been awarded our approval from the International Institute of Complimentary Therapists. 10 Chalice Tarot Preview 11 Tarot & Astrology 14 Tarot Pink Preview 15 Notes from the Reading Room 17 Certification Programme 18 Tarotscopes and Spread 19 February Promotions WANT TO PROMOTE YOUR TAROT STUFF?! We are developing a new “tarot news” section in the newsletter specifically for this. Maybe you have a book or deck that you would like us to mention? Or maybe you have a kickstarter campaign? We also offer full reviews for new tarot decks and books. We also offer a smaller “preview” option. All FREE! Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation Basically, this reflects our standards of teaching and training as educational providers within Tarot and it's associated studies. We are also very pleased to share with you further developments in relation to our courses. The Celtic Cross course is now updated onto the new sessions format and is looking great! So if you want to finally master this sometimes tricky to learn, but wonderful Tarot spread, we can certainly help you achieve mastery of this. Another aspect of our Foundation that is highly important to us is how we can support the Tarot community as a whole, within this ethos we have been exploring potential ways that we can be supportive of our Deck creators. We are blessed to have a wonderful choice of decks to use for our business and pleasure purpose and we appreciate fully that the creation and publishing of a deck is no easy task. We currently offer full reviews and preview options for decks in this newsletter so if you have a deck that you would like to promote or get “out there” then please contact us! We are also looking for articles that are tarot related that you might want to submit. The aim of this newsletter is to represent the tarot community so your contributions are welcomed. Contact: [email protected] 2 My True Valentine Cupid, son of the Goddess Venus and God of War Mars, was mostly known as the God of desire and passion. He is known for his 'cupid's bow', which can find its way indiscriminately to those unsuspecting. Cupid has become well known for his influence on lovers and those that he shoots become unavoidably filled with desire for another. Love is blind as they say and it is very true. If one is overcome with such feelings, it is truly powerful. Valentines day has recently become a day for celebration of love and attraction but it has not always been the representation of sweet nothings and exchanges of secret love messages and cards. Many moons ago in our Pagan history and also Roman history, Valentine's day as we know it was then named Lupercalia. This festival was more known for fertility and rituals that were performed would be to encourage the fertility of those involved. In Rome, young men and women would be paired up so they could participate in sex with their chosen partner and this could continue for the rest of the year. Christianity, with its aim to convert Pagans to their church, 'adopted' this celebration but tweaked it to be more appropriate. Within Tarot we see Cupid's arrow and influence so elegantly portrayed with the Lover's card called 'Cupid' from the Tarot of the Sevenfold Mystery by Robert Place. Cupid hovers above the trio with his bow ready. The Knight has a choice to make, he desires a lover. Will he choose sensuality who tempts him with her vibrant, youthful presence and wild flowers that femininely decorate her hair. Or will he choose Virtue, who adorns her hair with the noble Laurel wreath. She tempts differently for she is the honourable choice Romantic love is something beautiful, I can remember the feeling of joy when nothing mattered except that one person who consumed your every thought. Many say that love fades but that first rush of love is it's own entity, what does happen over time is it tempers. That rush of excitement can turn into something lasting with commitment and generations to follow. How wonderful a gift! Lara Tarot of the Sevenfold Mystery reproduced with kind permission from Robert M Place Copyright ©2012 Robert M Place Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 3 Steel Wizard Tarot Deck Review - Bry Grayson The Steele Wizard tarot deck has 88 cards, some may say this is not truly a tarot deck, others may say 88 cards is great value for money! 88 is known as a Master Number. Upon seeing her first Waite-Smith deck the creator Pamela Steele asked “Where's the rest of them?”, somehow the deck felt incomplete and did not represent the different possibilities to her. This is what lays behind this deck: it is to take readings beyond the concept of duality and into the realm of divinity. This takes us into the realms of spirit where we need to consider the “whole” and not simply the “duality” or “illusion” of the division between body, mind and spirit. An example given by the creator is between the “Lovers” and her extra “Soul Twins” card: “where the Lovers represents that very duality, Soul Twins acknowledges the awareness of ownership in what before was considered opposite ... the additional major arcana were designed to take our readings beyond the concept of duality into the realm of divinity.” “Eight has the flowing grace of the symbol for infinity as well as being a mirror image for 3, the number of the triple Goddess. Double (sometimes triple) numbers always get my attention and have as far back as I can remember. I love numbers, but not math. The number 8 is one of the things I doodle when I'm needing to zone out. I will start big, and moving my hand down a sheet of paper, create a constant flow of '8's gradually reducing the width until they are too small to draw properly then continue to the bottom of the page until they're as wide as the top where I started. Its the motion, like waves on a beach or the ebb and flow of breath that appeals to me. Nothing at all to do with numerology as far as I know.” Pamela Steele There are 6 extra Major Arcana and 4 extra Court Cards. Something different underpins this deck. Those of you familiar with the WaiteSmith tarot deck will be able to pick up this deck and feel quite at home with it whilst at the same time having the option to really dig deeper into the imagery and the idea underpinning this deck as represented in the extra cards. Left: Soul Twins - 1 of the extra majors. Below: the remaining extra 5 majors. The “Universe” being a particular favourite of Pamelas. Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 4 In describing the concept of moving from duality to divinity and therefore the reason for the extra 6 majors Pamela Steele says: “Beginning with the Fool and continuing through to the World, the archetypes, in my views, are focused on balancing the inner and outer worlds. With the exception of the Fool, who is Spirit in Grace, there are elements of this balancing act. We are evolved enough to understand that although its wonderful to balance the scales, life doesn't allow it to remain so. To do that, would create stagnation and therefore non-life. However, from the perspective of Spirit, a blending is possible. Beginning with the Weaver who shows how to find and follow your particular thread in the tapestry, she also demonstrated the Web that connects us is also the container that holds us bringing Unity and Oneness into our awareness. The Universe embodies humanity's ability to stand directly between the two extremely powerful forces of Creation and Manifestation in perfect union. We take the pure white (or clear?) light of creation and through direct participation, fracture the light into millions upon billions of rainbow colors with which to paint our world with our experiences. These emotional colors bring richness and contrast to the Void. By remaining in this union we are also able to allow the flow to move both ways, thus returning the multicolored (material manifestation) lights back to the source of creation by consolidating them into a single white light again. When you look at the others cards that follow, its important to note the imagery moves both ways. In and out, up and down, side to side and so forth.” The Cards The Ace of Pentacles (right) was begun in October 1999 and the deck was finished in June 2000. The first edition was printed in July 2007, with the second edition following in July 2010. (You can still purchase the first edition complete with companion book and a sturdy lift top storage box.) The second edition cards are about a half-inch shorter and narrower than the first edition and have a new card stock with a linen feel matte finish which shuffles really nicely and are of good quality. This makes the cards feel like you are running your fingers over crayon pictures which ties in very nicely with the style of the images themselves and how they where originally pencilled (in crayon). Pamela has worked as a fantasy artist and this is the impression that the artwork gives me everything gels nicely. “The original drawings are approximately 10x14 inches. I used the rougher side of poster board because where I live, it was the best paper available. The medium is pencil crayon. I originally wanted to work in oils, which are my favorite, but being limited on space it simply wasn't feasible.” Pamela Steele The cards have borders, as quite simply according to Pamela: “My inner artist demands a picture be framed.” The borders vary between the minors and the majors. The minors have a twisted effect border that incorporates the name of the card (there are no actual numbers as such, so instead of the number “3” appearing you get the word “Three”). The colour of the borders in the minors varies to reflect the element: so the wands have a tinge of red/orange; the cups have a tinge of blue; the swords have a tinge of purple and the pentacles have a tinge of brown. This twisted effect border reminds me of Pamela's quote above when she talks about “zoning out” by doodling the number 8 as it looks like the number 8 has been stretched all the way around the border. It is as though this magical number 8 frames each “minor” card and adds that extra dimension. The majors have a more solid border with the name of the card at the bottom with the number (in Roman Numerals) at the top. The borders are placed upon a black background and all have the same type of mixed pastel colour with the borders being reminiscent of crystals and adding an extra energy. Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 5 The cards (2nd edition) themselves are approximately 89mm wide x 127mm long and have rounded edges. All of the cards together in your hand are about 31mm deep. The cards came in a normal cardboard pack that opens at the top. The front of the pack being decorated with the “Universe” major card. The image on the reverse of the card is a picture of twin dragons originally designed by Pamela as a tattoo but incorporated as the reverse design because, in the words of Pamela herself, the original intended card backs “sucked”! The cards are fully reversible and reverse meanings are given by Pamela in the LWB. The LWB is downloadable from the Steele Wizard website (see link below) and a Steele Wizard companion e-book is available and is currently being re-worked by Pamela. The LWB is 20 pages long and is in English and gives standard meanings of the cards upright and reversed meanings and you are encouraged to develop your own understanding of the “meanings”. The current e-book has 40 pages and has the basic LWB card meanings in along with coloured images of each card. The e-book also has several card layouts and information on the spreads as well as further advice and guidance on reading tarot cards. There are some excellent online resources such as the facebook group “Steele Wizard Tarot Insights” and the website “mageborn” (see links below). The website itself has many posts exploring the cards and gives further insights, for example, a recent post in January 2016 is on the 5 of Swords. The Majors --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------As mentioned above there are an extra 6 major cards: 22 The Weaver, 23 The Universe, 24 Truth, 25 Soul Twins, 26 Evolution and 27 I AM. The “Death” card is renamed “Transition” and the “Devil” is renamed “Materialism”. Other than this the first 22 major arcana start with the “Fool” and finish with the “World” and follow the Waite-Smith ordering and numbering (Strength is card 8 and Justice card 11). If you are so inclined you can remove the extra majors and use them in the standard Waite-Smith format. Above: Image of the Fool setting out; Transition; Materialism, The World. The Minors---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------These also follow the Waite-Smith pattern of wands, cups, swords and pentacles and the basic symbolic imagery but have some interesting differences: Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 6 Above: the 3 of Wands gives a helping hand; the 4 of Cups is maybe a bit more sinister? The 10 of Swords hang from the tree whilst the 2 of Pentacles powers through the water. Court Cards--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The Court Cards total five for each suit and follow the pattern of: Page, Maiden, Knight, Queen and King. The “Maiden” is the extra Court in each suit and represents the “potential” for each suit; so the Maiden of wands is the potential for growth in all areas of interest to the seeker; cups is creative potential; swords is leadership potential; the pentacle is scholar or teacher potential. The Pages can still be seen as messengers and news of sorts whilst the remaining Courts reflect the usual status, growth, elemental, developmental and archetypal ideas and possibilities. I queried with Pamela her reasoning behind the Maidens representing “potential” as the Aces in the deck for many represent the “potential”: “When I first learned tarot, Aces were representative of beginnings. Yes, in a way, potential, but something new. Like a fresh start. Seeds, if you will, that when properly cared for would blossom into fruition. Maidens are the opportunity to put into action, into practical application, the fruit of that seed. A bit like planting a seed (Ace) and nurturing it into a fruit tree. This can take decades. After the tree is producing, you gather the fruit. Maidens will tell you if you've actually harvested the fruit, and if you have, are you taking it to market? Or preparing something nourishing? Or are you letting it rot on the ground?” Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 7 Another interesting feature added in the deck is the placement of Runes and Crystals in the cards. As you can see in the Ace of Wands (right) and the Maiden of Wands (above) for example. The reason given for this by Pamela: “Runes have been a sideline of my divination studies for years. I found using them in the card images gave me deeper insights into the meanings. Same with the various crystals and stones in the pictures, every detail is there for a reason. Not much of where the runes were drawn or the stones were placed was a conscious decision.” In fact the artist has even carved her own Runes set for two of her family members. The Steele Wizard tarot deck has so much to offer. It is a versatile deck - you can use it as the creator intended with its extra cards or use it as a “normal” 78 card deck. Having used several tarot decks, I see this as a “tarot” deck, and it's 88 cards merely reflects the evolving, fluid and personal nature of tarot. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Quick Glance: No. Cards: No. of Majors: No. of Minors: Courts: Artist: Publisher: Strength No: Fool No: Reversible Pattern: Borderless: Corners: Packaging: Size: Weight: 88 0-27 1-10 Page, Maiden, Knight, Queen, King Pamela Steele Steele Wizard Tarot 8 0 Yes No Rounded Basic card box (1st Ed. storage box) 127mm(L) x 89mm(W) x 32mm(D) (approx.) 3.95g per card / 348g in total (approx) Links: Steele Wizard Website: Steele Wizard website Face Book: Steele Wizards Tarot Insights Group Mageborn's Web Blog: Mageborn All images copyrighted Steele Wizard Tarot ©2006. Reproduced with kind permission. ARTIST BACKGROUND: Pamela has worked as an artist, a professional tarot reader, a bartender, a horse trainer, an oil patch worker, and is a registered massage therapist. Pamela sold her first painting over 50 years ago - of a horse! As her love of fantasy art grew, Pamela began showing at SciFi/Fantasy conventions across the US where she received numerous awards and accolades for oils and the cartoon drawings of the Wizard's Pets - one of her paintings became the cover art for the German Science Fiction Year Book in 1984-85. Pamela illustrated numerous D&D game books, designed dozens of logos and did cover art for comics. Her hobbies include, but are not limited to, web design, belly dancing, and costuming. Pamela has also released a series of ebooks for children featuring the Wizard's Pets which were first created in 1984. These lovable characters where printed as the Wizard's Pets Tarot for Children in 2014. (Right: “The Law” - taken from Pamela's new tarot deck to be released in the near future.) Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 8 Part 2: Tarot Business Special - Lara Houston In the January edition of Tarot Unveiled we looked at the pro's and con's of Tarot reading at home. This month we look at the next step, once you have decided that you would like to pursue your Tarot business. As with any good business, planning is essential, at this point we are very much at the Two of Wands stage of the business. Your plan is your signpost, it gives you a direction! I have set out six steps that can give you some ideas and get you thinking about what to do next. Now it is time to prepare, this is when you start to make your business dream a reality. Step 1: choose a name for your business: the name reflects your business and you. Consider the image you are wanting to create and what you want to portray. Step 2: choose your colour scheme: The colour scheme is a feature of your brand, it is important to get the colour combination right. Step 3: logo: the logo gives quick recognition to your customers and can be added to everything that is associated with your business. Step 4: your business platform: the platform is where you perform your business activities on and from. If you are working solely as a 'face to face' reader from home, then your platform is there. If you choose to do so, you can broaden this to the wider community such as psychic fairs and events. Step 5: advertising and promoting. Advertising can be costly but it does not need to be. You need to make a habit of looking for opportunities to get your name out there especially in the world of social media. Step 6: establish and build your reputation: this is essential but building a reputation takes time. Working with a firm and honest ethos and maintaining standards within this ethos is the key. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Interested in developing your own Tarot Business? 'Make Tarot Your Business' will offer you individual support and guidance and can be found here at the ITF: Make Tarot Your Business The March issue of Tarot Unveiled will reveal the principles of Branding your business Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 9 Preview: Chalice Tarot Pack - Bry Grayson The Chalice Pack is a self-published, full 78-card deck of tarot cards by Lynda Stevens. Each card was hand-drawn and individually designed using pen, ink and colour pencils (Caron D'ache crayons) on cards, of colours ranging from green, blue, purple, red and white. The colour and patterns fit the symbolism of each card, though this deck is not purely abstract, but largely figurative. The traditional interpretations for each card are loosely followed, but interpreted according to the ideas and research followed by the artist. “I have sought to present a pack which brings together the aesthetics of colour and pattern, along with a thorough understanding of Tarot symbology” Lynda Stevens The artist has a background of reading at psychic fairs and of studying astrology - so is “hands-on” when it comes to tarot. The deck itself was conceived of and designed between 1985-1990 but has been revised and recreated continuously over time. “Above all it is felt that the specific use of colour and pattern should make this pack particularly accessible to readers new to Tarot ... This artist believes that the subconscious mind ... responds best to non-verbal cues such as intense colour and pattern” (p8 “The Chalice Tarot”) The Majors begin with the Fool and end with the World. The Hierophant is renamed “Guru” and Strength is renamed “Fortitude” (and is card 8). The Minors are made up of wands, cups, swords and coins. The biggest change comes in the Court Cards where the Page is replaced with the Princess to give a more egalitarian setup gender wise whilst the other courts are the Prince, Queen and King. There is a very in-depth 189 page book that you can purchase separately for this deck. This book goes into great detail not only about each card but also looks at myths and symbolism and numbers etc. It has a good appendix that consists of some spreads along with some actual readings. Links: FB Page: The Chalice Tarot Deck Purchase Gamecrafter: Chalice Tarot Purchase Artists Website: http://lyndastevens.com/ Chalice Tarot Guide Book and Interpretations at Blurb All images copyright © LyndaStevens. All Rights Reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistribution of any of these images or written works without written permission from the artist is strictly prohibited. Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 10 Tarot and Astrology: the Sun - Bry Grayson IN this new introductory series we will be introducing the ten main planets in our solar system and their relationship with the Waite-Smith tarot deck and in particular with the minor arcana cards. In “Tarot Decoded” Elizabeth Hazel refers to the Sun as the “head honcho” and that the Sun “assumes primary stance with all other cards”. In the Waite-Smith deck the Sun is represented by the Major card the Sun! The Sun also rules 5 of the decans which are represented by the “minor” or pip cards numbered 2 to 10. - 3 of Wands: Sun in Aires - 6 of Cups: Sun in Scorpio - 10 of Swords: Sun in Gemini - 4 of Pents: Sun in Capricorn - 8 of Pents: Sun in Virgo Diagram (right) shows orbital periods of the planets. Reproduced by kind permission of Clare Martin, “Mapping the Psyche Vol 1” A decan represents 10 degrees of the zodiac wheel. The Zodiac wheel is 360 degrees (as it is a circle) and is made up of 12 signs of the Zodiac (from Aries to Pisces). Each sign of the Zodiac represents a 30 degree segment (360 degrees divided by the 12 signs equals 30 degrees). Each thirty degree segment of each sign is split into three 10 degree segments. In effect there are thirty-six 10 degree segments in the Zodiac wheel (360 degrees divided by 10). There are 36 minor arcana tarot cards numbered from 2-10 (the Aces do not represent the decans) - the Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles (4 elements multiplied by 9 equals the 36 decans), however, only 7 of the planets are represented in the minor arcana as these where the only visible planets (by eye) from the Earth (the Sun and Moon are considered planets in this respect): Saturn - Jupiter - Mars - Sun - Venus - Mercury - Moon The ordering of the planets (as above) from Saturn to the Moon is based upon the “Chaldean” system which placed the planets in the order of the slowest to the fastest as they where seen from the Earth. This leaves a slight problem though as you cannot divide 36 by 7 equally. To overcome this problem each of the 7 planets where allocated 5 decans (or 5 minor arcana cards totalling 35 cards and 35 decans). This left over one minor arcana card which was allocated to the planet Mars. Therefore Mars has 6 minor arcana cards compared to the other planets that only have 5. Two of the minor cards allocated to Mars are the 10 of Cups and the 2 of Wands; these represent the Zodiac signs of Pisces and Aries - the last and first signs (respectively) on the Zodiac wheel. This “double-boost” of energy from Mars helps to get through the cold, harsh winter of the last decan of Pisces (10 of Cups) and push through to the first decan of Spring (2 of Wands). This is a good example of understanding the planets in the minor arcana and how the energies of the planets that underpin the minor arcana cards can give you greater insight and possibilities in interpretation. Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 11 Energy of the Sun In “Mapping the Psyche Vol 1” Clare Martin looks at the Sun as representing our core identity, our spirit, and that the symbol for the Sun is pure spirit (the circle) with a dot of consciousness in it. Hence the Sun is our personal connection to spirit. Martin goes on to argue that when we are children we tend to reflect our true spiritual core but socialisation develops our ego and so we move away from our spiritual core as we become more involved with the World. In effect you can see this as the archetypal Fools Journey, starting out with the innocence of our spirit as a child only to lose touch with it as we develop our ego through interacting with all of the other Major tarot cards but, hopefully, this journey leads us back to our true selves. Jung's idea of “individuation” reflects this development. Jung believed that the ego developed through interactions and relationships (as in the Fools Journey) but by the person's late 30's the process of “individuation” begins which results in the development of the personal psyche - this can be related to returning to our “Sun” our true spiritual self. Characteristics of the Sun - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The Sun is the masculine principle, it is active, reliable, strong, focussed and direct. It is full of vitality and warmth and light. Roy Gillet sees the Sun as “radiant energy”, “self-expression”, “how we create”. It has been the centre of worship of many religions for thousand of years. The Sun is the at the core of our self-expression and how we create. It is the central source of light and energy and full of potential for individual achievement. It is “the” fiery, spiritual energy, the source of life. There can be negative aspects though to the Sun such as egocentricity, over self-confidence and stubbornness and even the loss of a child as seen in the myth of Pheaton. Elizabeth Hazel looks at the myths of Helios and Appollo to show the positive and negative aspects of the Sun. Appollo as the Olympian Sun God epitomises male achievement in sports and arts and government. The Sun therefore also represents the best of all human qualities and triumph and mastery and nobility and success. However, Appollo could not bear to be made to look foolish or to be teased and this reflects the vanity of an overbearing Sun and its inflated ego. Helios and his son Pheaton show other sides to the Sun. Helios, the sun-charioteer drove the chariot of the Sun across the sky but allowed his son Pheaton to drive the chariot but Pheaton lost control and risked scorching the Earth and so was destroyed by Zeus. Other myths such as Icarus flying too close to the Sun give you examples of the fiery active energy of fire that can lose control. Leo The Sun rules the Zodiac sign of Leo and is represented by the Strength card. This sign is also related to the 5th House of creation, recreation and procreation “the House of fun” - and children and our pleasures and pastimes and of romance. This sign is represented by the lion which is proud and strong and courageous and brave. This sign has great warmth and is very generous. It is dignified and noble often seeing itself as the “special one”, playing the leading role, performing on stage - a Leo likes being in the spotlight so long as they remain confident. Negative traits can be stubbornness, insecurity and arrogance and hot temper and it can over-estimate its strengths and can be vain and full of self-importance. Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 12 Sun Related Cards Apr 11 - Apr 21 Nov 4 - Nov 14 Jun 12 - Jun 22 Jan 11 - Jan 21 3 of Wands is the Sun in Aries and the second decan of Aries. 6 of Cups is the Sun in Sorpio and the second decan of Scorpio. 10 of Swords is the Sun in Gemini and the last decan of Gemini. 4 of Pentacles is the Sun in Capricorn & the last decan of Capricorn. 8 of Pentacles it the Sun in Virgo and the first decan of Virgo. Aug 24 - Sep 3 Each decan represents a date period as you can see above the cards - you can use this to be quite specific in your readings. The Major tarot Sun card represents the “planet” Sun. Strength represents Leo which is ruled by the Sun. The Emperor represents the sign Aires in which the Sun is “exalted”. The Queen of Wands represents the sign Aries in which the Sun is “exalted”. The Knight of Wands represents the sign of Leo which is ruled by the Sun. Justice represents the sign of Libra in which the Sun is in its “fall”. The Star represents the sign Aquarius in which the Sun is in its “detriment”. Next Issue: - The Major cards that represent all the planets. - What is “fall”, “exalted”, “ruler” and “detriment”? - What is the role of the Court Cards? - The Moon. Right: Phaethon, the son of Helios, drives the Sun Chariot in Robert M. Places “Alchemical Tarot” deck 4th ed. References: Reproduced with kind permission from Robert M. Place. 1. “Mapping the Psyche” (Volumes 1 and 2), Clare Martin. 2. “Tarot and Astrology”, Corrine Kenner 3. “Tarot Beyond the Basics”, Anthony Louis 4. “Tarot Decoded”, Elizabeth Hazel 5. “The Secret Language of Astrology”, Roy Gillet 6. “Houses of the Horoscope”, Alan Oken 7. “The Twelve Houses”, Howard Sasportas Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. © Robert M Place 19942007-2015. 13 Preview: Tarot Pink - Bry Grayson Tarot Pink is a collaboration of 65 of the Tarot communities most accomplished artists and writers in aid of Breast Cancer Research. Tarot Pink has been created as an inspirational healing tool. The deck consists of 78 cards created by different artists and accompanied by their personal interpretations and inspirations. The cards have special messages of empowerment and healing from each creator and give guidance and support. Some of the artists have worked on this deck in remembrance of someone they have known have cancer and some of the artists themselves have personal experiences of cancer. Tarot Pink supporting Breast Cancer The deck itself is broken down into a recognisable 22 Majors from the Fool to the World - although the Majors are not numbered but have the name (in words) printed on the top of the card. The “minors” are split into the familiar groups of wands, cups, swords and coins; each with a Page, Knight, Queen and King. The minors have the numbers and element on the top of the card in words. At the bottom of each card is the name of the artist who designed that particular card along with some basic information about them. The deck itself is sponsored by WiardToo LLC and plans to introduce a tarot App in the future for Android and iOS. A percentage of the purchase price goes to Breast Cancer Research - this is a non-profit cause. SPECIAL DISCOUNT OFFER - at the moment of writing there is nearly 20% OFF the normal purchase price so please show your support and visit Gamecrafter (see below) to make your purchase. More information on Tarot Pink from tarotecards Purchase the deck here at Gamecrafter NEXT ISSUE FULL REVIEW OF THE TAROT PINK Images reproduced with kind permission. ©2015 WizardToo LLC Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 14 Notes from the Reading Room - Sandra Geddess This reading is the first within a series where we will look at real life readings. The aim of this is to show how to consider and present a simple, intuitively based reading. Situation: this month I have chosen a reading for a young lady I will call ‘S’. ‘S’ had been having some issues with a close friend and felt that they had become disconnected over the previous few months. She was unsure as to why this was happening, in addition to feeling confused, she was upset. Question: “What does “S” need to know about her relationship with her friend?” Spread: To give me an overview of the situation I decided to use the International Tarot Foundation's ‘Insight Spread’. This spread is useful as it gives us insight of where the situation has stemmed from and guidance on how to improve the relationship again. The cards drawn where: Past - Knight of Wands Present - 6 of Cups Future - Ace of Pentacles Guidance - Page of Wands The shadow card was The High Priestess and the numerology of the spread came to 7 - which give a key Major of The Chariot. The Shadow Card is the card left at the bottom of the deck after you have laid the spread. Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 15 Interpretation On looking over the cards the first thing that stood out to me was that this was going to be one of those times that the cards did not want to stick to their positions! The Knight and Page of Wands stood at the ends of the row of cards with their backs to each other like bookends, immediately giving the impression that this was ‘S’ and her friend instead of just the past and guidance they were intended to be indicating. I could see that they wanted different things from the relationship as they moved in opposite directions from each other, pulling apart. With one card being the bold, intense Knight and the other the uncertain, unfocused Page, I also felt that one of the friends wanted more from the relationship than the other and was definitely more invested in it. The two central cards of the 6 of Cups and the Ace of Pentacles represented what was coming between them and causing the feeling of distance. I felt this was so as they appear to be what the 2 courts are turning their backs on, coming between them quite literally. Looking at the images as a whole, the 6 of Cups looked to me as though it was offering the Ace of Pentacles - new foundations or a new level of friendship- to the Page of Wands, but the Page, with his back turned was unsure whether to accept. Was this a male friend? Had one of them wanted to be more than friends and been turned down or hidden their feelings towards the other for the sake of the friendship? There is a lot of passion in those Wands cards. The 6 and Ace add up to 7, bringing in the influence of The Chariot as the associating or key Major. I felt this confirmed that the friends are on different pages and are currently pulling in two directions, but also that it will be possible to get the friendship back on track as the Chariot is usually able to take control of a situation successfully bringing things back into harmony. The Guidance I gave to “S” was to give her friend some space for the moment. The Page of Wands looks like he is trying to figure things out and planning his next move. The High Priestess as the shadow or base card also gave me the feeling that “S” should step back for now, but also that “S” already knows in her heart what the issue is. This friendship can be reconciled. The 6 of Cups says they would benefit from remembering why they became friends in the first place, what brought them together. While the Ace of Pentacles suggests the potential of starting again and building new foundations. Feedback: getting feedback for your readings is a great way to learn. “S” gave the feedback on the reading: “I do feel that we currently want different things out of our friendship and definitely feel that I had been putting more effort into it than she had. My friend is female. I wouldn’t say that I wanted more than friendship, but I definitely wanted more out of the friendship. We’ve been very close for the last 10 years and lately when we’ve been getting together, she’s been bringing another friend with her and it totally changes the dynamic of our relationship. I can’t talk with her like I used to and things are just different. I have actually pulled back over the last couple of weeks to give her space. During that time when we did get together, just the two of us, it was more like old times, but something was still off. The High Priestess makes sense as the Shadow card here for a few reasons as well. I think you are correct in me already knowing in my heart what is going on but The High Priestess also represents a number of things that connect my friend and I. (She is one of my few, non-internet friends who shares my interest in Tarot, Paganism, and other esoteric studies.) I will continue to follow the advice given and give her more space. I appreciate knowing that all is not lost.” Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 16 Certification Program Some may already know that we recently underwent inspection of our Tarot courses, procedures, student support, mentor facility and teaching. As you can imagine, we were very pleased when we were given our approval! This was worked for, we have been passed for approvals before, but this one was the approval that suited us and what we where working at achieving at the ITF. We currently offer completion certificates to our students as they complete each course and now they can be given credit. At the Foundation, we appreciate the importance of gaining qualifications for Tarot business and achieving certification for the work that is put into study. Tarot Absolute Course We offer courses that begin at the very basics and then progress to the next level. Ultimately, the student moves on to a course which we will soon be releasing called 'The Tarot Absolute'. This course will need active participation from the student and will cover some very interesting aspects of Tarot. Every aspect that is included into this course is with the intention of developing a confident and independent Tarot reader but also a knowledgeable reader who is skilled. As this course also covers ethics and Tarot Business it will be an essential course to be completed. Students who have already completed courses with us will have achieved credits for the courses that they have completed. In total there will be 6 Tarot courses and the Tarot Absolute course. The Certification will need to include the Tarot Absolute course plus 2 additional 'shorter' courses. All the courses for students working on Certification will receive one-to-one mentoring and practice reading reviews. The Absolute course will be in depth but you will be supported in gaining your achievement. As we aim to offer study to all, we also offer an instalment service, where payment for the courses will be spread over a 12 month period. Below: example of the certificate you will receive upon course completion. . Please register your interest if you want to know more about our certification courses. Yes I would like to register my interest Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 17 Tarotscopes - Bry Grayson Aries: this is a fiery and passionate month for you and you may find yourself at a crossroads with regards your relationships. Deciding what to fight for and when will be paramount. (7 Wands) Taurus: you have come so far in this relationship to stop now so don't give up. Your hard work will pay off and you can soon enjoy the fruits of your labours. (World) Gemini: you are stuck with the pain of a past relationship and find yourself unable to move on. Forget the past and everything connected to it. Have faith in yourself, release and let go. (10 Swords Rx) Cancer: this is a very emotional time for you. Past hurt has made you emotionally defensive. Maybe problems and arguments at the home - but these will pass within the next month. (9 Wands) Libra: you may be having a disagreement with your partner about the direction of your relationship and maybe you are spending too much time at work. Take a break together. (3 Wands Rx) Scorpio: you are tied up with yourself and your appearance. Stability is important to you right now in your relationships but do not become too fixated on this. (4 Pentacles) Sagittarius: arguments abound in your relationship with disagreements on where the relationship is heading. You need to communicate what you really want. (Knight Swords Rx) Capricorn: you need to reconnect with your inner self and remember those ideals and ideas that you once had for this relationship. Rekindle that fire! (Page Wands Rx). Leo: communication problems abound with your partner about financial affairs but look to what is truly of value to you. Open your eyes to what you have and stop trying to control the time of change. (5 Pentacles) Aquarius: stop fooling yourself that everything is fine in this relationship. Get a grip by taking things one step at a time and stop overanalyzing and over-doing things. (8 Swords) Virgo: this should be a happy time for your relationships so enjoy it and make the most of it. Share this happiness with others and make sure you keep your heart open. (9 Cups) Pisces: a rebalancing of a relationship is needed as it is not working out. A heart-to-heart may be the solution. It may be time to release what is not working. (3 Swords) Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 18 February Promotions and Offers ! We have some wonderful offers for February that you do not want to miss! With every International Tarot Foundation membership we are giving a FREE Celtic Cross Tarot reading which will be carried out by a member of our team. ITF membership for just $25 gives you: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ Access to our very successful reading program FREE E Book of the 78 Tarot Card Meanings FREE Tarot reading Access to learning resources Access to our Associates Facebook Group FREE monthly Study Events FREE Members join up Tarot Course Support for all our membership Click here to Join the ITF today ! The Essential Next Step Tarot Course is on a special promotion for the month of February This is the ideal Tarot course for the student who has developed their foundation as a beginner. You will learn how to apply Numerology and the elements with this course and interpret Tarot readings with a newly acquired confidence. Not forgetting that during the course, you will be mentored step by step. Promotion price is just $35 View all promotions here Copyright © 2016 The International Tarot Foundation. 19