A Sneak Peek of Tarot of the Divine Masculine

A Sneak Peek of Tarot of the Divine Masculine

Tarot of the Divine Masculine, by Vasich and Vasich, is a new indie deck that will begin funding on Kickstarter on October 1, 2019. Marko Vasich asked me to take a look at a few of the cards in advance of the Kickstarter rollout.

One of my favorite things about being a tarot pro is this privilege. It’s so exciting to get in on the early stages of a creative project, and to be able to communicate with the talented and thoughtful artists.

I was impressed with the lovely packaging of the cards they sent to me. From that I can tell that the artists will spare nothing in the quality and presentation of this new tarot.

The theme of the deck is specific, and, because of the theme, not every tarot reader will feel called to work with it. Yet, the fact is, there are a lot of queer tarotists, just as there are a lot of queer artists. This is why it is such a shame that there are so few decks available that specifically honor this community.

One would not have to be gay, or male, to read with this deck. Yet, it is definitely a deck that celebrates men, and not in a Village People way. These men are pictured in nature, not in nightclubs. There is a fair amount of male nudity in the deck, but it feels naturist, rather than sexual. It’s important to remember that the deck artists are from Germany and Serbia, where the human body is not so often viewed in a shameful way. There is subtle Pagan imagery peppered through the deck,

I remember, years ago, speaking with a group of Dianic witches, discussing that men needed to discover their spiritual mysteries. I think Tarot of the Divine Masculine would be a good tool to help with that journey, for men of any orientation.

Six of Swords image from Tarot of the Divine Masculine by Vasich and Vasich, used with permission.

The art in this deck is splendid, detailed, and realistic. The cardbacks are reversable. The cardstock is of quality and has a pleasant finish that I can only describe as slippery matte. The card edges are black.

In a deck of men, some card names must be changed. The High Priestess has become Intuition, and the Empress has become The Provider. My favorite of the card samples I received was the Six of Wands, a fierce Celtic warrior clad in a kilt.

This deck follows the Smith-Waite tradition to the point that the cards will make sense to anyone who reads with a Waite deck. The suit of Pentacles is called the suit of Diamonds, yet seems traditional in its expressions of earthly matters.

While most of the cards aren’t overtly sexual, the Four of Cups isn’t for the faint of heart. We see a woman engaged with two men, while a second woman appears disinterested. It’s important to note that none of the deck images seem pornographic. The art style is gentle and sensuous, rather than cheap and tawdry.

Tarot of the Divine Masculine is not for everyone. That means that the people who resonate with this deck need to get behind it. Let’s make sure that this beautiful offering becomes available to those who will find wisdom in it and use it to find wisdom within themselves.

A Review by Request: Golden Tarot by Kat Black

I received a note from Felix asking me to do a review of Kat Black’s Golden Tarot. I was surprised that I had never written an official review of Kat Black’s Golden Tarot – it’s one of my favorites.

During the first half of the 2000s I taught a very popular special series of tarot classes called “Important New Tarot Decks.” Each class would feature a newer deck that I thought was significant in its readability and unique contribution to the tarot world. Kat Black’s Golden Tarot was one of my most popular classes in the series. To this day it remains one of my favorite decks, to the point that I have worn off the beautiful gilt edges of the cards with constant use.

The thing that is, too me, most wonderful about this deck, was expressed by Felix in his note to me. He said, in part,

“For a newbie like me, it seems to follow very respectful the RWS tradition, but the Renaissance imagery and the rich colors work for me in at a level that Pamela Colman Smith's art (while indeed excellent) just doesn't. The cards come alive and restless in my hands. Studying is so much easier.”

Golden Tarot follows RWS imagery in a way that makes it easy to use, but uses richer period artwork in a way that feels really authentic.

Golden Tarot is a 78-card tarot deck published in 2003 by U.S. Games Systems, Inc. Often U.S. Games adds value to certain decks with really creative packaging. The special box that holds the deck and book is in itself remarkable, and makes it easy to develop a practice of drawing a card each day directly from the box.

The cards are standard sized with an old-fashioned brown textured pattern for the reversible card back. Strength is card 8 and Justice 11. The suits are Swords, representing the medieval ruling class, Wands, representing the peasant class, Cups, representing the clerical class, and Coins, representing the merchant class. The court characters are Pages, Knights, Queens and Kings.

The deck is completely illustrated with digital collage that uses elements from renaissance masterpieces. The resulting card images are very similar to the Rider-Waite-Smith images in terms of symbolism and action.

Current historical thinking says that tarot itself came from Italy in the late 1400s – essentially the same time and place that produced the works of art that Kat Black has used to illustrate Golden Tarot.

The Waite-Smith Tarot images are the most popular in the world. Many say they are the easiest to learn.

From the world that gave birth to tarot Kat Black has taken art, added to it the wisdom of A.E. Waite and Pixie Smith and produced a truly readable deck that honors the mediaeval origins of tarot.

The accompanying booklet fits nicely in the box. A little more than half the book is dedicated to insightful, understandable card interpretations. The rest of the book includes a lengthy list of the original art from which images were sourced for each card.

Golden Tarot is a perfect deck for someone who loves Rider Waite Smith imagery, wants to honor the medieval roots of the original tarot and enjoys art from the middle ages and early renaissance.

Aside from being a triumphant tarot deck, Golden Tarot enjoys a bit of irony. This deck that so thoroughly honors the era that gave birth to tarot could not exist without the digital technology of our own modern era.

Visually, the feel of Golden Tarot is rich, intricate, expressive and a bit somber, exactly as we expect art from the middle ages to be. I remember wishing, years ago, for a truly medieval deck that was illustrated with the same images as symbols as the Rider Waite Smith. With Golden Tarot, my wish was fulfilled.

Golden Tarot, by Kat Black, is published by U.S. Games Systems, Inc.

Christiana Reviews Golden Tarot by Kat Black

Video of Christiana Reviews Golden Tarot by Kat Black