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I have completed the artwork for the Divine Muses Oracle cards! If you don't know know about it, it is a project that seeks to explore archetypes in alchemy, magic and mythology as a way to further self-realization of creativity and inner truths.
There are 53 cards and the guidebook has 106 meanings, including the “essence,” or general meaning for the archetype of the card, and its “shadow,” or reversed definition. If you work with archetypes, some will be familiar, however there are some cards that merge traditional archetypes into “new” ones. They aren’t new archetypes, really, as they already exist in the collective unconscious. I’m just naming, or renaming them, since these archetypes prevail on the spectrum of perennial spiritual truths. If you're unfamiliar, archetypes and the collective unconscious are terms that were coined and explored by Swiss psychologist, Carl G. Jung. To pay homage to the Muses, I incorporated into the deck the Nine Muses of Ancient Greek mythology. They, too, are archetypal! Specifically, creative archetypes for artists and writers to work with. I’ve added a tenth Muse to make up for the lack of a “Muse of Art.” Even though the Nine Muses are considered the “Muses of the Arts,” connected to writing, the performing arts & even sciences, there is no Muse for the visual arts. I explain further in my book about the addition of the Tenth Muse. There are also four mystical totem creatures, which connect to the tarot's suits: salamander, undine, sylph and gnome. They link to the magical elements of Fire, Water, Air and Earth, bringing the four elements as archetypes into this oracle. The six alchemy cards feature animals that represent a stage in the the alchemical procedure, or individuation process, as described by Carl Jung. In fact it was the rich symbols in alchemy that led Jung to realize the collective unconscious. He saw a connection in the work of self-realization with the Great Work of alchemy. The process of creating this deck has been an exploration and discovery of alchemical healing, magic and archetypal forces. It has been a sacred and private journey for me. For this reason, I have yet to post any photos of the cards online. For one, I am not participating on social media at the moment, which I addressed in my previous post. I also like to keep what I’m creating close as I don’t want my artwork or magical practice to be influenced by outside forces. During the past year, as I worked more intensely with the oracle cards (for those of you who are versed in astrology) Jupiter in Scorpio has been aspecting my chart in a particular way, which contributed to my period of solitude and inner contemplation. Saturn also crossed the bottom of my chart (IC) conjuncting Pallas Athena and my Moon, two times this year! It’s going to cross one final time in a couple weeks. In short, this year has definitely been one for inner work. Now that Jupiter is in Sagittarius, I'm ready and excited to share this project with you. My plan is to officially release the deck in March at the NWTS 2019. The cards will have a companion book, which is almost complete. I will hopefully have the first draft done to send to my editor soon. This project will again be a self-published, independent release. I will share photos of the cards with you...when I get the demo from the printer. Hopefully in January. Stay tuned!
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 Hanged Man from the Mystical Tarot, by Giuliano Costa I've been at work on the Divine Muses Oracle! I think I'm halfway through the cards. The thing about oracle decks is that one can create as many cards as they want. There's no exact system, but the cards need to be readable and evocative for intuitives. Pretty artwork isn't always enough. It's no easy task, I'm finding out, but I'm exploring and enjoying the process. I have 50 cards planned and 26 completed; merging archetypes, bringing in alchemical & mystical animals and the Greek Muses, of course! I'll post pictures soon.
In other news, the Antiquarian Lenormand is being retired this year! It's been 5 years since its release and I thought it was time to put it to rest. I reprinted 30 more poker decks in the black tins. This makes 600 copies total, including first edition decks. There are also mini lennies available. I've moved them all to the divineMuses Etsy shop. I'm also taking pre-orders for the Antiquarian Tarot. I've deactivated my Facebook account, which meant unpublishing my Facebook Divine Muses, Antiquarian Lenormand and Tarot Pages. I'm not going to post the reason, but I'm sure you can understand the FB dilemma. So I'll just leave it at that. My Youtube channel has not had a new video in quite some time. Alas, I'm so focused on my oracle deck and running my business, that videos are not a priority. However, I do reply to the comments and will update the Edge Treatment video, as there's new information to share. I invite you to post a comment here if you wish or contact me via email. (There's an email icon at the top of the page or contact button in the About tab.) I appreciate the emails I've received and I love to read them, so don't hesitate to write me if you have any questions. I'm still here, just not on social media right now. Things have been SUPER intense in the world and astrology seems to reflect this. Uranus entering Taurus in Mid-May didn't make things easier. Uranus wants freedom, evolution and progress, but Taurus is nostalgic and resists change. Uranus' heart is on the future, Taurus holds to the past. Sound familiar? Can you feel the progress that wants to be made, however things keep holding us back? Oh, the growing pains of revolution and evolution. Hang tight! It's not easy and no amount of fairy dust is going to help. It'll just get in our eyes and irritate more than help. So don't sugar coat, be real with how you feel! All we can really do right now is surrender and trust that we will get through this time. I have pulled the Hanged Man from the Mystical Tarot, by Giuliano Costa, several times in the past few days, so this message has been especially clear. Look at that volcano in the background! It's reflecting Hawaii's Mt. Kilauea and Guatemala's Volcan del Fuego's eruptions. And it's the Hanged Man card! Sigh. The message is strong and reflects much of what's happening in the world. It's been difficult and painful for many of us to witness or even bear. But we may find the answer lies in this Hanged Man card. The card of reversal. (Can we see the situation from a different perspective?) The surrender, trust and sacrifice card. But, also the card of detox (not just food and drink, but toxic people and situations), self-reflection, patience, pause, faith and acceptance. Neptune rules the Hanged Man and is nebulous, sensitive and idealistic. Neptune's energy is creative and intuitive, but also hopeful. How can we be as calm as the Hanged Man with all that chaos going on around him? I suppose we can be more compassionate with ourselves and have faith—so Neptunian. We can remember to check out of the chaos at times and check into a short meditation or contemplation. Tap into our artist/healer self and stay devoted to our dreams. Onward and upward!  The Antiquarian Tarot's Companion Guidebook is now available as an eBook! It's in the Divine Muses Etsy shop HERE.
Obtainable via immediate digital download of the following two file types. .epub (EPUB files can be opened in most eBook readers, including the B&N Nook, Kobo eReader, and Apple's iBooks app.) .mobi (MOBI files can be read by eBook readers like the Amazon Kindle and many smartphones that support that format.) Image shows the eBook on an Ipad mini, which was from the EPUB file. Please note: I cannot provide assistance on how to open these files on your particular device. The best I can offer is to point you to a google search of how to open EPUB or MOBI files for your specific gizmo. It's coming up on that time again! I've been getting together my vending table for the 4th annual Northwest Tarot Symposium (NWTS), also known affectionally as Newts. I'm so grateful this is in Portland. I've come to this every year and it's such a fun conference! Wonderful people, workshops and vendors. Jay and Jadzia DeForest have really put something special together.
If you're in the area, come say hello! I'll have: *Sample cards from the up and coming Divine Muses Oracle. 1st time reveal! *LTD ed signed & numbered decks of the Antiquarian Tarot Gold (GILDED) *The Antiquarian Tarot Companion Guidebook *The Antiquarian Lenormand, poker and mini sizes, and *NEW: Divination jewelry! Power pieces created by me specifically for practitioners of the Mystical and Healing arts. As a professional card reader and bodyworker, I find certain crystals help to enhance my work. I have been inspired to create something I could wear while doing readings and massage work. It's useful to have on a power piece when working, especially when mobile. FYI, I closed my online shop temporarily to make sure I had products for this event. (Plus, I needed a short break.) I'll reopen if I have decks leftover. Whatever I don't sell I'll list here again, as well as in my Etsy shop. I may have to order more, so it may be a few weeks before I have decks & books up for sale again. Thank you for your patience! Posted below is the info for the vending area of the tarot conference. I hope to see you at NeWTS! FREE PSYCHIC FAIR & MARKET Saturday & Sunday, March 3rd & 4th, 9am–5pm Monarch Hotel & Conference Center 12566 SE 93rd Ave Clackamas, OR 97015 Held in conjunction with the Northwest Tarot Symposium, the Psychic Fair and Metaphysical Market is free and open to the public! We have readers and merchants from all over the US and beyond coming to Portland for the symposium, and to offer their goods and services for your benefit! Please note: Admission to the Psychic Fair & Metaphysical Market is Free. Readers and Merchants charge for their goods and services. Admission to this part of the event does not include the symposium workshops and related events. To attend conference workshops and weekend social events, please sign up for the Northwest Tarot Symposium here.
Lo Scarabeo is celebrating 30 years with this limited numbered edition of 1,987 copies to honor the year they were founded in Italy. The gorgeous, colorful artwork is by Fabio Listrani, artist of the Night Sun Tarot.
LS says this limited edition is printed on the highest quality paper. It is, indeed, a thicker card stock, but it's also glossier than their standard decks. Coffin box: 7" x 4" (178mm x 102mm) Deck: 4.75" x 2.75" (120mm x 70mm) Book: 4.75" x 2.75" (120mm x 70mm) 128 pages on glossy paper with a few of the cards in color. English (pg. 5-54), Italian (55-68), French (69-82), Spanish (83-94), Portuguese (95-106), Russian (107-118) and Chinese (119-128). At first glance, I like how the suit colors are similar to the Albano-Waite Tarot's coloration Brigit of Biddy Tarot invited me to do an interview for her podcast. We talked all about the Antiquarian Tarot, my process of creating it and a little bit about my journey as a card reader and healer. I met Brigit this year at the Northwest Tarot Symposium in Portland, Oregon. She flew in from Australia to do a workshop at NeWTS. It was a real pleasure to meet her and an honor to get an invite to do the interview. One of the things I love about the Biddy Tarot podcasts is that they make transcripts available for them. Sometimes we can't listen to an interview, so it's nice to still be able to read it when we don't have earbuds. So if you can't listen now, scroll down below the podcast for the full transcript of the interview. I hope you enjoy it.  The Antiquarian Tarot & Companion Guidebook are available again. They were sold out for just a short while. I have a new case, which now has a red inner-lining. The red color represents the root chakra and helps to ground out & protect the cards when they are kept inside the case. You may choose to add an obsidian, smoky quartz or black tourmaline chunk for further grounding and protection. You might also prefer to add a crystal quartz or selenite piece to clear the deck and invoke divine peace. The Antiquarian Tarot deck always comes with the padded zipper case. If you're looking for an introduction to the tarot, the Antiquarian Tarot Companion Guidebook is a primer on how to start reading the cards. It's clear and concise, yet offers the new student a lot of information about the tarot and card reading. The appendices has tables and references to make learning the tarot accessible. This deck is based on the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot and anyone with knowledge of it can work with the Antiquarian Tarot. If you're just starting to explore the tarot, many teachers recommend learning with the RWS, but the Antiquarian Tarot is an alternative if you want something with a unique design and style. You can buy one or the other, but divineMuses offers a discount if you want to purchase both. I apologize, I haven't updated in so long! I've been in Portugal for a while and have just returned. The preparations before, plus the time away kept me from posting here. (And honestly, I'm not that great at posting!) Both my divineMuses shop and Etsy shop are open again. Thank you for your patience, if you have been waiting awhile. My husband and I were in Portugal for so long we felt what it would be like to live there. It is such a glorious country—the land, the food and most of all, the people. It was also lovely to hear my mother tongue spoken—so soothing to my ears and heart. Here are a few pictures for your viewing pleasure. To be honest, I don't like having Instagram nor Facebook on my phone, at least for the moment. This is the only place I'm sharing these photos right now. I hope you will enjoy them! Wherever you are... May you be safe, May you feel joy, May you feel peace. Deep Breath & Blessings, Maree Hey Ho,
It's Halloween! When all the Witches are to be seen! Some in black and some in green Hey Ho for Halloween! Happy Samhain! Here's something a little different—a leisurely browse through some Happy Autumnal Equinox (& Spring to those in the Southern Hemisphere)! I posted a new video going over the Antiquarian Tarot Companion Guidebook in more detail. I also reveal the new Lovers card and the other minor changes that I made to the deck.
The deck and book go on sale Monday, September 26th! If you're on my notification list, I will send an email when they go live. |
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