Gaian Tarot Artist's Journal

The Hermit - Gaian Tarot Card of the Week

What do we most need to know for the coming week?

The Hermit

I usually think of this card as reflecting the need to withdraw from the world for awhile, to commune with Mama Gaia and fill one’s inner well.  I did that this past weekend when I stayed with my mermaid sister Nora on the island we both love so well.  I had forgotten the quality of silence out there.  It’s not terribly noisy where I live now, but there are more cars and homes and neighbors than there are on the island.  More than the thick morning fog, more than the sunset and moonlight on the water, more than the eagle and heron flying overhead and the goldfinches at the feeder, more than the stacks of stones at the beach and the scarlet-colored jellyfish coming so close to shore — it was the quality of silence that held my attention this past weekend.  

I think the Hermit is challenging me to bring that quality of stillness and silence into my work this coming week.

What does the card say to you, dear Readers?

High Priestess - Gaian Tarot Card of the Week

What do we most need to know for the coming week?

High Priestess 

The High Priestess is one of the first Gaian Tarot images I painted, back in 2001 or 2002.  I remember tapping into the Hecate/Persephone energy of this card, feeling as though she was a guide to the Underworld for me, taking me down deep into the Mysteries then guiding me back to the surface again, bearing gifts for the community.  The HP card has thus been the key card of the whole deck for me - its “guiding light,” so to speak.   

So I am not so surprised that She turns up when I am so close to finishing the entire deck.  I spent the last few days working out the composition for both the Elder of Water and the Elder of Earth.   Another week or two and they’ll be done.   And here the HP is, one side of her face the Crone/Elder, and the other side the Maiden.  When Crone’s Winter turns to the Maiden’s Spring, the Gaian Tarot Collector’s Edition will start making its way in the world.

Blessed be.

What does the card say to you, dear Readers?

Raffle! Goddess Tarot iPhone app!

Yes, I'm raffling off a copy of Kris Waldherr's new Goddess Tarot iPhone app!    Just leave a comment below, and I will choose a name at random this weekend.  I just love giving cool stuff away!

I've admired Kris' work for many years and had the pleasure of meeting her in person last April when I visited Brooklyn.   I interviewed Kris about her newest project earlier this week. 

Joanna:  Tell us a little bit about the Goddess Tarot. I know it's a bestseller at over 200,000 copies sold.  How is it different from the Rider Waite Smith Tarot, and from other Goddess-themed decks like Motherpeace?

Kris:  The Goddess Tarot actually bears similarities to both of those decks. Like the Motherpeace, it's a gentle deck oriented around women and their mythic history. The major and minor arcanas of The Goddess Tarot are structured like the Rider Waite Smith. My reason for doing this was because I wanted The Goddess Tarot to be easily accessible to people already familiar with the tarot. Rightly or wrongly, the Rider Waite Smith is considered the "default" when it comes to tarot structure; after all, it is the most popular deck in the world. 

That written, The Goddess Tarot differs in that it brings individual goddesses directly to the forefront, most especially in the major arcana. The art style is more illustrative and classical in tone than the Motherpeace, which seems more symbolic to me.  

Joanna:  Last night in my Tarot Meetup group, the topic was the Hierophant. Each person brings her or his choice of deck to the Meetup, and we compare the card of the night from many different decks.  Two women had your deck last night, and we discussed your choice for the Hierophant card as Tradition (Juno).  Can you tell us a little bit about why you chose Juno for that card?

Kris:  Simple as this may sound, it made perfect sense to me. After all, Juno is the Roman ruling goddess. As such, she ruled over ever aspect of women's lives -- from birth to death -- and was directly featured and honored in their rituals.  I don't know about you, but when I learned in grade school about the Greco-Roman mythology, there was a tendency to downplay female sovereign goddesses (such as Juno) as consorts to rulers. I hope that featuring Juno in this manner rebalances things a bit. 

Joanna:  I don't own an iPhone or an iPod Touch although I am seriously considering buying an iPod Touch just to get your app!  Can you describe how someone would consult the Goddess Tarot using the app to me?  Or would that be too much like blind men describing an elephant?

Amulets, we have amulets!

I spent a good part of the weekend making up a new batch of Tarot Amulets, as Lunaea and I will be selling them at BATS this coming October. I'll be shipping them down to her in Santa Cruz soon so she can get started on the beading.  I'll be selling the one-of-a-kind pieces on my website starting in mid-October too.  But we're also taking custom orders now, so if there's a specific RWS or Gaian Tarot amulet you'd like to have, please drop me a line and let me know.  You can order it with or without the beaded necklace. Amulets are $50 and the full beaded necklace with amulet is $95 (you'll discuss color options with Lunaea).

The amulets are hand made by me, each and every one, from polymer clay, gold leaf, Pearlex powders, archival watercolor papers and transparencies. The beaded necklaces are made by Lunaea Weatherstone and are very similar to the necklaces she makes for her luscious Goddess Rosaries.

8 of Air (Swords) - Gaian Tarot Card of the Week

What do we most need to know for the coming week?

8 of Air 

When I see this card, it reminds me that it’s time for deep listening.  It also reminds me to speak my truth, and to find or create a circle of support where we can all be our most authentic selves.  This week, I’ll be on the alert for situations where I need to listen, or to speak from the heart.

What does the card say to you, dear Readers?

Elder of Fire (King of Wands)

A curandera (healer) squats on the earth in front of an altar honoring the ancestors during Los Días de los Muertos — the Days of the Dead. She holds a handful of burning herbs that direct waves of energy to dissipate the foul and bring in the sweet.  She lives in la época del mito (the Otherworld, the time of myth) as much — or more — as she does in the world of consensual reality. Her gaze, directed at the viewer, is potent and challenging.  Her ally is the iguana, who brings the medicine of the dreamtime.

The Elder of Fire reminds us to open up to the Otherworld, the world of energy patterns and spirits and Invisibles.  When we shift our inner reality, our outer reality shifts as well. 

The Elder of Fire was our Card of the Week a month or so ago.  A few of you commented then.   How does the card speak to you, now that you can see it?   Thank you, dear Readers.

Lammas at the River

Lammas is the first of the three harvests, with Autumn Equinox and Samhain (Halloween) to follow.  For me, it always carries a bittersweet feeling, especially since my dad died just before Lammas three years ago.  Summer is at its height with blazing heat, yet the leaves have already begun to fall.  The turn towards Autumn has undoubtedly begun.  

Our journey begins as we drive through farmlands and cornfields, leaving the city and suburbs far behind.

More photos after the jump.

3 of Water (Cups) - Gaian Tarot Card of the Week

What do we most need to know for the coming week?

3 of Water 

Ahhhh . . . it’s summer, and playing in the water sounds like just the ticket!  In fact the card reminds me of this past weekend.  I gathered with friends for a Lammas celebration/ campout, and spend several hours on Saturday splashing in the cool waters of the river.   One friend kept floating downstream on her back with her head and feet pointed up and hands together, looking for all the world like a human Otter!  We had a few good laughs about that.   

Even though Monday signals the beginning of the work week, I think this card is also encouraging us to continue to gather with friends and enjoy the bounty of good summer weather while it lasts.   And to go jump in the lake / ocean / river / pool!

What does the card say to you, dear Readers?