Review – Tarot of Empowerment

Tarot of Empowerment

 

Author: Judyth Sult
Artist: Gordana Curgus
Tarot of Empowerment
2016
ISBN #978-0-9864446-7-8

“Tarot of Empowerment” is a 22 card, Majors only deck that comes with a text only LWB (Little White Book). (There is a companion book that can be purchased separately, and is absolutely amazing!) The cards follow the structure of a traditional Tarot deck, with the 22^nd card entitled “Unknown”. This card represents a situation where the universe is not quite ready to respond to our question, to give us information. Patience is needed before making a decision, or taking an action. Quite a relevant card, but one would need to be prepared to explain this to a client in a manner that they would understand!

The card titles are traditional, with the following exceptions: Questor/Fool, Sustenance/Empress, Authority/Emperor, Advisor/Hierophant, Choices/Lovers, Introspection/Hermit, New Perspective/Hanged Man, Life Cycle/Death, Entrapment/Devil, Chaos/Tower, Awakening/Judgment. The renamed cards are meant to give a contemporary interpretation to the traditional archetypes.

The cards are 2 ¾” by 4 ¾”. The backs show a black border around a golden door that is opening to the universe. There is a mandala-like figure in the middle of the card, outlined in purple. The backs are reversible. The card faces show the same black border, surrounding a thin gold border. The card number is entered at the top of the card in a gold oval, with the card title across the bottom, in an oval gold banner. The artwork is done largely in pastels, with a muted quality to it. I find the cards very compelling!

In her introduction, Sult talks about doing a reading for Curgus, and coming to the realization that as an artist, Curgus work reflected the Tarot archetypes as she had imagined them. They worked together on both the words and the images, consciously eliminating he symbols and religious allegories with hidden meanings that can be found in traditional decks. (I am very attached to exactly what they eliminated, but I find value in both versions of the Tarot.)

Sult sees reading the Tarot as being on a quest to become engaged with universal truth, and with your own intuition. To do this well, one needs to set aside one’s ego and any attachment to the outcome. She also talks about framing questions (she does not see yes/no questions as empower, which I have to agree with, as I find them limiting).

The cards are presented as text only, with the card name and number, a short saying, a description of the card and its energy, upright and reversed meanings, empowerment (how the energy empowers the client), and numerology (the energy that the card’s assigned number carries).

The deck starts out with a bang! We see the Questor (Fool), backpack on his back, opening the golden doors and stepping through them, out into the universe. A white dove is flying in the sky, welcoming him. Empowerment: “Questor is empowered by being spontaneous and optimistic about the issue in question.”

Sustenance (Empress) shows a lovely, long haired woman standing. She is dressed in a lovely blue gown, and her hair is flowing. There is a cross at her neck. Empowerment: “You are empowered when you use your words and skills as tools to strengthen worthy causes and people around you.”

Determination (Chariot) shows a golden bird in the center of the card, flying through the night sky. An intent male image is being carried by the bird. Under the bird we see an image of the world. Empowerment: “You are empowered to have faith in yourself and the decisions that you need to make, and to travel with your personal beliefs and values as your compass.”

Justice shows a yin/yang symbol in the center, over back to back images of a woman reflecting. Empowerment: “You are empowered by Justice when you make fair decisions based on the rules, no matter the emotions or relationships involved.”

The intent of this deck is to have Tarot serve as a tool to empower individuals to make the choices that will improve their life. The images reflect both strength and beauty, and draw the reader (and their client) in. This is a powerful deck, and could be used in any number of ways (for readings, journeying, meditation, journaling, in comparative readings, etc.).

© March 2016 Bonnie Cehovet
Reproduction prohibited without written permission of the author.

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Review – Explore The Major Arcana: A Workbook For Empowerment

Explore the Major Arcana:
A Workbook For Empowerment

Author: Judyth Sult
Tarot of Empowerment
2016
ISBN #978-0-9864446-1-6

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“Explore the Major Arcana: A Workbook For Empowerment” uses the art from the “Tarot of Empowerment”, the Tarot deck that Sult co-created with artist Gordana Curgus. The interpretations and technique in this 90 page book are meant to empower individuals to put the archetypal energy of the Tarot to work in their lives.

In her introduction, Sult speaks of the many ways that the cards can be read. This book represents her personal journey into reading the Tarot. In exploring the Tarot, card by card, her focus is on helping readers discover the empowering energy in each card. She goes on to define empowerment as the courage to make decisions for the highest good, based on information the higher self reveals through the cards. The focus of her readings is to make the best decision in the present for the future.

Sult believes that reading with the Major Arcana alone is more concise, more empowering than reading with the entire 78 card deck. In her words, “… the Minors color between the bold strokes of the majors in readings”.

Starting out with an excellent chapter on communicating with, and building trust in your guides, Sult moves on to creating an empowering reading, including how to frame a question, how to lay the cards out, and how to interpret the cards. She has included spreads such as Best Course of Action, Next Best Step, Choice Between Two Options, Looking For a Relationship, Four Stages, New Year Reading, and Discussion. She also talks about how to create your own spread.

There is a delightful chapter on Tarot and Numerology, with the association between the numbers 1-9 and the Major Arcana cards. She also covers determining your Life Path number, what the Life Path meanings are, determining your Personal Year number, and something Sult calls the Age Influence.

The cards are each presented with a small black and white scan, with the card name, with a short poem about the card, and with questions the reader can ask themselves about the card, with a lined space to write in their responses.

Some title changes have been made in the Tarot of Empowerment: Fool/Questor, Empress/Sustenance, Emperor/Authority, Hierophant/Advisor, Lovers/Choice, Chariot/Determination, Hermit/Introspection, Hanged Man/New Perspective, Death/Life Cycle, Devil/Entrapment, Tower/Chaos, Judgment/Awakening, Unknown (extra card).

For the Questor (The Fool), the poem reads: “What are you seeking? Who do you meet? Risk to explore, to learn, to trust, To find the truth of who you are.” The questions presented are: What tools do you have as the Questor to begin the journey? What characteristics would make this an empowering card? How would you interpret this card if it were in the position of the theme of the reading? How would you interpret this card in the position of best course of action? How would you interpret this card as the challenge card? What is hidden from the person or situation according to this card? How would you interpret this card as the hope and fear card?

“Explore the Major Arcana: A Workbook For Empowerment” is a well written book that gently leads the reader into new ways of thinking, and new ways of interpreting the cards. I loved it, and I think that you will too!

© February 2016 Bonnie Cehovet
Reproduction prohibited without the written permission of the author