I bought the Pearls of Wisdom deck a few weeks ago and am just loving it on so many levels it's unbelievable! I have over a 100 decks and this has turned into a favorite. I carry with me at all times. I've connected with it in a very intensely personal, magical and spiritual way. I've read Tarot 21 years and this is only the second time I've had this kind of reaction to a deck before! I just wanted to thank you for publishing this set and making it possible for me and the world to own and use this magical, stunning tarot! You obviously saw something profoundly special when you found this deck and decided to publish it. It transports me to another realm and my imagination and intuition kick into overdrive. I am very involved with the Aeclectic Pearls of Wisdom study group (I'm a member) and am really enjoying exploring the cards in detail with others. -Share Beiting --Tarot Forum This tarot is fast turning into a very exquisitely personal and treasured deck for me.....it's been an enlightening, awe-inspiring, magical and enchanting journey so far filled with much learning and discovery. --Miss 6 - Tarot Forum
The Only Way Out Is Through. The cards do not wear their meanings on their sleeves -- there are no keywords or suggested interpretations, nor do the images themselves directly indicate a specific meaning. Each card is an invitation to meditate and imagine, a gateway into a world that seems both strange, and somehow hauntingly familiar. It would be hard to pick out a few cards to describe in detail, because all of the cards are brilliant, all of them are Tarot and yet spectacularly different, and all of them have something to say. This deck wasn't created by a Tarot expert to prove his or her mastery of a genre. It wasn't created to prove someones knowledge of symbolism and tradition, nor to peddle someone's meddlesomeness in the affairs of others. No, this deck was created by someone who suffered a tragic personal loss, and as a result of that loss came into a kind of wisdom known only to the ancient shamans and seers. It has been said that, The truth will set you free, but unfortunately the reality of it is often the other way around -- one must suffer great personal loss in order to find the Truth. Only when the 'reality' of one's personal life collapses does one see the falseness of that 'reality', and only then can one apprehend the vision of what lies beyond the illusions of social life. It is that vision that is portrayed in these cards. That's why the characters resemble Tantric deities and forest fairies -- rather than cloaking them in the garb of traditional symbolism, the artist has drawn what she has seen. The images have unconscious impact because that's what they are: archetypal images of the universal forces that lie behind human consciousness itself. Those archetypes often take on a form that we would identify as psychedelic. This is because modern culture has lost familiarity with them -- they are identified with drugs because, for the most part, that is the only contact modern man has with them. To the ancients, these were the images of magick and healing, personifications of the forces of nature and the divine, messages from ancestors and prophecies for the future. To the mystic, they are symbols of what lies beyond ordinary consciousness -- the patterns of energy flow that give form and meaning to existence. Modern culture has lost contact with these images, preferring to relax in indolence and take seriously its illusions of physical and social glory. In the occasional dream or drug-state modern man may see these visions, but instead of heeding their wisdom, the modern just picks himself up and continues on his way. Only when the mental constructs of modern life are taken away -- by choice or by circumstance -- do these visions gain a foothold in the mind. Then, like opening Pandora's box, the ancient powers pour forth, producing madness in some perhaps, but in others inspiring a creativity that draws the artist, and the observer, into the world of the ancient seer. Can a deck of cards transform your life? No, no more than can LSD, yoga, Kierkegaard or quantum electrodynamics. But, in the mind of one open to new ideas, willing to look in new directions, and, in all honesty, ready to make the sacrifices that must be made to acquire new wisdom and understanding, any of those things can lead to a completely new way of looking at the world, and at one's own self. That's the kind of deck this is; it isn't reading tea leaves, or changing your inner child's diapers. Behind these pretty pictures is the wisdom of the ancients. Take a look around yourself and ask, what will be left when it is all gone? The answer is that what comes and goes is illusory and transitory, but wisdom and understanding are forever. It is that quality of enduring thought that gives these cards their power. --David Albert (doctordruidphd) - Amazon.Com
We are Divine children playing knowingly or unknowingly with the greatness of our potential...As we consult this ledger of Divine gifts, we can afford to be ultimately hopeful. This deck is intended to be gloriously optimistic and deeply impenetrable all at the same time. - From the companion booklet The Pearls of Wisdom Tarot deck is a prime example of why--and when--a deck creator's back story matters. At first glance, the day-glo colors and kaleidoscopically busy artwork of this deck points to a bubbly worldview and childlike spirit. This is not a criticism, because it just so happens that I *like* these kinds of decks, which is why I bought it from Amazon.com. But can such decks be used for intense spiritual contemplation or for readings about serious matters? Maybe...but I had my doubts. However, after reading the first paragraph, I was surprised, intrigued and awe-struck. Roxi Sim writes: The Pearls of Wisdom Tarot was a healing journey begun from a place of deep grief and physical pain. This was a `painted journey' through Tarot. I started in 2000 after the deaths of my mother and nine-year-old son and after the loss of my health. Wow. After I read that, I had tears in my eyes. The Pearls of Wisdom Tarot looked entirely different to me now. Here was an artist who had been through heart-wrenching personal tragedy and illness, yet managed to paint the most optimistic, cheerful deck I had ever seen. And not just a Tarot deck, but a series of paintings--art therapy--that catalogued a seven-year journey of spiritual and emotional healing. The pearls scattered among the images of this deck were no longer extraneous decorations to keep the cards in alignment with its title. No, these were the result of serious life irritations resulting in the luminous Pearls of Wisdom Tarot deck. The nooks and crannies of each card brims with pleasant visages, interesting objects and esoteric glyphs--it's difficult to decide where to focus first! Amid the bright hues are the liberal use of runes--a Nordic spiritual and divination tool adding additional insight into the cards. Their meanings are briefly explained in the 150-page companion book. --Janet Boyer - author Back in Time Tarot Book