Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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46 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is the Thoth Deck to own!, February 1, 2001
This is the Thoth deck printed in Switzerland. This is the one you want to own. The colors of the cards printed in Switzerland are the most true to the original art of Lady Frieda Harris.I fell in love with the Thoth Tarot after receiving a reading from a friend. The colors in her cards were beautiful and vibrant, and I was mesmerized by the quality of the art work. I immediately ordered a Thoth deck from Amazon. When it arrived, I was stunned to discover that the cards were not as beautiful as I remembered. The cards had a murky green tinge to them. When I compared them to my friend's deck, I discovered that they were *not* the same. Although the art was exactly the same, the simple difference of the green tint gave my cards a totally different appearance and feeling - ominous and foreboding. Upon further examination, we discovered that her deck was printed in Switzerland and mine was printed in Belgium. I had to search the Internet for months before I found someone who had a copy of the large deck printed in Switzerland. At that time Amazon did not have the Swiss version, however, they now have it and here it is. It is about $4.00 higher than the deck printed in Belgium, but more than worth it. The Thoth deck printed in Switzerland is stunningly beautiful and powerful. I have always given extraodinary readings with the Thoth deck, even as a novice. It continues to be my favorite deck to read with. I highly recommend "The Crowley Tarot: The Handbook to the Cards" by Hajo Banzhaf as a companion book for the Thoth deck, no matter what your level of experience, and "Tarot As Your Companion: A Practical Guide to the Rider-Waite and Crowley Thoth Tarot" Decks" by Hajo Banzhaf as an introduction for beginners.
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31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Most Popular Tarot Deck, Astouding Accuracy in Readings, August 12, 2001
I have worked with this deck on-and-off, for almost four years, and I must say that it gives very accurate results. I do not think it is a great Beginner's Deck (try Rider-Waite for that)--however, the woman who created this deck infused a wealth of information into the Artwork. Many people are leary of this Tarot deck, due to the fact that Crowley had a less than reputable persona. Yet, from all the research my Wiccan Wife has done, it seems Frieda Harris had a tremendous amount of influence in the project. I believe each person should judge for themselves. Some of the cards do, in fact, have a dark, brooding feeling to them, yet for some of these cards it is deservingly so. The Major Arcana are quite Beautiful and the Esoteric Symbolism worked into the Deck, throughout, is a Wealth of Knowledge. The placement of two Major Arcana cards are different than most standard decks, but comparable with a set of Egyptian Tarot Cards, from another Mystery school.Previously, I was not willing to review Crowley's works, due to his reputation. However, I discovered that the reputations of the founders of an org. I learned-from were just as impugnable. I must give Crowely respect for at-least being Honest about his nature and not deceiving his students. As with all things in life, it is best to investigate many different branches of this field of study, but I know that Most of the Tarot Readers I have met use The Thoth Deck more than any other deck in their collection. The Wonderful Artwork and Fascinating Symbolism give the Reader a vast-array of information to draw-from. My Wife is a locally renowned Tarot Reader and she swears by this deck, for accuracy....and, ALL of her friends swear by her Accuracy! <She Never Charges for Readings...it is strictly from the Heart. I strongly advise against accepting readings from people who charge more than $15 for a reading & I would never even Consider calling a Psychic Hotline....they just make Real Readers look bad. Buy a Deck, for yourself and teach yourself.> The Thoth Deck has some Great Companion Books, such as: "The Tarot Handbook : Practical Applications of Ancient Visual Symbols" -- by Angeles Arrien <&, of course, "The Book of Thoth" by Aleister Crowley, Frieda Harris (Illustrator)> I suggest buying the hand-sized Deck, because Large Decks are usually very cumbersome and it is hard to get a good psychokenetic feel for the cards. It is always best to have a deck that can be easily manipulated in the hands, for better accuracy in readings. In my opinion, this deck is one of Crowley's greatest Contributions to those involved with The Mysteries. I also strongly suggest studying Jungian Psychology, in conjunction with Tarot studies. Thousands of people believe this is the best deck on the market.
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A VERY FINE DECK!, May 18, 2000
By A Customer
I find the Crowley deck consistently accurate for tarot readings. These cards are not like the Rider Waite (another fine deck) but they offer very valuable information that the Rider Waite deck does not seem equipped to handle. For example, the Crowley deck is fabulous for Pagans, since its themes combine many Spiritual disciplines such as Alchemy, the Cabala, Magic, Astrology, Celt traditions and Mediterranean influences. The Crowley deck can therefore be interpretated across a broad spectrum of religions. Additionally, Crowley was not shy about sexual matters and his deck reflects his deep understanding of sexual nuances, which is something that the Rider Waite seems to avoid. The suit of Wands is depicted in connection with passion in a very emphasized manner and it expresses the fire and exuberance of the sex drive as a represenation of essential passion. Crowley emphasizes the dialectical nature between passion/temperance, masculine/feminine, inner/outer expression, subjective/universal themes. Crowley also represents the gender divide in very comprehensive manner. Crowley offers a princess, a prince, a queen and a knight, which corresponds to the Rider's page, knight, queen and king respectively. An absolutely excellent companion book/manual for these cards is written by German author Hajo Banzhaf (available in English) who is an internationally acclaimed astrologist and tarot reader/interpreter. I find him indespensible,and far more lucid than Crowley, since his intereptations for the Crowley deck (and one of his books offers a Crowley/Waite comparison interpretation for each card) are straight foreward and right on the mark. The Crowley deck is an artistic masterpiece and its designs are very lovely. This is one deck that I highly recommend!
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