A while back Lisa, Dani, and Dustin of Three Fat Readers talked about the DruidCraft Tarot, and that inspired me to chat about the deck here in a blog post. This isn’t a deck review. It’s me sharing my personal experiences with the DruidCraft. If there is one contemporary tarot deck that you’ll hear a lot of consensus fanfare on, it’s the DruidCraft Tarot and basically, anything and everything the Carr-Gomms do and whatever Will Worthington illustrates.
Another reason I wanted to go out of my way to post this is as a bit of a passive-aggressive defiant response to a recent “most influential” or “best of” publication on contemporary tarot decks where the DruidCraft Tarot by Philip and Stephanie Carr-Gomm, illustrated by Will Worthington was noticeably missing from that “best of” list. This was one of my go-to public reading decks from back in the day. When I was in my 20s, I did countless parties and social events with the DruidCraft.
Even going through the cards again for these photos and blog post brings back so many fond memories. Some of the cards in these photos are going to be upside down because I wanted to show you my copy of the deck straight out of its tattered old box and I read reversals with the DruidCraft.
The Essence of the DruidCraft Tarot
The premise of the deck is to be a synthesis of Wicca and Druidry, to express a path that the guidebook calls “The Old Ways.” The deck is also inspired by the Golden Dawn, which united “many of the disparate strands of the Western Magical Tradition . . .
Something the guidebook does that I found intriguing was to draw connections between Taoism and Druidry and Wicca, in particular concepts of the Great Rite, the alchemical wedding, and this dichotomy of inner vs. outer, esoteric vs. exoteric, lesser vs.
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Structure and Symbolism
The Major Arcana are instructive on the Inner Mysteries, or the Greater Mysteries. The Minor Arcana are instructive on the Outer Mysteries, or the Lesser Mysteries. If the pip cards in a tarot deck represent events, circumstances, and the day to day human experience, and court cards represent people, personalities, relationships, and characters, then the Major Arcana will take the practitioner “beyond time and space to the realm of the soul” (guidebook). The Three Septenaries in the Major Arcana are also expressive of the Three Degrees of Initiation in both Druidry and Wicca.
- Major Arcana: Inner Mysteries, Greater Mysteries
- Minor Arcana: Outer Mysteries, Lesser Mysteries
- Pip Cards: Events, circumstances, day-to-day human experience
- Court Cards: People, personalities, relationships, characters
The court cards are four tribes, or four families converging from the four different directions that meet at Stonehenge. Each family consists of a mother, a father, son, and daughter, and this gathering of sixteen people also represents sixteen personality types that are the core or common denominator blueprint for all of human society.
🌟THE DRUID CRAFT TAROT, by Philip & Stephanie Carr-Gomm. Illustrated by Will Wortington!
Unique Cards and Their Significance
There are a few Majors that are renamed, such as The Empress to The Lady, The Emperor to The Lord, and The Hierophant to The High Priest. Key 14 is The Fferyllt, which is the Druid Alchemist, and Key 15 is Cernunnos. When Key 15 in this deck shows up in your reading, it is a call to awaken your sense of personal or even social responsibility.
The artwork on this deck is exemplary. These were done in tempera paint in a vivid, earthy palette. The characters are deeply expressive with a bit of that Lord of the Rings aesthetic. Or hey at least that’s what comes to my mind. =P The resolution and size of these photos are huge, so you should be able to click and zoom in to get a detailed view of the cards.
Personal Experiences and Recommendations
Pictured here is my second copy of the deck. I love the oversize dimensions of the cards, though that’s also why I always had trouble shuffling this deck. For public readings I had to fan the cards out across the table and have the querent pick cards from the fan. Having them sit there and watch me struggle with shuffling just wasn’t very elegant.
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The DruidCraft Tarot would be a great beginner’s deck, though if you are a total beginner, then just make sure you get the edition that comes with the full guidebook (rather than the tiny 80-page thing).
New Edition
Let the DruidCraft path show you the Way. At a time when we seek a closer connection with the natural world, this beautiful deck invites us to celebrate the earth and the rhythm of her seasons and cycles. For the past 15 years, The Druidcraft Tarot has been one of the most popular and recommended tarot decks. This new edition brings two fundamental spiritualities of Nature-Wicca and Druidry-to the traditional art of the tarot. Powerful images rooted in ancient storytelling serve as a gateway to your inner spiritual world. Let them deepen your connection with the natural wisdom of the earth. Set includes 78 cards and 192-page illustrated book explaining the relationship between the card and the teachings of Druidry and Wicca.
Philip Carr-Gomm is one of the most prominent figures in the Mind, Body and Spirit (MBS) pagan movement.
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tags: #druidcraft #tarot #book