Herbal Tarot Deck

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 07 Apr 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

RedWood	07 Apr 2002
I got the herbal tarot deck about 6 months or so ago...I thought I would like it because I am really into herbs but after I took it out of the package and put out a spread..I got nothing from this deck..I have not used it since....Anyone ever have that happen?

Zhritza	07 Apr 2002
Yeah, with the Marseilles. (ducking my head)

Diana	08 Apr 2002
edited

blumoon	08 Apr 2002
hmmm that's interesting cause i was thinking of getting that deck...i can't say i have had that experience with a deck yet, i only have 4 decks and 2 are R/W's :p...what do you think of Pan as The Devil and The Hanged Man as The Suspended Person? :)

Lion-O	08 Apr 2002
Quote: Originally posted by RedWood I got the herbal tarot deck about 6 months or so ago...I thought I would like it because I am really into herbs but after I took it out of the package and put out a spread..I got nothing from this deck.. You might like to give it some time to get familiar with the deck. In other words; the stuff like browsing the cards, study them a bit closer, put them on a place close to you at night, etc. And then try again after, say, one week or so. Allthough my experiences aren't much at the moment I do think you should get familiar with your deck before you can start using it 'for real'.

taliandes	09 Apr 2002
This deck has been calling to me for ages and so i ordered it a few days ago. I have just received an email telling me it is unavailable so now im really fed up. Grrrrr i hate it when things like that happen. Anyway to actually answer your question. I had the cosmic tarot for a while before i started using it. One day it just called out to me so maybe you should just give it a little while longer. Alternatively just trade it or something thats what i have done with decks that i just dont seem to get any real interest in even if i really wanted them at the time. Lisa

AutumnMoonfire	17 Jun 2002
How did you finally do with this deck? I am considering it, I do have a friend who reads with it and who can help me get started. Does anyone else read with this deck? what do you think of it? Thoughts Please?

jema	17 Jun 2002
i had this deck as my only reading deck for a long while. a few years at least. it is now resting in a velvet-bag, well loved and worn. these days i only take it out for healing rituals (about once a year or so) the artwork on it is really simple, nothing fancy at all, very clear though. i would call it a Rider-Waite clone. i still haven't got the book for the deck - i almost bought it today though. i find that the inclusions of herbs really do strengthen the readings. i know some never bother with the herbs though. but if you do - you will find a lot there. some of the correlations are just splendid - like garlic for the tower:) if you don't mind a mild-mannered softly spoken RW-clone, i would say it is definatly worth someone time and effort. it can make a really great reading deck. when i had it i was brand new, had only been reading a year or so. (yeah, i was a slow learner)

Violet Gargoyle	17 Jun 2002
I have been considering this deck for a while, but something would stop me at the last minute. Now I am not sure I really want it. I love herbal lore, and would love a deck about herbs and/or flower meanings, but since the herbal is a cut and pasted Rider Waite, and I already have one of those, I want to hold out until I can get a deck that focuses specifically on the herbs. Maybe someone out there can suggest an alternate?

Thirteen	17 Jun 2002
I think the problem with the herbal is two-fold. First, it is just a second-rate RW clone. There are some changes, but for the most part, it really doesn't take advantage of the subject matter to really play with the images. All it mostly does is paste a colored drawing of an "herb" into a mostly RW image. The colors are so-so. The art, well, so-so. Frankly, I don't think the herbal lore makes up for otherwise, well, uninspired (uninspiring?) images. Second, the herbal lore is more "nutritional" and medicinal rather than magical. I mean, the deck has "watermelon seeds," "Yam root" "grains" and "hops." Excuse me? And am I wrong or is Rosemary missing from this deck completely? How the heck did that happen? How about Thyme? Thistle? Rosehips? Lavender? All missing. And in there place we have grains and watermelon seeds? I'm sorry. This deck let me down both as a tarot deck and as an herb deck.

catlin	19 Jun 2002
I added this one to my collection partly because it is a RW clone and partly because of my interest in herbs. It is no striking deck, just a nice addy when you come across it at a reduced prize as I did.

purplelady	19 Jun 2002
I don't have the deck...............it calls to me though! I read that there is a book to go with this deck that is much better than the one that comes with the herbal set. It may be by the author or artist of the deck, but comes seperate. I read it has much better information about each herb and medicinal usages. So for those of you who have this deck , you may want to look into this book.

The Herbal Tarot Deck thread was originally posted on 07 Apr 2002 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.