Anybody else obsessed w/ the 'I am ONE'?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 04 Jul 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

All Is One	04 Jul 2002
I guess it had to happen- the Thoth couldn't be my sole working deck, as well as fulfill all the various needs we tend to expect our "favourite" deck to satisfy. I didn't order a single new deck in...um- Late Feb thru late June.. . a long hold out for anyone who hangs out in these threads! I knew I wanted the 'Iam ONE' from the interviews alone then I saw all the cards on the 'I am ONE' web site, and read more about it, but I stopped expecting any new deck to ever read for me as the Thoth has for 6 years or more. Wrong again. As wrong as the really worst deck buys I ever made ~I own some that I would never want to read with, that looked wonderful at the time. Maya Britan has created a unity and magic that flips through your hands and actually writhes its way into the spreads. The Thoth is a wise and often sardonic old sage with a twist or two, but the 'I am ONE' is a living, whirling dervish of energy and an intense experience to study: a total journey to read with. I may go so far as to post a few of my reading s with this deck (for myself) just to see if anyone else has had similar results. It took so long to court the Thoth into actually reading for me, and this ONE is immediate and responsive. Any thoughts on this~ from the curious to the devoted. . . ?? <http://www.saint-art.com/> (for those who have not seen it...)

jema	04 Jul 2002
i have actually used it not only in my a card a day readings but also in a reading for a friend. and it does work. i am sometimes bewildered by the deck when i try to squeeze it into the "classical" tarot meanings and positions. the world as the virgine and the HP as Mother are two examples that came up and where i just had to let go of my intellect a while and follow the flow of the cards. now the decks creator - is a sweet woman, very kind and considerate and she actually sent me the deck before i had a chance to pay for it. i can't really say i have the same views on the tarot and tarot-history as her though - i am sometimes so grounded i should grow roots, but i so enjoy the deck that i don't really mind all that. do post a reading for us! i am afraid i can't post the one i did out of regards to the client. it was a very personal reading.

All Is One	04 Jul 2002
Just found a well done review of this deck by Diane Wilkes at : <http://www.tarotpassages.com/IamOne.htm> I agree that the deck deserves a format equal or even bigger than the largest Thoth deck... But the fact is- it loves your hand in the size it is... (I used to dislike small decks intensely) I hope I can see the actual paintings - they would be the ideal way to use the deck. Any ideas on how to do that? Oh~ I had one. Put it into the Cyber tarot computer thing (like the shareware- hate the cyber tarot) ' and let you enlarge it as big as you want) Jema~ I wish I could shake my weirdness over the idea of posting tarot readings under any circumstances...as I said "I may actually post" one- it would shock me if I could break through and DO it ~ I'm working on the post of the first spread, just two or three cards of it, w/this deck...soon I agree w/you totally. I let go of the "encyclopedia" mind and took the HP in as the power that she is- love reversal of the HP and the Empress- w/ the HP as Mother and E as the Feeler. Love that they are both sexual and powerful- not dowdy or stiff the flow and movement of these cards allows me to (sigh-finally) let go of the "figure it out" mind. I read these cards, so far, the way I would listen to a Grimm's Brother's fairy tale~ open to it all- the dark and light and the unknown. In spite of studying Lit for far to many years in college, I don't have the detachment of a true critic; the review linked above is comprehensive and objective. I found Solandia's review of the "One" truly helpful also. Objectivity . . . what a great idea Where can I place my order for a few dozen units of same?

Phoenix	04 Jul 2002
The websites for this deck are really confusing. Does anyone know where I can go to get one?? Do I have to pay by credit card, or can I use a money order??? Can any one help???

All Is One	04 Jul 2002
I tried to buy one by clicking on the Amazon link- but they said they did not carry it. saint-art.com needs a credit card for quicker payment- or paypal(?) I thinjk they take the ususl forms. I hear that about 8 other places are offering Maya's decks now- don't have the brochure handy... Sending for the catalog was cool- cot a color print of the majors... I will order one for you if you want- I'm going to try and offer them on my site- w/ a leather tarot bag- but I haven't got the funds to buy the two dozen yet. I am sure that you will find a way to order from her- she is extremely cool- just e-mail her. . . }) ;) })

jema	05 Jul 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Phoenix The websites for this deck are really confusing. Does anyone know where I can go to get one?? Do I have to pay by credit card, or can I use a money order??? Can any one help??? i think you can just e-mail Maya and she will help you with the alternatives, she does take moneyorders i know that, but she is really easy to talk to via e-mail, really friendly and nice and replies right away.

Phoenix	05 Jul 2002
I just emailed her, or at least, I think that was her email address.

truthsayer	05 Jul 2002
i just got my i am one deck today so i'm not sure how i'm going to like it yet. i do wish the cards were bigger b/c the art is so intense. i absolutely love emotionally intense art like you find in the templar deck. i think my immediate response would be more positive if i could see the art better but i do like the deck. it's very unusual for a tarot and unusual is good as far as i'm concerned. i haven't decided whether or not i like all the additional writing. give me a few days and we'll see how i warm up to it. :)

Phoenix	06 Jul 2002
I emailed her, and she will be sending a deck to me!! I can't wait to get it!! Now....to make it to the bank.....

All Is One	10 Jul 2002
hoping you received your deck, P~ I remember she managed to get mine out fast- and it was by regular mail. But then, I am in california. I have used the deck more and more as a meditation tool. I don't even shuffle it I sort of... mix it and move it around. Next step: I want to try her spread and get acquainted with her given meanings for the cards (I'm so stubborn- I keep forgetting to try new things- her spread looks goo, though) Let us know when you get the deck!

Phoenix	10 Jul 2002
I haven't recieved the deck yet, but she did send it out. Actually, I emailed her to ask her to please autograph it, but she had already sent it out. She said that she will send a signed box seperately! She is so nice! Now, to get to the bank and get the money....

All Is One	10 Jul 2002
I wish I'd thought of asking her to autograph mine- I wouldn't have known where to have it, I never keep the boxes- LOL- I have kept her deck in it's box with spread sheet and Large White Book, I put this in a temporary home of purple cloth, or a red and gold, depending on mood, so I must be afraid to let it loose until I craft a bag that works for it. I will mention this also- because it just hit me- My favorite card (of the moment) in the I am One: The Nameless One, #22- is showing the place near my apartment, (2 blocks due west) where I go to watch the sun drop into the sea every night I can...and because it is a bay (Baywood Park, near Morro Bay, Centrel CA) it has the sand dunes rising up out of the water... I don't know when, but I will get a photo asap and post it- the card is so beautiful. All the people are swirling and seem to have centers, or souls, rather than the fatness of most people in tarot decks. {ha! I meant to write "flatness..." but either way~} Thoth turns the people into stone statue gods... and the Giger is too scary for me to work with as yet... Time to go do a reading, try to come out of the mail box for air once in a while between now and arrival day, OK? ;) ~a

Jewel	16 Jul 2002
I received this deck recently and the artwork is trully lovely. What I found dissapointing with this deck was that the pictures are so small and the frames. The artstyle reminds me of the Templar ... wish these cards were that size and with no borders. I am not sure I will be able to read with it either. Looks like a great deck for meditative work.

jema	16 Jul 2002
jewel, you might be surprised. i too thought that this would be a deck more for meditations and such but it proves to be a really nice intuitive reading deck. i would scrap the first few pages in the LWB though. but the titles together with the somewhat abstract and surreal images does add to the readings a lot. much like the spirit tarot does. the i am one is a very red deck though, very emotional, passionate and agressive, it speaks to the base chakras where the spirit tarot is almost all about the crown-chakra. the i am one is also really good to do comparative readings with - pick a more gentle and soothing deck as its comrade. (gill, aquarian, hudes etc)

truthsayer	16 Jul 2002
jema, i hope you are right and that the deck will grow on me. right now i agree w/ jewel. i wish it were larger and didn't have those borders. the artwork looks so rich and beautiful that i hate seeing it confined by the borders. i haven't tried it in a reading yet so maybe i should reserve judgement. my words always come back to haunt me when i don't get a deck enough of a chance! LOL it does seem to be a very emotional deck just like you said.

Jewel	16 Jul 2002
Thanks Jema ... I will make sure and give the deck a fair chance.

Phoenix	30 Jul 2002
I got this deck, and I love the art work!!! Maya is such a gifted artist!!! And she was nice enough to send out another box in which she autographed!

purplelady	31 Jul 2002
I don't own this deck -but it's on the want list of course! ! I noticed you all seem to agree about the borders. Maybe someone ought to suggest to the artist a seperate or larger version w/o borders. Oh well , just a thought. Kind-of the way the Enchanted/ zerner/Farber comes in 2 version with and with out borders AND I recently learned of yet Another version of this Same deck under another name! I don't recall the name but my impression was that it was yet another version of same deck.

Liliana	31 Jul 2002
Yes this deck is a new version of T: The New Tarot for the Aquarian Age that is very out of print and was done in the 60's. I Am One has better art in my opinion, tho the way the courts are done in the old one are sort of interesting http://www.tarotpassages.com/TNewT.htm Apparently it was republished in 1992 with another deck and called Word of One, but even then it was hard to find :THP

LeoLady	05 Aug 2002
A Very powerful deck indeed. Although the only thing i like about it the backs!!! They are sooooooo coool!

jema	05 Aug 2002
Quote: Originally posted by LeoLady A Very powerful deck indeed. Although the only thing i like about it the backs!!! They are sooooooo coool! the backs? i thought they were kind of boring myself compared to the vivid and beautiful artwork. they seem so out of place, i would have liked for this deck to have card backs in much warmer colours.

All Is One	07 Aug 2002
I agree with Jema on the odd lack of feeling and warmth in the design for the backs...but maybe it balances the incredible energy and ...most striking feature to me, the movement in the cards themselves. I like the silver and black backs a lot- but they actually do seem to clash w/colors of the paintings... Prob a reason... Maya said she wanted the I am One Tarot bag done in black leather... And I tried one...tried another...the result was too boring. Also too masculine for the deck, IMO and I was thinking about it too much- so I put that project away! I did not hear back from her- after one of my absences...I may well have lost an e-mail or two... I should contact her again and try another shade for this great deck. I'm sending a copy of it to Lark, a serious Tarot devotee- I'm really curious to know what she thinks of it, and Luna~ Yours is packaged and just needs a few more stamps...it goes out today:)

The Anybody else obsessed w/ the 'I am ONE'? thread was originally posted on 04 Jul 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.