Argh! I can'tdecide!!

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 19 Jul 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Wildchild	19 Jul 2003
Ok! Hubby offered to buy me a new deck for my birthday. The problem is I can't decide which one to get. I have a 2 decks that are my favourite working decks (plus a few others just for collecting). I really don't need another deck but I'm not going to turn him down! Right now, I'm thinking of Shining Tribe, Haindl, Wild Spirit tarot, and the Dragon Tarot. I've looked up the images, read the reviews, and I still can't decide! Which one would you pick?

Kaz	19 Jul 2003
between those mentioned decks, i would choose haindl. wild spirit is not something for me, there are some threads about the deck here. do a search, you will find some interesting opinions. shining tribe, the art just doesnt look good to my eye, would drive me crazy. dragon tarot, nice for collecting if you like dragons, but i cant imagine reading with it. haindl, also on this one are threads with very interesting comments. do some more research before you decide ! (suggestion: how about a thoth or a marseille? )

Wildchild	19 Jul 2003
I had given some thought to Thoth and Marseille as well but they don't appeal to me right now. Everytime I pick up the Thoth deck, I know I will eventually end up there but just not yet. I had read the threads here on each of these decks...and still can't make up my mind. Heh! I wonder if he would consider getting me all four? :D

WolfSpirit	19 Jul 2003
Wildchild you have a great hubby ;) I feel just like you about the Thoth, when people mention how great it is, I go yeah, yeah, will get it...then I have another look at it and I think: do I really want this deck ? there are always decks I want more ! Of the decks you mentioned, I have the dragon tarot and the wild spirit, I think both are beautiful decks in their own way but I use neither for reading. The wild spirit really has some great cards, I think it could be used for reading but with other than the traditional tarot meanings, if you want to use it. Maybe you should ask yourself if you want a deck for reading right now, or if a deck for your collection would be ok too ?

lunalafey	19 Jul 2003
I had the dragon tarot, I love anything dragon...I was totally disappointed with this deck. It's blah IMO.

jema	19 Jul 2003
i would pick the shining tribe, but that is just me. i like that sort of art, kind of crude but personal. i used to have the Haindl but sold it and now i regret that. i remember it was pretty murky but beautiful. i just couldn't deal with it right then. i might get it back some day.

Demonesse	19 Jul 2003
The Dragon is awful. It's full of detail but all cramped together, so you can hardly see what's depicted, and the dragon heads are badly drawn; the artist seems to be compensating for that by making the wings bigger. :P

Astra	19 Jul 2003
Why not do a reading for it? Assign an order to the decks, and lay a card out for each one. After all, Tarot is supposed to be good at answering questions, no?

Woof	19 Jul 2003
If you are sort of interested in the Thoth, consider the Haindl. I have it, like it a lot and it is considered a Thoth clone. Be sure to get the book with it there is a ton of good stuff in the book. The book is written by Rachel Pollack. She's written 3 on the deck one for the Majors, one for the Minors and "A Readers Handbook". That last one is all you need to start with. It has info from the first two kind of distilled down. It's the only book I have and works just fine. Woof

all78degrees	19 Jul 2003
I'd go for the shinning tribe, I know the art ain't perfect but it is packed with meaning. Its a deck that don't skim over the surface and asks you to ask yourself some questions and get your own answers. Its hard but sometimes you need to do it. just my 2pence gav.

Cerulean	19 Jul 2003
Shining Tribe or Haindl -- Rachel Pollack's book Forest of Souls and her Illustrated Guide uses her Shining Tribe and the Haindl as illustrations. Her writing is very good, but I believe you can get good insights from Forest of Souls, the Illustrated Guide or her companion book to the Haindl. I find the Haindl reproductions very very good and after looking through them, they are not really dark. I can meditate with the Haindl. Lots of yellow and earth tones, which you might not like...I agree with the idea it's a lead into Thoth. It turns out I use my Thoth more though. I wished that Rachel Pollack had used different colors in her Shining Tribe images. While more than a few tarot artists are not by nature the best drawing masters, a limited color palette or a softer one does wonders, especially if someone wants to study a card. No, I never got the deck. Wild Spirit tarot - images are great. I gave it away, as I have quieter alternatives that work better for me. I never took to the book. Dragon Tarot--I got the Celtic Dragon and Dragon Tarot in the year of the dragon and it's just sentimental thing. I find it okay as a companion deck only. The Dragon Tarot alone just sits without the Celtic Dragon...fantasy style. Llewellyn's webpage offers a Wild Spirit tarot reading for free, so you might want to try that.

Trogon	20 Jul 2003
Howdy Wildchild, Hmm... difficult choice, I'm with you though... try to talk your hubby into getting you all 4, or maybe at least 2... :D As for me... I'd vote Haindl or Dragon Tarot. I picked up the Haindle a while back and just love it. It gives great readings which are frequently much brighter than the muted colors of the artwork would suggest. The Dragon Tarot appealed to me because, like others here, I like dragons. There are a few things I'm not completely happy with regarding the artwork here, but, in spite of that, it still works well for me. I have used it for readings and it seems to work well for me. The Shining Tribe and Wild Spirit Tarots never really reached out and grabbed me for reading decks. I do really like the beautiful artwork of the Wild Spirit Tarot, but I think that the renaming of so many cards kind of put me off. The Shining Tribe... well, while the art is very interesting, it didn't seem to really "speak" to me (so to speak) as Tarot cards... I didn't feel that I'd be able to do readings with that deck... but it is still one deck that sits at the back of my mind... whispering... "buy me... buy me..." ;)

CompassRose	20 Jul 2003
Out of the ones you mention, I would choose the Haindl, at least if you are looking for a deck to work with. However, may I suggest, if you are attracted to the Haindl and might someday explore the Thoth, the current love of my deckly life, the Margarete Petersen deck. The art is fantastic, better (and less murky) than either the Thoth or the Haindl, and there is a lot going on in the cards, too. It's clear that Petersen put a great deal of work into creating a deck that was not only beautiful to look at, but full of enough depth to keep the mind and spirit busy. I ordered mine from Tarot Garden.

truthsayer	20 Jul 2003
i love the art of the wild spirit. i think with some work it would be readable. i think the turn-off to this deck is how the book is written. each card write up is from the point of view of the card. at times, at times i perceived the dialogue to be preachy, self-righteous or defensive. i think the idea of the cards speaking is a great idea but the problem is the tone set. i no longer have the link but the creater has a website where you can explore in more detail. i think the art and symbollism of the haindl is very deep and dark. it has to be since rachel pollack did 3 books on it. i particularly find the majors intriguing but the minors are pips and not illustrated. i prefer illustrated minors. it has a thothness about it but i wouldn't say it was a thoth clone. shining tribe-another deck rachel pollack has dug deeply into. the art is primative but the new edition handbook is so well done and sophisticated. the original one was called the shining woman but ms pollack changed the name to the shining tribe to make it accessible to both men and women. i have it but i think it would take a lot of study time. i would stay away from it if i were a beginner until i at least had the basics down. it's nigh impossible to link more traditional systems to this deck. the dragon is the only deck you list i wouldn't consider getting. i don't like dragons and it's much too dark for my tastes.

Wildchild	21 Jul 2003
Quote: Originally posted by CompassRose ... the current love of my deckly life, the Margarete Petersen deck... Now I wished I didn't look. That is such a beautiful deck! I can see why it's your current love. I decided on the Haindl since hubby couldn't be convinced to buy me all of them. :( Thanks so much for everyone's input. After reading through them all, I think my heart was leaning towards Haindl. hah! He asks why do you need so many different decks? :)

Trogon	21 Jul 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Wildchild hah! He asks why do you need so many different decks? :) :D Simply paraphrase Admiral John Paul Jones.... "I have not yet begun to purchase Tarot decks!"

truthsayer	21 Jul 2003
why do we need so many tarot decks? why that's blasphemy! ;) that's like asking why do you need more than one sock or undergarment or shoe or two pants legs when one will do! wild child i can see that you need to be quickly initiated into tarotholics anonymous... : :d

Cerulean	21 Jul 2003
picture book as a kid or liked different ones. Just don't mention the devil's picture book. Or you could say you want to be the most noterious woman on the continent with a wicked pack of cards. I really liked that quote about LeNormand.

dolphingirl	22 Jul 2003
Hi There Of the decks you mentioned I would probably pick the Wild Spirit, although it is not the easiest deck to read with straight out of the box (and I found the book a bit hard to get into) I LOVE the artwork and am a real nature fan and found that this deck was so lovely that it really fires the imagination and would be a lovely deck to use around children or people that are nervous of tarot. I think this deck woudl be ideal for storytelling as well :) I think which ever deck you pick you will find someting to love about it. Personally I don't think you ever have to many tarot decks and each deck has a slightly different point of view. Good Luck DolphinGirl www.dolphin-daze.com

Wildchild	25 Jul 2003
Well, the deck has been ordered and according to Amazon's tracking it should be here any day now. :D Hubby suggest that if it gets here before my birthday, I should wait until then to open it. NOT!!!

Cerulean	25 Jul 2003
"The deck" you said...did he say? Hope you enjoy your good surprise.

The Argh! I can'tdecide!! thread was originally posted on 19 Jul 2003 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.