Light And Shadow Tarot

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 11 Aug 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Little Baron	11 Aug 2003
As I mentioned in another thread, The Light and Shadow is one of the decks that I am currently studying. I have not had it long and have not had a chance to work with it - looking forward to it though. I tried to do a serach on here to see what others have said about it but with words like 'light' and 'shadow', just about every thread ever written pops up on the search list. Firstly, do any of you use this deck regularly? Your insights would be much appreciated. Secondly, can any of you remember any threads that deal with this deck on here as I have obviously had some problems finding specific related ones. Yaboot

Astraea	11 Aug 2003
Hi, Yaboot! Here is a link to one of the threads that I remember concerning the Tarot of Light and Shadow: http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=11768&highlight=light+and+shadow+tarot I love this deck -- the artwork, symbolism and integrity of design/intention make it very special (and Williams' book is good, too). I haven't worked with it much, though, because I keep going back to the cards I'm most accustomed to for readings. Enjoy this wonderful deck.

weetabix	11 Aug 2003
I too love this deck, but I find I get frustrated very quickly with how poorly it fans for me, so I don't use it for readings unless I really really want to and I persuade myself that no other deck will do. I get a very warm feeling from the cards, though; I find them to be friendly and just a bit sly, which is a large part of their appeal. Normally I prefer colorful decks, but the imagery on this one is so strong... in some ways it reminds me of those black and white flash cards you can get for babies: the cards penetrate the consciousness. weetabix

Little Baron	11 Aug 2003
I had wanted a black and white deck for a while and when i saw this one, I knew that this was it. I havn't used it yet. I would say that my only disapointment is the flimsyness of the cards as I can see them getting worn quickly if used a lot. They are a little on the big side as well. I think I would have been happier if they were just that little bit smaller and the white border had been lost. Anyways, I am really looking forward to working with it. I think I may keep it as a deck that I use just for myself and very close friends. Yaboot

Little Baron	11 Aug 2003
I just read for the first time with my Light and Shadow deck. As I turned over the cards it was like somebody had adjusted the picture quality and volume on an old tv set; the messages and symbols flooded through crystal clear. There was some real fine tuning going on there! The cards drawn were very honest and highlighted a lot of what is going on for me. I have never worked with a black and white deck before and it seemed to cut through everything, whereas colours can (sometimes) be distracting. Thanks for the tip Voodoo Shaman. I had not noticed this deck previously to your mentioning it; on your recomendation and also through viewing some of the cards on line, I ordered it within 15 minutes. I never make decisions (especially around decks) that quickly ... but I am glad I did this time. I would like to read for others with it but at the moment, I am feeling a bit selfish and want to keep it for myself. I don't have a personal deck that have not used on others and I think I may want to keep this one that way. Regardless of this, I could see these cards getting damaged if they are not treated with care and I know that I will look after them fine if they are used solelyby me. Thanks again Yaboot

galadrial	11 Aug 2003
Glad you like this deck, Yaboot. I got mine out a couple of days ago to try a new spread, and, as you say, Wow!- crystal clear. I know what you mean about the handling though, sometimes I nearly bend them myself. But they are well worth the effort of being more careful:-)

Sulis	13 Aug 2003
I really love this deck but I find it too large to work with. I find it very Thothy but with illustrated minors; it`s helped me a lot with my study of the Thoth minors. My husband loves the artwork so much that he`s getting a tattoo of the Hermit on his leg :D Love and light Crystalmynx xx

Hedera	13 Aug 2003
Well, I finally broke down and ordered it.... It's been on my wish list for ever! I'm a bit worried about the size, though. I wonder if the white border on the back matches the border on the front? I've got a borrowed paper guilloutine (sp?) at the moment, and I did manage to find a corner-rounder. I'm awfully tempted to cut off all the white borders - yes, that would include the names of the cards! But from the looks of it, these designs are strong enough in itself to not need names.

Little Baron	13 Aug 2003
Great minds think alike Hedera! I already held the cards up to the light to see if the borders match and I am affraid to say they are a little bit out. I am not a big fan of borders and I do think that if they were cut, the size would be much nicer to handle. Let me know how yours are if you do cut them down. I think that you just lose a bit of the back framework if they are cut to acustom the card pictures. Best wishes. Hope these ones are as sharp for you as they seem to be for me. Yaboot

Little Baron	13 Aug 2003
One other thing that I noticed tonight which will cause a problem is that some of the pictures are different sizes which would mean you wouldn't be able to cut them all out the same. Yaboot

Keslynn	14 Aug 2003
For bargain hunters, the Light and Shadow Tarot is half price on www.discountnewagebooks.com. :) Kes

Hedera	15 Aug 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Yaboot001 One other thing that I noticed tonight which will cause a problem is that some of the pictures are different sizes which would mean you wouldn't be able to cut them all out the same. Yaboot That might be a problem... I'm getting a slightly used deck at a discount price from Tarotgarden, so I feel pretty comfortable cutting it up; but I would want all of the cards to have the same size! And preferably no white edges on the front.... Oh well, we'll see. I'll post here to let you know how it worked out.

The Light And Shadow Tarot thread was originally posted on 11 Aug 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.