Daughters of the Moon

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

Shadow Wolf	11 Oct 2003
Does anyone have this deck ? Hubby is giving me tarot and oracle decks for our anniversary. It's MOndy and it'll be 19 yrs. I've already ordered 3 oracle decks from Isisbooks and I've just read about the Dance of Life, I'll be picking that one up as well. I was thinking about Daughters of the Moon as well. I have the Motherpeace deck and I LOVE it. I've seen Daughters of Moon here, and I really like it. Is the artwork on all the cards as beautiful as the cards shown ? I know it's a really feminine deck, but I need all the female energy I can get. Well, what do think ? Should I add it to my collection ?

divinerguy	11 Oct 2003
I have had this deck, and I have traded it away. It was a personal decision to do so, because I feel the deck is not friendly to men, perhaps even a little hostile to men. However, I enjoyed the artwork, and I love round decks. If it were not for the political rhetoric in the book, I would have kept it. From what I recall, there are two versions of the deck. Make sure yours is the full sized, fully colored deck. An earlier version was abbreviated in some fashion, and I forgot exactly why - maybe it was a majors only or partially colored. The book is helpful, because it tells you about the godesses who are pictured on the cards.

Logiatrix	11 Oct 2003
Shadow Wolf, I have had this deck (but not right now), and yes, it is VERY feminist. The earliest version is an OOP black-and-white model that comes with instructions for coloring in the 75 cards. The current version comes in glossy full color, with a little piece of paper with information on it for ordering the book. There's no LWB. The Daughters of the Moon Tarot comes from a world of "womyn, womon," and those other creatures (men). Those other creatures, if depicted at all in any of the cards (I think "Pan" is the token nod to the male of our species), look more androgynous than masculine. Indeed, the book is rife with the feminist agenda. However, it is necessary to have the book if you want to understand the cards. The cards are titled differently than standard tarot, and the majors are not numbered, so you will need the book to make the correct associations. You might get away with gathering information from online sources, or from someone else who has the book. That's what I hope to do if I buy the DoM again. It was the book that turned me off. More about the deck that I can recall... The DoM also comes with two different "Lovers" cards--one female/female, and the other one is of two people ambiguously gendered. The Majors are treated as a fifth suit, Aether, and primarily represent goddesses of different cultures. The people in the other arcana of this deck are women of all different ages, shapes, and colors. The court cards are reconfigured from the traditional as maiden, mother and crone. The art in the DoM is quite vibrant and beautiful. If you seek a deck of abundant color and evocative artwork, you will not be dissappointed. :) Personally, I'm considering a return to this deck, because of all the good stuff I still think it offers, sans the book. It has vivid colors, round cards, goddess imagery, and lots of that "feminine energy." I'm going to get the cards first, to see if I can use them without the book. Hopefully, I will have remembered enough from when I first owned the set. I will only buy the book if I absolutely have to. Keep in touch, and tell me if you buy the Daughters of the Moon. We can stumble through it together, whilst remaining peaceful and loving to the men in our lives... :D EDITED to add: Happy Anniversary (per Umbrae's lead--thanx, Umbrae!), and Infinite Blessings to you and yours...

Umbrae	11 Oct 2003
Happy anniversary!

Asher	11 Oct 2003
May I add, Happy Anniversary! I have DOM, both b&w and color -- by all means get the color edition. The anti-male rhetoric is strong but it came from a specific time in our recent history (I keep that in mind), and I (male) still use and enjoy the deck, especially when I need a strong dose of female energy. It reads very well for this man! Asher

Red Emma	12 Oct 2003
It was one of my earliest decks, along with Motherpeace and Moon Garden. About the time I bought DOM, I broke an ankle and was in a convalescent center for several weeks. I asked my husband to bring me a tarot deck and "the yellow book." I'd intended for both to be Motherpeace. He brought DOM and the Motherpeace book. Whcih made for some interesting readings. I asked every person who came into my room, nurses, aids, doctors, relatives, friends, if I could do a reading for them. Practically everyone agreed. Many came back for more. It was great fun. I learned a lot, especially about some of my care takers. I don't use DOM much anymore, but it's one of my favorite decks.

Dark_angel	12 Oct 2003
And here's hoping you have many more. xxx Personally, I think this deck's absolutely gorgeous. In a world that can feel quite sexist, it's nice to be able to look at a deck that shows "sisters doin' it for themselves" to quote a song I can't remember the title of. The artwork's lovely, and for a strongly feminist deck, I haven't picked up on a strong anti-male bias, although I haven't read the book. xxx

Tallarico	12 Oct 2003
LOL,"sisters doin' it for themselves" That's the name of the tune... Annie Lennox (Eurythmics and Aretha Franklin)

Shadow Wolf	12 Oct 2003
Thanks for the feedback !!!! I'll add it to my list !!!

Requiella	12 Oct 2003
Happy Anniversary! I'm not familiar with DoM, but based on what people are saying in this thread, it's one that I'm definitely going to check out.

Red Emma	13 Oct 2003
After posting earlier to this thread, I remembered something a young friend of mine (who's gone into full time tarot reading) said in a promotion article she wrote for a local "Alternative religion magazine. "If you want to get in touch with your feminine side, use one of the women-oriented decks such as Mothehrpeace, Daughters of the Moon," etc. She suggested other decks but I don't remember them at the moment. Goddess Bless

The Daughters of the Moon thread was originally posted on 11 Oct 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.