Voyager Tarot

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

mercenary30	19 Dec 2003
I recently did a reading with this deck for the first time. Although I finally understood what it was telling me, it took a long time to figure it out, and it seemed very difficult to do so. I am just not sure that I appreciate this deck. It seems like too much of a 'corporate' approach to tarot. Even the book turned me off, as some sort of 'tarot for business'. Between this and what seems to be the lack of quality control in the production of this deck, I think I have found the first tarot deck that I do not like. (Quality Control issues: Marked up cards; Some cards cut right side up, some upside down, so half the deck is shaped in the reverse of the rest; I got 2 'Devil's Play' cards and no Tower, although the deck creator did send a replacement that was all marked up) What has been other peoples experience with this deck?

lunalafey	19 Dec 2003
different take- I have this deck- I did not get it because I wanted it- It happened to be at the local thrift store with the little book the big book and a set of cassette tapes (have not listened to those- everyone else would have to endure)- It's not the type of deck I would normally choose- and I don't use it often. I have actually done two recient readings with the deck for members here. Both readings where very nice. I do not see this 'corporate' thing you mention- I tried to see it. What I get from the deck is that it is one that is more for self-discovery. If you have the big book (different that the little one) there is a daily excercise "seven steps of power" .....it is really good for study of the cards and self-reflection. I also find it very very good for past life readings-

Moonbow*	19 Dec 2003
Hi Mercenary30 and lunalafey, Well I agree with you both, sort of. I love the cards, artwork etc and it seems to me, to be more for self readings, because you get more out of the cards by looking at them closely. I can look at these cards for ages and notice more and more things in the collages. BUT I hate the book. I think its the book that gives the corporate feel not the cards. This is definately a deck where I wouldn't use the book. Moonbow* :)

WolfSpirit	19 Dec 2003
I don't have this deck myself, but there is a tarot centre in a near town where they use their deck for their workshops and courses. I know they also do courses for business people, team building and that sort of thing. These things are expensive and you can even get a certificate specific for this deck. So it is indeed really a business deck, however they also organise cheaper evenings with a more spiritual outlook for individuals.

Dark_angel	19 Dec 2003
I don't have this deck, because it just doesn't speak to me for some reason. However, I have an idea about why half the deck is cut one way and half the other - if this means that the backs are reversed on half the deck, it would be impossible to tell by looking at the back whether a card was reversed, so it might be a way to have an ornate back and still have a deck that can be reversed?

Demonesse	19 Dec 2003
"Marked up"?

mercenary30	19 Dec 2003
Yeah, things like dings on the edges and corners. In some cases there are lines marked in the cards, like when the piece of paper underneath the one you write on has marks. Stuff like that.

Demonesse	19 Dec 2003
Ugh! You'd expect that of a used deck, even one in good condition, but not a new one.

purplelady	19 Dec 2003
I never liked this deck and thought it was ugly (from online pictures and once I looked at it in a store). I especially found the beige borders unattractive. Until one day almost exactly a year ago , suddenly I felt compelled to have this deck. (It was January). So I went to Borders and bought the Set. And actually I Love this deck now! Sadly I don't have time and lost the motivation to work with it on a regular basis the way I'd planned. But I did do 2 or 3 readings awhile back. I find it fascinating, different , and meaningful, and do plan on using it again when I can. The book that came in the set is called "Voyager Tarot- Guidebook for the Journey" , it's just a thin little book . I'm sure it is a different book than the one you have. I've heard there is a book geared toward using the deck for business and corporate type things and even a big course and seminar thing you can go to. The book I have isn't really like that at all however. It has a paragraph or two on each card, about more general things like emotions, spirituality, desires etc, or whatever that particular card stands for. I actually wish it were a little more in-depth. I find the deck different than other decks in that it takes a more modern psychological approach, and I also find it masculine. As for the printing and cut of the cards, mine seems just fine. You obviously got a bad batch! The only deck I've ever had that experience with is the "Rennaisance Tarot" by Jane Lyle (Reprinted as The Secret Tarot) . I hope the reprint is better because mine is terrible! I got 2 three of pents and no 7 of pents, and the cards are not all exactly the same size, the back colors are slightly different , and there are white spots on some of the cards as though the color is coming off!!

Nevada	19 Dec 2003
Corporate? Hmm ... I never got that from it. I've had Voyager since the late eighties. It was my first deck, and I used it exclusively for about a year, until I moved on to Thoth. I still like Voyager and come back to it now and then. I drew my daily cards from it a couple of days ago. I'm only reluctant to use it because of some personal memory associations, and because of the size and thickness of the cards. I also have the book, Voyager Tarot: Way of the Great Oracle. I've never noticed any corporate slant to that one, but you have to keep in mind that this deck was created during the eighties--the decade of the Yuppie. The corporate angle may also be due to the particular marketing niche the creator or publisher was shooting for. I recommend this deck, but one has to keep in mind that it's non-traditional, so if you're used to RWS or Thoth and their likenesses, you're going to have to do a bit of mind-bending to get into this one. It might be easier to consider it an Oracle deck based on Tarot. Since it was my first Tarot deck, that wasn't a problem for me. The problem was moving on from Voyager to Thoth. The majors are based more closely on traditional Tarot than the minors. Nevada

BlueLotus	19 Dec 2003
I own this deck and I won't exactly say that it is an artistic one, as the colors are quite bold for my rather sensitive eyes; neither that it 'speaks' to me, at least not all the time. But I do know that it has a lot of 'meanings' in any particular card. And if you consult it regularly, and read the different meanings that may reflect you at the time, which you may find in the seperately sold book Way of the Great Oracle you will open a whole new perspective for yourself. But I do admit that it is a very 'heavy' deck, and rather 'masculine' as one mentioned earlier. But I love the astrological connotations, and other spiritual meanings the creator put into these cards, and I usually ignore a few others on them....And there are many .... Although I consult the cards sparingly now, as opposed to daily when I first bought it, I find they speak to me , and usually convey a very precise message when needed and see a few signs that manifest throughout any particular day.

Red Emma	19 Dec 2003
The first time I heard of this deck, a friend of mine called to ask if she could do a reading for me. She planned to start a business centering on the occult, with tarot reading as a basis. She was working toward being certified, and had to have competed something like 25 readings. In addition she had completed a certain number of class sessions. She's one of the smartest people I know with several degrees, but had never been able to find a niche in the corporate world. She tried several of them on the West Coast. I haven't seen her for a while although she regularly reads at a new age book shop near us. Oddly enough, one evening I had dinner at a restaurant in our neighborhood, and heard a couple of women at the next table talking about her. One of them was a reporter who had interviewed my friend for a neighborhood paper across town. They both had good things to say about her. The reporter closed the conversation with the remark,"It's good to know that there are honest occult workers around." For some reason, I didn't like the looks of the Voyager deck. It seemed harsh and edgy, although the readings she did for me were bang on the mark.

The Voyager Tarot thread was originally posted on 19 Dec 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.