Ananda Tarot

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 05 Feb 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

FaerieStorm	05 Feb 2004
I just received the English version of the Ananda Tarot. It is quite an extraordinary deck!!! Does anyone else have this deck? What do you think of it?

Dark_angel	05 Feb 2004
I have this deck and I adore it. I've got the German version though. Which are your favourite cards? The pip cards made a huge impression on me - especially the Cups.

Cerulean	05 Feb 2004
Another deck supposedly translated at the same time for AGMueller was supposedly also being readied for release. Lucky you! Tell us what you think and please post a buying link or name, PLEASE. Mari

lark	05 Feb 2004
I just saw the English version at Tarot garden.

TallTarotGuy	06 Feb 2004
I just received this deck from Tarot Garden last weekend, and I LOVE it! The artwork on it is just beautiful. I did notice one minor problem with it...the Strength card is misspelled. Oh well...nothing's pefect, right? It's still a great deck.

dolphingirl	06 Feb 2004
I got the Ananda (german edition) in a trade and just love it!! Does anyone know if the english book is avalable seperatly or if the english set is available from the big book chains? If anyone has an ISBN number for it please feel free to pm me with it :) The artwork for this deck is just stunning and it is definetly a deck that is very emotional for me.

Cocobird55	07 Feb 2004
I ordered this deck yesterday from Tarot Garden. I've always thought the pictures were lovely, but a German book seemed pretty useless for me. I'm glad there is an English edition. There is a note on Tarot Garden to e-mail them for information on getting a discounted English book and/or deck, so you might give it a try. Sue

Summerdream	07 Feb 2004
Hi! In the English version is it just refering to the deck or is the book in English too? I have always been attracted to this deck, but didn't want to own a book that I couldn't read. Please let me know. Momof3girls:)

Dark_angel	07 Feb 2004
I don't really use the book much. I could understand it (well, enough to get the gist of most of it), but I found that the deck just 'flows' for me, and doesn't need interpretation. It's absolutely beautiful, kind of like having your dreams painted on the cards.

Summerdream	08 Feb 2004
Well......I've gone and done it, I've ordered the English version Ananda from Tarot Garden. I have been admiring this deck for ages, but wasn't keen on owning a German book. Now that the set is in English I have to have it!!! The images are breathtaking. I'm sure this will be one of my all-time favorites. I can't wait till it arrives. Momof3girls:)

Summerdream	08 Feb 2004
I'm just curious, could someone tell me what size the cards are and what the card backs look like? I am anxious to receive my copy!!! Momof3girls

Cocobird55	11 Feb 2004
I got mine today! It is a truly beautiful deck. The cards are about 2 1/2 by 4 1/2 inches. The backs look like there are layers of fabric -- kind of like one rug laid over another. The bottom layer is mostley green, and the final, top layer has a lot of orange. It looks like the sun is shining on the middle part of the top layer. It's hard to describe, but very, very nice. All the colors are muted. Picture an old oriental carpet... It is packaged like the Osho Zen. The book is a paperback - 292 pages. Each card gets a two or three page spread. The text talks about The Image Meaning Astrological Significance Keywords Traditional Meaning The Minors are done a little differently. They are grouped by number, rather than in suits. That is, the aces are all together, then the twos, threes, etc. The court cards are by suit, first the king, knight, queen and princess. There are a few spreads in the back of the book. My only problem is that the cards have a very bad plastic odor. I have fanned my deck out and put it in the window, so the odor can go away. Sue

Summerdream	11 Feb 2004
Hi Cocobird55!!! I also got my Ananda deck in the mail today. It's a beauty, isn't it?? I did notice the cards had a smell to them. I think I will take them out of the casing so they can air out tonight. I am looking forward to working with this deck. Let me know your thoughts on it as you work with it more. Momof3girls:)

Cocobird55	12 Feb 2004
I've been looking through the deck, and it is lovely. I also looked through the book, and I'm disappointed. I'm not sure if it is the translation, or just how it was written, but it doesn't flow for me. The wording seems awkward, and in some places, odd. What do you all think about the book? Note -- I've been working a lot with the Tarot of Timeless Truth lately, and that book is marvelous. Maybe I'm comparing the two ... and the Ananda suffers because of it. Sue

Summerdream	12 Feb 2004
Hi Cocobird! I haven't started reading the book yet, but I imagine it wouldn't be as smooth because it is getting translated from another language. However, I am very happy to have this English translation. It might not flow but it's better than not being able to interpret anything at all. Have you done a new deck reading? I haven't yet. Momof3girls:)

Dark_angel	12 Feb 2004
If you think the English translation is hard, you should try having to do it yourself with only GCSE-level German and a dictionary, lol. :D

Astraea	12 Feb 2004
For those of you who have the English translation -- is the book necessary, in your opinion? I have the German edition and would just as soon not spend the money on a new set unless there are major learning dividends involved. Thanks in advance!

Summerdream	12 Feb 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Astraea For those of you who have the English translation -- is the book necessary, in your opinion? I have the German edition and would just as soon not spend the money on a new set unless there are major learning dividends involved. Thanks in advance! Hi Astraea! I just received the book/deck set in the mail yesterday and really haven't had a chance to get acquainted with either too much. Maybe, cocobird55 can answer this. I don't have as much time to read my tarot books as I have before because I'm in college 4 nights a week and have had to spend my time reading text books!! I do look forward to when I have some free time on my hand to read the book though. Momof3girls:)

Lee	12 Feb 2004
Can someone tell me, I've seen a few scans of the pip cards, but what I can't make out is whether the scenes on the cards are at all indicative of the meanings given for them, or if they're just pretty landscapes with no connection to meaning. Thanks -- Lee

Gerbear	12 Feb 2004
For those of you who originally got your (German) Ananda through Tarotgarden, they are offering a special deal to upgrade to the English version at a savings. Sounds good to me.

Cocobird55	12 Feb 2004
I will give you my opinions, but appreciating or not appreciating is such an individual thing... Astraea -- I doubt if I will refer to the book very often, in connection with the deck. However, the book is interesting in its own right. For example, the majors have several sub-headings for each card. I'm looking at the The Chariot in the book. The first sub-heading is: "The Image "The figure of an Indian deity in the center of activity assumes leadership, while leaving behind two horses, which are symbols of the driving forces of nature." That does describe the image on the card. Next, we have: "Meaning "As man begins to arise from the awareness of freedom of choice, he is offered the possibility of making a huge leap forward." There are several paragraphs about this -- here are some random quotes. "New problems demand new solutions... "The urge for independence and freedom is the driving force that brings forth the desire for change." To me, this is interesting stuff to think about. Next subheading -- "Astrological Significance "Mars, Mercury, Aries or Acquarius." Then -- "Keywords (short excerpt) "Inner balance, letting go of old patterns ..." Finally -- "Tradiitonal Meanings "Victory, venturing into the unknown, fleeing to the fore, urge for freedom..." So you can use the book on several levels with this deck. Overall, I like books, so I am glad that I have it. Sue

Astraea	12 Feb 2004
Thank you very much for that input, Cocobird. I think that I will probably go ahead and get the English set, especially in view of Gerbear's information about Tarot Garden offering it at a sale rate if you've already got the German edition (which I bought there originally). Much appreciation to you both!

Cocobird55	12 Feb 2004
More opinions here... Lee -- There is some connection to something, here. It's kind of vague, to tell you the truth. Here are some descriptions from the book -- "Four of Spheres "The Image "As represented in the image of heavenly bodies, the ideal of cosmic law manifests in increasing density in a clear crystal ball shape, mirroring the world." The book then follows with a long Meaning section (which doesn't seem to refer to the image, but is interesting), Astrological Significance, Keywords and Traditional Meaning. Here's another Image -- "Five of Cups "From the depths of the starry heavens five empty cups fall down to a barren landscape at dusk." Excerpt from Long Meaning "The cups empty themselves, yet in the infinity of the Universe nothing is too little, nothing is too much." It's all quite interesting, but not especially instantly clear. I guess it all depends on whether or not you like the style... Hope this helped Sue [quote]Originally posted by Lee [b]Can someone tell me, I've seen a few scans of the pip cards, but what I can't make out is whether the scenes on the cards are at all indicative of the meanings given for them, or if they're just pretty landscapes with no connection to meaning.

Hedera	12 Feb 2004
I had the deck, and I traded it away pretty quickly. The biggest problem for me was that the meaning of the pips did not seem to have much relation to the backgrounds at all, apart from maybe two or three cards. I also seem to remember there was something a little bit too 'slick' for me about certain cards, along with a sense of the image not quite being pulled together enough in others (and sometimes even in the 'slick' ones). In other words, for me there were too many cards that were just a 'pretty face', without telling me much, personally.

Lee	12 Feb 2004
Thanks, Sue and Hedera, your comments are very helpful. I'm trying not to order decks unless I feel I absolutely have to have them, and I just don't feel that for this one. -- Lee

Cocobird55	13 Feb 2004
While I wouldn't list this deck on my top ten, I'm glad that I have it. I love the way the artist layered transparent images on top of each other. I think of it more as an art deck than one to read with. Sue

faunabay	14 Feb 2004
A few questions for anyone who has both versions...... How do the cards compare between the versions? Are there any differences other than the english wording?? Are the colors, the cardstock, etc. the same?

Astraea	14 Feb 2004
Faunabay, I've been wondering the same thing. My English deck is in the mail from Tarot Garden as we speak, and I'll post after I've compared the English and German versions.

Summerdream	14 Feb 2004
Sorry Faunabay, I only have the English version so I have nothing to compare it to. I'm interested in hearing about the comparison from Astraea though. Momof3girls:)

Astraea	17 Feb 2004
The English version of Ananda came today and I love it. Everything is the same as the German edition -- cardstock, colors, borders, size -- except for the language. My, what a beautiful deck this is.

FaerieStorm	19 Feb 2004
In response to Astraea's question about the book: I find the book to be fairly insightful, and fairly traditional in interpretations. Ananda does focus quite a bit on Astrological associations, though I do question many of his associations for some of the cards (i.e. associating the Sun and the Moon for a particular arcana). But all in all, Ananda provides a refreshing, new perspective to Tarot. In respons to Lee's question about the pips: They do reflect the meanings given to each of them, but the book gives more insight into the symbols used. Some are pretty vague, but nonetheless beautiful. The Court cards are very fascinating. I particularly like the Knight of Cups. Rather than focusing on the LoverBoy aspects of this arcana, Ananda attributes it to Jesus - the Spiritual Warrior. Furthermore, none of the pips have humans in them, but they work very well.

Astraea	19 Feb 2004
Thanks, FaerieStorm. I'm looking forward to sitting down with the book over the weekend -- it's so nice to have the English translation, I'm glad I went ahead and got it.

Dark_angel	20 Feb 2004
Oh my gosh! I haven't got as far as the Cups yet in my translation effort, and I've never seen the Knight of Cups that way. (I kind of interpreted it as the wine, woman and song aspects, with his head in the clouds. I need a better German dictionary! lol. ).

Namaste	24 Mar 2004
I just discovered this deck today at tarot garden and the images are just incredible! I think I'll add it to my wish list. :)

Namaste	24 Mar 2004
Does anyone know where one could view more of this deck than the sample at Tarot Garden? Thanks.

Cerulean	07 May 2004
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.artwork-walterholl.de/tarot_8/tarot_8.html&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dkurt%2Bpilz%2B%2Btarot%2Bpictures%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26oe%3DUTF-8 Best wishes, Cerulean PS. In the above link, the implication is that Strength is Eight. In the Aecletic link, the ordering is that Strength is 11, which makes Justice as Eight...I wonder if this is switched from German to English edition. Just curious. Cerulean

contrascarpe	07 May 2004
This was one of my recent acquisitions from Tarot Garden. I haven't bonded with the deck yet, but it is truly beautiful. I wish the cards were a little larger, but the deck itself is wonderful. Thinking of doing a reading with it this weekend, just to bond a little. Definitely worth it - although, everytime I look at the cups suit, I need to pour myself a glass of red wine, lol. Dan

Astraea	08 May 2004
Ha! Have you seen the Alcohol Tarot? It's reviewed on Tarot Passages and looks very, er, intoxicating.

starsongs	08 May 2004
I just received the English version of Ananda from Tarot Garden yesterday. Wow! I'm in awe. What a beautiful deck...it is already speaking..I'm just delighted :D Like TallTarotGuy, I noticed the Strength card was misspelled, but it seems a minor thing compared to the beauty of the deck. I then wondered about numbering the Fool 22 when in the book it is 0, but then again the Fool is both the beginning and end and the thread of spirit that unites and lends continuity to the archetypes.. I agree with Faeriestorms asessment of the pips and book. The book is insightful and worthwhile, although the images themselves seem to take you even further than words can impart. The backgrounds seem to asist in defining the meanings, and to set a tone or mood for the pip cards. I didn't get the sense they were just pretty backgrounds. It looks like water appears in Cups, Greenery and Light often in Flames, more mountianous landscapes in swords (air) and structures of some sort or another in Spheres (earth) ..In some its a combination that seems to help further define and build upon the meaning. Color is also used to set tone and mood. There is a sense of continuity and connection with the cards. I love the interpretations of the majors. This deck is so inspiring! starsongs

Cerulean	08 May 2004
This English card stock is much more slippery than I remembered in the German edition. The book seems bigger than I remember now that I can read it in English. And I like the English edition for the book because it adds more depth to the prettiness of the cards. I find it softer than the techno-fantasy of the slick and polished Rohrig. To me the Rohrig is an almost retro poster style ("the Vargas girls go Circus Soleil") and it was fine for awhile, but then I didn't want to use it. If you ever saw the color filtering of the Adrian Tarot and thought it might be great and innovative...and then after awhile, it didn't work...that is what happened to me with the Rohrig, Voyager and some of the other photographic collage decks... I think my memory is playing tricks, but even though it is the exact same size as the deck that I kept as a comparison (Zukunft tarot by the sister publishing house of AG Mueller, Urania Verlag publishing), I thought the German Ananda was on the same matte finish stock as the Zukunft. I believe Urania Verlag originally published the Ananda and then remarketed/allowed rights for distribution to AG Mueller. And if you do have the English edition of the Ananda, the advertising card with the woman and the tiger...whimper...that is from my German language Zukundft. I even checked the new Urania Verlag pdf catalogue and old AGMueller website, but no word yet when they plan to release the English language Zukundft... Sorry, I need to spend more time with the Ananda, it's beautiful and inspiring in itself...a glimpse of the skyscapes in the deck had me stopping the car and taking photos of a windswept sky today...which is part of the meaning of cerulean to me. Regards, Cerulean Mari

Cerulean	09 May 2004
If you look at every sphere (pentacle) card upside down and many of the other cards, the images within the sphere are mirrored so in reversals, things look right side up...that is, in my eyes. I looked at the other cards upside down and thought that you could really say a reversal card in this deck was a diminishing reflection of the same energy. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The poem at the back of the book suggests a mirroring concept. "Typically the language of images and symbols as their conveyor shows what endures over time, and reveals to us an almost forgotton wisdom. THe world of imagery directly reaches the world of our soul and makes possible a natural access to knowledge buried within ourselves." Ananda Kurt Pilz I've read Chinese and Japanese zen poets in translation. There is something about this book that feels like them, to me. I do recognize some Thothlike depictions and concepts, but it is much more smooth and simplified, as if only certain essential concepts were pulled and focused on... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Near the very end of Van Helsing, the somewhat moody-yet-period 'coming together' of many period horror films...this is not a spoiler. But egads, something seen in the clouds walked straight out of the Ananda Tarot. I'm seeing too much actual tarot even in my movie picks! Cerulean

Jewel	10 May 2004
I currently have both editions (German and English) of the Ananda. I find them to be the same size, same card stock. The only difference is now I can read the book!!!!

The Ananda Tarot thread was originally posted on 05 Feb 2004 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.