Why is An All-Woman Deck Such a Problem?
I find it interesting, and kind of weird, that so many women are having trouble with this deck. For me, it is definitely a Tarot. The fifth suit being Aether, is simply a way of acknowledging the fifth element and the terms Major and Minor Arcana are not so very old anyway.
Being able to see the archetypes as manifesting as female is an important step in reclaiming feminine power. That so many on this thread are resistant to that seems to me a real backlash to the important work done by women in the 60's, 70's, and 80's in this regard. The very fact that so many young women regard the word "feminist" as anti-male is frightening to me, when in fact, feminism was anti-patriarchal, that is, against male privilege, and a society based on values that were perceived and constructed as male.
It's interesting that at least one person says "she is not arguing for argument's sake" - maybe that is an unconscious recognition that on some level, she is arguing for exactly that reason.
The differences you refer to in the deck are no greater than those in many other decks. I have several decks, including the Haindl, the Legend, the Buddha, that all require extensive study to take in the images, symbols and story each draws on.
I think that what you are objecting to is a deck that does not reflect Pagan Orthodoxy, a phrase that I hoped I would never have to say. Orthodoxy means that there is a set belief system that must be accepted or you are out of the club. For Dianics to say they are Pagan, and yet not accept the kind of dualism set up by a god/goddess theology is against that orthodoxy.
I personally don't have a problem with that. I think any kind of fundamentalism is wrong, whether it's Christian, Muslim, Jewish or Pagan.
I think you have to allow the deck room to breathe in its own world. If you don't agree with it philosophically, just say so. I personally feel that way about the Thoth, but I don't say it isn't a Tarot deck.
I also think there can be a need for women-only spaces, as there are men-only spaces, as there have always been in nearly all societies. This deck seems to be one of them. The Goddess Tarot is another. I'm curious - does that deck disturb you as much as the DOM? Or is the politics of DOM, and the fact that it is Pagan, but outside the orthodoxy, that is so disturbing?
RedMaple
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