frac_ture
TAO Oracle and Osho Zen Tarot
I have both of these decks, but I haven't owned either one for very long, and I haven't used either one too extensively just yet, so my take here will only get you so far...
Still, I think what agent199 said bears repeating: these are not just general Oracle decks with no set structure, the way many such decks can be described (like, for example, the Messenger Oracle is a deck of 50 cards, total, but there are no suits, no Majors vs. Minors, and the numbering sequence seems incorporated almost solely so the creator could summarize the meanings in the accompanying book, and not because the order of the cards in the deck has tons of bearing on a given reading -- basically, it's like, "Here: have 50 cards! Read away!").
On the other hand, though, the Osho Zen deck is a Tarot deck. It may not cling slavishly to RWS or Thoth meanings and imagery, and some people will tell you it's more general Oracle than Tarot, but I don't find that to be so true, myself. For me, it feels like it's Tarot, no question (four suits, Majors/Minors, Aces through 10's, Court Cards, 79 cards in total [the usual 78, plus one extra one]). Tarot has a much more rigid structure than "Hey, here's 50 cards!" If you were looking to get away from that kind of strict structure, you'd probably like a different deck better. On the other hand, if you're cool with a deck that's essentially Tarot with less of a direct and primary focus on RWS/Thoth traditions, and if you like the artwork, it's struck me so far as a really rich deck!
And then the TAO Oracle...despite the name, this one also is not just a virtually random assemblage of cards -- it's a deck meant to be used with the I Ching system. It expands on the 64 hexagrams of that system by providing new graphic symbols and images that I believe can help trigger intuitive understandings in ways that maybe the pure hexagrams themselves might not for some people. I know I do appreciate the new visuals a lot. Still, I'm totally new to the I Ching, and there's plenty to learn. I suppose you could dispense with worrying about the system and just draw cards and interpret the pictures and titles and such, but you'd definitely be ignoring some things that were central in the deck creator's mind when she made this. It's by the same artist as the Osho Zen, so that might not help you to choose one over the other -- the imagery looks very comparable to me from one to the other so far.
If nothing else...the Osho Zen has 79 cards, while the TAO Oracle has only 64, and both come with companion books that are pretty informative. On this aspect alone, you might therefore get slightly more to work with overall (i.e., 15 more cards!) if you go with the Osho Zen...
I have both of these decks, but I haven't owned either one for very long, and I haven't used either one too extensively just yet, so my take here will only get you so far...
Still, I think what agent199 said bears repeating: these are not just general Oracle decks with no set structure, the way many such decks can be described (like, for example, the Messenger Oracle is a deck of 50 cards, total, but there are no suits, no Majors vs. Minors, and the numbering sequence seems incorporated almost solely so the creator could summarize the meanings in the accompanying book, and not because the order of the cards in the deck has tons of bearing on a given reading -- basically, it's like, "Here: have 50 cards! Read away!").
On the other hand, though, the Osho Zen deck is a Tarot deck. It may not cling slavishly to RWS or Thoth meanings and imagery, and some people will tell you it's more general Oracle than Tarot, but I don't find that to be so true, myself. For me, it feels like it's Tarot, no question (four suits, Majors/Minors, Aces through 10's, Court Cards, 79 cards in total [the usual 78, plus one extra one]). Tarot has a much more rigid structure than "Hey, here's 50 cards!" If you were looking to get away from that kind of strict structure, you'd probably like a different deck better. On the other hand, if you're cool with a deck that's essentially Tarot with less of a direct and primary focus on RWS/Thoth traditions, and if you like the artwork, it's struck me so far as a really rich deck!
And then the TAO Oracle...despite the name, this one also is not just a virtually random assemblage of cards -- it's a deck meant to be used with the I Ching system. It expands on the 64 hexagrams of that system by providing new graphic symbols and images that I believe can help trigger intuitive understandings in ways that maybe the pure hexagrams themselves might not for some people. I know I do appreciate the new visuals a lot. Still, I'm totally new to the I Ching, and there's plenty to learn. I suppose you could dispense with worrying about the system and just draw cards and interpret the pictures and titles and such, but you'd definitely be ignoring some things that were central in the deck creator's mind when she made this. It's by the same artist as the Osho Zen, so that might not help you to choose one over the other -- the imagery looks very comparable to me from one to the other so far.
If nothing else...the Osho Zen has 79 cards, while the TAO Oracle has only 64, and both come with companion books that are pretty informative. On this aspect alone, you might therefore get slightly more to work with overall (i.e., 15 more cards!) if you go with the Osho Zen...
