I haven’t bought any decks for a while, and for some reason the art I’ve seen for the Law of Attraction Tarot was calling to me. I was lucky enough to find the kit (deck and book set) at a local bookstore yesterday. Wow!

This modern style tarot deck isn’t one I’d have expected to like, yet it really impressed me at first look. Enough that I am posting my impressions, even though some of you may be mentally subtracting my tarot ‘street cred’ for getting this deck. 😀

Disclaimer: I haven’t read the crop of modern books about the Law of Attraction, notably The Secret and its ilk. My familiarity is more with creative visualization, hermetic principles and some of the ideas that come out of New Thought. I suppose they all overlap, but my background is more varied and … magical?

That said, let’s break it down and see why I was so attracted to this deck!

Packaging

The deck comes in one of those newer, sturdy boxes that Lo Scarabeo uses for some of their tarot kits nowadays, which is sturdy and has a magnetic flap. I love those boxes. Sadly, the cardboard that holds the deck in place inside is flimsy and the top section of the insert was torn on mine; so I’m not sure this fantastic box will make for good storage long-term in my case. Just the luck of the draw, though, and not a reason to dislike the deck or the packaging.

Book

The deck comes with a book that is nicely typset and printed. It starts out with a no-nonsense approach to the Law of Attraction which might, in this case, be titled: How to Make Realistic Plans to Achieve your Goals. In my opinion it’s a good strategy. The book isn’t about psychic powers or mysticism, or that dread bugaboo known as “woo-woo.” These things all have their place, of course. (Yes, even the woo-woo.) But I suspect that too many people expect the Law of Attraction to be like a cosmic cash drawer that can be opened to provide petty cash with some mystical commands.

The book is a down-to-earth guide on using the tarot to help you figure out ways to keep moving towards goals. Goals which are going to require thought, planning and effort. The tarot can identify blocks and help with solutions. Reading this book, I kept thinking of my friend Mark McElroy and his down-to-earth approach to tarot, with a slant towards using the tarot to brainstorm. The book then presents each card with an illustration and details of what the card is portraying; followed by a handful of decent spreads.

I’m glad the book is detailed for each card because, while intuition is great for reading, I sometimes like to know what is going on in my cards. And the book that details what each card is portraying and why. This is helpful for some cards, such as The Pope which portrays a judge and a Latin sign in the background. I figured it was a European style judge, but I didn’t know what that had to do with The Pope (or High Priest), and I ignored the Latin as window dressing. The reason this card had a judge and why the Latin phrase was relevant were explained in the book. I expect this detail will be missing in the deck-only, so for those who aren’t going to read 100% intuitively based on imagery, I recommend this book.

Art and Style

The art is nicely illustrated and very much modern. It’s because of the modern look that I wouldn’t have expected to like this deck. I like my medieval, occult, fantasy, Marseilles and generally non-realism decks for the most part. That gives the tarot its mystical flavor and sets it aside from the banalities of daily life for me. Yet the illustrations on this one really capture my attention. The minors lack all titles; they have numbers, and symbols to indicate suit and rank. I like that approach and hope to see it on other decks.

An interesting from-underneath perspective of The Fool, a deranged man in motley garb, starts us out. Throughout the deck we’ll see:

  • a computer screen with a password (interesting choice for the 4 of Coins!),
  • a woman enjoying some sun in a meadow,
  •  a lanky stud lounging at a dim bar,
  • an impatient business woman (in heeled low-cut boots no less),
  •  a fresh-born butterfly at dusk,
  • and the incongruity of a modern man in jeans who seems right at home with a shield and sword.

There are many intriguing images to be found, and I found them all to be well-executed, in terms of composition as well as themes.

And no, I’m not planning to sideline as an art critic. 😉

How does it read? That I can’t tell you yet, as I’ve only spent time exploring the book and the deck. It’s fortunate I was able to do that much before the power went out last night! Without learning this deck through some play and study, I think it could be read as an oracle based on the images: they are very powerful and have some clues when studied. For example, one cards is a closeup on a foot walking. Okay… and the book points out that the foot wears a summer shoe (sandal) and is about to step in a puddle. Ah, now that could have some meaning!

Conclusions

With the help of the book I’m sure a Rider-Waite-Smith framework could be applied. I don’t mean to imply this deck is just another child in that venerable line of decks. It looks unique, but not everyone wants to learn a new deck and framework. So I think RWS lovers and haters, and even the tarot newbie, could all use this deck.

In all, I like the Law of Attraction Tarot. It’s a visually appealing deck that promises some meat to sink my eye-teeth (haha) into. The kit comes with a worthwhile companion book and that glorious magnetic box. I am happy to add this one to my collection, and look forward to seeing what it can do.

Related Link

Mary Greer has a related post titled The Secret: Tarot & the New Thought Movement that some of you may enjoy reading, or find helpful for background on this whole Law of Attraction thing. I found her article when I was looking for information about this deck before I purchased it.