Animal Kin Oracle - MJS Tarot

From the moment I saw the Animal Kin Oracle deck I was drawn into its beautiful imagery. It feels peaceful and soothing which encourages you to tap into your intuition with confidence. Animals don’t overthink things, and when working intuitively neither should we. I would say that just as the creator envisioned, this collection of watercolour animal portraits can help reconnect people with the natural world. Today I worked with this deck alongside the Guardian Tarot and I can honestly say together they have changed my focus.

The Animal Kin Oracle Deck

This is a well-produced, 65 card, oracle deck that is perfect for anyone drawn to animal-themed cards. It all comes together so well. The animals themselves, the borders, the mandalas, the colouring, the elemental associations – everything works in a cohesive manner. I really appreciate that there are no forced groupings as well. The Animal Kin Oracle is divided elementally so there’s Earth, Air, Water, Fire and Spirit. Yet, she hasn’t shied away from placing Shark, (which happens to be a Hammerhead not the Great White that springs to mind whenever I think shark), under Earth rather than Water. Dog is included in the Water section and the Air element is more than just a collection of flying animals. It shows that much thought and attention has been given to the creation of the Animal Kin Oracle. Personally I would have made a few different elemental choices. But since the elemental energy is only suggested through the mandala at the top of the card, rather than through the cards colouring, if it doesn’t align with the element you feel goes with the message, it doesn’t have to be a distraction.

As someone not normally a fan of borders, in this deck they form part of the artwork and they frame the animals perfectly. Plus, since I find myself considering the colouring in the borders along with the elemental association I find the border serve more than a mere cosmetic purpose. For me the choice of font is on point also. I don’t normally pay too much attention to the font (strange for a lettering nerd) unless it seems too dominant or I find it unreadable but here it stood out to me.

The thicker card stock accommodates the size of the cards well too. They’re not too thick as to make the number of cards difficult to manage even though at 9 x 13cm they’re on the larger side. I find they shuffle well although you might need to shuffle them vertically if you have smaller hands.

The Animal Kin Oracle Book

To top it all off the cards come with a comprehensive 174 page card-sized book. It begins with sections that share how and why the creator became inspired to work with what she calls the animal kin and how the cards themselves came to be. She then discusses why she considers them messenger kin rather than totems. Here she also explains how she defines primary/power animals, animal kin messengers/spirits, and shadow animals as well as sharing her own experiences with each. I like this personal touch.

The book then moves on to explain the elements, which also includes a few tips on how to integrate each into your life. It then provides an Elemental Clearing Ritual which it implies you must do. If you’ve read many of my other reviews you’ll know I take issue with people telling me how I should connect with my cards so I would say if her method resonates with you – awesome. If it doesn’t then follow your own practice. I love that in the next section “How to work with the cards” she seems to concur as she writes:

If something doesn’t feel right, please do not embody it. Simply take what you need, and let the rest flow back downstream.

Trust.

Let go.

Have fun.

Finally, the card meanings are presented alphabetically within their elemental groupings. Each card has a black and white image and a brief Kin Essence message followed by a section that integrates information about the animal and how its experiences, attributes and way of life relates to us. This is well put together and offers much to contemplate.

Spreads

Four spreads are included in the book:

1 Card Quick Draw
The Truth Unfolding Spread (2 cards)
The Elements of Life Spread (5 cards)
The Animal Kin Pyramid Spread (3 cards)

The spreads are definitely enough to get you started, but as she suggests in the book, you’ll discover so many ways to use these cards once you feel comfortable with them. Put simply, these are wonderful oracle cards that definitely serve their intended purpose. If you like animal oracles, I’m confident you will like this deck.