Black Cats Tarot - MJS Tarot

If you like cats and you’re happy for them to be anthropomorphised then there’s a good chance you’ll like the Black Cats Tarot. If like me, you really like black cats, then you’ll love it. This isn’t just a cutesy deck that should only be of interest to cat people though. Rather, it is a well-considered, accessible rendering of the tarot. It allows us to step outside of ourselves as we imagine how the cats pictured are likely to act and feel in the situations they find themselves in. For many this offers a much less confronting approach. We get to process the story as it applies to someone or something else before relating our imaginings back to ourselves. This happens quite naturally when reading with this deck.

The Black Cats Tarot Deck

Take the four cards pictured above. The 2 of Swords is a clever, yet possibly a more daunting proposition than most versions of this card. Oftentimes we see someone, eyes blindfolded crossing themselves with two swords and our initial reaction can lack empathy. “Just put the swords down, take off the blind fold, look at your situation and make a decision.” Here we see that doing so isn’t always as easy as it may seem to others.

Most cat owners, and people familiar with cats in general, will recognise that neither of those cats want to get wet. Nevertheless, as this card shows, something must be done. They can’t stay there forever. I like the fact that it shows two cats too. After all, quite often what makes our decision making process difficult is that we are also considering the needs of others. In this card we can see that the water isn’t too deep, so staying stuck in order to cater to the needs of others seems to be a high price to pay. Yes they’re both possibly going to experience some initial discomfort. But staying in the position that I imagine neither of them actually wants to be in, isn’t viable. There’s also a good chance that neither of them are comfortable either.

And I think VI The Lovers is one of the clearest depictions of the possible interpretations for the card. Here we can see that a choice needs to be made. Yes there’s the idea of relationship but entering into any commitment alters our path in some way. It shows the importance of choosing wisely.

Another card I appreciate in the Black Cats Tarot is the 6 of Swords. Here the cat is actively choosing to leave the shore to move away from something. What I love about this rendition of the card is that the cat is leaving the swords – the thoughts and the words – that they know no longer serve them behind. They’re taking what they need and leaving whatever it is that has been weighing them down. Most decks don’t do that yet it makes sense to me. After all, we wouldn’t load the rock pictured if we were trying to make our lives easier. So, why take anything else that burdens us?

The 4 of Swords provides another example of how well thought out this deck is. It perfectly showcases the deck’s simplicity. “Stop for a moment, let yourself heal. Don’t keep pushing when you need to rest.” The illustration says this in such a straightforward manner. The advise is pretty obvious. Following it, well that’s another thing all together. I’m so glad I pulled this deck out to review because I get to fall in love with it all over again. I was also shown what I needed to see.

Like any deck that is very clear and straight to the point – the Anna K Tarot is another deck that comes to mind here – there is a compromise. For a card to be really easy to interpret it needs to be very straight forward in its approach. This occurs at the expense of multiple, often seemingly contradictory, possible interpretations. I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. When you’re coming to the cards from a confused position, and thus feeling a bit lost and unsure, then a candid deck is your best friend.

I know we are supposed to always ensure we are feeling calm and level-headed before we come to the cards. But, I also know I am human and reaching for my cards is a better solution than reaching for other possible things I may have found comfort in before. I want direct, no nonsense clarity when I’m feeling on edge. The Black Cats Tarot delivers on that.

If you look at the cards pictured above you can see what I mean. The 2 of Pentacles shows the difficulty and potential danger in trying to juggle too many things at once. It shows that multitasking probably isn’t the best way to go. The 6 of Pentacles suggests offering, or receiving a helping hand. Of note is that the cat providing assistance has plenty to give and yet it is pretty safe to assume they didn’t completely drain their resources that day either. Financial abundance is indicated but the idea applies to any resource we have. Time and energy come to mind here as they are both incredibly precious resources.

In the Knight of Cups pictured above, the focus is on the romantic gesture. But, notice she was capable of filling her own cup before he arrived. Is water better for cats than milk? Just because something seems good doesn’t mean it is. Nor does that mean it isn’t.

Finally, the idea of either a legacy, or leaving a legacy, stands out in the 10 of Pentacles. Writing that gave me reason to pause. I know that is one of the meanings associated with the 10 of Pentacles, therefore that is what I saw. However, I’ve worked with cards for a long, long time. Maybe that’s not so obvious to someone new to tarot. Being an intuitive reader doesn’t mean I don’t have a sound base of knowledge I draw from. For me the two go hand in hand so I feel it’s necessary to point out that, even though I read intuitively, I never stop looking to learn new things about my cards. It takes time but it’s worth the effort. Plus I love the process.

On another note, if you read with clarifiers this deck really lends itself to that purpose. To be honest, I prefer to use Tarot of the Abyss for clarifying my personal readings because I’m looking for the shadow aspect, but to gain a clearer picture of what a card may be signifying, or to obtain further information then these cards would be great. Having become reacquainted with this deck today, I can see myself using it to clarify client readings if necessary. In case you’re wondering, no I don’t tend to use clarifiers when reading for others because there is already so much information on the table. Also, when reading for others it is easier to read the cards as they fall, because you know that ultimately to do so is in everyone’s best interest.

Never have I, nor will I, redraw a reading for others because I don’t like what comes up. Unfortunately I can’t say that I have never done that during my personal readings. I disguise it by slightly altering my question but if I’m honest with myself I’m well aware what I’m doing. Using clarifiers helps me to combat the temptation to try for an answer more in keeping with what I expected. Over time I have become comfortable with challenging readings because they give me the opportunity to address situations I may have ignored, or situations I may have run headlong into unprepared, and that’s a good thing.

Now, as much as I like the Black Cats Tarot, I don’t gel with the two cards pictured above. This is the downside of having tarot knowledge. The Page of Pentacles feels like he is in a really precarious position. Add to that he’s dropped a pentacle and I don’t feel the positive aspects of the card. That being said, I read it as I see it. As an aside, when I do that, I consider what the card generally means alongside what the image is showing. I don’t just prattle off the typical meaning. I bounce the two off each other to see what surfaces. In this case, I would be asking whether my ambitions are likely to cause me to over stretch myself in some way because this cat definitely has too much going on.

The same applies to the 9 of Pentacles pictured above. I don’t equate it with the typical notions associated with the card. Maybe potential isolation but that’s because I’m looking for a link. I heard or read somewhere that the cat is being circled by dolphins. Rightly or wrongly, I see sharks. If they are sharks I can see how the image relates to the book’s suggested meaning of going with the flow because struggling will be counterintuitive. However, if you asked me about the 9 of Pentacles that isn’t what I would tell you about it unless other cards suggested the benefit of letting go of an excessive need for independence. I do wish the creator had explained her choices in the book. Unfortunately, the book is a LWB that takes saving paper to the extreme.

I have talked a lot about the way the cards have been represented already, so I’ll get on to the actual cards. At 6½ x 12cm they are on the slightly smaller side but even with the black borders, their size doesn’t feel as if it compromises the image in any way. They’re easy to handle and while the cardstock is on the thinner side, they hold up well. Some people aren’t a fan of thin cardstock; I’m not one of them. Often, and definitely in this case, it makes them awesome to shuffle. The gloss cardstock makes them a tad slippery so they can get away from you a bit. Though, being smaller makes them pretty easy to keep under control.

I don’t mind the use of symbols for the suits. A cup, sword, wand and coin are pretty clear. But, I’m not a fan of the use of symbols to represent the Court cards. It may just be me, but I can only decode the Pages (Knaves in this deck), because the horse head seems like a clear sign for the Knight. Otherwise I may have thought the helmet indicated the Knight. For the Kings and Queens however, I use the image to tell me which is which. Since there is no clarification about which symbol represents which member of the Court, this makes this generally easy-to-use-deck a little less beginner friendly. Appearance shouldn’t override practicality especially when the book doesn’t offer any help.

The Black Cats Tarot Book

This is a Lo Scarabeo LWB. What does that mean? It means that even though it is 63 pages long, only ten of those pages are in English. At least this book is consistent. Each language, (English, Spanish, French, Italian, German and Portuguese), is afforded the same number of pages. I appreciate this because with others the additional languages feel more tokenistic rather than a genuine multilingual offering.

The book opens with two paragraphs that introduce the deck. This identifies how the creator sees black cats and thus their relevance to the tarot. Then it dives straight into the card meanings. As the ten pages suggests, there are no card images, just a brief paragraph for each of the Major Arcana and a single keyword and a couple of sentences for each of the Minor Arcana. Nonetheless, the book offers enough if you’re using it purely to look up card meanings. However, I always like being privy to the reasons behind the creator’s choices. The Connolly Tarot shows how this is still possible in a LWB. Even if attention is only given to the Major Arcana, it provides a feel for the creator’s approach and therefore a lens to view the cards through. That isn’t the case with this book.

Spreads

The book provides one spread:

The Cat’s Tail (6 cards)

The Cat’s Tail Spread can be applied to most situations so it is a valuable addition and one I can see myself using again. It may be easy to judge this deck unfairly and dismiss it as one that lacks substance, but that is not the case at all. Rather, I would say that it can really help to bring to light what needs to be seen and addressed. One of its greatest strengths is that it can help people to move from where they are to where they need and want to be because it delivers practical, easy to understand messages. Not everything requires a deep dive. Sometimes, maybe even often times, all we are looking for is a clear way forward. This deck provides that and therefore I’m glad it is part of my collection.