Tarot of Dreams
Tarot of Dreams is my first Ciro Marchetti deck and I have to admit that the artwork doesn’t align with my general aesthetic. However, I also have to admit that it lives in a wooden box on my desk because it speaks to me so clearly. Basically, this deck served as a further reminder of the need to move away from my favoured art styles and themes more often. The Deviant Moon and Dark Fairy Tale Tarot were others that shared the same message.
The Tarot of Dreams Cards
There is much to discover in this detail-laden deck. The inclusion of the nautilus shell on the VII of Cups reminds me of the Ace of Swords in the Light Seers deck and the red cloud changes the dynamic for me. And, what about the chess board as the foundation on the VIII of Cups and the fact he’s heading towards the Moon even though the card is associated with Saturn in Pisces. So many possibilities. These are great cards to journal with. I’ll put together a series of journal prompts for these cards as soon as I can. There is just so much to explore and contemplate.
Although, it took me a while to decipher the CM. I kept thinking 900? What’s the relevance of 900. Then I twigged, CM – Ciro Marchetti. I know, a little slow on the uptake but now I find myself seeking out his initials. Sometimes they jump out, other times they take me a while to find. Sometimes I can’t see them at all. In a deck where everything serves a purpose, I’m always curious to discover where he’s placed himself and what that suggests to me. This may seem like a strange thing to focus on but once I started doing it, it felt right. Don’t think you’ll find this approach in Mary K Greer’s great book 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card. Yet, if you’re looking at a deck where the artist has worked his signature into the artwork in a variety of ways, why not consider it?
I also like the addition of the astrological symbols. They make incorporating this aspect into readings much easier. It’s one thing to remember the Cardinal signs for the element are linked to cards 2, 3, 4; the Fixed signs link to cards 5, 6, 7; and Mutable for cards 8, 9 and 10. It’s another to hold in your head and work through the classical astrology of Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Saturn and Jupiter beginning in Aries to make the correct associations in order to arrive at 7 of Cups is Venus in Scorpio. When appropriate, (for example The Star Tarot, Celestial Tarot), just give me the symbols.
Tarot of Dreams also includes Kabbalistic symbolism on the Major Arcana and elemental symbolism on the Court cards. However, since this is such a great learning deck, breaking the elemental associations down further would have been good. For example, the Queen of Wands could have Water and Fire rather than just Fire. Adding the astrological associations would have been beneficial too. They’re in the book. These are only minor quibbles though. If you want to learn and understand the astrological and Kabbalistic associations then this deck is awesome.
Marchetti has made a few changes, albeit minor ones. II High Priestess is here simply Priestess and V The Hierophant is renamed Faith. I like his representation of The Hierophant. I enjoyed learning more about the various belief systems indicated by the symbols on the card. In so doing I challenged, reconsidered, and clarified my personal beliefs, just as The Hierophant encourages us to do. For those not familiar with all the symbols, (from the centre of his forehead moving in a clockwise direction), are the Double Happiness symbol frequently used to represent marriage and often associated with Confucianism, followed by the symbols generally linked to Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Wiccan, Humanism and Daoism.
Tarot of Dreams is actually an 83 card deck. The Tree of Life card is one of the additional cards. In a deck that includes Kabbalistic symbolism it isn’t out of place. Although, there is no explanation in the book as to what it might suggest when it appears in a spread. Furthermore, I find it a tad confusing because the Major Arcana cards placed on each of the pathways don’t align with the placements I am familiar with. I checked several sources, both in books and on line, but I didn’t find anything that concurred with how this card presents them. I don’t know why they appear here like this. Personally I just interpret the card as a whole when it appears in a spread. Alternatively, you can just remove it.
The four Palace cards, (pictured above and below), are the other addition. I really love their inclusion. Marchetti says they “indicate the energies of the suit expressed as an environment.” For example, the Palace of Wands “shows a warm environment that encourages creative inspiration and the launching of plans and projects. The structures are built into a mountaintop, suggesting both the long climb ahead and also the attainability of the goal. Butterflies symbolise the transformation of dreams into reality, and red roses signify passion. The structures are lit from within with the fires of the heart. Statues portraying the Knight of Wands symbolise forward momentum and focus.” However, how you see them is very much up to you.
The same applies to any card. Each are open to a myriad of interpretations that can/will change at any given moment based on the cards around them or any thoughts/feelings/images etc that comes to mind. That is why tarot is so powerful. Art speaks to us in our own language. We just have to be willing to join the conversation. Lee Bursten writes,
The potential for wisdom and insight is limitless, restricted only by the natural resistance we have to plumbing our own depths.
I agree. Tarot is a set of 78 cards depicting archetypes, personality types, patterns of behaviour and things we experience in our day to day life that can help us to make sense of ourselves, our actions, and our ways of being and interacting with others.
For example, no doubt, at some stage in our lives, we’ve experienced being stabbed in the back or maybe we’ve done the stabbing. If we’re honest we’ve all played the victim in various situations too. And most of us have managed to get through things that at one stage felt huge, possibly even insurmountable. Furthermore, few of us are immune to the reality of the cliched “mole hill into a mountain” over-reaction. These aren’t out there concepts. They are a general part of life. Life that, in tarot, is depicted by the 10 of Swords. Which interpretation is relevant depends on what you see at the time.
When I looked at the 10 of Swords pictured below to write this article, I was drawn to the Sun and Gemini symbols and the words, “Get up” came to mind. “You decide what you choose to listen to and internalise. You decide what leaves a mark on you.” These swords aren’t piercing his skin. Maybe they are enlightening him to his role in the situation. His posture suggests victimhood but I also see a seed and thus the potential to grow. After all, harsh endings can lead to wonderful new beginnings. As Gemini suggests, the choice is ours. Just because we don’t want to hear something doesn’t make it any less true for us.
Each card has its own story to tell. This version of 3 of Cups (pictured above), feels darker to me than most. Recently, I read an interview with Ciro Marchetti and he said, “I’ve always found masks to be rather intriguing. Masks have a wonderful mystery to them—they hide reality—you can be something different behind them. They make you wonder who is the real person behind the mask?” And yet here they are on a card normally associated with joy and celebration.
Make of that what you will. Is there a third party that’s just in “it” for fun? Or is the fun and joy forced? Is the celebration/celebrating overly excessive? Or is it hiding something? Maybe it’s the opposite. It’s time to drop the mask and just let yourself have fun. After all these are full wine goblets and alcohol, is the great unmasker.
As usual, my love of tarot cards means I could go on discussing the individual cards at length. But I won’t. Otherwise you’ll still be reading this tomorrow. Well actually you probably wouldn’t be, because I’d never stop writing it. So I’ll move on to the physical aspects of the cards and then the book.
The cards measure approximately 8 x 12.5 cm making them slight wider than standard, tuckbox sized cards and I do find them a bit of a stretch to shuffle. I like that the US Games version I have has the blurred borders rather than the hard borders added to the mini version that’s available from the Ciro Marchetti website. However, that’s an option if you like the artwork and the concept behind the deck but not the slightly larger size.
Finally, apart from the aforementioned additional cards and name changes in the Major Arcana, the only other slight change is that XII The Hanged Man is renamed XII Hanging Man. Otherwise the deck is standard in its nominations. The suits are Wands, Swords, Coins and Cups with Kings, Queens, Knights and Pages making up the Court.
The Tarot of Dreams Book
Tarot of Dreams comes with a 110 paged book that has a lot to offer. I really like the approach taken. The basis for Tarot’s Kabbalistic and astrological associations and their individual meanings are explained along with a caveat – use or dismiss whatever aspects you do or don’t like.
I find Lee Bursten’s interpretations opened me up to new ideas. Although, the way he has linked the Hebrew letters with the tarot card feels like a stretch sometimes and other explanations feel a bit melodramatic. For example “You are in an extreme situation” when the 7 of Wands appears seems a tad drastic. But it is in keeping with his writing style in general. Furthermore, any book directly focused on explaining the intricacies of the actual cards presented in the deck ensures there’s something to gain by reading them.
In the book, Bursten presents a version of the Fool’s journey as an overview of the Major Arcana before moving on to the cards themselves. Each then begins with an italicised opening section which provides a selection of short meanings. Then he discusses at length the card inclusions as a means to explain the possible interpretations. The Hebrew letter’s name and meaning and how he believes it connects with the card follows before the astrological symbol and its associated keywords wraps things up.
The Minor Arcana open with the same italicised keywords/phrases followed by an explanation and interpretation of the imagery. However, this section is much briefer than for the Major Arcana. Cards 2 through 10 also include the Decan-based astrology. For example 8 of Coins pictured below is Sun in Virgo. Bursten claims here, “The best way to get through a labor-intensive project is to identify (Sun) with the work, to become one with it, to place oneself in its service (Virgo). I don’t always gel with the explanations given here but they provide another viewpoint to consider. An explanation for each of the Palace cards is provided at the end of each suit as well.
Spreads
Only one spread appears in the book:
- The Story Spread (9 cards)
This spread was especially designed for Tarot of Dreams. Since my practice is founded on uncovering the stories that support and hinder our progress, this spread, coupled with the stated intention behind it, was always going to appeal to me. It didn’t disappoint. I really connected with this layout and I look forward to incorporating it into both my personal and professional practice.
In fact, working with this deck really inspires and motivates me to continue the work I do. I like the inclusion of the astrological associations and I find little details, such as the obvious and not so obvious initials, add additional interpretations that really resonate with me. When Ciro Marchetti created Tarot of Dreams his aim was to “create a set of tarot images that would have the same impact as a suddenly remembered dream.” And that’s what it feels like. I have many “ohhhhh” moments with this deck. For me that makes this a great deck and one that’s well worth considering.
Publishing Details
Deck Creator:
Ciro Marchetti (artist) with Lee Bursten (author)
Pictured Version:
Published in 2015 by US Games Systems Inc.
Creator’s Website:
