The Green Witch Tarot

I have had this beautiful, gentle and nurturing deck for a while. Lately I’ve been drawn to work more closely with it. The Green Witch Tarot is one of the decks I recommend to people who embrace any form of nature-based practice who are looking to incorporate tarot. It is also one of my first suggestions for anyone seeking guidance that doesn’t want to be confronted with potentially triggering imagery. The older I get and the more I see and experience, the more important I find these types of decks. Decks that don’t dismiss difficult topics yet don’t feel the need to overwhelm you with dark and confronting imagery. Instead they present a way forward and/or another perspective. Since those are the reasons I work with tarot both personally and with others, I have recently relocated The Green Witch Tarot onto my desk to be used as one of my go to decks. I’m bringing back the calm into my life and I’m feeling directed to help others to do the same. Reconnecting with and embracing the Natural world is a big part of this so this deck aligns perfectly.

The Green Witch Tarot Deck

As I flicked through The Green Witch Tarot selecting which cards to photograph, I found myself thinking, “Wow, this is probably one of my favourite __________________ cards.” That definitely applied to the Aces pictured above. Most Aces showcase the element, which makes sense, but I find these really connect me with the energy/potential of the suit. It’s like they say, “You’re at the beginning, but here’s where you’re headed.” The Swords, (Athames in this case) suggest you have what you need to bring your ideas to fruition. I see dandelion seeds as wishes and the dandelions themselves as representative of how you have the power to choose your thoughts and your way of thinking. Are your thoughts weeds that are over running your mind, or magical ideas that move you forward in the direction of your dreams? If the former applies, imagine how great it would be to embrace the latter.

Every card in this deck has a main image plus an animal and a plant which together express the cards meaning. The book explains the relevance of each which makes the deck a great introductory resource for those wishing to delve into plant and animal magick. This is an added advantage of The Green Witch Tarot. It can be read without any prior knowledge of herb or animal lore because the imagery is clear and yet the addition of these elements offers opportunities for more intuitive hits. I’m not familiar with all the plants, in fact many of the plants, but I don’t find that a hindrance. Rather, when I’m reading with these cards I look for the plants and animals to see what they “say” to me in the moment.

Nonetheless though, I’m looking forward to learning more about plant magick along the way. It’s highly relevant to the path my life seems to be taking. I’m eagerly awaiting the arrival of Christopher Spicer’s book How to Grow a Garden of Medicinal Healing Plants and Herbs that I bought on a whim a couple of days ago. I get the feeling this knowledge will add another layer of interpretation. As someone with more than ten animal decks, (as in no people present decks), I’ve been drawn to “reading” animal messages when they appear on tarot cards and in the world around me so I really appreciate their presence here.

The “darker” cards (darker because we often prefer they didn’t show up in a reading and because of their imagery) are well considered in this deck. Their messages are presented without the “scary” imagery which makes this a safe deck for use in public. I included the 10 of Wands below because I believe it handled the notion of burdens well. I like that in this card it’s clear she is almost “there” and “there” looks pretty good, which suggests her hard work has been worth the struggle. However, much can also be drawn from the fact that she’s on her own in her struggle.

What role do we play in our struggles? Have we been too proud, too stubborn, too caught up in our own particular beliefs that prevent us from asking for help? Or, was it something we had to go through on our own for any number of reasons. This highlights one of the reasons I love journaling using a single card. It allows me to uncover so many possible meanings because so many thoughts and ideas I have buried, ignored, or never considered come bubbling up to the surface. I find these cards offer a safe space to launch from.

I wasn’t initially sure about the approach to the 3 of Athames but it has grown on me. As the lady walks towards her house you can see it’s in need of repair and the door is ajar. Has she been robbed? Did she forget to close the door? Did she deliberately leave it open? To be honest I can’t tell you if these ideas come to mind like they do because of my tarot knowledge or whether they are based purely of the card’s imagery. Either way, I find the messages powerful and worthy of contemplation. What’s going on? What role does she have to play in the situation? And what decisions is she going to make about the best way forward? The presence of the swan adds another layer for me. Even though the book ascribes transformation, change, quest and manifestation to the swan, that is not what comes to mind for me. For me, the swan represents grace and therefore I predominantly read the card through that lens, yet I don’t complete dismiss the creator’s associations because they can add another layer.

On the 9 of Athames, I like that the artist hasn’t positioned the swords above the lady. Their position above the window highlights that her fears, worries, and/or negative thoughts are linked more to how she’s seeing things rather than to her actual “reality”. Therefore we are reminded we can choose to see how we are seeing things in a new light.

Finally, the Death card, here The Lord of Shadows, I find hauntingly beautiful for many reasons. It’s the well that keeps catching my eye at the moment. It’s symbolism is so powerful. Wells can be wishing wells but they are also something created to give us access to water which we need to survive. From there it’s possible to branch off in so many directions and that’s just one element on the card. Further, the lighting on the pathway provides a clear sense of moving from the darkness into the light. Adding what the people on the card may mean on top of all this without even considering the moth and the berries suggests there is just so much that can be divined from this card. I really do love this card for so many reasons.

The creator has made many changes to the Major Arcana titles which are in keeping with the theme of the deck. For those that don’t like too any name changes this deck might be frustrating since only four cards retain they more typical nominations.

The Major Arcana are named as follows:

0 The Greenman
I The Witch
II The High Priestess
III The Earth Mother
IV The Horned God
V The High Priest
VI The Lady and The Lord
VII The Battle Wagon
VIII The Crone
IX The Holly King
X The Wheel of the Year
XI The Standing Stone
XII The Oak King
XIII The Lord of Shadows
XIV The Sidhe
XV Nature
XVI The Wild Hunt
XVII The Star
XVIII The Moon
XIX The Sun
XX Harvest
XXI The World Tree

Some of these I like, others not so much, but as someone who focuses on the images more so than the titles I’m not overly affected. However, I can see that they could be frustrating, and to be honest, some just don’t resonate with me at all. For example XIV The Sidhe in place of XIV Temperance and IX The Holly King instead of IX The Hermit. But, I choose to overlook this because I connect with the images. The suits are Athames (Swords), Chalices (Cups), Pentacles and Wands. Kings, Queens, Knights and Pages make up the Court.

Physically, the cards are semi-gloss, borderless and measure approximately 7 x 11½ cm. I like borderless cards because it means the card size can be smaller without compromising the image. These cards are beautiful to handle. They are easy to shuffle any way you choose, they fan smoothly and I think they would be comfortable to use regardless of any one’s hand size. They’re a dream to shuffle – slippy without being too slippery, thin without being flimsy, and generally easy to manage.

The Green Witch Tarot Book

The full-sized accompanying book is 240 pages long and definitely offers you plenty to work with. The book ensures this is a beginner-friendly deck. The book’s opening line begins “The Green Witchcraft approach to the tarot is based on a personal relationship to Nature … and it goes on from there. Whilst the book points out that the deck draws on themes from stories of the Goddess, the God and the Wheel of the Year and the significance of each to the creator’s practice, this is something you can decide whether to work with or not. You don’t have to be a witch to connect with this deck. If you’re wondering no, I don’t identify as a witch although some may well see me that way. Basically, I’m not really one for labels. I’m just a person that loves and connects with the natural world who, amongst other things, works with tarot cards to gain and share insights. If this sounds like you, then I believe you may well connect with this deck.

The book provides the token “history of the tarot” section followed by a section on Green Witchcraft in the tarot which provides information on the deck’s philosophy and elemental associations. There’s also a section that suggest what multiple Minor Arcana of the same type or numbers can indicate. Few accompanying books offer this information.

In the Reading the Tarot section I appreciate that she writes:

The cards do not tell the future, they no control anything, and there is nothing scary about them. Their function is to provide a means for a reader to access the psychic intuition that is naturally present in all people but is more developed in some than others.

Other sections you can take or leave dependent upon your beliefs. For example, I’m not intentionally splashing water on my cards to consecrate them. But that doesn’t mean I readily dismiss other suggestions. I enjoy reading about other’s approaches, practices and beliefs. I take an eclectic approach to tarot so I believe there is much to be gained in learning about how other’s view and work with the cards. I integrate what I connect with and leave the rest. My own practices and personal rituals have changed considerably over the years which I don’t find surprising since I’m definitely not the same person I was nearly 25 years ago. Therefore, I never discount anything out of hand. Some things I have felt a bit silly for trying felt completely natural once I did. Other things don’t gel at all and I accept that.

Anyhow, back to the book. For the Major Arcana, a full page is dedicated to a black and white image framed with timber. This is followed by information on what the card represents, the significance of the animal and plant chosen, general meanings, reversed meanings and some prompt words. To ensure each picture falls on the left hand page there is a notes page for each Major.

The Minors are organised by suit with each suit’s title page offering related keywords and the elemental association. Then, a full-sized image is followed by the same information as is provided for the Majors. If you have read many of these overviews, you will know how much I like and appreciate that.

Spreads

The final chapter offers seven spreads:

Witches Circle Spread (10 cards)
- This is a renamed Celtic Cross variation
Elemental Cross Spread (10 cards)
Wheel of the Year Spread (24 cards)
Mystic Pyramid Spread (7 cards)
9-card Square Spread
Simple yes/no Spread (3 cards)
Tree of Life Spread (15 cards)

All in all I’m sure it comes as no surprise that I really like this deck. I think it’s an easy to use deck that is suitable for all skill levels. The book ensures that beginners can dive right in and work with the cards without any prior knowledge.

This is a great deck to use to remind you of who you are in the overall scheme of things and to help you counter any negative thought patterns associated with outside influences or your own self-sabotaging practices, habits and/or actions. If you’re drawn to the artwork then I believe you will easily connect with the cards and glean the information you’re seeking. As someone drawn to a simpler life, it’s definitely helping me move in that direction more and more.