Although I'd have to cite a great many recent dreams to illustrate it, this taiga, too, has been heavily dream prompted. Not only by dreams about choices I need to make, but in the more commonly understood meaning of VI: matters of the heart. But the issue of choice has been uppermost and more frequent in my dreams. Some dreams even pointing out that I have a choice, i.e, I'm not stuck or trapped.
Here's the design:
For comparison, here's The Lovers in the Rider/Waite/Smith deck:
One of the ideas I had a hard time choosing (:-D) to include in my version of VI can be seen more clearly in the Rider/Waite/Smith rendition. I've read that in VI the male/conscious, looks to the female/sub- or unconscious for the connection to the Angel/spirit. (Put another way, it's in our sub- or unconscious that we are directly connected to spirit.) I really like that three-fold concept and have tried to represent it in my taiga by the two surrounding arrows and the one coming down from above. I don't think that one needs to know about this to relate to the taiga, but it's there for those who are familiar enough with the Tarot.
BRIEF BACKGROUND ON THE TAIGA TAROT (Click here for additional background on the Taiga Tarot.):
Please note: This deck is not necessarily being designed for use in divination, but rather to share taiga based on each of 78 Tarot cards.
When I decided the name of the deck would be The Taiga Tarot, I liked not only the alliteration but the resemblance of the word “taiga” to “tiger.” One of my power animals is the Siberian Tiger (and by extension, all tigers), which first appeared as three tiger kittens in a dream. What I had completely forgotten at the time was that the area of Siberia in which the tiger ranges is called “The Taiga”!
A “taiga” (briefly put) is an illustrated tanka. A “tanka” is a mood poem written in five lines, that usually references natural images and human emotions. Also, there is often a contrast or conclusion or response in the last two lines to the first three. I recognize that the tanka/taiga I’m developing for The Taiga Tarot are non-traditional. As with the dream haiku I write, I am not only attempting to bridge two things – with this deck, Tarot and taiga – but also bringing my own experimental slant to it all.
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‘til next time, keep enjoying The Tarot,
Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)**** SEE ALSO: Roswila’s Tarot Gallery & Journal and Roswila’s Dream & Poetry Realm.****
