Deck Combinations like Truth in Story

[Nemia]

Some time ago, I found a great clip by Truth in Story (I love her channel).



It's called Category Duos. She uses two decks (tarot and oracle) in combination for certain topics or kinds of readings.

I found these categories especially interesting, and I asked myself, which decks do I tend to for such readings? Her categories also made me think - which kinds of readings do I do? I never did a Liminal reading in my life but I do Shadow and Inner Child readings, and I want to start doing Ancestor work.

Here are her categories and decks:

Category --- tarot/orcale

1. Clarity--Wayhome Tarot/Lantern Oracle

2. Workhorse--Oak Ash & Thorn, Illuminated Earth

3. Personal Practice--Crow Tarot/Shaman's Oracle

4. Liminal Space--Darkness of Light/Cosma Visions

5. Personal Support--Mother Mary Tarot/Weavers Oracle

6. Ancestral Work: Vision Quest/Spirit Cards Oracle


This is really fascinating for me, I didn't know any of these decks and loved how she combined them. Decks really have such different voices, and since I hardly work with oracles, this seems a good way to start.

So what are my categories? including categories of readings I didn't start with, but wish to.


Clarity

Workhorse

Personal Practice

Liminal Space

Personal Support

Ancestral work

Shadow work

Inner Child work


Are these categories of reading you use? Which decks do you use?

After much thought and some readings, I came up with the following decks for myself (I always work with only one deck but will dig deeper into using more than one).



Clarity: Thoth, Fountain, Idiosyncradeck

Workhorse: Morgan Greer, Anna K.

Personal Practice: Tabula Mundi, Constellations

Liminal Space: Secret Forest, New Liminal

Personal Support: Housewives, Ostara, Light Seers

Ancestral work: didn't start yet and have no idea

Shadow work: Silhouettes, Dreaming Way

Inner Child work: Star Spinner, Divine, Little Prince


Did you see the video? Do you have similar categories of readings, and what are they? Which are the decks you tend to use for others, yourself, for certain topics?

This really spoke to me because I enjoy my growing collection of decks and try to find ways of working with them, not only having them. It's a wonderful journey.

[Rachelcat]

I'm going to join in on this with you! I'll work on my list over the weekend and let you know what I come up with. And maybe come up with some more categories, too!

Thanks for the assignment!

[TheLoracular]

I'm going to join in on this with you! I'll work on my list over the weekend and let you know what I come up with. And maybe come up with some more categories, too!

Thanks for the assignment!

I will do the same, starting with watching the video and going from there. I've never done "liminal" readings and I don't know exactly what it means but I bet I have something like it that I mentally call something else.

[Nemia]

From what I understand, it's the transitional space between our world and the world of Spirit or spirits, between life and death, between what we can see and grasp - and the reality we can intuit and feel at times before it slips away again... the space we long to cross when there's somebody we love very much on the Other Side.

I have had very strong dreams of departed loved ones, and sometimes felt their presence. I'm not the intuitive type really so I'm never sure whether that's my own longing or a real presence. But as Dumbledore said to Harry: that wouldn't make a difference.

I think Truth in Story is one of the best Youtube tarot channels, Kelly is filled with wisdom.

[Rachelcat]

Here are my category duos! The second item in each list is my “translation” of the category name into something that makes sense to me. Then the tarot, then the oracle. I couldn’t resist putting in little identifying notes in parentheses for almost every deck. Hope it isn’t too confusing.

Category, My Way of Saying It, Tarot, Oracle

Clarity, I just want to know!, Budapest Tarot (end of 15th century), Tao Oracle (I Ching)

Workhorse, First pick or for others, Budapest Tarot (end of 15th century), Bachblüten Devas (Bach flower remedies)

Personal practice, Spiritual, Arcana Stones (tumbled stones as tarot majors), Tarot Cabalistique (72 angels)

Liminal space, Different worlds, Anubis Oracle (tarot majors + combinations thereof), Celtic Book of the Dead (spiritual voyages)

Personal support, Gentle, La Corte dei Tarocchi (modern pips deck), Bachblüten Devas (Bach flower remedies)

Ancestral work, Whose ancestors?, Visconti Tarot (ancestor of tarot), Shaman’s Oracle (prehistoric cave paintings)

Shadow work, Dark, Dark Grimoire Tarot (Lovecraft), Symbolon (pairs of astrological signs)

Inner child work, Or for children, Tarot of White Cats (cartoon cats RWS), Creature Teacher (animal affirmations)

Notes:

My workhorse decks are duplicates of other categories because they’re the ones I use and trust the most!

My tarot list is unusual because I mostly read pips decks. And modified majors decks, too, evidently!

Ancestral: I have a self-identified ancestor oracle, Celtic Wisdom Oracle, and a past life deck, “Symbolon: The Deck of Remembrance,” but I like the cave art better for this category.

Shadow: Symbolon is a mix of light and dark cards, but the darks are really dark, and they’re the ones that stick with me. (And it’s definitely more of an astrological deck than a past life deck.)

For children: I have a bunch of cat and animal decks that all would be good for children. A deck I actually used with a child was Nudges from the Universe, a light-hearted rune deck. It had instructions on how to position your body into the various runes, so we tried that. It was fun!

Thank you, Nemia, for the opportunity to sort through my collection list with such interesting categories! I learned some things about what I’m using and why!

[Nemia]

I've used this little exercise to think about what I really need from tarot, and I think self-soothing and study are also important categories.


Clarity: this is the most basic category. We all read tarot in order to get clear, honest answers. It's difficult because wishful thinking always sways us. I find that I get totally clear insights from tarot - and I forget them as easily as a dream. That's why clarity readings have to be written down.

Workhorse: these are decks I use for others. Here, wishful thinking is less a problem, but projecting my own stuff on the lives of others is, empathy can interfere, and of course the deck has to be easy to read for others, too.

In my professional practice, I use the decks the website allows. When reading for friends and family, I opt for friendly, non-frightening images.

Personal Practice: I don't have a full-blown esoteric personal practice, I'm not a Wiccan. I'm a residual Christian with Pantheistic leanings and worship for stars and nature. I use the tarot cards to celebrate important dates, for little memorial rituals, and of course for my steadily ticking tarot calendar.

Liminal Space: I have never tried to cross the threshold consciously, but I have done so in dreams and certain situations. I may try to carefully approach this kind of tarot use.

Personal Support: Affirmations and goals - yes, I use the tarot for these things.

Ancestral work: I want to read Nancy Hendrickson's book and start going that. I've been researching my family for many years and I'm steeped in ancestor communication. In the last years, I have felt the net tightening that is around each of us. All these connections to dead and living people who are sill with us. Quietly, in a way we can't understand, but they're all there. In our genes, in our brains, and it feels as though they're around us, too.

Shadow work: I have done a lot of shadow work and have learned to live in peace with one shadow that really pained me. right now, I feel no need to - although there alsways is, I know. Soothing decks are best for my shadow work, I don't need dark cards when I deal with dark subjects. When my heart is sad and dark, I need friendly cards to coax myself from the shadows, to get to know them. Acknowledge them.

Inner Child work: This is my favourite kind of tarot work. I do also Inner child meditations that had great effect on me. I still don't trust my intuition enough but I'm on my way. Bought Teresa Reed's book, read Deborah Lipp several times, and nothing is better than working with the cards themselves and my memories, and the spaces where the memories hide.

Esoteric study: That's astrology and kabbalah for me. Some of my decks are only for such uses and I ddin't read with them yet - Hermetic, Hemetic Kabbalah, Arcana of Astrology, Sephiroth.... all study decks or for my tarot calendar.

Self soothing: When I was younger, I saw myself as robust and happy. Illusions of youth! Over the years, I have learned that I'm an introvert, that I need time alone, and that I'm hyper sensitive. Not in a way that would impact my day to day functioning, but I react strongly to light, noise, unfriendliness, impatience, emotional neglect or coldness. A week ago, I had a panic attack and when I came out of it (I still feel it), I knew that this had not been the first time I went through this. I don't want to go to therapy, I can self-soothe myself through tarot work, tarot writing (like now), also tarot study, sorting my decks, just looking at them, getting to know them better.

My tarot calendar is the most grounding and relaxing thing I have ever done with tarot.

Every day, I put up the planetary card of the weekday (today, Jupiter for Thursday) - every couple of days, the moon phase changes - every ten days, the decan - and once every month, the zodiac sign.

I started this practice in April 2018 and it's the only spiritual practice that I've kept up for so long. It's also a way to get to know all my decks over the course of one year.

Another practice I keep up is star gazing. I don't have a telescope but a nice strong pair of binoculars and that's great. I walk with my eyes over the starry skies every night. There are several things I love to do: if possible, I try to see as many planets in one night as possible. I also try to see opposite constellations - let's say Taurus in the evening and Scorpio towards morning.

All this keeps me grounded and happy and in balance.