Renowned artist and tarot scholar/writer Robert M. Place has produced a masterpiece in his new tarot deck, the Buddha Tarot. His 384 page companion book, The Buddha Tarot Companion: A Mandala of Cards is truly that - the perfect companion for this deck. Both afford a rich unique perspective of the Tarot through the lens of the Buddhist paradigm. The deck comes in a beautifully illustrated box containing exquisitely designed cards that fit perfectly in my hand, a tiny black gossamer bag plus a bordered little white box with the instructions, "Embellish this box with protective and/or empowering symbols." Other suggestions that greet you as you begin your journey with the Buddha cards include: "Smudge with sage to cleanse and re-energize the cards after a reading." and "Store your deck with stones or crystals that absorb negative energy, promote healing, or provide protective energy." Also included in the box is a mini-book with guidelines on reading these particular cards. Both items are published by Llewellyn, who as always, have taken great care to ensure quality and aesthetics in the way the cards are packaged and presented.

Robert has done an amazing job in correlating the life of the Buddha with the Tarot journey through the cards. He describes how the Major Arcana fits perfectly with the life of Siddhartha and his journey of enlightenment. Each of the tarot trumps is a stage on the mystic's journey to enlightenment. In fact, it is Mr. Place's belief that the creators of the Tarot were directly influenced by the life of the Buddha, and incorporated archetypes into the Major Arcana based on his journey. He teaches that the ancient wisdoms were not isolated from one another. Instead, "the classical world maintained communications with India and the ancient Western philosophers were familar with Indian philosophies." As well, the Islamic world introduced the Christians to the life of the Buddha during the Middle Ages. "The European Christians were enamored with the story, and they transformed him into a Christian saint - St. Josaphat."

I was fascinated by the titles given to the Major Arcana cards. As just mentioned, each of the 23 cards reflect an important aspect of the Siddhartha's personal journey to become the enlightened one, the Buddha.

Major Arcana

CARD NAME	DESCRIPTION	PARALLEL
Descent from Tusita Heaven	Card 0	0. The Fool
Asita	The Seer	I. The Magician
Maya	The Mother	II. The High Priestess
Yasodhara	The Future Empress	IV. The Empress
Siddhartha	The Future Emperor	V. The Emperor
Suddhodhana	The Father	VI. The Hierophant
Siddhartha and Yasodhara	Lovers	VII. The Lovers
Siddhartha's Visit	Chariot	VIII. The Chariot
Karma	Justice	IX. Justice
The Old Man and the Sadhu	Hermit	X. The Hermit
Reincarnation	Wheel of Life	XI. The Wheel of Fortune
Siddhartha cuts his Hair	Strength	XII. Strength
The Invalid	The Suffering Man	XIII. The Hanged Man
The Corpse	Death	XIV. Death
The Middle Path	Justice	XV. Justice
Mara	Demon	XVI. The Devil
The Flaming Disk	Challenge	XVII. The Tower
The Chakras	The Morning Star	XVIII. The Star
Wesak	The Full Moon	XIX. The Moon
Buddha and Sakti	Union	XX. The Sun
The First Sermon	Avatar	XXI. Judgement
White Tara	Completion	XXII. The World
Parinirvana	Nirvana	XXIII. Total Nirvana

The Minor Arcana add an equally intriguing view of Buddhist belief. Each of the four suits reflect a different aspect of the Buddha belief system and mythology, offering a fascinating lens for tarot interpretation.

Minor Arcana

SUIT	BUDDHIST	COURT	BUDDHIST
Swords	Vajras	King	Buddhas
Wands	Lotuses	Queen	Saktis
Coins	Jewels	Knight	Animal Guardian
Cups	Double Vajras	Pages	Dakini

The essence attributed to each of the four suits is similar to Western tradition, yet offers a decidedly Eastern flavor to the mix:

Minor Arcana Suits

VAJRAS	LOTUSES	DOUBLE VAJRAS	JEWELS
Buddha: Aksobhya direction: East color: blue element: Air function: Thinking Sakti: Lokana animal: Elephant Dakini: Vajradakini symbol: Diamond	Buddha: Amitabha direction: West color: red element: Fire function: Feeling Sakti: Pandara animal: Peacock Dakini: Padmadakini Symbol: Lotus	Buddha: Amoghasiddhi direction: North color: green element: Water function: Intuition Sakti: Tara animal: Garuda Dakini: Visvadakini symbol: Double Diamond	Buddha: Ratnasambhava direction: South color: yellow element: Earth function: Sensation Sakti: Mamaki animal: Horse Dakini: Ratnadakini symbol: Jewel

Robert Place has created a deck that not only meets the needs of people who practice Eastern beliefs. He also acts as a mediator to help people of the Western world learn about and appreciate the noble tenets of Buddhism and its teachings for life. I highly recommend this deck - I found it very easy to follow, the graphics are amazingly detailed and artistically rendered and the companion book clearly helps you to learn to "read" using a Buddhist world view.

PURCHASE INFORMATION:

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Robert M. Place's Buddhist Tarot Site: http://thealchemicalegg.com/Buddha.html


Llewellyn Site: http://www.llewellyn.com/bookstore/book.php?pn=J441