Inner Mysteries of the Journey of the Soul as Portrayed by Mary
Created by: Hettienne Grobler
A Limited, Signed Edition
78 Card Deck & Book Set
Cards: Semi-Gloss, Sturdy 350 Gsm Stock, with Gold Edges & Rounded Corners
Each Image Created as an Individual Shrine
Card Dimensions: 5" L by 3.75" W, 12.7 by 9.5 Cm
Card Backs: Non-reversible Image, (Shown Below)
Accompanying Book: Soft-Cover, 160 Pages, Written by the Artist
Price: $89. + P&H
Self-Published in Cape Town, South Africa, 2016
Review by: Arnell Ando
Read the full review at
http://www.arnellart.com/mary-tarot.htm
I recently received a simply divine 78-card Tarot deck and book set
from this gifted
artist in Cape Town,
South Africa. I
was immediately struck by the intricate, symbolic altars in the imagery, which
she painstakingly created for each card with great purpose and attention to
detail.
Even a heathen
like me could feel the artist's sincere devotion to the subject matter and her
deep reverence for Mary.
Every card depicts
a small, hand-crafted, wooden shrine with a
miniature diorama
dedicated to an archetype or an initiation into the
Great Mystery, while
revealing a vignette woven into this rich, meaningful tapestry
dedicated to the sainted
mother of Jesus.
The four suits of
this deck correspond with the four elements
and four cycles of
Mary's life:
Virgin and
Priestess is denoted by the suit of Vessels (Water, Cups);
Beloved and Bride,
is the suit of Holyrood (Fire, Wands);
and Wisdom is
attributed to the suit of Roses (Earth, Pentacles).
The cards were
professionally
photographed and
printed in a large format (5"L by 3.75"; W, 12.7 cm by 9.5 cm)
on sturdy
cardstock and would work nicely for readings or as one's daily card meditation (also
serving to study her personal associations and interpretations).
The 160 page,
soft-cover book goes into great detail about each card,
while sharing
stories with historical and mythological context and analogies.
Each limited
edition set is signed by the artist and comes beautifully packaged, including a
unique cloth pouch in the style of the deck,
adorned with
a St. Mary amulet and a rosary, for a distinctive and enticing presentation. Alternatively
a version with a handcrafted box relating to the
iconography of
this deck may also be available
upon request from
the creator.
And an expanded
version of the guidebook became available in early 2017.
Hettienne Grobler
believes Mary's long legacy is connected to the
ancient Goddess
culture and lore.
She envisions Mary
as the archetypal Divine Woman of our time
as well as the
bridge between the
mortal and
immortal feminine and the sacred heart of humanity,
(in dire need of
myths which can
usher in an era of
intuitive awareness, visionary creativity imagination,
social justice and
the healing of humanity, the earth and all her creatures!)
Ms. Grobler
surmises that we currently recognize Mary as the Mother of Jesus,
playing a small
part
in the story as
told by Protestant Christianity or having a more significant role
in the Roman
Catholic
tradition. However
Mary is less known as a goddess in the feminine traditions
and few would
connect
her with the great
Mother Goddesses of distant past or as the
Lady Sophia in the
Wisdom traditions.
But to the creator
of this deck and others like her, t
here is an
underlying red thread of connection.
Since the ancient
divine feminine became demonized many moons ago
and her stories
went underground,
one must rely on
myth, fairy and folk tales,
oral traditions
and subtle clues to uncover Her story.
Grobler adds that
if we dig deeper, we can discover that
many of the titles
belonging to Mary used to
also be attributed
to ancient goddesses in various cultures
and traditions and
that
even the name
'Mary' has been known to signify a title,
such as
'Priestess', beyond
being used as a
personal name. Ms. Grobler goes on to
state that the
history of both
the power and
eradication of the Divine Feminine as an
ideology have been
suppressed
and hidden by each
subsequent ruling power throughout time,
until she was at
last removed
from any
meaningful role in religion and
thereby relegated
to only a minor part in the story.
I'm reminded of
another sacred Tarot offering to Mary in the form of a Major Arcana deck,
created by Morena
Poltronieri of the Tarot Museum, (in Italy).
In 2013 Ms.
Poltronieri
made a spiritual
journey to Montserrat, (near Barcelona, Spain).
During that
mystical
pilgrimage she
came upon 22 shines and alters dedicated to Mary and realized a
correlation to the
22 Trump cards and thus created the deck,
Maria - 22
Madonnas of Montserrat.
And like a kindred
spirit,
Morena also
relates Mary to the divine, eternal
Goddess (as she
has shared in various texts including the
Tarot Travel Guide
of Italy).
So in this
thoroughly researched project, the artist set out to collect
ancient legends,
myths, fairy tales and stories from a wide range of
sources and
cultures and arrange together the pieces of the puzzle
which contribute
to a fuller revelation of the archetype of Mary.
This visionary
deck is a heartfelt offering from the artist and a powerful
source of
inspiration and imagination.
It therefore
becomes another healing
way to reconnect
with the inner Goddess and see oneself
in her divine
light with compassion and insight.
The edges of these
cards are a muted gold and the variety of colorful borders
make for a
visually stunning presentation, while highlighting the intricate shrines.
Traditional
symbolism associated with the Tarot can be found in the cards,
albeit in often
mysterious, symbolic ways,
that are explained
in the accompanying guidebook.
The Major Arcana
have traditional Roman numerals
but the card
titles are unique to this deck's theme
(although most are
recognizable to the seasoned Tarot student).
The more familiar
titles are included in the guidebook for easy reference.
Strength is
represented by card VIII in this deck
and Justice as XI
(following the Waite-Smith model).
The court cards
are: Servant, Handmaiden, King and Queen,
(described in
detail as to why).
This precious set
is available directly from the artist's Blog or her Etsy shop
along with other
mystical treasures and meaningful works she creates.
The deck set is
reasonably priced, given the time, the elaborate materials and
extensive research
put into its creation
and all the
personal touches which make for a uniquely lovely presentation for each order.
It would make a
potent reading deck for anyone drawn to this spiritual theme
or those entranced
by the iconography of religious shrines
and alters.
About Hettienne Grobler: A spiritual healer for years, she has also created the Freedom through Love three year spiritual wisdom course and founded the Shekinah Healing Foundation; formed the Path of Love Wisdom and Mastery School
as well as
organizing the first international Goddess Conference on the Artemis Farm in
Franschhoek.
She was initiated as a Shaktypat Guru into the Siddha Yoga lineage
in 2008
and founded the Temple of Mary at Sancta Maria,
Durbanville in 2012.
She is the Vision keeper Hettienne Bhakty
Ma Maria at the
Temple where East meets West.
After years of
dedication and study she completed this inspiring
Mysteries of Mary Tarot Deck in 2016. Aside from her Blog
journal,
Ms Grobler also
has an Etsy page with
a unique selection of
sacred and handmade offerings.
Arnell Ando
Images courtesy of The Mysteries of Mary Tarot Deck & Website © 2016,
Images courtesy of The Mysteries of Mary Tarot Deck & Website © 2016,
Cape
Town, South Africa
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