Article I wrote for a newsletter about Oracle cards and Tarot

 If you're familiar with divination, you have probably heard of the tarot.  How familiar are you with the oracle, though?  Oracle cards are similar to the tarot but they don't have all the numerological, astrological or elemental meanings the tarot have. They have the picture and name and the interpretation is up to your intuition.  They do not have the negative (inverted) meanings like the tarot do, they are mostly positive in nature.  Due to the mostly positive meanings, many people consider them to be too fluffy but they do come in handy. 

        My brother and I were hanging out at the bus transit playing with my deck and a homeless man came up to us crying.  I did a small reading for him, most of his family lived out of state and he was severely down on his luck, he left us laughing and happier so the oracle does help in situations like that. 

        Oracle decks come in as many sizes and varieties as tarot so it helps to look at as many decks as you can to match your energy and see what deck most calls to you to pick the best deck for you. To use them, you use the same layouts you would use for the tarot.  You can go online or read the interpretation book to find the layout that works for your question, or you can just make a layout up.  I normally do either a four card draw then a fifth to summarize the reading, another personal favorite is the three card past, present and future draw.  Once you have your deck and have selected the layout, you ask your question, shuffle and lay the cards out.  You can either lay them face down and flip as you go or lay them face up and interpret how you see fit.  You can read the book that comes with the deck, but those are guidelines and its really up to how you read them personally. 

        Oracle decks are perfect for people who want a simpler method to start reading tarot.  They help you practice with interpretation and help you getting in touch with your own intuition.