Book Review: Tarot Priestess

Leeza Robertson, Tarot Priestess: Using the Cards to Heal, Grow, & Serve. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Worldwide, 2022. ISBN: 9780738765334.

 

Genre: Tarot, divination

Subgenre: feminism, women, womxn, divine feminine

Format: e-book galley

Source: NetGalley

 

I picked this book up as I often do: out of curiosity. In my cartomancy journey I try to read as much as I can on the topic. For me, this book had a lot of positives. It had a negative or two, but the positives have the most weight. 

 

This is mainly a book for women who practice Tarot, want to learn Tarot, or perhaps they wish to deepen their magical practice and craft using Tarot (or rather "womxn," which is the term the author uses). If you identify as such, this book can be a great option for you. 

The book is arranged as follows: 

 

•  Introduction. This gives an overview of the Priestess Path and the Fool's Role. It also introduces the book's overall structure based on Path, Purpose, and Temple. 
• Chapters One, Two, and Three are the Gateway chapters. Here you study the Major Arcana.
• Chapters Four, Five, Six, and Seven are the Temple chapters. Here you study the Minor Arcana cards 1-10 in each suit.
• Chapter Eight is The Stages of the Priestess. Here you study the court cards and see them as levels in the Priestess journey. 
• Conclusion. 
• Recommended Reading. A small list on the concept of goddess and the divine feminine for further study and reading. The list offers 12 books.
  

This is a book to do some serious in-depth Tarot and divine feminine study. I read through it to write the review, but this is a book to take your time and do the exercises and rituals a bit at a time. You do feel you'll gain growth if you take the process a step at a time. The main concept of the book is what the author calls the tarot priestess path, a way to answer the goddesses' call, and deepen your practice so you can live as a daughter of the goddess (2). If nothing else, this book provides a good opportunity to learn about Tarot and the Divine Feminine. 

A strength of the book is in the devotional exercises throughout the book. There is a variety of exercises. Some are rituals. Other exercises may be doing a particular Tarot spread or other card reading. Exercises also include journaling and altar work. There is plenty to do here, and the author provides exercises that are relatively easy to do. These are tasks that feel doable and do not require much equipment beyond some basics. As the author recommends, you may want to have multiple Tarot decks for various tasks. 

The book also offers a lot of structure, so if you are like me, structure is good. The exercises build upon each other. So start at the beginning and work your way up. The book is written in an easy and nurturing tone, which is another strength. 

Overall, this is a good book, especially for womxn. Learning is incremental, and the exercises offer depth. It is a book for reflection and deep study. It may be geared a bit more for beginners or for those who are coming back into a craft after an absence, but Tarot practitioners at any level can gain benefit from the lessons. This is a book to keep handy. 

The book may also be a good selection for libraries with Tarot, pagan, and/or esoterica collections. This is one I would buy for our library if the local pagans requested it. I ended up really liking it.

4 out of 5 stars. 

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Additional reading notes: 

 

What makes a Tarot priestess in brief: 

 

For if you have been using the tarot for spiritual practice or even incorporating it into some form of daily devotion and ritual, you are a tarot priestess" (3). 

 

The book's structure: 

 

"Tarot Priestess is structured to give you a framework to connect your tarot practice back to the goddess and recommit your feet to the priestess path. The chapters walk you through three priestess gateways and four goddess temples, and it also introduces you to the four stages of the initiation process" (5). 

 

What the Gateways are: 

 

"In many respects, the gateways are just this: steps in a larger living ceremony that starting with yourself and ending with the world. The gateways also help you creating deep, meaningful practice for yourself so you can be the example to others. After all, isn't that how you found the path, watching some other Priestess do what comes naturally to her?" (16).

 

On looking at the Wheel of Fortune: 

 

"The Hermit's lamp will ultimately lead you to the wheel of fate. You may also know it as the Wheel of Fortune, but a priestess knows that all circumstances are fortunate and that luck is merely a matter of perspective. Which is why the goddess teaches us to look upon the Wheel instead as the inevitable turning of time, the change of seasons and the cycles we go through as a collective species. This broader understanding of the Wheel will change how you view the external world. As you will see, it is something that is playing its part, not something that can bend to your will or intend your personal harm. The Wheel reconnects you to the natural order; the cosmic rhythms of the world in which you live, dance, breathe and worship. Everything is as it should be, all the time, without fail. As the Wheel turns and things change, so too does your experience" (40). 

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This book qualifies for the following 2022 Reading Challenge: