Reviews
Summary: The Night Sun Tarot rises to the challenge of facilitating our understanding of our Shadow. Through intriguing symbols, astrology, and numerology, this deck creates a rich reading experience for those who wish to go just a little deeper. Full Review: Listrani says that if our Shadow, in Jungian terms, is dark, then we require a transversal light that travels along a different spectrum to make it possible to access the Shadow. He says this anomalous sun, nocturnal and dark, allows us to find balance and wholeness. The language of this "non-light," he continues, is expressed through tarot images, symbols, and analogies, which are capable of reflecting the world submerged in our subconscious. Listrani asks a lot of tarot. But then, he puts a lot into his deck, drawing from two streams. First, he has researched many systems of wisdom, both Eastern and Western. Although, he erroneously says this is why his deck is the first to show Death as pregnant; this is not true. At least one deck that I know of has done this: The Tarot of the Dead by Monica Knighton. However, that mistake does not lessen the impact of the image of a pregnant Death card. Second, he created a deck that is holistic and organic...that is, the cards are linked to each other. For example, the image of an egg repeats through the cards. In the High Priestess, it is gestating. In the Empress, it is cracked open. In the Emperor, there is an eagle, the result of the egg. The Hierophant is very interesting to me, showing one of the Hierophant's students hiding a dagger behind his back. Proctection? Fanaticism? Very fascinating. The pips are a blend of Marseilles style and Rider Waite Smith images, which sometimes work very and sometimes fall flat. Astrology plays a big role in these cards and is incorporated into each card in the border (and follow the Golden Dawn associations). The court cards, though, are only given their elemental designator, although it would be hard to indicate the decans associated with the courts in a clear and easy manner. There is a lot of information on each card, along with the astrology. Numerology is important in this deck and the booklet includes numerological associations. Those who are looking for a deck rich in symbolism (and with less focus on evocative images), this intriguing deck, with cards designed to fit together like symbolic puzzle pieces, will be a juicy deck to sink your teeth into. For those who worry about such things, you should know that Justice is VIII and Strength is XI in this deck. The booklet includes one spread. Deck Attributes Name of deck: Night Sun Tarot Reviewer's Byline: Barbara Moore Publisher: Lo Scarabeo ISBN: 9780738745329 Creator name: Fabio Listrani Artist name: Fabio Listrani Name of accompanying book/booklet: Night Sun Tarot Number of pages of book/booklet: 63; 15 in English Does it follow Rider-Waite-Smith Standard?: Yes Does it have extra cards? No
