Osho Zen Tarot: The Transcendental Game Of Zen

Osho Zen Tarot: The Transcendental Game Of Zen
by Osho

Osho Zen Tarot: The Transcendental Game Of Zen
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Book Summary Information

Author: Osho
Brand: Ma's India
Illustrator: Ma Deva Padma
Edition: Cards
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1995-04-15
ISBN: 0312117337
Number of pages: 176
Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Book Reviews of Osho Zen Tarot: The Transcendental Game Of Zen

Book Review: Voice of an outsider
Summary: 5 Stars

As is my usual practice, I'll preface this review with the disclaimer that I am not what you would call a professional practicioner of the tarot. The cards are nothing more than a hobby for me--one that I picked up after becoming intrigued with tarot during my reading of the Illuminatus! trilogy. Since then, I have begun to collect decks a few at a time, but I treat the entire pursuit more as an entertaining hobby than any kind of lifestyle. That being the case, you might think that Osho Zen Tarot would run a little roughshod across my sensibilities. After all, these cards are designed almost specifically for meditative purposes, and I'm not the sort of person who's real likely to put in that sort of time. That's really not the case, I've found. In fact, I'm not even sure that I'd call this a tarot deck--most tarot cards are designed with at least some divinatory capacity in mind, while these focus more on personal reflection and an exploration of the self. The cards have been reworked to a great extent. Both the major arcana and the minors have been rewritten and reordered--I have a hard time even relating this deck and other tarot decks. It is because of this difference that I cannot recommend this deck to beginners--not only is it vastly different from every other set out there, but it's probably also not what you're looking for to begin with. As usual, my recommendation for beginners is to stick with the Rider-Waite or another deck done in the style, but this one's probably not up their alley. The cards themselves are fully illustrated, with keywords printed at the bottom for aid in interpretation. The court cards are indistinguishable from the rest of the cards in the suit, except for the presence of directional arrows at the bottom of the card instead of a number. The trumps are numbered, but don't appear to directly correspond to the majors of other tarot decks. One thing should be noted before purchasing this deck--Osho can rub some people the wrong way. Reading the book, some of what was included for aid in interpretation was useful, and some was a little disturbing--reminiscent more of cult rhetoric than real guidance for life. The ostensible purpose of the deck is to relate Zen and tarot--not being a practitioner of Zen, I can't say how well that's been done. The inclusion of a twenty third trump, however, should be reflective of the tone and attitude of Osho--the twenty third trump is labeled the master, and his picture is plastered all over it. I'm really not sure what to make of this deck, all things told. I am glad that I own it, and I think that any collector of the tarot will definitely want to add this to their stash. I'm not so sure about these cards' utility for divinations, but for personal exploration I expect they should work very well for most people. If you can put up with a little bit of arrogance from Osho, than this deck is probably a good investment for you, with beautiful artwork and an interesting take on the tarot.

Summary of Osho Zen Tarot: The Transcendental Game Of Zen

When life seems to be full of doubt and uncertainty we tend to look for a source of inspiration: what will happen in the future? What about my health, the children? What will happen if I make this decision and not that one? This is how the traditional tarot is often used, to satisfy a longing to know about the past and future. This Osho Zen Tarot focuses instead on gaining an understanding of the here and now. It is a system based on the wisdom of Zen, a wisdom that says events in the outer world simply reflect in the outer world simply reflect our own thoughts and feelings, even though we ourselves might be unclear about what those thoughts and feelings are. So it helps us to turn our attention away from outside events so we can find a new clarity of understanding in our innermost hearts. The conditions and states of mind portrayed by the contemporary images on the cards are all shown as being essentially transitional and transformative. The text in the accompanying book helps to interpret and understand the images in the simple, straightforward and down to earth language of Zen.

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