In this deck, Aces are called Ones, perhaps to distinguish them from a deck of playing cards. Also, the two “male” suits of Swords and Wands have been renamed to Blades and Flames – Blades being considered a less negative version of the suit, and containing useful implements as well as destructive tools. Each card is also given a name, in the minor cards this may be either a generic keyword for the card, or it may be the name of a goddess represented on the card. I must admit that as much as I like this deck, the Ones do not seem as unified as the Aces of most decks – each card is quite different and there is no single theme that runs through them, although the elemental aspects of the suits seem to come through clearly. A brief description of each of the Ones follows.

One of Flames – Creation. This is probably my favorite of the Ones – the card is filled with gorgeous yellow and red flames, and leaping in the center of the flames is a coal-black woman who looks like she was born in the fire. She wears turquoise-blue pantaloons and a colorful woven sash, and throws her arms up in the air joyfully. This card represents creative energy, innovation, the spark of an idea or will, energy which must still be given form but which represents a new flame of creativity or ideas appearing in your life.

One of Cups – Happiness. A turquoise-blue card shows a naked woman standing in a waterfall, with a golden cup in one hand. Water splashes on her head and arms and into the cup. Surrounding her and the waterfall are rocks covered with lush, tropical plants – ferns, orchids, and reeds. She lifts her head and arms up joyfully into the waterfall. This card has a distinct resemblance to a later card of this suit, Ten of Cups, the main difference being that in that card, five women sit in a pool under the waterfall and share in the blessing. The name of the card – Happiness – to me just does not convey the full potential of this suit or the abundance that could arise from it. Meanings of this card include new emotional beginnings, overflowing love and abundance, the beginning of deep emotions, intuitive insights, or sensuality, flowing creativity, and the promise of fulfillment (which is reached in the Ten).

One of Pentacles – Nu Kwa. This card shows a Chinese woman in black pajamas straddling a huge glowing orange pentacle, in a pose of meditation. Behind her is a sparse but beautiful Chinese landscape, with tall conical mountains and flat plains, through which a river passes. The brown of earth and green hills are very prominent, giving the elemental energies of Earth. It appears that the woman in the card is giving birth to the Pentacle, but she can barely fit her legs around it. Nu Kwa was a creator goddess of ancient China, who busied herself with many things to do with the earth – creating nobles and peasants out of clay, rerouting and damming rivers to form lakes, creating the four points of the compass, and repairing the heavens from colored stones when they became out of alignment.

One of Blades – The Sibyl. An ancient Greek woman is seated on a stool in a cave. Several other women and children sit around her, listening as she tells a story, gives a prophecy, or relates the history of their people. A green serpent twines around one of her arms, and crystals grow out of the walls of the cave. This card honors the women of occult powers that are part of women’s heritage, such as the Oracles at Delphi. Sibyls consulted sacred snakes and spoke hidden truths, breathing in sulfur fumes from a cleft in the cliffs. From the book, “A sibyl weaves a spell with words, poetry, and music that is chanted and sung. She passes the Words of Power through legends, tales, and songs. She records the culture and names reality.” Her presence in this card may relate to a connection through the Sibyl with our origins, the Words of Power, and the original names of things which define their reality and through which they were created.

Thrysse