I seem to be finding my way to more magical decks, by which I mean decks steeped in the occult and esoteric symbolism beyond the pictures of the tarot. These decks are not "ritual" decks in that they are not painted with gold foil and diamond dust or other luxuries, but they are magical in that they are designed to be used for magical purposes in addition to my more standard psycho-spiritual divinations. For me, the Wayward Dark Tarot by James Brothwell (@PixelOccult) shows that tendency through its emphasis on the elements as magical forces. This deck is based on the Thoth system*, using the same one-word titles in almost all cases and the same elemental and astrological correspondences that one finds in the Golden Dawn system. However, the suits are just their elements: rather than invoking wands as implements of the energy and spirit of fire, you just have fire. (You actually don't even have fire you have the esoteric glyph that means fire, a point-up triangle.) The court cards still maintain their ranks of Knight, Queen, Prince, and Princess, but their elemental association is listed on the card as well (suit element on the left, rank element on the right, perhaps to replicate Hebrew's right-to-left script). I'm not really sure why they have those titles of rank other than that these cards would be out-of-synch with the others in the deck without some title, and stating Water of Fire would be redundant with the glyphs on the card.

*In case it wasn't clear that this follows the system of Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot, the Star card shows Hē in the middle of the seven-pointed star as the Hebrew letter associated with the Star instead of Tzaddi. That's a stake in the Qabbalistic ground. You can't just trim that off a border if you disagree. But that's probably something that most people don't care about. I, for one, have zero skin in that game.

The Wayward Dark Tarot is . . . wait for it . . . dark. Illuminating, right? But I mean dark in more than its wintry Tim Burton-esque black, white, and pale blue look. It's easy to see the Empress as a dark conjuror and the pointy-eared Queens as demonic or, at best, winter fey. It describes itself as "macabre" and "chthonic" after all, so is it any wonder that the earthy Devil makes his appearance along with the fiery witch of the tarot? Through his caduceus, the Devil bears a resemblance to Mercury and thus the Magus. It's a via-via link, but it's there (and in Wealth, the 10 of Earth), which makes it a useful reminder that the Magus's work can be swayed by the seductive allure of the material Devil (the problem of Capricorn). I'll get into my thoughts on that below since the Devil comes up in a significant way in this reading, but "wayward" also seems like a clue to watch where you're walking with this deck as you seek that self-empowering magic. Whether or not I use this deck with clients on any regular basis is very much up for debate.

I've conducted the interview with my deck interview spread.

Deck Interview spread with Wayward Dark Tarot — INTERVIEWING THE WAYWARD DARK TAROT

**What major lesson are you here to help me learn?** *Empress*
**Through which divine energy can we best communicate?** *Queen of Fire*
**In what area can you aid me to help others?** *Devil*
**In what area could your guidance be easily misunderstood?** *Queen of Air*
**What can I do to keep our communication clear?** *Completion | 4 of Fire*
**How can I use your guidance for the highest good?** *Interference | 8 of Air*
**How will I know when we’re ready for a new lesson?** *Star*

Everything about this reading screams prioritization and self-empowerment, which I'm all for, but it suggests it through a willingness to push one's own limits in order to find the dark place. That, too, is exciting (we all know I love shadow work), but there's a fine line between finding the dark place to draw strength from your own weaknesses and finding that darkness and falling into it. I'm wary of shortcuts, in part because they're so seductive. Creation and magical self-empowerment—the Empress and the Queen of Fire—create the central pillar of my connection with this deck, and its use points to helping others through … the Devil. That Empress is definitely summoning something from somewhere, and as I mentioned at the outset, the Queen looks a little demonic, but I think this is about finding that fine line between using your shadows to strengthen yourself and improve your life and succumbing to shortcuts and material obsessions as their own goal. I see the appeal of hedonism and the allure of filthy lucre, and there are lessons to learn from them, but it's also hard to extricate oneself from their seduction when the lessons have been learned. I could go on a digression about prosperity and abundance mindsets and my Puritanical earthiness (and I did in the first few drafts of this), but I'll spare you. (Just note that the Devil holds a caduceus, reflecting both Mercury (and thus the Magus) and Wealth | 10 of Earth, which also shows the caduceus.) The Star guides me to keep my eye on the prize and Completion reminds us to really focus on the end goal.

In this regard, the focus is self-empowerment through identifying priorities and boundaries. As the card for the area in which this deck can help me help others, the Devil offers that allure of the material as well as the knowledge of its limitations. Self-empowerment and creation is not just about getting everything you want; it's also about making do with and feeling complete in what you have. You can try to manifest diamonds, but it's going to be a much better use of one's time to recognize that diamonds are not actually useful to the vast majority of us beyond the fact that they have value and can thus be used to get us something else that we want. Cut through the middleman of diamonds. If you want to sparkle and be looked upon as powerful or impressive, you don't need diamonds; you need self-confidence. Interference | 8 of Air is about priorities and not falling into analysis paralysis because you don't know what matters. The Devil card reminds me of the idea that you can "know the price of everything but the value of nothing." That's a bit of what I get from the Queen of Air as well. She's logical and decisive and objective, all great qualities. But her powers in this reading are subject to misunderstanding: those qualities don't work well here. If you want straight answers from a "wayward" deck, then you're going to get confused. Instead, tap into that sense of fulfillment and acceptance of what good things you have that is represented by Completion | 4 of Fire.

Sure, you can try to get what you want using binding magic, which I associated with Interference, but chances are good that you'll find yourself on the other end of it with some smug SOB saying, "Be careful what you wish for. Am I right?" This deck can help me help others cut through the base desires to create for themselves, in themselves, what really matters. That's a tall order for anyone, but it's one I gladly take on. And it's apparently one that I'm likely to take on quickly, as I see in the final Star card that I might be ready for a new lesson in a few months when Aquarius season rolls around.

The cards pictured here are from the Wayward Dark Tarot, created by James Brothwell © 2019. This edition is from the Kickstarter campaign, but you can probably find more copies of the deck (and other decks!) through the Pixel Occult Etsy shop. All rights reserved.

Deck Interview: Wayward Dark Tarot