"Angels, Gods & Goddesses: Oracle Cards & Guidebook"
by Toni Carmine Salerno
Blue Angel Gallery, Australia
ISBN 0-9579149-6-2
A Review (c) Cheryl Lynne Bradley 2005


"Angels, Gods and Goddesses Oracle Cards" is a 45 card Guidance and Answer deck with a 62 page guidebook created by Toni Carmine Salerno. Toni credits his son Michael for help with the design work, card titles and inspiration. There is a section on "How to Use These Cards" and some original spreads for use with this unique and beautiful deck, which were written and created by Denise Harradine, a teacher of Tarot and Psychic Development in Melbourne, Australia. The result is a deeply spiritual collaboration.

This is a peaceful deck, the images are full of love, light, harmony, grace and mystical sensuality. I find a strong elemental presence in all of the images. Rich water, beautiful crystal and jewel adornments, butterflies, delicate flowers and trees with deep roots and reaching branches. Many of the images contain the Third Eye Chakra, depicted as a tear drop, a flame, a crystal, a star or a jewel. Other cards show us some or all of the 7 chakras that most of us are familiar with.

There are 25 Angel cards in this Oracle Deck. The guidebook arranges them alphabetically and they range from the Angel of Abundance to the Angel of Vision. Insights shared in the guidebook for each card vary in length from one to three paragraphs in length and there is a small black and white image of the card with each section. The card for the Angel of Guidance is Madonna like with a star indicating the Third Eye. She is telling us that a renewed sense of direction and purpose will soon be manifesting in our life. The guidebook gives us a visualization to utilize when we draw this card and she is drawn when we are crying silently for help and assistance. That Angel of Manifestion is haloed depicted with her wings forming a blue heart and a star emblazoned on her chest. She promises us that our efforts, determination and perseverance will pay off. The guidebook reminds us to stay focused and not to lose sight of our purpose. It also gives a gentle reminder to give thanks.

There are 6 cards related to Gods. They include the God of Art, God of Clnflict and Resolution, God of Indulgence, God of Reflections, God of Spiritual Healing and the God of the Underworld. Some of them are Christlike in there appearance, others like young princes, others more like a man you could meet anywhere in your day to day life. Perhaps a reminder that you never know where God, Gods or Angels might appear in your life. Particularly compelling is the God of Reflections which has a woman gazing at her reflection in a pool of water, the reflection looking back is male. A radiant light shines down from above following and illuminating the graceful curve of her shoulder. It is a wonderful expression of the balance of masculine and feminine energies and it reminds of the Buddhist koan which tells us to look in the mirror and remember our original face. It tells us that the qualities we see in others are simply our own reflection. The guidebook advises us that drawing this card indicates that we are giving away our own power because we are failing to recognize or acknowledge our own gifts. It reminds me of how often women only look and listen to men to see what we mean to them, instead of looking and listening to understand who they are as people.

The remaining 14 cards are all about the Goddesses. These range from the Goddess of Awakening to the Goddess of the Unknown. There is a wonderful range of images in the Goddesses. They express the many facets of the feminine: sSpiritual, sensual, earthy, womanly, motherly, strong, dramatic and mysterious - all luminous and intriguing. The Goddess of Oneness is a woman's form expressed in the fluid grace of a tree with roots and branches, she is also haloed and promissed the someone you love is thinking fondly of you at the moment. According the book she is reminding us that love is not restricted to time or space and that we are forever connected spiritually to those we love and care for. The Goddess of Psychic Protection tells us the what you believe, you create. No one can harm us. The information in the book tells us further that we subconsiously believe that somone is energetically trying to cause negativity in our llife. It reminds us that all things are energetically connected and that we need to focus on the love and light that is around us at every moment in our lives and overcome the negative thinking process.

The layouts created to work with this deck are a simple One Card Reading for a thought or focal point of the day. A Four Card Spread which looks at Past, Present, Future and Outcome. A very nice 13 cards Relationship Spread borken down into three sections: How Does this Affect Me?; How Does this Affect Other People? and The Partnership: Me and You, Together. There is a Psychic Seven layout designed to help us find our personal potential. and the standard Celtic Cross.

I love the artwork in this deck and find it opens a channel with me. The original layouts could easily be used with a standard Tarot deck and are simple and easy to follow. This would be a wonderful addition to anyone's deck collection, in particular, to those people who are fond of Oracle Decks. This is nicely packaged in a box and the book fits inside the box, easy to carry with you if you were travelling and it would also be a wonderful augment to a Tarot reading as a deeper enhancement of any issues facing a Querent.

 




This page was created November 11, 2005.