I also love the fact that the sunflower was not the automatic choice for The Sun. It would have been such an easy choice to make. Choosing it for The Magician indicates the thought that has gone into The Herbcrafter’s Tarot. In the book Guthrie writes, ‘The power of manifestation lies within. All the information necessary to create life is contained in the seed; yet it is the elements that makes the sunflower grow.’ This is the case with manifestation as well. She adds, ‘Receive divine light from the unseen realms, shape it into form, then give it all away,’ as the sunflower does with its seeds. For 3 The Empress, the message ‘Be vulnerable, yet strong’ is the first line printed under the title. That is what I try and do every time I sit down at my desk to write or to work with my cards. With the Five of Air White Sage it is not so much about the idea of smudging my space to clear away negative energy. Nothing on its own can do that. It is all about intention. The Major Arcana has retained the traditional card names, with two exceptions: XII Hanged One and XX Awakening. The Majors feature a woman’s spiritual journey of connecting with the world plants and the process of getting to know herself better in the process. HT:That you learn to use the gifts of the plant world to revitalise and replenish yourself. Stop pushing against the flow of natural forces and learn to flow with the tides and seasons. (Eight of Water – VALERIAN)

Others cards in The Herbcrafter’s Tarot just invoke thoughts that make sense to me. Take the Eight of Air Licorice as an example. My first thought was, some people love licorice, others don’t. And, sometimes what we like changes. When I saw this card it served as a reminder to embrace our right to choose. Often times when we are feeling trapped it is because we feel we do not have a choice. Rarely is that the case. Sometimes it is purely because we are scared to speak our truth. It is not solely about the properties of specific plants, but our human connection to them. We focus on the craft instead of the clinical and the art instead of the astrological. The artwork is absolutely stunning. Look at Key 8: Strength, featuring garlic. I love the inclusion of garlic snapes and the detailing of honey-preserved garlic (one of my favorite recipes, by the way). Each card of The Herbcrafter’s Tarot captures an encounter between humans and plants that highlights the ways our stories are inextricably linked. So who is the herbcrafter? Powell describes the herbcrafter as “an aficionada of the botanical realm. She is in love with plants and longs to know them more deeply. . . The herbcrafter embraces the plant world as her teacher and friend through observation and botany, gardening and wildcrafting, medicine and kitchen crafts, fiber arts and weaving, art and magic. She recognizes herself as part of nature.”

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The center card is another court– Curandera of Water, or King of Cups. This is the healer archetype. This card is encouraging you to leave the shallows and move into the depths. Flow with the ebbs of life, yielding to it rather than fighting it. Navigate the changes of life with grace. You possess the qualities and powers of a Healer through your open heart and your incredible gift for comforting others. There’s the exploration of herbs as archetypes and how to tap in to plant spirit magic. And most significant of all for The Herbcrafter’s Tarot, how to work with flora as a divinatory tool.

Hands were humans’ first magical tool. Hands give. Hands receive. Your ancestors live in your hands. Hands are symbols of initiation. They have the power to love, create, move, and change. They are associated with giving, receiving, and serving. They teach us about reciprocity. Hands bridge the profane and sacred worlds. Angeles Arrien

HT:I help you support and nourish those in need of healing. I contribute to community building. (Madre of Earth – CREOSOTE BUSH) The Majors show altars or mandalas which I feel really help me connect to the essence of each plant. All the Majors are breathtakingly beautiful and will serve well as focal points for meditation. The guidebook goes on to suggest different ways of crafting with the Adelita of Earth. Create important symbols of your heritage, made from local plant life. There’s also a suggestion to study and learn about the yucca moth, or consider taking up a class about weaving fiber with yucca. The People cards are also the only ones with humans in them, though we only see their hands. It’s an intentional choice and I adore the differences in the hands rendered: brown hands, young hands, lone hands, withered hands, tattooed hands- there’s a fullness of range here that is delightful and it’s not hard to imagine my small hands with their slight tremor hovering over an herbcrafting project; it’s not hard to imagine yours, if available to you.