Using an oracle deck to inspire you

Do you ever use an oracle deck when you want to be inspired? I do.

Here’s what I want you to know about an oracle deck practice:

It is what you make of it.

You have every single answer inside of you. 

Sometimes, when I pull a card that feels off — or feels like it’s message is dark or mysterious, I let myself be with the uncomfortable.

Sometimes, I pull another card. 

Oracle decks are often like dream interpretation: sometimes the things you see mean everything, or you could just have weird dreams some nights.

Here’s a quick guide to using your oracle card deck (pictured below is the Wild Unknown Tarot, by Kim Krans. I’ve been chopping beets before taking these photos – real life in action!)

Step 1: Take a moment to hold your deck before pulling a card. Close your eyes. What images or thoughts come to you as you hold your deck?

Step 2: Shuffle your deck. I’m pretty terrible at shuffling, but cutting in in half and shimming the cards together several times works great. 

Step 3: Choose a card. You can spread the deck out in front of you, or pick one off the top. Before running to pick up your booklet to learn what the card means, ask yourself: what do I feel when I look at these images? Are there any symbols in the images that means anything to me?

Like in this card, 9 of cups, I see a u-shape which reminds me of the uterus, feminine energy, the word unknown, and an open loop. The moon is in a waxing crescent, often a time to start something new. And lastly, the cups remind me of fluid, liquid, and staying in the flow – and to be sensual about it. 

 

 

There’s a lot that can be revealed if you study an image and wait for it’s meaning to be revealed. This is the foundation of trusting yourself, your instincts, your answers. No other person, mentor, or guide book will ever show you the way — only you.

Embracing you as you stay inspired by your oracle decks, and most of all: your life.

 

Guide to video:

In this video, I use a beloved oracle deck by Colette Baron-Reid to inspire my journal practice.

Tips for using this video:

The video is 3 minutes long. Watch it once, pause it as you need to, and observe what I’m doing and saying.

What you need to remember will stick with you for your practice.

Then, grab these materials:

  • An oracle deck, or a vision board, or any other sort of images you have that inspires you. I often save the fronts of greeting cards to inspire me, too.
  • A journal or sketchbook
  • A pen, marker, crayon, pencil – anything to write with
  • Watercolor palette (like I say in the video, I even will use my 2 year olds paints sometimes)
  • A paintbrush
  • Water (for your paints, but a glass of water for drinking is good, too!)

Go ahead and use whatever you have chosen to inspire you to inform your journaling. Maybe you only write. Maybe you doodle and don’t look at your cards at all.

In the end, this practice is about getting lost in what’s in front of you for a few minutes. 

And from that lost place, you will use magic to find your way out. It’s a guarantee.

Once you’ve done the exercise, tell me-what was your favorite part of using an oracle deck for your journaling practice?

A note about this video: I film with a time lapse, and then I slow the video down for the final product. That’s why there’s a stop animation vibe to this video. The video is not in real time. Take all the time you need to create what you are inspired to create today. This time is yours.

Scroll to top