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Tarot Shadow Work: Using the Dark Symbols to Heal
"In Tarot Shadow Work, Christine Jette bravely takes the practice of tarot readings to new depths and places many people fear to go. She shows us how we can use the cards to trigger awareness in ourselves of troubling aspects of our lives and histories, and then go beyond discovery to use the cards as tools for healing. This is part of the work that needs to be done with tarot in this new century." —Rachel Pollack, author of 78 Degrees of Wisdom and the forthcoming Shining Tribe Tarot
Deep within our psyches, the unconscious holds our forbidden feelings, secret wishes, and creative urges. Over time, these "dark forces" take on a life of their own and form the shadow—a powerful force of unresolved inner conflicts and unexpressed emotions that defies our efforts to control it.
The shadow takes its shape from a menagerie of archetypes, each recognizable throughout time and around the world—troubling characters who thrive within our persona. The shadow is saboteur, martyr, victim, addict, sadist, masochist, or tyrant; all the dark figures that prey on the lighter qualities of the human personality. The shadow also represents those latent talents and positive traits that were banished from us at some time along our life path: artistic, musical, athletic, or creative talents. An undeveloped ability, a dream that has gone unexpressed, a fantasy of what might have been—these too make up the personal shadow, the lost parts of ourselves.
Tarot Shadow Work shows you how to free yourself from the shackles of the shadow's power. Through tarot work, journaling, meditation, creative visualization, and dream work, you will bring the shadow into the light. This book is ideal for those who are in recovery from a serious addiction or illness, as well as any person seeking a deeper understanding of his or her true self.
By exploring the dark and uncharted territory of the unconscious mind, you will work towards understanding and integrating the shadow. No prior knowledge of the tarot is required. You will learn to use the cards as a tool to help you break free from negative patterns and self-destructive behavior. Once we realize that we are made of both light and darkness, life will start to make sense. When we accept our dual natures, we stop sabotaging our own efforts and learn to be compassionate with others and with ourselves.
Deep within our psyches, the unconscious holds our forbidden feelings, secret wishes, and creative urges. Over time, these "dark forces" take on a life of their own and form the shadow—a powerful force of unresolved inner conflicts and unexpressed emotions that defies our efforts to control it.
The shadow takes its shape from a menagerie of archetypes, each recognizable throughout time and around the world—troubling characters who thrive within our persona. The shadow is saboteur, martyr, victim, addict, sadist, masochist, or tyrant; all the dark figures that prey on the lighter qualities of the human personality. The shadow also represents those latent talents and positive traits that were banished from us at some time along our life path: artistic, musical, athletic, or creative talents. An undeveloped ability, a dream that has gone unexpressed, a fantasy of what might have been—these too make up the personal shadow, the lost parts of ourselves.
Tarot Shadow Work shows you how to free yourself from the shackles of the shadow's power. Through tarot work, journaling, meditation, creative visualization, and dream work, you will bring the shadow into the light. This book is ideal for those who are in recovery from a serious addiction or illness, as well as any person seeking a deeper understanding of his or her true self.
By exploring the dark and uncharted territory of the unconscious mind, you will work towards understanding and integrating the shadow. No prior knowledge of the tarot is required. You will learn to use the cards as a tool to help you break free from negative patterns and self-destructive behavior. Once we realize that we are made of both light and darkness, life will start to make sense. When we accept our dual natures, we stop sabotaging our own efforts and learn to be compassionate with others and with ourselves.
264 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2000
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401 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
August 10, 2024
4 stars
*Tarot spread included*
short review for busy readers
This is a hard one to rate because A) it's not a Tarot book and B) what it actually is -- namely mystical therapy sessions with a few Tarot spreads thrown in -- could be extremely helpful to the right reader. But not very if that's not you. The actual Tarot spreads are *very* good, however.
in detail
The majority of this book is general therapy for working through the darker, more shame-filled emotions coated with a heavy layer of Wiccan gloss.
Which isn't surprising. This is a Llewellyn publication, meaning it's aimed primarily at young Wiccans between the ages of 14 and 26. But for being a Llewellyn publication, it is surprisingly practical and free of romanticised fluff.
With the few Tarot spreads included, the book uses "star" spreads of 6 Major Arcana cards each. I'll give you the foundation one, the "Star of Discovery" so you can try it for yourself and see if you find it useful.
INSTRUCTIONS
Shuffle and lay the cards in a star shape (card 1 in the middle, card 2 to the bottom right, card 3 above card 2, card 4 over card 1, card 5 on the top left across from card 3, card 6 on the bottom left across from card 2)
Card 1: what you are in denial about
Card 2: what makes you anxious about your life/self
Card 3: where your feelings of inferiority about yourself sit
Card 4: what are you most angry about in your life
Card 5: what is your biggest secret you can't let anyone know about
Card 6. what you hate yourself for
This is an excellent, highly revealing spread, as other reviewers have also pointed out!
In short, I think this book would be of most (read: fantastic) use to those with a counselling degree who want to build group therapy courses based on alternative spirituality. There are tons of ideas that could be used as building blocks for therapies for any number of problems.
For solo practitioners, some of the things will resonate, but by far not all. The writing is gentle, open-minded and largely inclusive in speech (but not woke, so don't expect that).
Not a bad work overall...and surprisingly good by Llewellyn standards! But it's not a Tarot book. So off goes 1 star.
*Tarot spread included*
short review for busy readers
This is a hard one to rate because A) it's not a Tarot book and B) what it actually is -- namely mystical therapy sessions with a few Tarot spreads thrown in -- could be extremely helpful to the right reader. But not very if that's not you. The actual Tarot spreads are *very* good, however.
in detail
The majority of this book is general therapy for working through the darker, more shame-filled emotions coated with a heavy layer of Wiccan gloss.
Which isn't surprising. This is a Llewellyn publication, meaning it's aimed primarily at young Wiccans between the ages of 14 and 26. But for being a Llewellyn publication, it is surprisingly practical and free of romanticised fluff.
With the few Tarot spreads included, the book uses "star" spreads of 6 Major Arcana cards each. I'll give you the foundation one, the "Star of Discovery" so you can try it for yourself and see if you find it useful.
INSTRUCTIONS
Shuffle and lay the cards in a star shape (card 1 in the middle, card 2 to the bottom right, card 3 above card 2, card 4 over card 1, card 5 on the top left across from card 3, card 6 on the bottom left across from card 2)
Card 1: what you are in denial about
Card 2: what makes you anxious about your life/self
Card 3: where your feelings of inferiority about yourself sit
Card 4: what are you most angry about in your life
Card 5: what is your biggest secret you can't let anyone know about
Card 6. what you hate yourself for
This is an excellent, highly revealing spread, as other reviewers have also pointed out!
In short, I think this book would be of most (read: fantastic) use to those with a counselling degree who want to build group therapy courses based on alternative spirituality. There are tons of ideas that could be used as building blocks for therapies for any number of problems.
For solo practitioners, some of the things will resonate, but by far not all. The writing is gentle, open-minded and largely inclusive in speech (but not woke, so don't expect that).
Not a bad work overall...and surprisingly good by Llewellyn standards! But it's not a Tarot book. So off goes 1 star.
November 13, 2024
I have mixed feelings about this book.
Right out the door, the author immediately messes up such low hanging fruit as a Shakespeare quote- then goes on to assert that not only was the ancient Hecate a "wise woman Crone" (she wasn't and that's a modern construction), but that she was transformed into the "ugly old green hag with warts, the wicked witch of Halloween" (she definitely wasn't and that's absolutely not where we get that imagery). And then, as if she has not done enough damage, proceeds to show her lack of basic historical occult knowledge too by insisting Jung was “a serious scholar”, “wasn’t a member of an occult society”, and “[only] established a rational position from which the irrational could be rationally analyzed”.
While I don’t quite remember if Jung actually ever formally joined an Occult Society, he was in fact a massive Occult Weeb- and probably one of the weirdest ones, honestly. Freud, too. As was James. It’s not even that hard to verify, either. Even in the early 2000's when this book was originally written, a simple search anywhere would have verified outright that most Victorian and Edwardian scientists (and even well into the 1950′s and 1960′s)- including nearly all of the “fathers of modern Psychiatry”- were absolutely bonkers about the Occult. Hardly any of them even bothered trying to hide it. Jung was quite proud of it, even, and regularly gave lectures about it.
Pretending Jung was only into “super serious stuff”, and that Shadowork was only predicated on "super serious research", is utterly ridiculous when the man's occult shenaniganry is well known. It's an annoyance when they really did do their research in other areas just fine. It's also quite ironic when they outright acknowledge that Jung "has become the grand spokesman for New Age thought"... How else does the author think Shadowork not only came about in part (as people forget that Jung is not the only influence on Shadow Work despite the fact his psychology forms its foundation) in the first place, but also became so popular among modern day Pagans and occultists to begin with? Truly, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to put two and two together there (or do the research).
And that's the thing: I will say that I do think she approaches the shadowork itself well and practically enough, and has a strong enough grasp of the concepts and psychology which fuels it; there is an appropriate level of emphasis not on getting rid of, but of embracing and legitimately healing, past hurts and traumas. There is also an appropriate emphasis on knowing when it's time to seek professional help- though I think she could have done a stronger job of driving the point home. I enjoyed, too, that she emphasizes importance on "the neutral state", and being emotionally ready, grounded, and capable of dealing with the shadow; though I don't actually agree with a lot of pure Jungian shadowork these days, I will say she's done a good job at keeping it rational and proper here, which is often lacking, I find, in modern materials on shadowork.
However, a lot of it is contradicted earlier in the book when she gives the reader a spiel about how "the best Tarot work comes from the Heart, not the Intellect"- which does seem quite a bit counterintuitive when the whole process of Shadowork (which is what we're doing here, whether Tarot is involved in the process or not) involves quite a lot of intellect in regards to the critical examination of the self, and so on. We do, after all, need to step outside the matters of the heart, and put aside our emotions, in order to actually achieve that neutral state required in order to properly examine our Shadow, and determine how to best deal with and heal it. There's no way to get around that; you certainly can't just "interpret from the heart" if you actually want this process to be effective- and that's going to have to apply to your interpretation of the Tarot you're using to assist you as well.
Regarding Tarot meanings, though, she asserts that "we get a peak at the shadow when a card is reversed", as if every card reversal in Tarot is inherently negative, or otherwise somehow related to the shadow in some way. Which is an incredibly odd assertion to make, to be honest, as I can think of plenty cards just off the top of my head that are positive ones when reversed, and negative when upright. They contradict themselves, though, less than a paragraph later by saying the Tower is often viewed as negative as a whole. And not that I disagree with that statement (as it usually is)... But which is it?
It's confusing to say that some cards are inherently negatively viewed, but that each is also somehow connected to the shadow when reversed. So does upright only have to do with the lighter, higher self, and the reversed the shadow? Even then, it makes no sense for only the reversals to be related- but rather for each full card's meaning (both reversed and upright) to be taken and considered in whole. To further assert that interpretation of the symbols is merely "in the eye of the beholder" is a bit strange as Tarot is, in fact, a system with set symbolism. And in that regard, the symbolism is the symbolism. It doesn't change based on who's reading it (just the relevancy to the events or question- and there certainly is a difference); you can't have it all ways. So again, which is it?
I do, though, again, like that she speaks of various common rituals and "commandments" about Tarot and what to or not to do with it; things such as not letting people touch your cards, specific ways of storing them, specific ways of shuffling them, etc... Bits of "common Tarot knowledge" which are wholly unnecessary, but which we're usually (mistakenly) told you always have to do in order to do Tarot "right". I did enjoy that she notes you don't actually have to do any of that unless you explicitly find these rituals and practices personally helpful, or find that they increase your own personal concentration. I also enjoyed that she emphasized that Tarot itself is a tool. The "magic" of it doesn't come from the cards itself, but is your own. Something else which is commonly left out or spoken of in the opposite direction.
Too, I liked the list of endnotes and references- though I've already gone over how she clearly didn't do a good enough job on her research; another reason it was so disappointing that she failed on such basic information right out the door. But the fact she bothered at all to try and include some sort of an endnote section or bibliography shows that she at least tried to not only do the appropriate research, but has enough academic and personal integrity to attempt to show her work and source her claims for the appropriate scrutiny. The fact they don't just link back to more Llewellyn (etc) texts is even better. And all of that is worth several points in my book.
So... It's a mixed bag. On one hand there's a lot to like about the actual process and the rational with which she approaches it, and the lack of ~woo~. It's a breath of fresh air compared to the way it's gone in the last 2 decades since the book's publications, whether I like pure Jungian Shadowork or not. But when it comes to the Tarot elements themselves... There's a lot to be desired about her methodology and opinions.
Right out the door, the author immediately messes up such low hanging fruit as a Shakespeare quote- then goes on to assert that not only was the ancient Hecate a "wise woman Crone" (she wasn't and that's a modern construction), but that she was transformed into the "ugly old green hag with warts, the wicked witch of Halloween" (she definitely wasn't and that's absolutely not where we get that imagery). And then, as if she has not done enough damage, proceeds to show her lack of basic historical occult knowledge too by insisting Jung was “a serious scholar”, “wasn’t a member of an occult society”, and “[only] established a rational position from which the irrational could be rationally analyzed”.
While I don’t quite remember if Jung actually ever formally joined an Occult Society, he was in fact a massive Occult Weeb- and probably one of the weirdest ones, honestly. Freud, too. As was James. It’s not even that hard to verify, either. Even in the early 2000's when this book was originally written, a simple search anywhere would have verified outright that most Victorian and Edwardian scientists (and even well into the 1950′s and 1960′s)- including nearly all of the “fathers of modern Psychiatry”- were absolutely bonkers about the Occult. Hardly any of them even bothered trying to hide it. Jung was quite proud of it, even, and regularly gave lectures about it.
Pretending Jung was only into “super serious stuff”, and that Shadowork was only predicated on "super serious research", is utterly ridiculous when the man's occult shenaniganry is well known. It's an annoyance when they really did do their research in other areas just fine. It's also quite ironic when they outright acknowledge that Jung "has become the grand spokesman for New Age thought"... How else does the author think Shadowork not only came about in part (as people forget that Jung is not the only influence on Shadow Work despite the fact his psychology forms its foundation) in the first place, but also became so popular among modern day Pagans and occultists to begin with? Truly, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to put two and two together there (or do the research).
And that's the thing: I will say that I do think she approaches the shadowork itself well and practically enough, and has a strong enough grasp of the concepts and psychology which fuels it; there is an appropriate level of emphasis not on getting rid of, but of embracing and legitimately healing, past hurts and traumas. There is also an appropriate emphasis on knowing when it's time to seek professional help- though I think she could have done a stronger job of driving the point home. I enjoyed, too, that she emphasizes importance on "the neutral state", and being emotionally ready, grounded, and capable of dealing with the shadow; though I don't actually agree with a lot of pure Jungian shadowork these days, I will say she's done a good job at keeping it rational and proper here, which is often lacking, I find, in modern materials on shadowork.
However, a lot of it is contradicted earlier in the book when she gives the reader a spiel about how "the best Tarot work comes from the Heart, not the Intellect"- which does seem quite a bit counterintuitive when the whole process of Shadowork (which is what we're doing here, whether Tarot is involved in the process or not) involves quite a lot of intellect in regards to the critical examination of the self, and so on. We do, after all, need to step outside the matters of the heart, and put aside our emotions, in order to actually achieve that neutral state required in order to properly examine our Shadow, and determine how to best deal with and heal it. There's no way to get around that; you certainly can't just "interpret from the heart" if you actually want this process to be effective- and that's going to have to apply to your interpretation of the Tarot you're using to assist you as well.
Regarding Tarot meanings, though, she asserts that "we get a peak at the shadow when a card is reversed", as if every card reversal in Tarot is inherently negative, or otherwise somehow related to the shadow in some way. Which is an incredibly odd assertion to make, to be honest, as I can think of plenty cards just off the top of my head that are positive ones when reversed, and negative when upright. They contradict themselves, though, less than a paragraph later by saying the Tower is often viewed as negative as a whole. And not that I disagree with that statement (as it usually is)... But which is it?
It's confusing to say that some cards are inherently negatively viewed, but that each is also somehow connected to the shadow when reversed. So does upright only have to do with the lighter, higher self, and the reversed the shadow? Even then, it makes no sense for only the reversals to be related- but rather for each full card's meaning (both reversed and upright) to be taken and considered in whole. To further assert that interpretation of the symbols is merely "in the eye of the beholder" is a bit strange as Tarot is, in fact, a system with set symbolism. And in that regard, the symbolism is the symbolism. It doesn't change based on who's reading it (just the relevancy to the events or question- and there certainly is a difference); you can't have it all ways. So again, which is it?
I do, though, again, like that she speaks of various common rituals and "commandments" about Tarot and what to or not to do with it; things such as not letting people touch your cards, specific ways of storing them, specific ways of shuffling them, etc... Bits of "common Tarot knowledge" which are wholly unnecessary, but which we're usually (mistakenly) told you always have to do in order to do Tarot "right". I did enjoy that she notes you don't actually have to do any of that unless you explicitly find these rituals and practices personally helpful, or find that they increase your own personal concentration. I also enjoyed that she emphasized that Tarot itself is a tool. The "magic" of it doesn't come from the cards itself, but is your own. Something else which is commonly left out or spoken of in the opposite direction.
Too, I liked the list of endnotes and references- though I've already gone over how she clearly didn't do a good enough job on her research; another reason it was so disappointing that she failed on such basic information right out the door. But the fact she bothered at all to try and include some sort of an endnote section or bibliography shows that she at least tried to not only do the appropriate research, but has enough academic and personal integrity to attempt to show her work and source her claims for the appropriate scrutiny. The fact they don't just link back to more Llewellyn (etc) texts is even better. And all of that is worth several points in my book.
So... It's a mixed bag. On one hand there's a lot to like about the actual process and the rational with which she approaches it, and the lack of ~woo~. It's a breath of fresh air compared to the way it's gone in the last 2 decades since the book's publications, whether I like pure Jungian Shadowork or not. But when it comes to the Tarot elements themselves... There's a lot to be desired about her methodology and opinions.
March 31, 2024
tl;dr I think despite me mostly pointing out negatives in my non-tl;dr review, because I could see a lot of potential for this book to be even better, my nit-picks aside, I still enjoyed this book and am glad I read it. The exercises were plentiful and worthwhile. Taking it as slow as I did, letting things sit and digest, helped a lot with me liking this book and getting more out of it. Shadow work can be really exhausting to do, but the author does a lot to hold your hand and help guide you through it.
Non-tl;dr, my notes as I read:
I was definitely excited to dive into this book. As someone who is interested in tarot primarily due to the mental health benefits, this book had me intrigued.
It started off fine, great in fact, I was finding myself saving quotes quite often, but nit-picks started to crop up.
This book does heavily lean into the spiritual side, which as someone who has been involved in the tarot community and read many books on the topic, that comes with the territory. Despite the author, rightfully, explaining how anyone, religious or spiritual or not, can participate, they do heavily push the spiritual side. It can take me a second to rework the spiritual stuff into a secular perspective, but for some examples, "cast a circle of protection" could be "find a place where you feel safe and comfortable". The 'Dark Goddess' could just be your own internal demons, like confronting the parts of you that you ignore, are afraid of, push down, etc.
I also wasn't super big on the idea of 'stuff stuff stuff', which is super common in these types of books, from what I've noticed. Shadow work can be as simple as you sitting in a room, in a calm state of mind, just chillin'. You don't need candles, incense, alters, cloths, cards, crystals, and all that flair. Just start simple. (I know this is a book specifically about shadow work WITH tarot, so you'd want some kind of access to cards, even if freebie app or online options, but in general, shadow work does not require anything!) Maybe bring something to take notes with as you meditate. If you want an alter or things, you can build it up over time. Which the author did briefly mention, but I still felt leaned too much into 'stuff' for me. And candles and such were brought up frequently. Please don't feel pressured to shop, use what you have, forget the rest.
Some people I was discussing the book with had issues with the author's approach to defining the meanings and such of objects, like crystals. I suggested that perhaps more of a, "You can incorporate physical objects into your practice if it adds meaning for you, like crystals or stones or other objects. Some people view stones to have specific meanings or magic, such as x, y, or z. You can find a list of popular meanings in appendix 123." would give people more freedom to think about what they have first, before attaching a meaning that may not have originally applied to them with what they have. Let people interpret as they please, and use appendixes if they need them. And also save some shopping trips, since you definitely don't need every item listed, if any (apart from pencil and paper, imo).
I was also a little disheartened after the first spread. The first spread was great, it hit deep, did everything it needed to do, and then it was kind of just...dropped? The author jumped away and touched on other techniques to get in touch with your shadow or to get loose, and didn't really address the (quite vulnerable) spread we just did. I feel like it was a missed opportunity to write more in the way of addressing it. Though the sequel spread to it comes up later, there's that awkward in between that felt very out of place.
And with that, the book does start to get repetitive. As I've read many other self-help books in the past, not all of which tarot related, and also read many written by psychology professionals, it felt here that the author perhaps didn't know what all to write? Books by psychologists I've read felt more structured and organized. Point A leads to Point B and so on. Here it was almost like going in a spiral, where there were some steps forward to reach a point, but then we take a sharp turn back for no real reason. I didn't feel a natural progression from spread to spread.
The psychology related parts weren't bad, just a little surface level, and I think would've been better suited to stand on their own in a separate section than mixed in with the spreads. Either that or put *related* activities, discussions, or elements in between spreads. Have things build on each other. I think that would've been a LOT more impactful.
But going from a deep cutting tarot spread that gets you in touch with that darker side, to "let's play some music and dance", for example, is rather jarring for me? Perhaps for some people that can work, but I'd prefer to sit with the spread or go into things that address it specifically. I'd rather have the extra shadow work activities (which can all be valid and helpful!) be before the spreads, and just leave the spread for the end of the chapter, if we're not gonna address it at all. Or like I said, keep things related. Let readers sit on things and have a pause to process.
Certain things were irrelevant to me, as a secular reader, which is fine. The author seemed very open-minded about doing shadow work and connecting to things how you see fit. Though still leaned very spiritual/religious, but you could easily skim those bits if you wanted. Such as dream analysis. It wasn't a hitter for me, but for the typical target audience for this book, I imagine it'd go over for them better.
I know it's a lot of text for a nit-pick (and I had others, but it's just small stuff), but the organization (or lack there-of) broke the flow of the book for me, and was quite disruptive in my shadow work, which is the whole point of the book ^^;
That said, the book swings back and it does get better. I found that as I got used to the author's style, and with my long breaks in between reading, I was better able to enjoy and digest the materials. Eventually there do come times with relevant exercises after a spread. (Just wish that was the case throughout, and not just like, at the end of the book lol.) The author does seem to genuinely care and want to help as much as they can. And there are some really great journaling tips and techniques covered, along with a wide range of general exercises that cover a lot of ground.
The book does a lot to encourage you to step into those darker areas of yourself, reminds you you are in a safe place, and to heal by exploring and freeing yourself from small annoyances to deep traumas. (Though I greatly recommend seeking professional help for trauma!) The spreads and exercises start with looking within, and eventually back, and around to those who are/have been in your life. Focusing on acceptance, forgiveness, and moving forward.
I also appreciated the several times of recommending to seek professional help, like from a therapist. Though as another nit-pick, while your brain can definitely cause physical impacts on your body, like stress causing chest pains and such, I do wish the author suggested seeing a doctor as an option too. Not all physical ailments are caused psychologically.
I will add though, as with most tarot + related books I've read, the audience is ALWAYS considered cis-female, and that's just not fun for me to read. I really wish these books were written more generally. I understand the assumption, it is the larger audience attracted to this genre, but they aren't the ONLY audience. (There are some resources in the back of the book for men specifically, including at least one for gay men, but the actual content of the book, you are almost always assumed cis-female.)
The end of the book has appendixes with additional information, such as positive and negative interpretations of the 22 majors (the shadow sides and shadow gift sides), loved those, as well as hotlines and information for additional assistance for a multitude of things, along with book recommendations for further reading.
All-in-all, the book wasn't too bad. There was some disorganization, repetition and word count that could've been cut, and an over-reliance on merchandise, but the exercises and spreads were definitely great. And the encouragement in healing was there. If you're looking for a book to explore your shadow, I'd say give this one a try.
Non-tl;dr, my notes as I read:
I was definitely excited to dive into this book. As someone who is interested in tarot primarily due to the mental health benefits, this book had me intrigued.
It started off fine, great in fact, I was finding myself saving quotes quite often, but nit-picks started to crop up.
This book does heavily lean into the spiritual side, which as someone who has been involved in the tarot community and read many books on the topic, that comes with the territory. Despite the author, rightfully, explaining how anyone, religious or spiritual or not, can participate, they do heavily push the spiritual side. It can take me a second to rework the spiritual stuff into a secular perspective, but for some examples, "cast a circle of protection" could be "find a place where you feel safe and comfortable". The 'Dark Goddess' could just be your own internal demons, like confronting the parts of you that you ignore, are afraid of, push down, etc.
I also wasn't super big on the idea of 'stuff stuff stuff', which is super common in these types of books, from what I've noticed. Shadow work can be as simple as you sitting in a room, in a calm state of mind, just chillin'. You don't need candles, incense, alters, cloths, cards, crystals, and all that flair. Just start simple. (I know this is a book specifically about shadow work WITH tarot, so you'd want some kind of access to cards, even if freebie app or online options, but in general, shadow work does not require anything!) Maybe bring something to take notes with as you meditate. If you want an alter or things, you can build it up over time. Which the author did briefly mention, but I still felt leaned too much into 'stuff' for me. And candles and such were brought up frequently. Please don't feel pressured to shop, use what you have, forget the rest.
Some people I was discussing the book with had issues with the author's approach to defining the meanings and such of objects, like crystals. I suggested that perhaps more of a, "You can incorporate physical objects into your practice if it adds meaning for you, like crystals or stones or other objects. Some people view stones to have specific meanings or magic, such as x, y, or z. You can find a list of popular meanings in appendix 123." would give people more freedom to think about what they have first, before attaching a meaning that may not have originally applied to them with what they have. Let people interpret as they please, and use appendixes if they need them. And also save some shopping trips, since you definitely don't need every item listed, if any (apart from pencil and paper, imo).
I was also a little disheartened after the first spread. The first spread was great, it hit deep, did everything it needed to do, and then it was kind of just...dropped? The author jumped away and touched on other techniques to get in touch with your shadow or to get loose, and didn't really address the (quite vulnerable) spread we just did. I feel like it was a missed opportunity to write more in the way of addressing it. Though the sequel spread to it comes up later, there's that awkward in between that felt very out of place.
And with that, the book does start to get repetitive. As I've read many other self-help books in the past, not all of which tarot related, and also read many written by psychology professionals, it felt here that the author perhaps didn't know what all to write? Books by psychologists I've read felt more structured and organized. Point A leads to Point B and so on. Here it was almost like going in a spiral, where there were some steps forward to reach a point, but then we take a sharp turn back for no real reason. I didn't feel a natural progression from spread to spread.
The psychology related parts weren't bad, just a little surface level, and I think would've been better suited to stand on their own in a separate section than mixed in with the spreads. Either that or put *related* activities, discussions, or elements in between spreads. Have things build on each other. I think that would've been a LOT more impactful.
But going from a deep cutting tarot spread that gets you in touch with that darker side, to "let's play some music and dance", for example, is rather jarring for me? Perhaps for some people that can work, but I'd prefer to sit with the spread or go into things that address it specifically. I'd rather have the extra shadow work activities (which can all be valid and helpful!) be before the spreads, and just leave the spread for the end of the chapter, if we're not gonna address it at all. Or like I said, keep things related. Let readers sit on things and have a pause to process.
Certain things were irrelevant to me, as a secular reader, which is fine. The author seemed very open-minded about doing shadow work and connecting to things how you see fit. Though still leaned very spiritual/religious, but you could easily skim those bits if you wanted. Such as dream analysis. It wasn't a hitter for me, but for the typical target audience for this book, I imagine it'd go over for them better.
I know it's a lot of text for a nit-pick (and I had others, but it's just small stuff), but the organization (or lack there-of) broke the flow of the book for me, and was quite disruptive in my shadow work, which is the whole point of the book ^^;
That said, the book swings back and it does get better. I found that as I got used to the author's style, and with my long breaks in between reading, I was better able to enjoy and digest the materials. Eventually there do come times with relevant exercises after a spread. (Just wish that was the case throughout, and not just like, at the end of the book lol.) The author does seem to genuinely care and want to help as much as they can. And there are some really great journaling tips and techniques covered, along with a wide range of general exercises that cover a lot of ground.
The book does a lot to encourage you to step into those darker areas of yourself, reminds you you are in a safe place, and to heal by exploring and freeing yourself from small annoyances to deep traumas. (Though I greatly recommend seeking professional help for trauma!) The spreads and exercises start with looking within, and eventually back, and around to those who are/have been in your life. Focusing on acceptance, forgiveness, and moving forward.
I also appreciated the several times of recommending to seek professional help, like from a therapist. Though as another nit-pick, while your brain can definitely cause physical impacts on your body, like stress causing chest pains and such, I do wish the author suggested seeing a doctor as an option too. Not all physical ailments are caused psychologically.
I will add though, as with most tarot + related books I've read, the audience is ALWAYS considered cis-female, and that's just not fun for me to read. I really wish these books were written more generally. I understand the assumption, it is the larger audience attracted to this genre, but they aren't the ONLY audience. (There are some resources in the back of the book for men specifically, including at least one for gay men, but the actual content of the book, you are almost always assumed cis-female.)
The end of the book has appendixes with additional information, such as positive and negative interpretations of the 22 majors (the shadow sides and shadow gift sides), loved those, as well as hotlines and information for additional assistance for a multitude of things, along with book recommendations for further reading.
All-in-all, the book wasn't too bad. There was some disorganization, repetition and word count that could've been cut, and an over-reliance on merchandise, but the exercises and spreads were definitely great. And the encouragement in healing was there. If you're looking for a book to explore your shadow, I'd say give this one a try.
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January 2, 2009I love the beginning of this book. Doing tarot work on the self is tricky... we like to see things the way we wish. Better to have someone else read your cards for you. Yet shadow work with the tarot is very useful in doing for your own self. It is by creating dialogue with the Shadow that we lessen it's power and effectiveness and grow toward individuation.
September 14, 2017
I routinely come back to the spreads in this book: for personal development, for character development.
August 21, 2019
This book is a deep and comprehensive workbook on using tarot, meditation and journaling in order to work through the trauma, guilt and shame that our shadow selves carry with us. It’s definitely a book I’ll go back to and properly work through when I have the space to be able to set up a proper shadow altar and work through everything from start to finish. Even though I didn’t work through the book, I still learnt a lot that I can carry through to my tarot readings in general and how I can improve my mindset.
I appreciated the fact that the back of the book had a whole list of different hotlines you could call if you needed and it also stressed the importance of taking your time with the healing process and asking for help. It showed that the author actually cared about how rough the healing journey is and reminded the reader that they weren’t alone and they could seek external help. Just because part of the journey happens internally doesn’t mean you have to keep it all internal when you know you need help.
I feel as if I’m going to be keeping this book on my shelf for a long time to come. I’m so glad I finally took the chance to read through it and I hope that I will finally work through it properly soon and help continue along the healing process.
I appreciated the fact that the back of the book had a whole list of different hotlines you could call if you needed and it also stressed the importance of taking your time with the healing process and asking for help. It showed that the author actually cared about how rough the healing journey is and reminded the reader that they weren’t alone and they could seek external help. Just because part of the journey happens internally doesn’t mean you have to keep it all internal when you know you need help.
I feel as if I’m going to be keeping this book on my shelf for a long time to come. I’m so glad I finally took the chance to read through it and I hope that I will finally work through it properly soon and help continue along the healing process.
March 14, 2017
While it is interesting for those that care about Tarot, I think philosophically it describes that which is quite similar to the book the Secret. Each card represents various gifts that one has and the burdens and challenges that are carried with such a gift. Advice associated is then in the context that all people have a choice between these two sides. That which makes harms, hurts, complicates, and conflicts can be a source of healing, help, and resolution.
When taken from such a point of view, such a book can be recommended to anyone who is looking for answers, advice, and an approach to life's questions (much like the book the secret). It is no wonder why so many gravitate toward this activity.
When taken from such a point of view, such a book can be recommended to anyone who is looking for answers, advice, and an approach to life's questions (much like the book the secret). It is no wonder why so many gravitate toward this activity.
October 16, 2009
This book has a lot of promise for doing a particular type of work with tarot, but I couldn't engage deeply enough with it to finish it.
Also, I found T. Thorn Coyle's "Kissing the Limitless" and believe the exercises in it are going to be more effective in dealing with the kinds of healing I had hoped this book would help with.
Also, I found T. Thorn Coyle's "Kissing the Limitless" and believe the exercises in it are going to be more effective in dealing with the kinds of healing I had hoped this book would help with.
November 2, 2020
The content was alright and there’s some useful spreads/activities. What I didn’t like was the format in many places. Rituals or activities were described in long paragraphs as opposed to easily to follow bullet points or sections which made for dry reading and less comprehension.
September 14, 2023
Not everything is great in this book, and it's Very New Age too, but I did found great exercises in it that really helped me, and in the end I think it's worth reading, even if you don't follow every single exercises, it helped me understood what I was looking for and I used it mixed with others books, articles and fanzines to do my own Shadow Work practice.
November 17, 2021
witchy things
May 1, 2022
Nonostante il tipico stile scorrevole della Jette, questa sua opera non mi ha mai convinto fino in fondo.
L’appendice con i significati “ombrosi” e “luminosi” degli Arcani Maggiori, però, è un piccolo forziere del tesoro.
L’appendice con i significati “ombrosi” e “luminosi” degli Arcani Maggiori, però, è un piccolo forziere del tesoro.
November 2, 2019
I love it!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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