In the course of only 3 years, Shikegi Gomi created three major arcana decks.  For each deck, he chose a central theme, while consistently using the Rider-Waite Tarot as his esoteric source.

In the Medical Fantasy (his 1st deck), Dr. Gomi chose an anatomical theme, using various parts of the body and internal organs to convey his ideas.  In the Buddhistic Fantasy Tarot (his 2nd deck), Dr. Gomi built his major arcana upon the framework of Buddhism, its philosophies, Buddhas, Boddhisvatas and Hindu gods.

In his 3rd (and last) deck, Dr. Gomi has chosen as his central “theme”, the laws of Thermodynamics, which presents the principle of Entropy.

Now, I have to tell you that I have spent the last several weeks studying the laws of thermodynamics until my eyes glazed over.  I avoided Physics class like the plague in school and all I can say is that I’m glad I missed the whole thing.  However, as I puzzled over Dr. Gomi’s deck, going back and forth from the deck to the Encyclopedia Brittanica, to various websites and then back to the deck, I realized I was making this just a little too hard.
 
I was misled by the fact that Dr. Gomi is a medical doctor and so I assumed that surely he had come up with some intricately complex methodology behind his renderings of the Entropy Tarot utilizing a complex web of the various theories and applications of the laws of thermodynamics.

Also, I love puzzles and I like a deck that challenges me, so hey, I was game.

But I forgot that this is Dr. Gomi we’re talking about.  I should have remembered his first and second decks (which I have reviewed).  I should have recalled the earnest and careful simplicity behind his art and his philosophical thought processes.  I should have remembered his unique ability to distill complex thoughts and philosophies into a coherent series of 22 pictorial images (if you think this is easy, try it sometime).

If I had kept this in mind, it would have saved me a lot of reading, but perhaps it is all to the good because, now that I understand what he is getting at, I can condense it into a couple of paragraphs (so that you can avoid those physics books!).
 
Here is a very layman’s summary of Entropy and the Laws of Thermodynamics.  Now, to protect myself from heated debates from all you physicists out there, I need to say that, incredibly enough, the definition of these two concepts can create just as much heated debate among the experts as any conversation involving politics, religion or gun control.  So, in the effort of simplicity, I’m sticking to the concepts of entropy as specifically interpreted by Dr. Gomi.

Moving on…Entropy, one of the fundamental concepts in Thermodynamics, was defined by Rudolf Clausis. The first Law of Entropy (i.e. the Law Conservation of Energy) can be described as follows:  The total amount of the substances and the energy in the cosmos remain constant, neither increasing nor decreasing.

The Second Law may be stated as follows:  Energy changes in only one direction, from orderly to disorderly, which therefore increases entropy.
 
Dr. Gomi’s interpretation of these Laws would immediately raise the hackles of the physics purist who will adamantly jump in and say that entropy is not a measure of disorder.  Rather, it is simply the measure of the number of ways (at microenergetic levels) in which the energy of a system can be distributed.

In fact, if you’re ever at a cocktail party and meet up with a physicist, try defining entropy as a measure of disorder and watch the significant increase in entropy (energy change) which results as he heatedly takes you to task for the error of your ways (as he turns from pale to red to purple).  You will actually see an excellent example of entropy at work!

So, now we know that defining entropy as a measure of the amount of “disorder” in a system is absolutely, positively Incorrect(!), thank you very much.  Because technically, if you decrease the entropy in one place (like all that clutter under your bed), you have only increased it somewhere else (perhaps when you hid all that junk in your closet instead).  Or perhaps you try to have more finesse and spread that junk around in several, smaller piles (my husband’s own personal favorite technique).  I mean, it all has to go somewhere doesn’t it?
 
So, Dr. Gomi has already ruffled the feathers of the physicists with his interpretation of entropy.  But he doesn’t stop there because now he takes this concept and puts a philosophical spin on it by applying it to some of our world problems.  In Dr. Gomi’s application of the concept of entropy, exploitation of natural resources, materialism, consumerism and war create high states of entropy (which is very undesirable), while lower states of entropy can be achieved through meditation, focus upon the spiritual contemplation of the universe and conservation and veneration for natural resources and the beauty of what our world has to offer.

His idea is, if we can achieve a lower state of entropy, we will be able to overcome world crises and achieve a spiritual harmony and a true concept of humanity, thus preserving our species and avoiding certain global destruction.

Ok, I’m really optimistic that we got through all of that without anyone’s eyes glazing over because now we can move on to the cards themselves.

The Entropy Tarot, the 3rd deck conceived and created by Dr. Gomi, is the most “petite” of Dr. Gomi’s decks, measuring in at 3 inches by 4 ¾ inches.  It’s artistic medium, cardstock and packaging are identical to that of his first two decks.  The card backs depict Dr. Gomi’s special design of a sun in which is contained his own personal monogram.
 
Initially, what sets this deck apart is the lack of the bright colors that were so richly utilized in his first two decks.  Remember the goal of this deck is to provide a meditation tool to achieve a state of low entropy, so here, the only color used is a soft, soothing purple.  The majority of the cards have been renamed to more closely identify them with their energy applications.  Each card is clearly labeled with the card number, the title and the corresponding Hebrew letter.  Within the images themselves, you will find a Sanskrit letter on each card and sometimes the appropriate zodiacal sign as well.

Once again Dr. Gomi uses the Rider Waite deck as his esoteric source.  We have the “Fool’s Journey”, only here the ascent is expressed allegorically, using a series of geometrical energy figures which float and hover in a vast cosmic space

And since we speaking of the ascent of this “energic Fool”, we go from his most base (low) state (a state of high entropy) to his highest, most spiritual state (a state of low entropy).  In each card, you will find some of the traditional imagery of the Waite deck, but applied in very inventive ways.

The journey begins with the Fool himself.  Here, he has been renamed The Materialist.  He possesses no understanding or appreciation of the spiritual nor does he have any awareness for the harmony and beauty our world has to offer (for those who have the eyes to see it).  This “being” floats delicately above the traditional mountains, poised to take the first step of his spiritual odyssey.
 
In the next step of the “journey”, this Fool acquires the tools of his trade and experiences his first introduction to the spiritual reciprocity of energy.  This card, the traditional Magician card, has been renamed “The Enquirer”.  Here, we see the traditional magician’s table, upon which rest the “tools”…the wand, cup, sword and coin.  Hovering just above the table are two round balls of energy, one connected to the cosmos above, the other connecting to the earth below.

In the High Priestess card (renamed “The Meditator”), the Fool, having acquired the physical tools for his journey, must now be introduced to that great inner tool…spiritual reflection and meditation.  The card imagery presents this concept admirably.  Here we see the traditional pillars from the Waite deck.  Within this cosmic temple, the eye (and the energy of the Fool as well) is immediately drawn and focused inward to the quarter moon poised luminously at the center.  This is an absolutely stunning card visually.

Moving along, past the Empress (The Percipient) and the Emperor (The Possessor of Energy), the Fool meets the Teller of Intelligence (Hierophant).  Again, in this card, many of the traditional symbols (some from the Waite card) of organized church and state are presented.  The “Hierophant” is represented by a large pyramid, topped by the tiered crown and “holding” the staff.  The two kneeling disciples are represented by round balls of energy.  The keys float diaphanously in the background.
 
The Wheel of Fortune card is magnificently reinterpreted and presented as “The Cycles of Life”.  Here, the wheel is depicted as a large, cosmic egg.  This oval egg is surrounded by all the signs of the zodiac.  Curved arrows indicate the revolving nature of the egg.  But, most wonderful is what is contained within the egg, which is the tree of life itself, each sphere connected by delicate rays of energy.

In Justice (renamed “Balance”), the red eye of the planet Jupiter peers remorselessly down at Justice (depicted as another glowing ball of energy).  “She” holds the scales…the pointing upward of energy from these scales leaves no doubt as to the source and mediator of this balance.

The Fool meets his spiritual Waterloo at the Tower Card, renamed “Collapse of Materialists”.  Here, all his previous notions and ideals are shattered, but not violently so, because that is not Dr. Gomi’s way.  Rather, they are whisked away, to leave this Fool ready for new lessons, new ways.

Here, the tower roof opens to the light and energy from above, which swirls gently into the structure itself.  The energy of the Fool (represented by the arrow of energy) is released from its rocky, constrictive, materialistic “prison” and allowed to flow freely out into the cosmos.
 
The concept of spiritual meditation and contemplation, which was so beautifully introduced in the High Priestess card, is put to good use in the Star, which has been renamed to “Way to Eternity” (isn’t that a lovely name for this card?).  Here the Fool, swirls and rotates constantly inward…the light of that shimmering star ever watchful overhead.

The Judgment Card has been appropriately renamed to “Renascence”, because indeed a true renaissance has been achieved.  The Fool (again depicted by a ball of energy) is depicted showing many of his lessons learned.  His circular, rotational being encompasses the concepts of spiritual enlightenment.  The benefits and positive aspects of organized teaching (Hierophant) have been incorporated into his being.  The concept of the connectedness and reciprocity of energy linking the spiritual (above) to the physical (below) are shown by the arrows of energy.  The traditional trumpet and appropriate zodiacal sign are cunningly woven together.

And, finally, there is the World card (renamed “The Cosmos – Nirvana”).  The cosmic egg (flanked in each corner by balls of energy) contains the luminous depiction of the human body, the only rendering of the human form in the entire deck.  The points of two reversed pyramids meet at the center of this form to create a small, radiant egg (core) of energy.  A true harmony and blending with the natural and spiritual has been achieved.  The journey is complete.
 
All of Dr. Gomi’s decks are intriguing, deceptive in their simplicity and are skillful depictions of complex ideas.  Of the three decks, I would say this Entropy Tarot is the most fascinating.  It is not accidental that Dr. Gomi offers no interpretations or explanations for the images he has created in this deck.  His goal is for the viewer to make those interpretations and associations as part of his/her own Fool’s Journey.  I have made mine…you can make yours.

While I suppose these decks could be used for some sort of divination purposes (the admirable spiritual creativity of we tarotists never ceases to amaze me), this was never Dr. Gomi’s intent.  His goal has always been to produce a series of meditative, thought-provoking images from which he hopes the viewer will benefit and grow spiritually.  Dr. Gomi writes at length about his goals, particularly in relation to the Entropy Tarot, in the enclosed little booklet.  The following is what he has to say about his hopes and message for those who meditate upon this deck:

“The meaningfulness, the accidentalism and the complexity of the combinations of different tarot cards spread before you will bring up pleasant associations of entropy.  It will be a pleasure for you to meditate before a series of cards, on how to survive, or how to maintain the state of low entropy while keeping the permanent flow of energy in the cosmos.  Therein exists the significance of this Entropy Tarot Deck.  Please take up this deck in your hands, spread the cards and meditate with me so that we may avoid mistakes and survive, protect and enhance our lives, so that our future may be open to immense possibilities.”  [February 1983, Shikegi Gomi, Doctor of Medicine]
 
As with the other two Gomi decks, this Entropy Tarot was independently published as a limited edition of only 300 decks.  It was never distributed outside Japan.  This deck is extremely rare and highly collectible.  But more, it is a truly well thought out, coherent, superior quality deck.  Not everyone will find the artwork appealing, but one cannot study Dr. Gomi’s decks without developing a sincere appreciation for what he has created.  Each deck is a true pearl.

The Entropy Tarot is a true marriage of complex ideas and images and a significant and valuable addition to any serious collection.
 
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Guest Review Copyright 2000 by Paula Gibby
used with permission