This mysterious but attractive deck-and-book set really captured my attention a while ago, and frankly, it's been sitting here on my desk for a couple months while I decided what to do about it.  I was drawn to it because of the art on it, which, with its rich and unusual color combinations and eerily familiar symbols, mesmerized me.  Once I opened up the box and drew the cards out, I knew this was something I wanted to explore more fully.  Then I began to read the book.

I don't mean to imply that the book is bad.  Far from it.  But the nature of the text itself is something you want to be completely focused on.  When I tried to read it the first time, I think the television was on, people were talking to me and I was distracted, and couldn't concentrate, and therefore couldn't make heads or tails from the material inside.  Almost none of the topics covered were things I have any background in, so I was starting from scratch.  After a couple of months, I decided to give it another try, this time with more focus.  And it's worth the trip.

I can't help but notice a connection with the Contact Cards, reviewing them both in the same week and both of which are also published by the same company.  But the resemblance is more than just cosmetic, rather, I see a philosophical relation between the two, in that both deal with an extraterrestrial type of awareness.  The subtitle on the set is "Return Path to the Stars."  The concept here is that the ancient Mayan civilization was in touch with the starborn peoples who came to this earth many millenia ago and gave to us of their knowledge, their lives, their selves.  Their conscious awareness of their starseed nature was hidden from them in forgetfulness but with clues hidden in everyday life on this planet, the keys to remembering can be given back and eventually unity with the universe can be restored.  At least, that was how I got it.  It's a tough concept to articulate.

There are a total of 44 cards in the Mayan Oracle, broken down into three smaller groups.  Since this is not a tarot deck, there are no Major and Minor Arcana, no courts and suits.  The first group are the 20 Mayan star-glyphs.  These are intensely colored archetypal cards with a deep set of correspondences, including astrology, numerology, herbology, color, stone, flower essence, flower, scent, and direction.  Affirmations and meditations are given for each also.  Interestingly, no matter what the color and symbol combinations for each of these cards, there is a subtle circle in the background with a large rectangle over it, and the design covers them.  Again, it's kind of hard to articulate, but I've scanned a couple of them so you can see.  These cards have Mayan names on them, such as Imix and Chicchan.  Their titles appear at the bottom in white text (except for the white card which has black text) and there are no borders save for the circle/rectangle design described above.

The next set of cards, thirteen in all, is the group of numbered cards.  These feature a grainy, gravelly-looking gray background, with a highlighted dot/slash arrangement on it, which actually works out to the Mayan numeral system.  The keyword subtitles which give clues to the significance of the number are printed at the bottom in white.  The number is not given in Arabic or Roman so you have to pay attention to the Mayan numbering system to know which is which.  This is not difficult, and really, if you aren't gonna pay attention to that small amount of detail then you wouldn't really be using this system.

The final group of cards is that of the Lenses.  There are eleven of these.  All of them are purple, with varying light designs around the center, which has a circle of perfect proportion.  The variations in these cards is in the play of light coming from the lens in the center.  These cards have a more deep sense of meaning off the bat, but less in a divinatory sense.

Actually, this system isn't meant for divination much at all, so much as it is meant for personal empowerment and growth.  You use these cards to find your way along the path of spiritual development.  I liked the way the cards handled, incidentally.  Slick, they stuck together at first, and breaking them apart made that satisfying sound.  Edges are polished nicely.  The cards themselves are large, which provides a good format for the art.  The cards and book are packaged in a neato slipcase box, with the cards in this long box-type insert that holds them in place tidily.

The book is a cloth-covered hardbound edition with 315 pages.  The insides of both the front and back covers are decorated with a quick reference kind of guide to these cards; Mayan star-glyphs in front, numbers and lenses in back.  A section in front is dedicated to the introduction and story of the cards, spreads and games for use and learning, and the general how-to's.  Oracle interpretations are provided in the next section for the cards in each group, followed by a second set of meanings for the star-glyphs which incorporate a deeper personal journey into the archetypes of each card.  Appendices at the end include all the correspondence charts known to man, a glossary, bibliography and list of resources.

I'm not sure I recommend this oracle system except to people who might be looking for something specific.  Most of the oracles I have seen accomplish pretty much the same thing, allowing the user to get in touch with their inner growth patterns and reach for the sky spiritually.  This one just does it with an ancient, yet futuristic atmosphere.  The art is cool, and collectors will probably like it for that.  Unless you're into the Mayan culture already, most people will find this system flaky as a croissant.

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Review Copyright 1999 by Gina M. Pace

The Mayan Oracle by Ariel Spilsbury and Michael Bryner, 1992
published by Bear and Company, ISBN 0-939680-86-6