The New Orleans VooDoo Tarot a guest review by Ian Oakes   The New Orleans Voodoo Tarot was my first Tarot deck and, more than any of my other decks, I have grown with this deck.  As my understanding has grown, so has my appreciation of the deck.   In the beginning, with only minimal understanding of anything Tarot, the images mesmerized me.  Every image, whether in the major or minor arcana, seemed alive; I almost expected them to move.  While some of the spreads were obscure in the beginning due to their strong ties to Voodoo  beliefs or the Kabbalah, the book offered several "beginners" spreads.  Besides the traditional Celtic Cross, the author describes a relationship spread and the "Crossroads," a basic past/present/future spread.   As time passed, the deck also served as a bridge to other spiritual paths that have come to enrich my own journey.  Of course, the text acts as an introduction to the New Orleans Voodoo tradition.  The minor arcana are all modeled after spirits of Voodoo or Santeria (a related syncretic faith) with the court cards based on the religious roles found in these faiths.  Similarly, the major arcana display mythological figures like the Marassa or Twins and major figures from Voodoo's history, most notably Marie Laveau.   More surprising, the deck also makes a nice introduction to the Western mystical tradition.  Each of the numbered minor arcana are based on the sephirot of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life.  All the aces reflect the creative faculty of Kether while all the sevens reflect the emotion of Netzach, for example.  Since the book breaks down the minor arcana by number, you can examine each section as a description of a branch of the Tree of Life.   In addition, for those who use the Tarot as a meditation tool, the deck has an added bonus.  Every card's description is accompanied by a meditation that, in general, gives a better idea of what the card represents in a metaphysical sense.   If there is a problem some might have with the deck, it is its radical departure from traditional Tarot notation.  While it does state the traditional name of the card in the book, the cards themselves are almost unrecognizable.  The Fool, for example, becomes the World Snake while the Magus becomes Dr. John, a noted ritual drummer.  The trend is continued in the minor arcana where the suits are broken into "nations" reflecting the different aspects of Voodoo.  Wands become "Petro" and Disks are grouped under "Santeria." This means that the reader has to spend a little extra time getting to know the cards, but it is time well spent given the richness of the deck.   Review Copyright 1998 by Ian Oakes; used with permission