The Ocean Tarot Booklet
Bonus Images
Your Ocean Tarot deck may have come with a couple of extra cards. These bonus images are for you touse in the deck or set aside as you choose. Here are a few ideas:
- Review the meanings of each card’s image, then consider what they might mean in a divination deck, and include them for interpretation in readings just like other cards.
- If you find that one of the extra cards represents one of the 78 Major or Minor Arcana cards well, you can personalize your deck by replacing those Arcana cards with the bonus images.
- If you have other decks in the Elemental Tarot series, or are using several other decks simultaneously for readings or other tarot work, consider using one or both of these extra images to represent the element of Earth in general or to specify the Earth Tarot deck; especially when using multiple decks, these “significator” cards can help point you toward the most helpful elemental correspondences.
- Simply use as altar decorations or enjoy the artwork! Don’t feel required to include them if you prefer to stick with the standard 78-card tarot.
Most koi fish are descendants of wild koi carp, carefully bred and domesticated in Japan and China for hundreds of years and revered in these cultures for thousands of years. Today, dozens of varieties exist in a dizzying array of colors and varieties. The koi breeding industry can be quite lucrative, with rumors of individual show-quality koi selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Almost any color combination is possible, but white koi can be particularly prized. Koi fish in general have great significance and the many varieties are tied to the many different aspects of life. A white koi fish can represent success within a career, fortune, and strength. White koi can come from several types of koi, simply lacking the traditional patterns; some are albino varieties of more colorfully patterned fish, and some have been bred specifically for a pure white color, with either a more metallic finish to their scales or one that is more matte in appearance. One such variety is also known as the Platinum Ogon or Purachina Ogon. These are beautiful, metallic white koi fish of their own species; breeding a Platinum Ogon is the most consistent way to have a white koi in your pond since they are bred for the pale color. This solid, silver colored koi symbolizes success in business and wealth.
- Scientific name: Cyprinus carpio, also Cyprinus rubrifuscus and several other varieties in the family Cyprinus.
- Habitat and status: Wild koi are native to the fresh bodies of water around the Black, Caspian and Aral Seas. Domesticated in the 19th century, carp have now been introduced throughout the world. They are quite hardy and not endangered.
Often depicted in mermaid form, Yemoja is a Yoruban deity (orisha) who is celebrated as the metaphysical mother of all orishas within the Yoruba pantheon, and is the goddess of all waters. As the orisha of the Ogun River (the largest river within the territory of Yourubaland, Nigeria), Yemoja’s name literally means “mother whose children are the fish.” A particular protector of women, Yemoja governs parenting, child safety, maternal love and healing. One legend describes a time when Yemoja’s waters broke, causing a great flood, creating rivers and streams, and creating the first mortal humans. Many stories describe Yemoja as an orisha who has the ability to interpret divine messages through divination processes such as cowrie shell throwing (merindinlogun), so her guiding presence in the Ocean Tarot is welcome.
- Other names: Yemonja or Yemaja