Oracle cards are a deck of cards that contain different affirmation, or words to provide you direction/purpose, or clarity. They differ from Tarot cards in the sense that Oracle cards can be whatever the user wants them to be. They can simply be a positive affirmation that you draw for the day, you could use them to help figure out the answer to a question you have, or you can use them in a spread.
Tarot cards take a little more learning and understanding and how to interpret the cards. They typically have more cards in the deck and are divided into suits.
Oracle cards are super accessible, and depending on the deck you choose, they don’t take much learning at all. The basic idea is that your intuition, or guides, will pull you to a specific card(s).
Types of Oracle Cards + Choosing a Deck
There are all kinds of oracle cards, ones with positive affirmations, angel cards, spirit animal cards, ones for crystals, even ones now that are directed towards kids.
Visit your local metaphysical store, and most likely they will stock oracle cards. You can purchase online, especially if you know what deck you want, but seeing them in person allows you to find a deck you can personally connect with. You may be drawn to a deck and not really know why, you may like its colour, design, font, images etc. Pick up the deck, and see how it feels when you hold it. We think you’ll know right away if it’s the deck for you.
When Sophie first started being attracted to Oracle cards, she felt for sure she would want the Moonology Deck, and almost ordered it online. She then saw the Universe has your back deck by Gabrielle Bernstein, and felt this was a better deck. Sophie decided not to make a choice until she saw some decks in person, and landed on The Universe Has Your Back. The connection was instant, and her first 4 pulls from this deck were the same 4 cards each time. Freaky to say the least.
Sophie’s Cards
The presence of love will always outcast fear
I choose to learn through love
My faith has the power to turn trauma into healing, conflict into growth, and fear into love.
My capacity to tune in to the energy of love gives me the words I need when I’m ready to speak up, the compassion I need when it’s time to forgive, and the power I need when I am lost.
Cards from The Universe Has Your Back by Gabrielle Bernstein
When we decided to speak about oracle cards on this episode, Sophie went back to find the photo she took of these cards. She knew she was being sent a powerful message. Sophie was definitely being told to lead with her heart in some challenging situations that came up last year. This is what we love about these spiritual tools, sometimes we receive messages that we aren’t ready to hear, and we just have to tuck them away for the right moment.
Connecting to Your Deck
It’s said that you should carry spiritual items with you for 21 days to create a bond, and have your energy merged with the deck. This is just to form the initial bond when you first purchase your deck. We also recommend cleaning the energy from the deck – with reiki, the moon, sage, essential oils, or simply your intention.
Each time you use the deck, take a moment to connect again. Settle yourself, focus on your breath, some people like to hold the complete deck at their heart, or their third eye. But you’ll find what works best for you. Shopie knocks on her deck three times, as she was taught to do, and asks her students to do the same. Amanda also knocks three times to clear her deck or sometimes uses her tibetian singing bowel. This step is even more important to do if your deck is used by other people. It assists in clearing out anyone’s energy who previously touched or used the deck.
Oracle Spreads
Once your deck is clear and ready to use, you now have to decide what you want to deck to do for you. This is the beautiful thing about oracle decks, you can use them however you want. Pinterest will be your best friend for finding spreads to work with. When you shuffle a deck, sometimes a card will fall out, or will grab your attention in some way, other times you can pull a card you feel drawn to.
Some examples:
Ask a question while you shuffle, “what do I need to know right now”, “what do I need to know doing into this day/week/month/year”. You can even be more specific if you’re using the deck to help you make a decision “Is a career change the right path for me”.
A three card spread for Past, Present, and Future. When you make a spread, just set you intention that you’re pulling cards specifically for this spread. The universe can’t send you the message you need, unless you make your intention known. You can speak it out loud, or just in your mind.
A spread for aligning yourself, again three cards: what you should embrace, release, and remember.
A spread for self discovery, three cards: your physical state, emotional state, and spiritual state.
Your possibilities are endless when it comes to spreads, you can even create your own! Remember, it all comes down to intention, and knowing that you’re pulling cards for a purpose.
Decks we love using, and are great for beginners:
Moonology Oracle Cards, Yasmin Bolland (The deck Sophie thought she wanted)
The Universe Has Your Back, Gabrielle Bernstein (Sophie and Amanda both use and love this one)
Inner Compass Cards (The deck Sophie wants)
Work Your Light, Rebecca Campbell (Sophie uses this deck and pulls from it during this episode)
The Starseed Oracle (Amanda’s favourite deck)
Healing with Fairies (Amanda’s first deck)