Atlantis Cards
By Diana Cooper; illustrated by Damian Keenan
Findhorn Press, 44 cards, $16.95
Review by Diane Saarinen
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I
used to read tarot cards professionally and waited with some
anticipation to receive the
Atlantis Cards. I want to say, however, right off the bat
that upon opening the deck and flipping through the cards, I did have a
bone to pick – the illustrations. No, there is nothing artistically
wrong with Damian Keenan’s soothing visuals. The problem, as I see it,
is that all the cards depict the Atlantans as blonde, blue-eyed and
garbed in flowing purple robes. I say this, as I push my own blonde hair
out of my blue eyes, but I believe potential buyers of this deck might
prefer illustrations of people who are less homogeneous and more
multicultural.
Of course, this led to fascinating discussion with others as we thought
about what the Atlantans physically might look like. One friend said
that since the island was felt to be near Greece, the inhabitants should
have Mediterranean looks. Another said that it was felt the inhabitants
were the predecessors to the Incas. One woman simply asked Jeeves and
came up with the answer that the Atlantans were “red.”
Okay – getting past that now, Cooper does present us with some calming
and centering cards. Unlike a tarot deck, there do not seem to be any
real negative cards. The most negative situation that can be encountered
in the Atlantis Cards is the abuse of power and misuse of the effects of
thought. Cards are named Fun, Contemplation and Healing…as well as the
more exotic Fifth Dimension, Temple of Poseidon and Mind Control.
I did pick some cards that seemed to resonate with my
situation…have more fun was definitely one. My favorite was when I asked
the general question, “What will happen tomorrow?” I picked the card
entitled Enlightenment – and literally got the answer: “Your guidance is
to stop doing and striving. Forget about tomorrow.” For the final test
run, I brought the cards over to my friend, Christina, across the
street. Christina does not use cards for her readings but does teach
tarot. She is strictly a psychic medium, clairvoyant and a health
intuitive.
Christina followed the instructions of the Celtic Cross that came with
the deck, and truly connected with her reading. She drew many parallels
with the cards and the explanations they gave. The kicker was “the final
outcome” – the last card. It was Clairvoyance. As this is what Christina
is, it was fairly impressive. Her take on the deck: “Pretty
interesting!”
Diane Saarinen is a writer and a tag sale junkie. She cannot wait for
the yard sale season to begin. Read more about it at
www.geocities.com/diasaar2002/ Christina is available for private
readings – learn more about her at her web site,
www.psychicchristina.com
