Deviant Moon Tarot

The deck, which will be devoted to my today's review, is called one of the most popular. Another thing is surprising: someone falls in love with these infernal, bewitching, but at the same time frightening cards, at first sight, while someone spits in their direction and prefers to bypass any mention of the deck. Of course, this is the Mad Moon Tarot - the creative, surreal and mysterious creation of Patrick Walesa. So, are you ready to plunge into the real madness? Then let's go!

History of the deck

Patrick Walesa worked on Mad Moon Tarot almost three decades. He not only developed maps that were completely different from the classics, but also collected photographs of cemeteries, abandoned buildings, mental hospitals and other equally “vile” places, so that later, using computer editing, they could be rolled up and used here and there in the images of the Arcana: where - something is the shoes or headgear of the character, somewhere in the background landscape, against which the plot unfolds. At first glance, as they say, you won't guess!

As a result, when the deck went on sale (which happened for the first time in 2008), we saw bizarre, moonlit scenes with characters that were frightening, but also attractive at the same time. It seems that these are people, but they are somehow “not like that”. The secret is simple: they are all absolutely insane. Why was it worth creating such a deck? What was the idea Deviant Moon Tarot? In fact, Patrick created it to work with his own shadow, with his unconscious, which pushes out the most hidden, deeply hidden fears. And the biggest fear is losing your mind. We can say that this is a kind of disclosure of the eighteenth Arcanum of the Moon.

After the publication of the Mad Moon Tarot, it quickly gained loyal fans. What can I say - they appeared even earlier, at a time when Patrick was still working on the deck and uploading fragments of that surreal puzzle to his Internet blog, which was fully formed later, after many months of fruitful work. But the deck also had ardent haters. As soon as these cards were not called names: both blasphemous, and vile, and nauseating. I have even heard stories of people buying this deck and burning it. In fact, this is also quite simple to explain: madness simply frightens many, therefore only those who are not afraid to step into the unconscious and will not push away from themselves what does not fit into the concept of “norm” can find a common language with these cards.

Personally, I've been going around this deck for over a year. She caught my eye every now and then, and I did not understand whether I wanted her or I was afraid to even take her in my hands. She repelled and attracted at the same time. As a result, at one fine moment, a big discount decided the matter, and for almost two years now I have been fruitfully working with her. Surprisingly, I quickly became friends with the mysterious "moonmen", and they answer my questions quickly, clearly and without sentimentality. And sometimes even visually show the situation with pictures. And yes - the Mad Moon Tarot sometimes manages to look much deeper than my other decks. In a word, I am extremely satisfied.

Key features of the deck

It is worth saying a few words about the key features Deviant Moon Taro. The tradition to which the deck belongs is unique. Despite the fact that some tarologists notice echoes of Waite in it, I personally found quite a few references to Crowley. Therefore, let it be better unique. Cards 78, suits are common - Wands, Cups, Pentacles, Swords, court cards are also traditional - Pages, Knights, Queens, Kings. Justice, to my great delight, comes at number 8, Strength is eleventh. The Major Arcana have classic names. There is probably nothing more to say.

Symbolism of the deck

In principle, I have already written a lot about the symbolism that Patrick Valensa used in his Mad Moon Tarot above. The characters, as I said, are residents of a strange city, similar to people with crazy button eyes. Many of them are two-faced - the faces of such heroes resemble a crescent moon, along with its invisible dark side. Great importance is also given to the moon itself - almost every map shows a night luminary in one of its phases. Somewhere the moon has human features, somewhere it looks quite ordinary. The images are amazing: at first glance they scare away, but as soon as you start to peer into them, you get the feeling that you are plunging somewhere far, far beyond. What is beyond this limit? A complete departure from "normality", the swamp of the unconscious, the dark side of your inner "I"?

I can't resist and here is a quote from user asgeth from LiveJournal. Painfully accurately, she described my own feelings from these cards - just take my hat off!

“I was once asked why this particular deck can scare / repel people from themselves so much. What in it goes across perception so much that it makes sane and reasonable, in general, people shy away from it more than from the same Baphomet or Linda Falorio. I seem to have found the answer. This is madness. If just all sorts of vampires, devils and other relatively understandable chthonic vermin and abomination look out from under the covers of the rest of the tarot decks, then Deviant Moon is not exchanged for demonic delights and is not covered by necromantic aesthetics. This is a slice of madness in its purest form; madness, not covered with ruffles, and not plastered beyond recognition at the level of "the patient is conditionally sane."

Moreover, this is not a “patient-doctor” level: if, in addition to the indicated Madness, at least a conditional Norm was present in the deck, then the “terribleness” of the deck would sharply decrease - the fortuneteller would receive his desired island of calm, the starting and reference point, and further would flirt with the other side of the mind almost with pleasure.

Here, the opportunity to “return to the starting position” does not exist in principle: the deck is like a pure language without borrowings - either you learn and speak, or you try to understand through an interpreter, but you don’t try to mix French and Nizhny Novgorod in one bottle. Either your own Norm, or her Norm, which is the same Madness in your personal coordinate system.

Major Arcana

After such a long and colorful introduction, it’s even somehow scary to describe the Major Arcana, because they are so multifaceted that everyone will see something of their own here. But let's try. I will not overload you with text from my own thoughts, I will try to capture only the most important. And then, as they say - think for yourself.

So, Jester of the Mad Moon Tarot. The character is dressed in a costume that is somewhat reminiscent of a mental hospital patient's pajamas. Only here in Russia they are usually gray, but who knows how it is there, over the hill? Personally, my first association arose just like that. Although, maybe this is not a hospital pajama at all, but a night suit in which our hero just got out of bed. He is absolutely insane, but his madness is kind of funny. He smiles gleefully, standing knee-deep in water from which piranhas jump out and are about to gnaw his legs to the very bones. The feeling that this person (being?) Lives in one moment. He has no fear of consequences, there is only some kind of insane ecstasy of jubilation. The gondola, which could be ridden without fear of being left without legs, disappears beyond the right edge of the map. Well, let me, and I have so much fun.

All this reminds me of a child who runs away into the street secretly from his mother in order to jump in puddles to his heart's content, pick apples from a neighbor's garden, gorge himself on ice cream and do, in principle, everything that he is constantly forbidden to do. The moon in the background is growing, which means that this crazy child is also going through a phase of growth, maturation, although the whole process seems to be an ordinary, albeit very dangerous game.

The Wheel of Fortune in the Mad Moon Tarot also looks abnormal. But what else was to be expected? The fair fortune teller grabbed the handle of the wheel and is about to turn it. Next to her sits a naked man in a red cap, very reminiscent of a circus monkey. The lady holds out her hand to him and it seems that she is about to utter her signature “gild the pen”. The Devil conducts here - at least, this character is very similar to him. Interestingly, the fish on the edge of the wheel are strenuously climbing up, while traditionally the characters of this card are located in different ways - one is on top, the other rushes down. On the wheel we see images of a broken heart, palm, skull, moon, star.

The Mad Moon Tarot never ceases to amaze: it is interesting that the handle of the Wheel is turned by a woman, but the Devil is in fact in charge, which means that Arkan can be viewed from different angles. On the one hand, these are equal opportunities, since the true ruler is that red conductor, and the pen is just an appearance that fate can be controlled. On the other hand, note that the “client” (or client?) has golden shoes on her feet, and the gypsy is barefoot. It turns out that someone who is higher in status than her and has more than her turns to her for help. At the moment, this person depends on the turn of the wheel, which the fortuneteller will launch. Another version that comes to mind: the wheel has already been launched, but the client didn’t like the prediction (his posture and facial expression can be mistaken for horror), and now the gypsy is asking for more money. Like, do not like the prediction? Pay and I'll change it! What is this if not madness?

Somewhere I read another interpretation: that a plump little man in a hat is actually a pregnant woman, and she came to find out the future of her child, and not at all her own fate.

Surprisingly, I almost went beyond the prescribed volume of the article, without even having time to talk about the Major Arcana. So I'll quickly show you another one and move on to the Juniors. Let it be 18 Arcana, the disclosure of which, in fact, is dedicated to the deck. I suggest you look for your own associations to this story. From myself, I’ll note one thing: the usual full moon shines in the sky, but what happens to the heroes of the map is what usually happens when our moon is black. It is known that it is the black moon that affects our energy much more strongly than the full moon. Perhaps this is due to the fact that in this surreal world created by Patrick Walesa, everything happens exactly the opposite? The moon has attached invisible tentacles to people, it manipulates them, makes them completely insane. And this whole picture seems from a psychological point of view much more terrible than the Devil or the Tower.

Minor Arcana

We continue our journey through the Mad Moon Tarot Gallery. Since we found out that I no longer fit into the allotted volume, we will go over the four Minor Arcana of different suits quite briefly. I'll just show the picture and write the keywords that I associate with it.

Eight of Wands: obstacles that arise on the path that you want to tear down to hell in one fell swoop, receiving news, hatred of restrictions, the ability to do several things at the same time (mow wands, read a letter, listen to a crow's speech).

The Five of Cups of the Mad Moon Tarot evokes in me associations with feelings and romance that everyday life killed, the desire to command instead of just loving, manipulation. The expression “to become the shadow of your partner” is also very suitable for this Arcana, because earlier this couple had already met on the Deuce of the same suit and then the man’s face was black - now it has turned black and has become the same as his wife.

The Nine of Swords is remorse, painful experiences due to events that have already happened, fears, devouring oneself with the mind, intellectual masochism, soul-searching. It seems to me that even the cat lying on the bed is already tired of the eternal whining of its mistress and is ready to cling to it.

The Six of Pentacles of the Mad Moon Tarot is generosity, but generosity is extremely ostentatious. In fact, a person has much more than he gives. With one hand he gives alms, and with five more hands he collects money from other sources. Personally, it seems to me that the card can be lost by any of its sides: either you have to literally “scratch out” your money or be content with the little that you gave, or you yourself - in the role of this greedy man who sacrifices something not out of the kindness of his soul, but , for check. Although Arkan can be called successful for business, as it promises to receive money from several sources at once.

court cards

Royal Court of the Mad Moon Tarot, I suggest you consider for yourself. But each image created by Patrick Walesa is actually very deep and multifaceted, although sometimes it borders on real madness. In the layouts, curly cards surprisingly accurately describe the character and behavior of people, and sometimes also point to specific characters recognizable literally “from the picture”.

Features of the interpretation of cards

The meaning of each card of the Mad Moon Tarot is so comprehensive that turning them over in layouts, sorry for the tautology, seems like madness. Here, and so the whole world seems to be turned inside out. Can you imagine what happens if you use the reverse positions? Although, surprisingly, shifters are still described in MBC. But personally I don't use them and don't intend to. In my opinion, what is visible on direct maps is quite enough: here you have light, shadow, mirroring, visible, hidden - do you really need something else?

What issues is the deck suitable for?

Of course, the Mad Moon Tarot focuses primarily on the psychological and shadow aspects of the situation. But personally, I used them for the most common layouts. I will say even more: once I did the “Radiu Wheel” on the creation of Patrick Walesa (who doesn’t know - this is the layout of the whole deck). The information received just the sea, and such that neither I nor my client even expected to hear. The Deviant Moon dug so deep that nothing was left hidden. Therefore, I believe that for those who understand its language, it may well become universal. I heard that many people use it as an additional shadow deck - they make a layout in two layers: the top (visible) is laid out with a regular deck, the bottom (shadow) is the Tarot of the Mad Moon. They say that it turns out very informative, but I have not tried it yet.

Who is the card for?

Buying the Mad Moon Tarot can only be recommended to those who do not seek to drive themselves and those around them into the framework of a certain “norm” and are ready to plunge into the dark sea of ​​the unconscious. In general, if you are crazy with "you" - feel free to buy. In all other cases - categorically do not recommend.

Until recently, there was only one book on the Mad Moon Tarot - written by the author himself in English. But, having rummaged on the Internet, it was possible to find interesting interpretations and personal studies of the deck by its fans. And more recently, the creation of the Russian author Veronika Nikitenko called "In the Power of the Mad Moon" saw the light of day. At the moment, I have ordered this book - at the time of writing the review, it is on the way to me. From the excerpts and video reviews I found online, I got the impression that the book is quite interesting. The author considers all the Arcana of this deck from a psychological point of view, which significantly expands their perception. So I definitely recommend it.

On this, perhaps, everything. I earnestly ask the opponents of this deck not to express their "fi" in the comments. In the end, different decks are needed, different decks are important. If you don't like something, it doesn't mean that someone else won't like it. Have a nice day everyone!
(c) Victoria Kotlyarova

SHARE

The deck, which will be devoted to my today's review, is called one of the most popular. Another thing is surprising: someone falls in love with these infernal, bewitching, but at the same time frightening cards, at first sight, while someone spits in their direction and prefers to bypass any mention of the deck. Of course, this is the Mad Moon Tarot - the creative, surreal and mysterious creation of Patrick Walesa. So, are you ready to plunge into the real madness? Then let's go!

History of the deck

Patrick Walesa has been working on the Mad Moon Tarot for almost three decades. He not only developed maps that were completely different from the classics, but also collected photographs of cemeteries, abandoned buildings, mental hospitals and other equally “vile” places, so that later, using computer editing, they could be rolled up and used here and there in the images of the Arcana: where - something is the shoes or headgear of the character, somewhere in the background landscape, against which the plot unfolds. At first glance, as they say, you won't guess!

As a result, when the deck went on sale (which happened for the first time in 2008), we saw bizarre, moonlit scenes with characters that were frightening, but also attractive at the same time. It seems that these are people, but they are somehow “not like that”. The secret is simple: they are all absolutely insane. Why was it worth creating such a deck? What was the idea behind the Deviant Moon Tarot? In fact, Patrick created it to work with his own shadow, with his unconscious, which pushes out the most hidden, deeply hidden fears. And the biggest fear is losing your mind. We can say that this is a kind of disclosure of the eighteenth Arcanum of the Moon.

After the publication of the Mad Moon Tarot, it quickly gained loyal fans. What can I say - they appeared even earlier, at a time when Patrick was still working on the deck and uploading fragments of that surreal puzzle to his Internet blog, which was fully formed later, after many months of fruitful work. But the deck also had ardent haters. As soon as these cards were not called names: both blasphemous, and vile, and nauseating. I have even heard stories of people buying this deck and burning it. In fact, this is also quite simple to explain: madness simply frightens many, therefore only those who are not afraid to step into the unconscious and will not push away from themselves what does not fit into the concept of “norm” can find a common language with these cards.

Personally, I've been going around this deck for over a year. She caught my eye every now and then, and I did not understand whether I wanted her or I was afraid to even take her in my hands. She repelled and attracted at the same time. As a result, at one fine moment, a big discount decided the matter, and for almost two years now I have been fruitfully working with her. Surprisingly, I quickly became friends with the mysterious "moonmen", and they answer my questions quickly, clearly and without sentimentality. And sometimes even visually show the situation with pictures. And yes - the Mad Moon Tarot sometimes manages to look much deeper than my other decks. In a word, I am extremely satisfied.

Key features of the deck

It is worth saying a few words about the key features of Deviant Moon Taro. The tradition to which the deck belongs is unique. Despite the fact that some tarologists notice echoes of Waite in it, I personally found quite a few references to Crowley. Therefore, let it be better unique. Cards 78, suits are common - Wands, Cups, Pentacles, Swords, court cards are also traditional - Pages, Knights, Queens, Kings. Justice, to my great delight, comes at number 8, Strength is eleventh. The Major Arcana have classic names. There is probably nothing more to say.

Symbolism of the deck

In principle, I have already written a lot about the symbolism that Patrick Valensa used in his Mad Moon Tarot above. The characters, as I said, are residents of a strange city, similar to people with crazy button eyes. Many of them are two-faced - the faces of such heroes resemble a crescent moon, along with its invisible dark side. Great importance is also given to the moon itself - almost every map shows a night luminary in one of its phases. Somewhere the moon has human features, somewhere it looks quite ordinary. The images are amazing: at first glance they scare away, but as soon as you start to peer into them, you get the feeling that you are plunging somewhere far, far beyond. What is beyond this limit? A complete departure from "normality", the swamp of the unconscious, the dark side of your inner "I"?

I can't resist and here is a quote from user asgeth from LiveJournal. Painfully accurately, she described my own feelings from these cards - just take my hat off!

“I was once asked why this particular deck can scare / repel people from themselves so much. What in it goes across perception so much that it makes sane and reasonable, in general, people shy away from it more than from the same Baphomet or Linda Falorio. I seem to have found the answer. This is madness. If just all sorts of vampires, devils and other relatively understandable chthonic pure-evil and abomination, then Deviant Moon is not exchanged for demonic delights and is not covered by necromantic aesthetics. This is a slice of madness in its purest form; madness, not covered with ruffles, and not plastered beyond recognition at the level of "the patient is conditionally sane."

Moreover, this is not a “patient-doctor” level: if, in addition to the indicated Madness, at least a conditional Norm was present in the deck, then the “terribleness” of the deck would sharply decrease - the fortuneteller would receive his desired island of calm, the starting and reference point, and further would flirt with the other side of the mind almost with pleasure.

Here, the opportunity to “return to the starting position” does not exist in principle: the deck is like a pure language without borrowings - either you learn and speak, or you try to understand through an interpreter, but you don’t try to mix French and Nizhny Novgorod in one bottle. Either your own Norm, or her Norm, which is the same Madness in your personal coordinate system.

Major Arcana

After such a long and colorful introduction, it’s even somehow scary to describe the Major Arcana, because they are so multifaceted that everyone will see something of their own here. But let's try. I will not overload you with text from my own thoughts, I will try to capture only the most important. And then, as they say - think for yourself.

So, Jester of the Mad Moon Tarot. The character is dressed in a costume that is somewhat reminiscent of a mental hospital patient's pajamas. Only here in Russia they are usually gray, but who knows how it is there, over the hill? Personally, my first association arose just like that. Although, maybe this is not a hospital pajama at all, but a night suit in which our hero just got out of bed. He is absolutely insane, but his madness is kind of funny. He smiles gleefully, standing knee-deep in water from which piranhas jump out and are about to gnaw his legs to the very bones. The feeling that this person (being?) Lives in one moment. He has no fear of consequences, there is only some kind of insane ecstasy of jubilation. The gondola, which could be ridden without fear of being left without legs, disappears beyond the right edge of the map. Well, let me, and I have so much fun.

All this reminds me of a child who runs away into the street secretly from his mother in order to jump in puddles to his heart's content, pick apples from a neighbor's garden, gorge himself on ice cream and do, in principle, everything that he is constantly forbidden to do. The moon in the background is growing, which means that this crazy child is also going through a phase of growth, maturation, although the whole process seems to be an ordinary, albeit very dangerous game.

The Wheel of Fortune in the Mad Moon Tarot also looks abnormal. But what else was to be expected? The fair fortune teller grabbed the handle of the wheel and is about to turn it. Next to her sits a naked man in a red cap, very reminiscent of a circus monkey. The lady holds out her hand to him and it seems that she is about to utter her signature “gild the pen”. The Devil conducts here - at least, this character is very similar to him. Interestingly, the fish on the edge of the wheel are strenuously climbing up, while traditionally the characters of this card are located in different ways - one is on top, the other rushes down. On the wheel we see images of a broken heart, palm, skull, moon, star.

The Mad Moon Tarot never ceases to amaze: it is interesting that the handle of the Wheel is turned by a woman, but the Devil is in fact in charge, which means that Arkan can be viewed from different angles. On the one hand, these are equal opportunities, since the true ruler is that red conductor, and the pen is just an appearance that fate can be controlled. On the other hand, note that the “client” (or client?) has golden shoes on her feet, and the gypsy is barefoot. It turns out that someone who is higher in status than her and has more than her turns to her for help. At the moment, this person depends on the turn of the wheel, which the fortuneteller will launch. Another version that comes to mind: the wheel has already been launched, but the client didn’t like the prediction (his posture and facial expression can be mistaken for horror), and now the gypsy is asking for more money. Like, do not like the prediction? Pay and I'll change it! What is this if not madness?

Somewhere I read another interpretation: that a plump little man in a hat is actually a pregnant woman, and she came to find out the future of her child, and not at all her own fate.

Surprisingly, I almost went beyond the prescribed volume of the article, without even having time to talk about the Major Arcana. So I'll quickly show you another one and move on to the Juniors. Let it be 18 Arcana, the disclosure of which, in fact, is dedicated to the deck. I suggest you look for your own associations to this story. From myself, I’ll note one thing: the usual full moon shines in the sky, but what happens to the heroes of the map is what usually happens when our moon is black. It is known that it is the black moon that affects our energy much more strongly than the full moon. Perhaps this is due to the fact that in this surreal world created by Patrick Walesa, everything happens exactly the opposite? The moon has attached invisible tentacles to people, it manipulates them, makes them completely insane. And this whole picture seems from a psychological point of view much more terrible than the Devil or the Tower.

Minor Arcana

We continue our journey through the Mad Moon Tarot Gallery. Since we found out that I no longer fit into the allotted volume, we will go over the four Minor Arcana of different suits quite briefly. I'll just show the picture and write the keywords that I associate with it.

Eight of Wands: obstacles that arise on the path that you want to tear down to hell in one fell swoop, receiving news, hatred of restrictions, the ability to do several things at the same time (mow wands, read a letter, listen to a crow's speech).

The Five of Cups of the Mad Moon Tarot evokes in me associations with feelings and romance that everyday life killed, the desire to command instead of just loving, manipulation. The expression “to become the shadow of your partner” is also very suitable for this Arcana, because earlier this couple had already met on the Deuce of the same suit and then the man’s face was black - now it has turned black and has become the same as his wife.

The Nine of Swords is remorse, painful experiences due to events that have already happened, fears, devouring oneself with the mind, intellectual masochism, soul-searching. It seems to me that even the cat lying on the bed is already tired of the eternal whining of its mistress and is ready to cling to it.

The Six of Pentacles of the Mad Moon Tarot is generosity, but generosity is extremely ostentatious. In fact, a person has much more than he gives. With one hand he gives alms, and with five more hands he collects money from other sources. Personally, it seems to me that the card can be lost by any of its sides: either you have to literally “scratch out” your money or be content with the little that you gave, or you yourself - in the role of this greedy man who sacrifices something not out of the kindness of his soul, but , for check. Although Arkan can be called successful for business, as it promises to receive money from several sources at once.

court cards

Royal Court of the Mad Moon Tarot, I suggest you consider for yourself. But each image created by Patrick Walesa is actually very deep and multifaceted, although sometimes it borders on real madness. In the layouts, curly cards surprisingly accurately describe the character and behavior of people, and sometimes also point to specific characters recognizable literally “from the picture”.

Features of the interpretation of cards

The meaning of each card of the Mad Moon Tarot is so comprehensive that turning them over in layouts, sorry for the tautology, seems like madness. Here, and so the whole world seems to be turned inside out. Can you imagine what happens if you use the reverse positions? Although, surprisingly, shifters are still described in MBC. But personally I don't use them and don't intend to. In my opinion, what is visible on direct maps is quite enough: here you have light, shadow, mirroring, visible, hidden - do you really need something else?

What issues is the deck suitable for?

Of course, the Mad Moon Tarot focuses primarily on the psychological and shadow aspects of the situation. But personally, I used them for the most common layouts. I will say even more: once I did the “Radiu Wheel” on the creation of Patrick Walesa (who doesn’t know - this is the layout of the whole deck). The information received just the sea, and such that neither I nor my client even expected to hear. The Deviant Moon dug so deep that nothing was left hidden. Therefore, I believe that for those who understand its language, it may well become universal. I heard that many people use it as an additional shadow deck - they make a layout in two layers: the top (visible) is laid out with a regular deck, the bottom (shadow) is the Tarot of the Mad Moon. They say that it turns out very informative, but I have not tried it yet.

Who is the card for?

Buying the Mad Moon Tarot can only be recommended to those who do not seek to drive themselves and those around them into the framework of a certain “norm” and are ready to plunge into the dark sea of ​​the unconscious. In general, if you are crazy with "you" - feel free to buy. In all other cases - categorically do not recommend.

Until recently, there was only one book on the Mad Moon Tarot - written by the author himself in English. But, having rummaged on the Internet, it was possible to find interesting interpretations and personal studies of the deck by its fans. And more recently, the creation of the Russian author Veronika Nikitenko called "In the Power of the Mad Moon" saw the light of day. At the moment, I have ordered this book - at the time of writing the review, it is on the way to me. From the excerpts and video reviews I found online, I got the impression that the book is quite interesting. The author considers all the Arcana of this deck from a psychological point of view, which significantly expands their perception. So I definitely recommend it.

On this, perhaps, everything. I earnestly ask the opponents of this deck not to express their "fi" in the comments. In the end, different decks are needed, different decks are important. If you don't like something, it doesn't mean that someone else won't like it. Have a nice day everyone!

Before the Deviant Moon Tarot deck and its Minor Arcana hit the market in 2010, the author posted several images of the Major Arcana on the Internet long ago, capturing the imagination of tarot enthusiasts around the world. The first cards of the Major Arcana of the deck were created by Patrick Valenza at the age of 15 and began to redraw them in 2004. Fans were desperately clamoring for news, images of other cards, and a final release date. And this joyful moment has come, at present, the American publishing house U.S.Games has released the long-awaited Deviant Moon Tarot, opening a wide road for him to the world of Tarot. And if the exquisite, highly detailed images on the site only whetted the appetite, then the deck itself actually exceeded all expectations. Among the huge variety of Tarot decks created over six centuries, the Deviant Moon Tarot is unrivaled in originality, artistry and luxurious textures. In fact, this deck has so many cards that, due to their idiosyncratic images, immediately stand out from any tarot deck as their very best.

Minor Arcana Tarot of the Mad Moon or Deviant Moon Tarot

In spreads, the Mad Moon Tarot cards are incredibly powerful and are equally well-coordinated with each other when reading, from the Fool to the King of Pentacles. They are dark on the surface and inside; images of photographs of cemeteries and tombstones are morphed and smoothly transition from one image to another and are intertwined in different elements of the map: in the decoration of clothes, hats and shoes. The figures on the cards with combined lunar face masks and wide-open eyes, bird-like legs and often elongated bodies are not human. Despite the absence of an ordinary human face and body, these figures are unusually expressive. This is a deck of the subconscious, nightmares and a difficult life path, a visual dedication of the artist of his interest in "the sadder side of life."

A very high quality Mad Moon Tarot deck with wonderful Minor Arcana. The Minor Arcana of the Deviant Moon Tarot deck are distinguished by their originality and careful study of all stripes. On all the Minor Arcana of the deck there are frames of different colors on each suit, characterizing exactly the suit with which they are associated. So, the red frames on the Swords symbolize suffering, struggle and heartache. The black frames for Pentacles reflect the materialistic and mercantile darkness living in their souls. For the Wands, Patrick chose the symbol of the earth and nature - green. Cups are framed in blue, symbolizing the calm purity of the sea. Aces in this deck stand out for their extreme complexity. Instead of the usual depiction of a single cup, wand, sword, or pentacle symbol in the Deviant Moon Tarot, the symbols of Aces are fully illustrated. Particularly enchanting is the suit of the Wands of this deck, which is usually not visually very attractive. For example, the charismatic King of Wands doesn't sit on his usual throne, but instead walks around with bizarre forest creatures shackling his legs and arms while still being perceived as a confident leader. All map scenes with the Moon rising above chimneys and bulky buildings in dull and dirty skies are based on photographs from a psychiatric hospital. The backgrounds of the characters on the Deviant Moon Tarot cards are mostly open air urban and industrial landscapes, but sometimes there is a bit of nature in them.

Patrick's symbolism comes from childhood dreams and fantasies, and while inspired by the Rider-Waite legacy, it actually expresses all of his own feelings. So, for example, on the Four of Pentacles, the clock shows 9:40 not by chance, this is the time when Patrick learned about the death of his greedy father-in-law, a terrible miser and miser, whose death none of his relatives particularly regretted. Therefore, in the mouth of the angel of death, leading the miser into the flames of cremation, the symbol of time dangles. In a last attempt to take at least something with him, the miser clutches several golden pentacles, looking in fear at all his possessions, which he will never see again.

These additions allow the Deviant Moon Tarot images to be well seen from a different new and unsettling angle, while keeping the cards faithful to the usual tarot symbolism. While remaining true to tarot tradition, the cards have moved away from the traditional elements of symbolism in many ways, but the meaning behind the tarot cards is still clear. So in the Minor Arcana Nine of Cups, which is generally considered "success" and "fulfillment of desires", Valenza very appropriately depicts a genie who has just emerged from the magic lamp of a surprised youth. Surprising juxtapositions are in keeping with traditional card meanings, such as the skill of a witch bled out of a bleeding red sap tree on the Seven of Pentacles, the perseverance of the Knight of Pentacles, who assembled himself from spare parts for an indispensable task, and the independence of an armless woman walking with her beloved pet in medieval times. anti-plague mask with a wheel on the left "leg" in the Nine of Pentacles. The inhabitants of Deviant Moon talk and freeze in their strange dances, as if they have always been doing just that. Absolutely static figures of the Mad Moon Tarot are depicted in the dynamics of the action they perform. The ugly but strangely elegant pregnant Death, with a red scarf wrapped around a horse's skull instead of a horse's head, signals death's inherent transformations of end to beginning and vice versa.

The Deviant Moon Tarot expands on Rider-Waite's depictions from a superbly swirling perspective that captures common associations in dazzling character art and vibrant colors. A little bit of knowledge about the Tarot is always helpful, but it doesn't have to be the Mad Moon Tarot and its instruction booklet, which gives descriptions of the images for each card and a few keywords for the upright and inverted cards. All the depths of meaning in the very imagery of the card, whose dark and strange beauty of imagery is true enough, takes a new approach to the tarot archetypes and is useful for transitioning readers from beginner to more experienced - as long as you are ready for a little excursion to the dark side of the moon and your subconscious. Deviant Moon aims only at the truth and strikes at the heart of the problem with a low voice in the moonlit darkness of the night. Despite the unusual symbols that populate the world of the Mad Moon Tarot, their messages are still consistent with traditional tarot card meanings, purposeful, and understandable to even the most discerning tarot connoisseurs.

Deviant Moon Tarot

The deck, which will be devoted to my today's review, is called one of the most popular. Another thing is surprising: someone falls in love with these infernal, bewitching, but at the same time frightening cards, at first sight, while someone spits in their direction and prefers to bypass any mention of the deck. Of course, this is the Mad Moon Tarot - the creative, surreal and mysterious creation of Patrick Walesa. So, are you ready to plunge into the real madness? Then let's go!

History of the deck

Patrick Walesa worked on Mad Moon Tarot almost three decades. He not only developed maps that were completely different from the classics, but also collected photographs of cemeteries, abandoned buildings, mental hospitals and other equally “vile” places, so that later, using computer editing, they could be rolled up and used here and there in the images of the Arcana: where - something is the shoes or headgear of the character, somewhere in the background landscape, against which the plot unfolds. At first glance, as they say, you won't guess!

As a result, when the deck went on sale (which happened for the first time in 2008), we saw bizarre, moonlit scenes with characters that were frightening, but also attractive at the same time. It seems that these are people, but they are somehow “not like that”. The secret is simple: they are all absolutely insane. Why was it worth creating such a deck? What was the idea Deviant Moon Tarot? In fact, Patrick created it to work with his own shadow, with his unconscious, which pushes out the most hidden, deeply hidden fears. And the biggest fear is losing your mind. We can say that this is a kind of disclosure of the eighteenth Arcanum of the Moon.

After the publication of the Mad Moon Tarot, it quickly gained loyal fans. What can I say - they appeared even earlier, at a time when Patrick was still working on the deck and uploading fragments of that surreal puzzle to his Internet blog, which was fully formed later, after many months of fruitful work. But the deck also had ardent haters. As soon as these cards were not called names: both blasphemous, and vile, and nauseating. I have even heard stories of people buying this deck and burning it. In fact, this is also quite simple to explain: madness simply frightens many, therefore only those who are not afraid to step into the unconscious and will not push away from themselves what does not fit into the concept of “norm” can find a common language with these cards.

Personally, I've been going around this deck for over a year. She caught my eye every now and then, and I did not understand whether I wanted her or I was afraid to even take her in my hands. She repelled and attracted at the same time. As a result, at one fine moment, a big discount decided the matter, and for almost two years now I have been fruitfully working with her. Surprisingly, I quickly became friends with the mysterious "moonmen", and they answer my questions quickly, clearly and without sentimentality. And sometimes even visually show the situation with pictures. And yes - the Mad Moon Tarot sometimes manages to look much deeper than my other decks. In a word, I am extremely satisfied.

Key features of the deck

It is worth saying a few words about the key features Deviant Moon Taro. The tradition to which the deck belongs is unique. Despite the fact that some tarologists notice echoes of Waite in it, I personally found quite a few references to Crowley. Therefore, let it be better unique. Cards 78, suits are common - Wands, Cups, Pentacles, Swords, court cards are also traditional - Pages, Knights, Queens, Kings. Justice, to my great delight, comes at number 8, Strength is eleventh. The Major Arcana have classic names. There is probably nothing more to say.

Symbolism of the deck

In principle, I have already written a lot about the symbolism that Patrick Valensa used in his Mad Moon Tarot above. The characters, as I said, are residents of a strange city, similar to people with crazy button eyes. Many of them are two-faced - the faces of such heroes resemble a crescent moon, along with its invisible dark side. Great importance is also given to the moon itself - almost every map shows a night luminary in one of its phases. Somewhere the moon has human features, somewhere it looks quite ordinary. The images are amazing: at first glance they scare away, but as soon as you start to peer into them, you get the feeling that you are plunging somewhere far, far beyond. What is beyond this limit? A complete departure from "normality", the swamp of the unconscious, the dark side of your inner "I"?

I can't resist and here is a quote from user asgeth from LiveJournal. Painfully accurately, she described my own feelings from these cards - just take my hat off!

“I was once asked why this particular deck can scare / repel people from themselves so much. What in it goes across perception so much that it makes sane and reasonable, in general, people shy away from it more than from the same Baphomet or Linda Falorio. I seem to have found the answer. This is madness. If just all sorts of vampires, devils and other relatively understandable chthonic vermin and abomination look out from under the covers of the rest of the tarot decks, then Deviant Moon is not exchanged for demonic delights and is not covered by necromantic aesthetics. This is a slice of madness in its purest form; madness, not covered with ruffles, and not plastered beyond recognition at the level of "the patient is conditionally sane."

Moreover, this is not a “patient-doctor” level: if, in addition to the indicated Madness, at least a conditional Norm was present in the deck, then the “terribleness” of the deck would sharply decrease - the fortuneteller would receive his desired island of calm, the starting and reference point, and further would flirt with the other side of the mind almost with pleasure.

Here, the opportunity to “return to the starting position” does not exist in principle: the deck is like a pure language without borrowings - either you learn and speak, or you try to understand through an interpreter, but you don’t try to mix French and Nizhny Novgorod in one bottle. Either your own Norm, or her Norm, which is the same Madness in your personal coordinate system.

Major Arcana

After such a long and colorful introduction, it’s even somehow scary to describe the Major Arcana, because they are so multifaceted that everyone will see something of their own here. But let's try. I will not overload you with text from my own thoughts, I will try to capture only the most important. And then, as they say - think for yourself.

So, Jester of the Mad Moon Tarot. The character is dressed in a costume that is somewhat reminiscent of a mental hospital patient's pajamas. Only here in Russia they are usually gray, but who knows how it is there, over the hill? Personally, my first association arose just like that. Although, maybe this is not a hospital pajama at all, but a night suit in which our hero just got out of bed. He is absolutely insane, but his madness is kind of funny. He smiles gleefully, standing knee-deep in water from which piranhas jump out and are about to gnaw his legs to the very bones. The feeling that this person (being?) Lives in one moment. He has no fear of consequences, there is only some kind of insane ecstasy of jubilation. The gondola, which could be ridden without fear of being left without legs, disappears beyond the right edge of the map. Well, let me, and I have so much fun.

All this reminds me of a child who runs away into the street secretly from his mother in order to jump in puddles to his heart's content, pick apples from a neighbor's garden, gorge himself on ice cream and do, in principle, everything that he is constantly forbidden to do. The moon in the background is growing, which means that this crazy child is also going through a phase of growth, maturation, although the whole process seems to be an ordinary, albeit very dangerous game.

The Wheel of Fortune in the Mad Moon Tarot also looks abnormal. But what else was to be expected? The fair fortune teller grabbed the handle of the wheel and is about to turn it. Next to her sits a naked man in a red cap, very reminiscent of a circus monkey. The lady holds out her hand to him and it seems that she is about to utter her signature “gild the pen”. The Devil conducts here - at least, this character is very similar to him. Interestingly, the fish on the edge of the wheel are strenuously climbing up, while traditionally the characters of this card are located in different ways - one is on top, the other rushes down. On the wheel we see images of a broken heart, palm, skull, moon, star.

The Mad Moon Tarot never ceases to amaze: it is interesting that the handle of the Wheel is turned by a woman, but the Devil is in fact in charge, which means that Arkan can be viewed from different angles. On the one hand, these are equal opportunities, since the true ruler is that red conductor, and the pen is just an appearance that fate can be controlled. On the other hand, note that the “client” (or client?) has golden shoes on her feet, and the gypsy is barefoot. It turns out that someone who is higher in status than her and has more than her turns to her for help. At the moment, this person depends on the turn of the wheel, which the fortuneteller will launch. Another version that comes to mind: the wheel has already been launched, but the client didn’t like the prediction (his posture and facial expression can be mistaken for horror), and now the gypsy is asking for more money. Like, do not like the prediction? Pay and I'll change it! What is this if not madness?

Somewhere I read another interpretation: that a plump little man in a hat is actually a pregnant woman, and she came to find out the future of her child, and not at all her own fate.
Surprisingly, I almost went beyond the prescribed volume of the article, without even having time to talk about the Major Arcana. So I'll quickly show you another one and move on to the Juniors. Let it be 18 Arcana, the disclosure of which, in fact, is dedicated to the deck. I suggest you look for your own associations to this story. From myself, I’ll note one thing: the usual full moon shines in the sky, but what happens to the heroes of the map is what usually happens when our moon is black. It is known that it is the black moon that affects our energy much more strongly than the full moon. Perhaps this is due to the fact that in this surreal world created by Patrick Walesa, everything happens exactly the opposite? The moon has attached invisible tentacles to people, it manipulates them, makes them completely insane. And this whole picture seems from a psychological point of view much more terrible than the Devil or the Tower.

Minor Arcana

We continue our journey through the Mad Moon Tarot Gallery. Since we found out that I no longer fit into the allotted volume, we will go over the four Minor Arcana of different suits quite briefly. I'll just show the picture and write the keywords that I associate with it.

Eight of Wands: obstacles that arise on the path that you want to tear down to hell in one fell swoop, receiving news, hatred of restrictions, the ability to do several things at the same time (mow wands, read a letter, listen to a crow's speech).
The Five of Cups of the Mad Moon Tarot evokes in me associations with feelings and romance that everyday life killed, the desire to command instead of just loving, manipulation. The expression “to become the shadow of your partner” is also very suitable for this Arcana, because earlier this couple had already met on the Deuce of the same suit and then the man’s face was black - now it has turned black and has become the same as his wife.

The Nine of Swords is remorse, painful experiences due to events that have already happened, fears, devouring oneself with the mind, intellectual masochism, soul-searching. It seems to me that even the cat lying on the bed is already tired of the eternal whining of its mistress and is ready to cling to it.

The Six of Pentacles of the Mad Moon Tarot is generosity, but generosity is extremely ostentatious. In fact, a person has much more than he gives. With one hand he gives alms, and with five more hands he collects money from other sources. Personally, it seems to me that the card can be lost by any of its sides: either you have to literally “scratch out” your money or be content with the little that you gave, or you yourself - in the role of this greedy man who sacrifices something not out of the kindness of his soul, but , for check. Although Arkan can be called successful for business, as it promises to receive money from several sources at once.

court cards

Royal Court of the Mad Moon Tarot, I suggest you consider for yourself. But each image created by Patrick Walesa is actually very deep and multifaceted, although sometimes it borders on real madness. In the layouts, curly cards surprisingly accurately describe the character and behavior of people, and sometimes also point to specific characters recognizable literally “from the picture”.

Features of the interpretation of cards

The meaning of each card of the Mad Moon Tarot is so comprehensive that turning them over in layouts, sorry for the tautology, seems like madness. Here, and so the whole world seems to be turned inside out. Can you imagine what happens if you use the reverse positions? Although, surprisingly, shifters are still described in MBC. But personally I don't use them and don't intend to. In my opinion, what is visible on direct maps is quite enough: here you have light, shadow, mirroring, visible, hidden - do you really need something else?

What issues is the deck suitable for?

Of course, the Mad Moon Tarot focuses primarily on the psychological and shadow aspects of the situation. But personally, I used them for the most common layouts. I will say even more: once I did the “Radiu Wheel” on the creation of Patrick Walesa (who doesn’t know - this is the layout of the whole deck). The information received just the sea, and such that neither I nor my client even expected to hear. The Deviant Moon dug so deep that nothing was left hidden. Therefore, I believe that for those who understand its language, it may well become universal. I heard that many people use it as an additional shadow deck - they make a layout in two layers: the top (visible) is laid out with a regular deck, the bottom (shadow) is the Tarot of the Mad Moon. They say that it turns out very informative, but I have not tried it yet.

Who is the card for?

Buying the Mad Moon Tarot can only be recommended to those who do not seek to drive themselves and those around them into the framework of a certain “norm” and are ready to plunge into the dark sea of ​​the unconscious. In general, if you are crazy with "you" - feel free to buy. In all other cases - categorically do not recommend.

Until recently, there was only one book on the Mad Moon Tarot - written by the author himself in English. But, having rummaged on the Internet, it was possible to find interesting interpretations and personal studies of the deck by its fans. And more recently, the creation of the Russian author Veronika Nikitenko called "In the Power of the Mad Moon" saw the light of day. At the moment, I have ordered this book - at the time of writing the review, it is on the way to me. From the excerpts and video reviews I found online, I got the impression that the book is quite interesting. The author considers all the Arcana of this deck from a psychological point of view, which significantly expands their perception. So I definitely recommend it.

On this, perhaps, everything. I earnestly ask the opponents of this deck not to express their "fi" in the comments. In the end, different decks are needed, different decks are important. If you don't like something, it doesn't mean that someone else won't like it. Have a nice day everyone!
(c) Victoria Kotlyarova

Each of the tarot decks is unique and answers certain questions, despite its versatility. Before working with the Mad Moon tarot, we recommend that you take a closer look at your inner feelings.

If you like light images, it would be better to work, for example, with the Lenormand tarot deck, or with the Mirage Valley tarot, and leave the lasso of the crazy moon alone. The artist who created the images used moonlight and photographs from cemeteries and tombstones. Although a companion book is included with the cards, it is not recommended for beginner tarot readers. Images are based on unrealistic and asymmetric images.

Interpretation of the Major Arcana of the Mad Moon Tarot

Consider the interpretation of the major arcana, taking into account the specifics of the deck:

Arcana	Interpretation directly	Reversed Position
Jester	The beginning of a new stage, lack of experience, innocence, stupidity.	Missed opportunity, wrong choice.
Mage	Shows a personality endowed with skill, talent, the magician is busy developing abilities.	Talent is used to harm others. Lack of creative energy, imagination. Inability to learn quickly and understand information.
Priestess	The wisdom and intuition of a woman far exceeds her age.	Indifference, inability to see the situation in development several steps ahead, sensual coldness, detachment.
empress	A sign of female strength, abundance, motherhood.	Inability to give birth to a child, betrayal, conflicts in the house.
Emperor	A strong man, an ambitious leader with self-respect.	Lack of experience, feeling of weakness and indecision.
Hierophant	Inspiration from above, the ability to control emotions, mercy.	A sign of impotence (including sexual), unnecessary advice.
lovers	Time of passion, love and harmony.	Conflict, rupture, remoteness of partners.
Chariot	Travel, the desire to learn new things.	Difficulties, delays in plans.
Justice	Sense of balance, strong-willed character, sincere feelings.	Stereotypical thinking, nit-picking, psychological rigidity.
Hermit	The person is an introvert who voluntarily seeks solitude.	A socially active person who shares knowledge or information.
Wheel of Fortune	Events are dictated by fate, unexpected changes and luck.	Unexpected negative result, possibly an accident.
Strength	Obtaining power, authority, hardy character.	The sign of defeat.
Hanged	Indecisiveness of character has become the cause of missed prospects.	Time is lost. Feeling of a frozen situation and running in circles.
Death	Change, transformation is the completion of a stage of life.	Unexpected changes, negative events.
Moderation	Connection, partnership to achieve high results, the direction of energies in a creative direction.	Conflicts, feeling tired, disagreements.
Devil	Oppression, pursuit of money and material goods, lust.	Greed, willingness to go to any lengths to achieve a goal.
Tower	Accident, sudden breakup, disillusionment.	Being fired from work, being in a losing streak.
Star	Talks about the emergence of hope, creative energy plans and fantasies.	Self-doubt, superficial creativity.
Moon	Deception, control, outside influence, manipulation.	The person lives in illusions, fears, and is full of despair.
Sun	Meeting friends, engagement, successful marriage.	Loneliness, relationships cannot be called stable, remoteness, separation.
Court	Getting help, starting new projects.	Delays and obstacles, the fortuneteller blames himself, regrets what he has done.
World	The battle was hard but it was won. Achievement of the goal, success, fulfillment of desires.	Unfinished business, the failure of the project, the collapse of plans.

Gallery of the Mad Moon Tarot Deck

What questions does the Deviant Moon Tarot deck answer?

This deck of cards is specific in nature and is not suitable for standard layouts for love, relationships, financial matters and health conditions. She helps the fortuneteller look beyond reality into the subconscious, fears, doubts and look into their faces in order to win.

When working, you need to work out each lasso separately, so it is recommended for experienced tarologists who want to create a psychological portrait of a person and determine what prevents the client from moving forward.