Creating the Illuminated Earth Oracle, by Claire Mack

Every day I make it my practice to go into the woods or garden and experience the healing energy of simply *being* in nature. Ancient, earthy, green, and ever-changing in it’s cycles, the beauty and mystery of the natural world are at the heart of the Illuminated Earth Oracle deck.


As an artist and Tarot enthusiast, I’ve always wanted to make a deck of divination cards. Originally setting out to create a traditional Tarot deck, I found myself moving toward imagery and symbolism that resonates more deeply with my personal journey as a painter, nature lover, and wisdom seeker. My interest in psychology, science, spiritual traditions, and esoteric studies helped facilitate the leap of faith to take on what felt like a monumental project. I began working on the oracle deck at the end of 2016, knowing the state of the country, the climate, and the world in the years ahead would be tumultuous in many ways and wanting to address this in the visual language I know best. 

 The concepts within the deck present elements of the human experience we all face, including both literal and symbolic interactions with nature.  Twelve of the cards are from figurative paintings in my collection that hold special significance to me. They are the human element - the mind and soul of the seeker here on Earth, whose journey is necessarily integrated with the planet and cosmos. Living in this time of dramatic climate change, I also wanted some of the images to touch on the impact humans have on the planet and the geophysical implications we experience as a result, while relating these to the internal landscape of our day to day lives.  


One of the most satisfying results of creating this deck has been hearing how others respond to and interpret the images for themselves. It’s been such a delight to hear stories of how much the cards resonate for people in the context of their own personal journeys and how they apply 
their intuition to find deeper meanings to their inquiries. Ultimately, divination is a ‘divine’ reflection of ourselves. We each have the wisdom within to see what we need for our highest purpose and using tools such as oracles and Tarot can help to attune the spirit through the magic of visual and symbolic connections.  

With Love and Illumination,
Claire