Is the Transformation Oracle a Tarot card deck?
If it’s not based on Tarot, what is the Transformation Oracle based on?
Why are there only 4 elements in the Transformation Oracle?
Aren’t there supposed to be 5 elements?
Some of the cards in my spread are upside-down.
What does that mean?
I’m new to reading cards. Do you offer classes?
I’m scared of knowing the future. Is there another way to use the cards?
What if I get a bad card—or a bad reading?
Is the Transformation Oracle a Tarot card deck?
No, though it has some similarities to Tarot cards because both types of cards are used for divination or reading metaphysical information, and both types of cards have four suits. The Transformation Oracle’s four suits are Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. Tarot cards’ four suits are Cups, Coins, Wands, and Swords (which correspond to the traditional playing card suits hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades). But Tarot cards also have a major arcana of 22 cards, including the Fool, High Priestess, Hanged Man, and so forth. There are 78 cards in a tarot card set, while the Transformation Oracle has 44 cards. The spirit guides behind the Transformation Oracle wanted it to be based on the Power Number 44, the number of intuition and inner wisdom. This number doubles the vibrations of the Number 4, which concerns establishing solid foundations for yourself and others to create wholeness, worthiness, and success. So, though the Transformation Oracle is used in a similar way as Tarot cards, it is a divination deck but not a Tarot card deck.
Back To TopIf it’s not based on Tarot, what is the Transformation Oracle based on?
The Transformation Oracle is based on channeled information from metaphysical guides. That said, the information contained in the 44 cards has a common ancestor with the I-Ching. The I-Ching is based on 8 sets of trigrams (3-line figures), which can be reduced in an esoteric context into the 4 elements as follows:
The Creative Principle (father) is AIRThe Receptive Principle (mother) is EARTH
The Activating / Thunder Principle (eldest son) is FIRE
Water (middle son) is WATER
Mountain (youngest son) is EARTH
Wood/Wind (eldest daughter) is AIR
Fire (middle daughter) is FIRE
Lake (youngest daughter) is WATER
On page 65 of the Guide Book is a chart showing the cycles of transformation within each element. This relates to the ancient changes in the I-Ching, where the 64 changes can be arranged in an esoteric order from beginning to end, reflecting spiritual evolution. You can use this chart to see where you’ve been and where you are heading. It works particularly well for single-card readings.
Back To TopWhy are there only 4 elements in the Transformation Oracle?
Aren’t there supposed to be 5 elements?
The four elements of the Transformation Oracle are an ancient system for understanding cosmic forces at work in life. In classical Greek philosophy, as well as in ancient Indian beliefs and Buddhism, the four elements are the simplest essential structures on which everything else in the universe is based. The fifth element in the I-Ching is metal, while the fifth element in Ayurveda is ether. The spirit guides behind the Transformation Oracle wanted to keep things simple in our overly complicated world. Their instructions were to go back to the simplest system because of its resonance with the Power Number 44 and to reduce the learning curve for people to access its wisdom.
Back To TopSome of the cards in my spread are upside-down.
What does that mean?
When a card appears upside-down in a spread, the indication is that there is a challenge with this particular energy coming through. For example, in a normal reading of the card “Expansion,” it means that the energy is increasing and growing to become larger, like the pregnant woman in the artwork. If the “Expansion” card appears upside-down, it means that the growth and expansion is not able to come through easily. Something is blocking the situation or posing a challenging.
If you have cards that are upside-down, there may be many challenges involved in your question. Check out the individual cards for how to read REVERSED cards:
Air Cards • Water Cards • Earth Cards • Fire Cards
I’m new to reading cards. Do you offer classes?
Yes! I offer a series of 3 workshops, leading to a Transformation Oracle READER CERTIFICATION. Currently, the workshops are offered in Lakewood, Colorado.
The workshops are a great way to build your confidence and give you hands-on experience reading cards for others. It is a chance to ask questions and get direct answers about working with the Transformation Oracle and oracle cards in general.
If you decide to go for the full CERTIFICATION, the benefits include credibility as a reader, an official seal for your website and social media presence, plus a link from this site to your site as one of the Certified Transformation Oracle Readers.
Back To Top
I’m scared of knowing the future. Is there another way to use the cards?
Yes! The Transformation Oracle a tool for personal and spiritual growth. It is designed to indicate which forces are at work to create changes in your life. Many changes are happening in the present, and you will see like an x-ray what’s going on underneath. One spread, called “Element Balancing,” simply shows what is happening in each of the four elements—which relate to your body, heart, mind, and spirit.
Working with the Transformation Oracle is like looking in a metaphysical mirror. We get a deeper, more revealing picture of ourselves. The perspective we get from the Transformation Oracle is not necessarily linear: the future is not always different from the present! In other words, the forces at work are sometimes large and slow-moving. We may have to repeat certain patterns and situations over and over before we can truly transform them—and ourselves.
Back To TopWhat if I get a bad card—or a bad reading?
There are no “bad” cards in the Transformation Oracle. Every one of the 44 cards relates to a powerful and natural transformative principle in life. Yet sometimes we’re ready to ask a question, but not ready to receive the answer. In that case, the card might seem “bad” to us, even though in the long run we may see its message as very helpful and “good.”
If a whole reading feels “off” to you, it may be a matter of timing. Consider taking a snapshot of your spread and wait a while before looking at it again. Interpreting metaphysical information, such as the messages that come through the Transformation Oracle, depends on our state of mind. Sometimes when we are in the midst of an intense growth process, we’re not yet attuned to the new information that wants to come through. In that case, it can seem off-base or not pertinent to the immediate moment. Yet over time, we can see the wisdom of the oracle speaking clearly to us the way our dreams do.