It is loud. That is the first thing people usually notice when they pull a card from the Tarot of the Spirit. Created by Pamela Eakins and illustrated by her mother, Joyce Eakins, in the early 1990s, this isn't your standard "gentle" deck. It’s a visionary, sprawling, and deeply technical work of art that attempts to map the entire human soul onto the Tree of Life. If you are used to the Rider-Waite-Smith or the gentle imagery of modern "indie" decks, this one might feel like a punch in the gut—in a good way.
Most tarot readers stumble upon it and think it's just another "New Age" deck from the nineties. Honestly? They're wrong. It’s a high-level occult tool. It doesn't care about your surface-level "does he like me?" questions. It wants to know why your soul is vibrating at its current frequency.
What is Tarot of the Spirit anyway?
The deck was born out of a series of meditative sessions. Pamela Eakins, a sociologist and scholar, spent years developing the theoretical framework while her mother, Joyce, painted the images. The result is a 78-card system that is inextricably linked to the Qabalah (Kabbalah). You can't really "get" this deck without at least a passing interest in the Sephiroth. Each card represents a path or a station on the Tree of Life.
The art is abstract. You won't find a guy with ten swords in his back here. Instead, you get "The Ten of Fire," featuring a chaotic, geometric explosion of energy that feels more like a physics diagram than a medieval scene. This abstraction is intentional. It forces your brain to stop looking for stories and start looking for patterns.
The Elemental Difference
Most decks use Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles. Tarot of the Spirit keeps the traditional names but treats them as raw elemental forces: Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth.
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- Fire (Wands): This isn't just about "passion." It’s about the Primal Will.
- Water (Cups): This is the Great Sea of Consciousness.
- Wind (Swords): Think of this as the "Mind" that carves through reality.
- Earth (Pentacles): The final manifestation in the physical world.
The deck also introduces a unique concept: The Mystery Cards. There are extra cards that act as "gateways" or "shamanic" markers. This throws a lot of traditionalists off. Why add more cards to a perfect 78-card system? Because Eakins felt the traditional structure left gaps in the spiritual evolution process. It’s kinda like adding a new color to the rainbow; at first, it looks weird, but then you realize you were missing a whole spectrum of experience.
Why it’s gaining a cult following in 2026
We are currently seeing a massive shift back toward "Hard Occultism." People are tired of surface-level "vibes." They want systems. They want rigor. Tarot of the Spirit offers that rigor. It’s a deck that demands you study. You don't just "read" it; you inhabit it.
I've talked to readers who have used this deck for thirty years, and they all say the same thing: it never stops revealing itself. One day you’re looking at "The High Priestess" (represented by a blue, ethereal veil), and you suddenly realize the geometry aligns perfectly with the path of Gimel on the Tree of Life. It’s that "aha!" moment that keeps people coming back.
The Court Cards: Not Just People
In a typical deck, a Page is a kid or a messenger. A King is an older man. In this deck, they are "The Brother," "The Sister," "The Father," and "The Mother." They represent internal archetypes rather than external people. This is a massive shift.
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If you pull the Father of Fire, you aren't looking for a bossy Aries man in your life. You are looking at the foundational masculine energy of your own creative will. It's internal. It’s psychological. It’s almost Jungian in its execution.
Practical Tips for Using the Deck
Don't buy this deck if you aren't prepared to read the book. Usually, I tell people to "trust their intuition" with tarot. With Tarot of the Spirit, that’s only half the battle. You need the Eakins' text. The book is essentially a syllabus for a self-taught course in Western Esotericism.
- Start with the Minor Arcana. Most people start with the Big Names (The Magician, The Fool). Don't. Start with the "small" cards. See how the energy of Fire moves from the Ace to the Ten.
- Look for the geometry. There are recurring shapes. Triangles, circles, and specific zig-zags (The Flash of Lightning). These aren't just decorations. They tell you how the energy is moving—is it expanding, contracting, or stagnating?
- Use it for meditation, not just divination. Pull one card. Sit with it for 20 minutes. Don't ask it questions. Just look at the colors. This deck is designed to bypass the verbal brain and speak directly to the subconscious.
The "Shadow" Side of the Deck
Is it perfect? No. Some find the art dated. It has a very specific "visionary art" aesthetic that was huge in the early 90s—think airbrushed textures and cosmic nebulas. If you prefer the crisp, modern lines of the "Cosmos Tarot" or the gritty realism of "The Deviant Moon," this might feel a bit like a throwback to a New Age bookstore.
Also, it's dense. Really dense. It can feel like homework. If you just want to know if you're going to get a promotion next week, this deck is going to give you a lecture on the nature of material manifestation instead of a simple "yes." It's a lot of work. But for some, that's exactly the point.
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Actionable Steps for Mastery
If you've just picked up a copy of Tarot of the Spirit or you're thinking about it, here is how you actually integrate it without losing your mind.
First, get the "big" book. There is a small "LWB" (Little White Book) that comes with it, but it’s basically useless for a deck this deep. You need the full-sized companion volume by Pamela Eakins.
Second, map it. Print out a diagram of the Tree of Life. As you pull cards, literally place them on the diagram. You will start to see "clusters." If all your cards are at the bottom of the tree (Malkuth), you're dealing with very physical, grounded issues. If they're all at the top (Kether/Chokmah/Binah), you're stuck in your head or in the "divine," and you need to bring those ideas down to earth.
Third, ignore the "traditional" meanings for a week. Just look at the Joyce Eakins paintings. What do the colors feel like? Red in this deck isn't always "anger"—sometimes it's the roar of the sun. Blue isn't always "sadness"—it’s often the deep, nourishing water of the womb.
Finally, track your "Mystery Card" pulls. These are the unique additions to this deck. When they show up, something "extra-ordinary" is happening. These cards represent shifts in consciousness that don't fit into the standard 78-card box. Pay attention to them. They are the deck's way of telling you that you're stepping off the beaten path and into something entirely new.
This isn't just a deck of cards. It’s a map of the invisible. It’s a tool for anyone who is tired of the mundane and ready to look at the skeletal structure of reality. It’s loud, it’s complicated, and it’s beautiful. If you’re ready to do the work, it will change how you see the world. It’s as simple—and as difficult—as that.