Spirit Messages Oracle by John Holland
Hello, soul friends!
There are various differences to the types of card decks people use, but the most common ones are Tarot, Oracle, and Lenormand. Over the years, I have come to collect various and eclectic decks ranging in artistic style and type. I always purchase what grabs my attention, and have learned that my aesthetic is not for everyone. So, as always, purchase what you feel guided to use for yourself.
Today's review is covering a deck that caught my attention for it's beautiful and interesting artwork. It is another creation from John Holland. I couldn't wait to get my own deck and work with this beauty. I have owned this deck for quite some time. I hope you enjoy my review and generous pictures!
I am just expressing my opinions and my own personal experiences with these decks and I hope that you can appreciate the candor. As always, use your own intuition and find tools that suit your tastes.
Spirit Messages Oracle
The Spirit Messages Oracle Deck is published by Hay House. I purchased my deck at a local metaphysical shop, but I have also seen it available at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and other bookstores.
From Amazon's Product Description: Your loved ones in the Spirit World want to talk to you as much as you want to talk to them!
The Spirit Messages Daily Guidance Oracle Deck,with its accompanying guidebook and 50 beautifully designed cards, was created by John Holland to assist you in getting support, comfort, and divine guidance from Spirit, your loved ones, family, ancestors, friends, guides, and helpers in the Spirit World. These cards will also help the user to develop a higher awareness of Spirit and remind you that you are never truly alone.
These extraordinary cards will bring insight and clarity around some of the major decision points in your life, or just to reaffirm that you’re making the right decisions. The Spirit World communicates through these cards with guidance and direction in matters of self-love, vulnerability, relationships, trust, and more. As you work with these cards, they will strengthen your natural ability of intuition and the beautiful, loving bond that you and the Spirit World share.
About John Holland, the Author
John Holland is an internationally renowned medium and spiritual teacher. He has been lecturing, teaching, demonstrating, and reading for private clients for over 16 years. He’s dedicated to the ongoing development of his unique gift and brings real integrity to his profession. John says, “If I can help people connect with someone on the other side and bring peace and perhaps some closure, then I’ve done my job.”
John hosts is own weekly radio show “Spirit Connections,” and starred in a 2-hour A & E special: “Mediums-We See Dead People.” The History Channel featured John in a one-hour special “Psychic History” highlighting his special abilities. His story was originally profiled on CBS “Unsolved Mysteries.”
My Personal Review
This is a 50 card deck that is meant to be used as an oracle deck and not a Tarot deck. Product dimensions are 0.8 x 4.8 x 5.2 inches. The cards are larger than a traditional Tarot deck, but similar to most Hay House decks. This is another one of my all-time, go-to, and most recommended decks for anyone who is starting off, uses cards for divination, or loves simple and valuable insight is this deck by John Holland.
The reason I have enjoyed this deck so much is the versatility and the ease of use. It is a very gentle, positive, and an amazingly fun deck to use. From beginner to the experienced card reader, I think there is something unexpectedly beautiful about this deck. The advice is spot on, the artwork is ethereal, and the messages given have always brought me a lot of comfort.
I purchased my deck in 2014, and still use it heavily today. It is a deck that I constantly recommend to people starting off, or those who are looking for great do-it-all type of decks for readings. I have enjoyed this deck so much for personal and client readings that it is still one of my go to decks for clear advice and guidance. It is so gentle to use, that I have even allowed my children to play with it. Much of the imagery is not dark, scary, or inappropriate for even a young audience.
I find that anyone could pick up this deck and use it without a lot of confusion, or meddled up jargon included in the guidebook. This is a deck that carry with me everywhere I go when I don't know what I will meet on my journey. It is just that versatile!
I used to always keep it in my purse. It's hard to say what I like better about this deck - its beauty or its clarity. Both are phenomenal. The images are vibrant and soothing, there are so many elements added to each individual image. The cards feature the artwork, the card name, as well as a small passage to help you connect to the messages. You don't really need the guidebook for this deck, but it can be used and also provides extra insight and beautifully calming messages.
The vibrant colors are the rich tones that add such a fascinating facet to the artwork. It is rich without being dark. The images themselves all help you tap into your intuition and allow you to understand the deck more thoroughly. As you continue to use this deck. you will keep seeing symbols or different interpretations. This deck does not have gilded edging like his 2 other decks, but I don't find that I am missing it. The cards are noticeably bigger than a deck of standard playing cards and the card stock itself is solid; I recommend anyone with a new deck spend some time shuffling it and getting to know its feel, in addition to just "getting to know" any new deck. I've found that I can shuffle them quite easily, even with my small hands.
The card stock is thick, has a shinier finish than newer decks (which is annoying when trying to get a nice picture of the deck), and also allows you get a nice bend without cracking the card stock. As I said before, the deck I have is over 3 years old, and it has a bit of a worn look now, even with all of the abuse it has endured over the years and the constant use. If I have to say, I would have to say the clarity beats out the beauty in terms of why this is one of my favorite "working" decks, and why I constantly recommend it to everyone who is looking for a nice bridge between styles. I connect with the images and find myself constantly finding new symbols and additions each time I pull this deck out.
The guidebook is helpful, clear, and also the messages even on some of the more difficult cards, allow you to understand a new point of view on upcoming challenges. After all, to be forewarned is to be forearmed! John Holland has added his own personal spiritual background and knowledge to the messages, creating calming and reassuring messages that are wonderful to hear when you are feeling lost and need to be redirected.
All in all, this is one of my favorite decks for various reasons and one that I highly suggest to any budding card reader. Even if you are experienced, I would say that this deck is a good one to try out and check out. Many of my clients have found great comfort in the advice, it has allowed me to tap into my own spirit messages with more reassurance and of course, encouragement. I have enjoyed it for many years, and plan to purchase other copies of this deck to gift to my children if they decide to dive into card reading, as well.
Here are some extra photos of this gorgeously illustrated and soothing deck:
My overall opinion is that this deck is a 4.5 star choice.
Artwork - 5 stars
Card stock - 3 stars (not a fan of shiny decks)
Ease - 5 stars
Guidebook - 5 stars
I hope that you enjoyed my deck review, and also enjoy other deck reviews that I add to this site. I have a passion for exploring new decks and also finding various ways of connecting to my intuition. I appreciate you checking out my site and taking the time to read my review.
