There are so many amazing new Oracle Card Decks to choose from… And yet, Oracle Cards are nothing new!
In fact, Oracle Cards are quite an ancient form of divination, with huge similarities to the Tarot, the ancient Runes, or even the iChing.
So … What Are Oracle Cards?
Oracle Cards are simply a tool that offers a way to focus your intuition so you can tune into spiritual guidance and insight. The cards themselves are not magic… But rather they offer a mechanism for you to tune into the magic and Divine guidance within you.
To understand what Oracle Cards are, we can simply break down their name into two parts.
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Oracle and Cards… Ready for this?
Oracle: The word oracle comes from the ancient Latin word “orare” which means to speak. There’s also an old French word, oracle, which means “temple, house, or prayer”.
Combining these two meanings a bit we can look to ancient Greece, where an “oracle” was a person whom deities were believed to speak.
There it is!
An Oracle is simply something through which the Divine speaks.
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Cards: The word card can be traced back to the Greek word, khartēs which literally means papyrus leaf. The modern equivalent of papyrus is paper…
And so a card is essentially just a piece of shaped paper.
Putting the two words back together, we can surmise that Oracle Cards are essentially pieces of paper through which the Divine speaks.
Or in other words…
They are cards that we can use to access our own source of inner Divine wisdom, spiritual guidance and insight.
Yep … That’s it!
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The truth is we all have the potential to be Oracles, because we’re all connected to the Divine, and can therefore allow Divine guidance to flow through us.
Honestly everyone receives Divine guidance, and it comes in many ways… Whether it is through aha moments, chance encounters, reading articles, books, or having sudden revelations, or insights.
Oracles are simply those who have opened up the channel to be able to clearly receive guidance on demand, or as needed.
You can learn to access Divine Guidance by simply going inward.
But sometimes it helps to use a divination tool like Oracle Cards when you’re first learning to consciously tune into guidance.
How to Read Oracle Cards for Beginners
One of the great things about Angel and Oracle Cards, is that they work great for both the super advanced as well as complete beginners.
If you are a beginner… Don’t be afraid to jump in!
Here’s a quick guide to get you started.
7 Steps to Reading Oracle Cards
Step 1: Set Your Intention
When reading Oracle Cards, there is an immense benefit in beginning with a clear intention for what you are trying to accomplish.
I like to begin my readings by calling cleansing my cards, and then calling in my team of guides and angels of love and light, and asking for the clear knowledge, wisdom and truth that will most serve according to Divine Will in the highest interest of all.
So to begin, take a few moments to breathe, relax, and shift your awareness inward. Call in your guides, and request clear and specific guidance through your Oracle Card Reading.
Step 2: Focus Your Reading With A Question
Next… Ask a question! The more specific your question, the more specific the guidance you receive will be.
You don’t have to ask your question aloud, but it can be helpful to do so.
Focus on asking questions that are open ended rather than yes/no type queries.
Step 3: Shuffle Your Cards
Once you’ve asked your question, start shuffling your cards.
If there was one important piece to share with you about shuffling it’s this: imagine that your cards are completely surrounded with light, and that as you shuffle the right cards to answer your question will automatically appear.
Step 4: Choose Your Cards
If you shuffle the way I do (and like I share above), you will likely have cards stick out or pop out of the deck in some way while you shuffle! These are your cards.
The number of cards you choose will depend on what Oracle Card Spread you’re using…
But for beginners, a one card reading, or a simple 3-card past, present, future reading is a great place to begin.
Start with the first card you’ve drawn, and gaze into it. What do you notice about the card and its imagery?
What in the image stands out for you? What does that symbolize?
What insight just pops into your awareness as to what the card means? Breathe, quiet your mind, open your heart and allow your intuitive guidance to reveal to you the meaning of the card.
Don’t hesitate to “read between the lines”, “go out on a limb” and trust that tiny little voice within. If the cards meaning is not obvious to you… Don’t worry.
Breathe, be open to receive and then read the card title out loud. Focus your awareness on your inner psychic screen and see what else appears.
Learn how to use your inner psychic screen in my Angel Intuition Course.
Step 6: Read the Guidebook
Most Oracle Decks come with a guidebook. While I teach you to stop using your guidebook in my Angel Intuition Course, when you’re a complete beginner it can be a helpful resource.
Find the pre-written message as to what the card you’ve drawn means inside of the guidebook that came with your deck, and read it.
As you read, listen to the message, but also read between the lines.
What is the guidebook not saying but you’re feeling? What is the deeper meaning as it relates to your personal question and situation?
Read the message… But don’t take it word for word, rather remember that you have access to intuition, and the guidebook is just a trigger for those aha revelations and intuitive hits of yours to appear.
Step 7: Trust
Complete the above process to intuitively analyze all the cards you’ve drawn, then thank your guides and angels for their presence, and allow your reading to be complete.
Even if the cards you drew don’t make sense… Trust that you drew the right cards. Rather than thinking you chose incorrectly and trying to repeat the reading, let it simmer for a while. Meditate on the cards you drew, and know that as you continue to practice reading Oracle Cards, you will gain deeper insight as your intuition builds and develops.
We talked above about what Oracle Cards are, and how to read them…
But wait? According to the above definition, you might think that Tarot Cards are a type of Oracle Card…
And then every Tarot or Oracle Card reader would probably disagree with you. 🙂
So what's the difference between Tarot and Oracle Cards?
Really, its just structure!
Tarot Cards follow a very specific structure and system, while Oracle Cards are much more free-flowing.
A Tarot deck usually consists of 78 cards.
In the Tarot, there are 22 Major Arcana cards that represent our journey through life and 36 Minor Arcana cards that are grouped into four suits of wands, cups, swords, and pentacles.
The 22 Major Arcana cards represent our journey through life, from the Fool to the World.
To accurately read the Tarot, it's helpful to first know the system and what the different cards mean, and then your intuition can guide you deeper.
Beyond the Rider-Waite Tarot Decks, there are many other decks and styles, but they mainly follow the same system as the Rider-Waite Tarot, or a slightly modified version where the name of the suits are changed, but many of the elements remain the same.
Oracle cards, on the other hand, have no predetermined structure, other than what the author decides so they're a bit easier to pick up and run with…
But really, both are wonderful tools that are not magical in and of themselves, but rather can be used to access your inner magic, intuition, and Divine Guidance!
Best Oracle Cards & How to Choose an Oracle Card Deck!
When it comes to choosing which Oracle Cards to work with, there are soooo many choices!
You have angel oracle cards, goddess cards, animal cards, traditional tarot cards, lenormand cards, psychic intuition cards, Law of Attraction cards, sacred geometry cards, mandala cards, wisdom oracles and seriously so many more… There's literally even teddy bear cards, cat and dog cards, and zodiac cards.
So how do you choose?
I personally feel its important to choose cards that have imagery you enjoy and resonate with. So much of accurately reading Oracle Cards is based on your intuitive impressions that come through your connection with the visual imagery, so its important that you do connect and resonate with your cards.
In addition to beautiful and light-filled imagery… I prefer Oracle Cards that have little text on the actual cards. This really allows the card image to trigger intuition without a long paragraph of text distracting.
Other than that…
It's up to you, and actually, choosing what deck to work with is an intuitive process in and of itself.
If you're lucky enough to live near a well-stocked Metaphysical shop, I would recommend stopping in. Go to the card section and see which decks you feel intuitively drawn to. If they have open decks and you can play with the cards, and look through them, even better!
Buying Oracle Cards Online
Let's face it … Most people do not live near a well-stocked metaphysical store so let's talk about how to buy Oracle Cards Online!
The great thing about buying online is you have access to way more decks than you would ever be able to find locally, including some great Indie Oracle Cards Decks that are only distributed online.
So how do you choose?
Again, follow your intuition, and start by narrowing the playing field a bit.
What category of Oracle Cards do you intuitively feel you would enjoy and benefit from working with?
If you intuitively feel drawn to Angel Cards… Great! Narrow your search to Angel Oracle Cards. If you feel you would enjoy Nature or Animal Totem Cards, focus your search there.
If you're not sure… That's okay too!
I really think the biggest key is to allow your intuition to guide you, and allow the right cards for you here and now to appear.
Many people have taken the time to review different Oracle Card Decks online, and show videos or images of the actual cards. If you're not sure how to narrow your choices down between a few decks, look to see if anyone has reviewed it!
Choosing Your Oracle Cards
Here are some Oracle Card Decks I've personally used and can recommend.
This is a deck that I personally created and use in most all of my free Angel Card Reading videos for the week on YouTube. I love doing readings with these Oracle Cards because they read incredibly intuitively. If you do still like using the guidebook for readings through, this deck has a comprehensive one with channeled angel messages that correspond for every card.
The Queen of the Moon Oracle by Stacey Demarco is so beautiful! I find that the card imagery and symbolism speaks to me loud and clear. This deck is especially well suited for offering guidance through lunar and seasonal energies, and for anyone who resonates or feels drawn to Earth-honoring spiritual pathways.
I love the Sacred Rebels Oracle Cards by Alana Fairchild. Its illustrated with incredible artwork from Autumn Skye Morrison and both the artwork and guidebook descriptions are super beautiful and powerfully deep. The core theme of this deck is about rebelling against the way thing have always been done in order to dream of a healthier and more vibrant future centered in love.
The Sacred Earth Oracle Cards by Toni Carmine Salerno and Leela J Williams are beautiful! Illustrated by Helena Nelson-Reed… The artwork in this deck really is incredible, and it's not hidden with large borders and lots of text which I appreciate.
The Energy Oracle Cards by Sandra Lynn Taylor are a wonderful deck for looking at and understanding the energy you are currently resonating with so you can see if that is in or out of alignment with what you're actually wanting to attract. This is an easy to use oracle deck that can be used with or without the guidebook.
The Lightworker Oracle by Alana Fairchild and illustrated by Mario Duguay is beautiful, light and uplifting! I love how the artwork of Mario is so intuitive and easy to read… You really don't need the guidebook with these cards, though its there with beautiful insight from Alana Fairchild awaiting you if wanted or needed.
The Magical Dimensions Oracle Cards by Lightstar read very intuitively and in my opinion accurately. Featuring Lightstars digital imagery and guidance from the Angelic, Elemental, Faerie and Galactic realms… This is a beautiful and multidimensional deck.
The Soulful Woman Guidance Cards by Shushann Movsessian and Gemma Summers are so beautiful. The core intention of this deck is to nurture your feminine energy as you can sync with divine timing and the natural flow of life. These cards feature visionary artwork from 26 female artists around the world. Really a great deck for reconnecting with your inner Divine Feminine self.
The Mother Mary Oracle Cards by Alana Fairchild and illustrated by Shiloh Sophia McCloud are incredible. (Really you can't go wrong with a deck from Alana Fairchild in my opinion). However, if you feel a connection with Mother Mary, or are looking for Oracle Cards to access your Divine Feminine wisdom, this is an excellent choice.
The Sacred Geometry Oracle written and illustrated by Francene Hart holds the intention of supporting you in balancing your energy field so you can access higher levels of consciousness. Sacred Geometry is the hidden script behind all of Creation and this is a wonderful deck for reading and gaining insight into it.
The Rumi Oracle by Alana Fairchild and illustrated by Rassouli is deep, profound, and beautiful. Based on the poetry of Rumi this is a great deck for anyone who is drawn to the profound heart opening wisdom of Rumi… Or for anyone ready to take the next step in opening the heart center towards Divine Love.
The Archangel Animal Oracle Cards by Diana Cooper are surprisingly lovely. The artwork is beautiful and high vibrational, the symbolism profound and the messages in the guidebook from Diana Cooper are sweet and uplifting. For some reason, I didn't expect much from this deck, but I am happy to say that I was pleasantly surprised. I love how Diana shares the star system the different animals originate from. The guidance in this deck is cosmic, multidimensional, and really quite profound.
The Journey of Love Oracle Cards by Alana Fairchild are profound. Not necessarily the most intuitive cards to read, the artwork of Rassouli can be a bit abstract… But the intuitive messages and guidance of Alana Fairchild in the guidebook, along with the heart-warming poetry of Richard Cohn really make this deck special.
John Hollands Psychic Tarot is the only Tarot deck I've included here… Because while it has Tarot in the name, it really reads more like Oracle Cards than Tarot Cards and you can use it without understanding the Tarot. It does draw on the themes and life journey the Tarot portrays, which makes it a great deck for readings about life, love and anything in between. The imagery is also very symbolic so you can read the cards intuitively and use them to open your intuition.
If you're looking for Faery Oracle Cards, this is a great option from Lucy Cavendish with lovely illustrations by Selina Fenech. These cards definitely open a doorway to heighten your intuition and connect with the magical world of the Fae. Can really be used for general readings as well as Faery specific questions.
The Work Your Light Oracle Cards are written by Rebecca Campbell and illustrated with the lovely collage-style artwork of Danielle Noel. I love the beautiful artwork of this deck as well as the gentle feminine energy woven throughout. If you like Danielle's artwork and would like a Tarot deck…
There are many Power Animal Card decks on the market today, The Medicine Cards originally printed in 1988 and written by Jamie Sams and David Carson remain as some of the most detailed! The card imagery is simple, but the guidebook is deep. Recommend if you're looking for a Power Animal Oracle deck and want to read deeply about the cards you draw.
The Dragon Oracle Cards by Diana Cooper and illustrated by Carla Lee Morrow (the Dragon Lady) really are profound. If you have a connection with the Dragons, or feel drawn to them, I totally recommend this deck. It not only will deepen your connection with the Dragons, but will also guide and support you in connecting with higher dimensional awareness and embodiment now.
The Oracle of the Angels deck by Mario Duguay is great. Really… I love this deck so much I did a whole review post on it! Honestly, though, I don't resonate with the messages in the guidebook, but the artwork of Mario Duguay speaks so clearly and intuitively you really don't need the guidebook to read these cards at all. So despite the guidebook sort of missing for me, these cards are still some of my favorites.
I created the Ask Angels Oracle Cards… This is a beautiful deck for deepening your angelic connection and learning to use Oracle Cards to receive direct messages from the angelic realm. While you're deepening your connection, there is a detailed guidebook with channeled angel messages corresponding with each and every angel card.
In addition to reading reviews about Oracle Cards, there are quite a few online card reading options where you can try the decks out for yourself first in a digital format before purchasing.
Melanie Beckler is an author, meditation guide, and the soul behind Ask-Angels.com. Her meditations, angel messages, and bestselling books, including "Archangel Michael Speaks," inspire individuals around the world to realign with their higher potential, inner light and soul purpose. Her work is rooted in love and compassion, empowering you to shine brightly on your unique spiritual journey of growth and transformation.
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Hi I am beginning my spiritual path I recently bought oracle of the hidden worlds cards and when I received them there was no guide book just a QR code at bottom of pack when I scanned the code they didn’t have the guide book I’m needing as a beginner I need help in basic meaning of my cards what’s the best thing to do thanx in anticipation
I have a deck of oracle cards and I don’t remember how they came to me many years ago. Your explanation of the cards is great. I don’t have a booklet to go with them. I have no clue as to what they mean and your examples don’t match up. Do you have any ideas on where I can learn about this deck?
Hi I am beginning my spiritual path I recently bought oracle of the hidden worlds cards and when I received them there was no guide book just a QR code at bottom of pack when I scanned the code they didn’t have the guide book I’m needing as a beginner I need help in basic meaning of my cards what’s the best thing to do thanx in anticipation
Hey Kirsty, I believe that deck is meant to come with a guidebook… I’d contact wherever you purchased from.
What about Doren Virtue Oracle card deck
I deliberately left them off this list… I talk about why here:
https://www.ask-angels.com/spiritual-guidance/doreen-virtue-angel-cards/
I have a deck of oracle cards and I don’t remember how they came to me many years ago. Your explanation of the cards is great. I don’t have a booklet to go with them. I have no clue as to what they mean and your examples don’t match up. Do you have any ideas on where I can learn about this deck?
Do you know what the title of the Deck is Laura? If not… Googling some of the card names may help you find that out.
Also…
I like to “interview my decks” which is a good way of learning more about them: https://www.ask-angels.com/spiritual-guidance/oracle-cards-interview-spread/