October 15, 2009 README - Burning Tarot 2009 Deck CONTENTS: 0. Really Super Important 1. How To Download 2. How To Print & Assemble 3. How To Read the Burning Tarot 4. How To Donate or Get a Reading 5. Who(m) To Blame 6. Burning Tarot on the Playa: An History 0. REALLY SUPER IMPORTANT: This deck is not to be used for commercial purposes. You may print up a deck for your own usage. Maybe a few gifts. Decks may not be sold, even for nonprofit purposes. You may, however, offer Tarot readings with this deck and ask for donations --- only if those donations are going to a charity cause. Thanks. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 1. HOW TO DOWNLOAD: = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Use FTP or your web browser to download files from: http://www.magdalen.com/burningtarot/Deck_2009/ - README.txt - That's what you're reading now. The deck is broken out into three sections, with these filenames: - BURNINGTAROT-1-10.pdf - BURNINGTAROT-11-20.pdf - BURNINGTAROT-21-28.pdf For more information, or if files have been moved, see www.burningtarot.com or www.magdalen.com . = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 2. HOW TO PRINT & ASSEMBLE = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = *** HOME VERSION *** - Print Page 1. - Take your printed Page 1 and turn it over. - Put it back through your printer, and print Page 2 on the blank side. You may have to fuck around with it before you figure out how your home printer does this. - So now you have a single, double-sided page. - Cut it on the crop marks. - Each page gives you 6 cards. Each card has TWO sides. One side looks horizontal, one goes vertical. - Repeat this for every page on all three PDF files. (Print page 3; put page 4 on the back, etc etc) - Then you'll have a giant pile of Tarot cards. - This is the Burning Tarot / double tarot deck. *** COMMERCIAL PRINTING SERVICES *** For higher quality printing, or less of a pain in the butt, take these files to your local digital printer. - Total of fourteen (14) 8 1/2" x 11" pages, each printed on both sides (a total of 28 pages for them to print) - Pretty close to full bleed; has crop marks - 4/4 process ink on heaviest standard stock (matte or glossy) - Crop marks appear on one side of sheets, not both sides. - Four cuts on each page. Follow crop marks. - All this should result in one full set of trimmed cards, 84 cards in total, each card double-sided. - Side one is ALL vertical-facing cards with red backgrounds - Side two is ALL horizontal-facing cards with type appearing underneath photo = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 3. HOW TO READ THE BURNING TAROT = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Keep an eye on www.burningtarot.com for free booklets and instructions, for beginners and those who've been reading for years. This little blurb is just a quickie: *** Trad Side *** The vertical side (red background) follows the traditional Tarot closely. Participants at Burning Man 2008 came to our Tarotist Training Camp and posed for the deck. Objects within photographs are included in counting suits: for example, the 3 of Swords (jeez, what an example) shows two swords Photoshopped into the image, plus one sword being held by the participant in the photo. Miss Magdalen chose to use Princesses rather than Pages, mainly because we had some hot ladies who really looked like princess material to her. Is that sexist? The Suit of Brushes - Corresponds to wands, rods, fire. I just call 'em "wands," actually... - ...though they're represented by paint brushes (aww, how cute). - Look for snakes and megaphones. The Suit of Cups - Corresponds to, uhhhh, the cups, water. - Represented by cups, water bottles, etc. held by our charming models, plus cartoon beer mugs. For bonus divination points, see if you can find the photograph in here from which we copied the beer mug image! The Suit of Swords - Corresponds to, well, I hate to say it... swords. Wind in the desert. - Knives, swords, and guns represent this suit. The Suit of Playa - Corresponds to coins, pentacles, earth. - Represented by round images of crackled desert playa surface. Yeah, they kinda look like rice cakes. Mmm. Major Arcana When making her first Burning Tarot deck in 2003, Miss Magdalen of Mystical Mayhem began the tradition of including two extra cards in the Major Arcana: "Context" and "Chaosynchronicity." They make lots of sense within the context of a Burning Man reading, but can also be used with regular off-Playa readings. The Burning Arcana therefore numbers 0-23 rather than 0-21. - CONTEXT: When in Black Rock City, we often leave the real world, or default world, behind. This is a good thing. But how do our many transformations and revelations fit within a larger world? How do our personal journeys, out there in real life or at Burning Man, affect the greater national and global reality? Pulling this card generally means, hey, heads up, there's more to this reading than your own inner stuff and your close circle of community. Depending on the card's position, the querent might consider applying their actions more consciously to political and social change, and to more people in the wider world. - CHAOSYNCHRONICITY: Ahhhhh ha ha! OK, so you're watching a beautiful gigantic wooden chapel burn in the desert night, in a crowd. Something goes wrong, and fireworks shoot out into the audience. People freak out and run in every direction at once, falling over bicycles, blinking lights, and each other. You start to run, too, and then you think, ya know what? Fuck it. This is the most gorgeous and somehow hilarious thing I've ever seen. I'm just going to stay here. Hopefully I won't catch on fire. Cackling with glee, submitting to chaos, you move toward the fire... and there's one of your oldest, dearest friends. You didn't even know he was coming to Burning Man. You hug and laugh with firelight on your faces, explosions all around, and this is it, this is the moment: you. are. alive. *** Burning Journey Side *** The horizontal side of these cards is made up of ten suits, each containing eight cards. (Photos by Steve Fritz.) There are no major or minor arcana; the whole suit is numbered 1 through 80, which should lay out the course pretty clearly. The journey metaphor is the experience of spending a week (or so) at Burning Man. To interpret, keep the overarching journey and Burning Man archetypes in mind; also spend time with the images themselves. For example, one of the "Move" cards shows people resting, not actually moving... THE SUITS Approach: Getting yourself to where you need to be; setting up; building. Express: Manifesting your personal vision in reality, among other people. Features various artworks and actions on the Playa. Exist: Wow, man, just be here now. Remember to breathe. The sacred is in the everyday. It's so, like, spiritual. And, you know, relaxing. Move: You know that feeling... things are rolling along, or you're gonna travel, or something's gotta give, literally or metaphorically. Art cars and other modes of transpo, in daylight. Gather: Coming together, making community, looking for or creating a beacon that will help people find each other and make interesting stuff happen. Represented by the Man, not on fire. Exorcise: Yep. Images of the Man, burning, along with people and stuff around that annual burn. Illuminate: Requires no explanation. Images of lighty and glowy things at night, early dusk, early dawn. Explode: Playing with fire, artfully, with originality and control. Or sometimes, just blowing shit up. Remember: safety third! Honor: Illustrated by various Temples over the years, and pilgrimages to them. Spirit, respect, memorial, hope, vulnerability; honor. Transform: The final suit features Temples on fire. 'Nuff said. *** But How Do You Deal With Two Sides?? *** I'm still writing this up. www.burningtarot.com will have it at some point... You can wing it for now. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 4. HOW TO DONATE OR GET A READING = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = *** READINGS *** by Miss Magdalen available via phone or in real life (Portland, sometimes Seattle, Bay Area, Chile, etc.). The fundraiser happens here: http://seedcake.etsy.com *** DONATIONS *** Send a dollar, a hundred, whatever you like... supports the Easter Island Project through New Oregon Arts & Letters, a nonprofit organization. - Paypal to magdalen23 att magdalen.com - Or click the "donate" button at http://www.magdalen.com/burningtarot/Deck_2009/ - Check, specifying "Tarot Fundraiser," to: New Oregon Arts & Letters PO Box 2863 Portland, OR 97208 USA = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 5. WHO TO BLAME = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = - The participants of Burning Man - Photographer Steven Fritz, who shot most of these lovely images Email SFritz2994 at AOL - Miss Magdalen of Mystical Mayhem (aka Tiffany Lee Brown) Email easterislandproject at Gmail with help from Lena Munday (deck production); Donald Spitzer (Manor of Art installation); Bacon Girl, Aurora, Terror Bunny, Allison Dubinsky, Sashina, Grey Anne (Cafe Fence art installation, Burning Tarot and Tarotist camps). and thanks to: - Portland City Art, for showing our project at Manor of Art; - My lovely & devoted Tarot clients, for helping raise funds; - RGR Rocketeers, for giving us a landing pad in 2009; - Q7.com, where Burning Tarot lives online. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 6. Burning Tarot on the Playa: An History = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 2003: Burning Tarot premieres with a small sign out in walk-in camping, and some roving Tarot readings. It's a small, laminated deck based on the adapted Burning Tarot major arcana (cards no. 0-23). Magdalen also gives away lil' necklaces of the images. 2008: - Tarotist Training Camp photographs Burners so they can be in the new, big deck. - Miss Magdalen does a veritable fuckload of Tarot readings and leads a Tarot workshop. People bring her whiskey, which she likes. Automatic weaponry and a Holy Hand Grenade are involved. - Back in Portland and over the phone, Miss M begins to trade readings for donations to an art project and art organization. 2009: - Portland City Art invites Miss Magdalen to do a two-room installation at the Manor of Art. This is not only cool, and involves a fuckload of Tarot readings, but forces Miss M to actually finish the new deck. - Burning Tarot sets up as part of the Rocket builders camp, on Biology near 6:30. The shiny humongous new deck is finished and printed up. Yay! - Images from the deck are installed at Center Camp Cafe on the Fence, along with dusty things that blow in the wind and some fun stuff from the Easter Island Project. - Miss Magdalen does a somewhat moderate fuckload of Tarot readings and a Tarot workshop. People bring her whiskey, red wine, salmon, and other fun things. - Grey Anne volunteers to host the would-be querents in the Tarot hut waiting room. She plays lovely songs for them, and then invents Dino Tarot: giving readings based on the movements of plastic dinosaur toys. - And eventually, the 2009 Burning Tarot Deck is posted online for free download! Woo! 2010: - Skipping Burning Man to go to Easter Island and do a big show at the Cooley Gallery. Huff some Playa dust for me. Oh, and some nitrous, too? 2011: - See ya back out there.