Deck Review: Ancestral Healing Oracle

• Deck Title:                  Ancestral Healing Oracle: Transform Generational Trauma.
• Author and Artist:     Inna Segal, illustrated by Jena Dellagrottaglia.
• Publisher:                  Rockpool Publishing Australia.
• Publication Date:      Sep/25 (AU/NZ), Sep/25 (US), Sep/25 (UK).
• RRP:                           AUD $36.99 / GBP £20.99
• ISBN:                          9781923208049.
• Reviewed by:             Kim Goldsmith, Cosmic Snail Tarot.

The Ancestral Healing Oracle Deck by Inna Segal and Jena Dellagrottaglia is an extraordinary tool for understanding the impact family has on identity. So many of our habits are the legacy of familial patterns, some of which do not serve us well. We can take on the burdens of our parents, grandparents and ancestors without realising it. This oracle deck is a tonic that gently assists with unearthing and healing wounds caused by ancestral and family trauma. The deck creators in no way claim that using this deck can be a substitute for professional therapy. But it could be used for journalling as an outlet perhaps for processing your experiences and emotions alongside qualified support. The deck is also suitable for self development and focusing on blocks in your personal growth. I have personally been using it alongside activities from Julia Cameron’s The Artist Way by pulling a card to prompt a direction for my morning pages or to explore a question raised during the weekly activities.

The packaging is luxuriously decorated with gold and red, and there has been great attention paid to matching all design elements outside and inside the box. The internal box has a gold ribbon to ease out the cards, and a thin gloss covered guidebook. There are 36 cards that are wide and gold edged. The silky finish of the card stock makes shuffling a breeze. The card backs have two crowned hearts facing each other and the text on the card fronts is printed sideways. Although I don’t usually read oracles in reverse this design lends itself well to that technique. Try Bennebel Wen’s W.I.N.D. acronym for reading reversals from Holistic Tarot (Weak, Inverted, Negatively influencing or Delayed/blocked energy) or follow TABI’s tutorial and see if it works for you.

The guidebook looks thin and unsubstantial but it is actually the most outstanding feature of the deck. The text for each card is insightful and practical. Each page includes the number of the card, phrase, affirmation and detailed message. Following this is a “Healing Practice” which is an activity specifically related to the focus of the deck: understanding family dynamics. Card 35 “Open Your Heart To Sacred Love: Face Some Hard Truths” is about working on self-sabotaging patterns of behaviour learnt from parental dynamics before you were ready to find a compatible partner. The text talks about this theme and suggests listing qualities you hope to find in a partner, as well as challenging and positive aspects of yourself that you can offer to a relationship. I like the way the cards provide reflection points for your day, as well as action steps toward self improvement.

This oracle integrates well into a tarot reading or can be used independently for a more complex read as it includes an impressive collection of customised spreads. The author explains how to use the cards and provides a list of questions to start you off, which is great for novice oracle users. There is a one-card spread that asks you to identify a challenge in your family; three different three-card spreads that help you unpack the struggles, lessons and opportunities for growth when dealing with family issues; and a four-card spread for reflecting more deeply on the past, present and future situation. I have mentioned in previous reviews that I am disappointed in the lack of spreads offered by many oracle decks, so this is a big gold star from my perspective.

The cards have a fantasy aesthetic where characters wear crowns, gowns and armour in most cards. The imagery seems to cross-pollinate references from different eras, cultures, and mythologies simultaneously, drawing from archetypal images in our collective unconscious. Card 17, for instance, depicts a three headed dragon that reminds me of the Hydra killed by Hercules in Greek Mythology. Card 21 “Ask the Archangels for Help” on the other hand, has a radiant winged woman that is reminiscent of Christian iconography in churches or cathedrals. Card 5 however, represents a mother and child in plaid skirts and sneakers who bring us back to the modern world. The landscapes behind these characters are suggestive, hints of vast oceans, endless cloudy skies and constellations, remote castles, fields and mountains are glimpsed behind the figures. The lack of specific context in the artwork invites a more intuitive interpretation of the card’s meaning.

The deck is inclusive, with men, women and children of different ages and ethnicities represented – two good examples being Card 3 “Explore Your Relationship With Your Father” and Card 2 “Tune in to Your Feminine Lineage”. Several of the cards depict parts of the body or objects instead of people such as Card 15 “Claim Your Kingdom” which has two hands lifting a crown with a key pointing downwards and a backdrop of a castle wall. I noticed recurring themes of keys, flowers, and hearts in this deck which I think represent growth, connection, love and learning that comes from working on your relationships. The moon is in silhouette in almost all cards and may signify the intuition and emotional intelligence required when trying to work on personal and family matters.

Anyone can use this deck for either a message of the day, or to really work on enhancing their relationships with themselves and others. The key selling points for this deck are the range of spreads provided in the guidebook, the high quality production value and the subtle use of symbols and references to collective myths and stories that add layers of meaning to the card artwork. Both novice oracle deck users or seasoned professionals will gain a lot from working with this deck.