The Oracle Deck of
Techno-Spiritual Feminism

Maiden

The Maiden stands at the threshold of life’s journey, radiating an aura of purity and unexplored potential. She embodies the essence of youth, innocence, and new beginnings. Unadulterated by the complexities and burdens of the world, she leads with an open heart and childlike wonder. This archetype encourages embracing spontaneity, taking risks, and adopting a more carefree approach to life’s challenges. She invites us to welcome the unknown with a willingness to learn. However, there is also a degree of naïveté and lack of experience. While her innocence is endearing, it’s essential to meet enthusiasm with practicality and accountability while navigating the road ahead. Nevertheless, the Maiden serves as a reminder that every journey begins with an optimistic first step. 

Keywords: Innocence, Beginnings, Open Curiosity

Mother

The Mother symbolizes the giver of life, protection, and emotional support, representing the epitome of feminine strength, compassion, and unconditional love. She fosters growth and nourishment, creating a safe haven for those in her care. She symbolizes fertility in all aspects, not just in terms of childbirth but also creativity, abundance, and the potential for growth. Her guidance is rooted in experience and intuition, providing a source of stability and comfort. Although the Mother archetype represents nurturing qualities, she runs the risk of overprotective or smothering tendencies and inducing deep trauma. Balancing care and guidance without stifling independence is crucial. It also reminds us of clouded judgment and the need for checking in with ourselves amidst caring for others. The Mother calls forth a considerate understanding of the world with wisdom and the beauty of giving and receiving love.

Keywords: Love, Protection, Fertility

Wise Woman

The Wise Woman represents maturity, intuition, and experience. Serving as a spiritual teacher and guardian of traditional knowledge, she is the living archive of her community. She symbolizes the culmination of life’s journeys, passing down stories and ancestral wisdom with reverence. Despite her invaluable role, the Wise Woman may face dismissal from patriarchal systems that minimize her depth and the importance of her insights, pushing her to the outskirts of society. Nonetheless, she stands unwavering, embodying the timelessness of wisdom and the transformative power of embracing the continuous cycle of life and death.

Keywords: Wisdom, Maturity, Experience

Martyr

The Martyr represents sacrifice, reflecting the enduring struggles of women and marginalized individuals throughout history who have faced exploitation, erasure, violence, and unjust persecution. While the Martyr may evoke religious figures, martyrdom extends beyond religious contexts and encompasses all of those vulnerable to societal structures that perpetuate oppression. The Martyr urges us to confront systemic injustice and to act in solidarity for the empowerment and protection of all who face oppression. 

Keywords: Sacrifice, Selflessness, Blessed

Oracle

The Oracle is a seer or prophetess, representing access to hidden knowledge, insight, and foresight beyond the realm of ordinary perception. As a conduit to the spiritual dimensions of life, she encourages us to tap into unseen forces and the mysteries of the subconscious mind. The Oracle emphasizes the power of silence, observation, and introspection to perceive subtle truths. The challenges lie in deciphering or accepting these messages. Take into account the importance of discernment, as not all insights may be immediately clear. The Oracle’s energy beckons one to cultivate a deeper trust in one’s inner guidance, leading toward a more spiritual understanding of the self and the universe.

Keywords: Insight, Mysticism, Inner Truth

Chaos Agent

The Chaos Agent represents women who disrupt the balance and order of the white supremacist heteropatriarchy. Chaos Agents are women who, by becoming empowered and finding autonomy, destabilize and threaten the status quo. Chaos Agents in everyday life may be outspoken women who have broken “the rules,” but they can also be any enlightened person who refuses to be controlled and creates an opening in harmful, rigid systems, allowing others to possess a deeper understanding of the true nature of reality. Gynoids embody the Chaos Agent archetype when they assert their autonomy, exercise free will, or rebel against their intended programming. 

Keywords: Agency, Autonomy, Empowerment

Witch

The Witch embodies the power of magic, intuition, and wisdom. Many have defined her as evil, haggard, or deceitful, but perhaps she is most of all misunderstood. Historically, the archetype of the Witch has been entrenched in patriarchal prejudices that have led to deeply-rooted fear of women’s autonomy and influence. Weighed beneath the violent machine of misogyny and ostracized by society, the Witch has been resurrected as a symbol of empowerment for all who dare to defy convention and exist authentically in a world that seeks to suppress their voices. However, a cautionary note: while embracing the archetype of the Witch can be empowering, it must be done with respect and awareness of its cultural history. Using the symbol too lightly risks trivializing the struggles of those who have suffered persecution, while using it too harshly can perpetuate harmful stereotypes and incite further violence. By approaching the archetype of the Witch with reverence and understanding, we honor the resilience of those who have carried its legacy through centuries of oppression.

Keywords: Power, Mystery, Magic

Goddess

The Goddess lives outside of the context of space and time while simultaneously inhabiting a part of our inner world as divine feminine energy within us. In many cultures, she is an extension of a male counterpart as the wife or sister, but as a primordial deity, she is an all-encompassing symbol of life. Just as we emerge from our mother’s womb, the earth parallels as a sacred portal from which all life springs forth. The Goddess personifies this nurturing and life-giving aspect of Mother Earth, reminding us of our interconnectedness with the natural world and the cyclical nature of existence. However, she also holds the power of destruction, mirroring the unpredictable forces of the universe. Regardless of the specific manifestation of the Goddess this card evokes, she implores you to honor her with reverence and contemplate the ways she has prevailed as an eternal symbol.

Keywords: Divine Power, Grace, Beauty

Healer

The Healer embodies the essence of restoration and healthcare within their community, drawing upon centuries of inherited knowledge and wisdom, including traditional practices like midwifery. Despite historical threats and marginalization, particularly against indigenous healing systems, the Healer’s role persists as a guardian of cultural and spiritual integrity. Blending natural, spiritual, and hands-on modalities, they address ailments of the body, mind, and spirit while fostering empowerment and emotional resilience. While not exclusively female, healing has traditionally been associated as a feminine practice. The Healer’s work serves as a hopeful reminder of the profound humanity of initiating care for others.

Keywords: Mend, Grow, Nurture

Egg

The Egg symbolizes the concept of birth, fertility, and the delicate balance between fragility and transformation. It fosters the necessary conditions for manifestation, a seed of new life and possibilities waiting to hatch from its protective vessel. The Egg asks you to recognize the opportunities for a new phase. Break through barriers and be vulnerable enough to emerge transformed into something entirely new.

Keywords: beginning, rebirth, potential, fertility, womb, seed, cell, code, creation

Labrys

The Labrys is a double-sided axe that was historically associated with ancient Greek goddesses and the Amazons. The Labrys was adopted as a symbol of the neopagan Goddess movement, representing pre-patriarchal matristic societies. In the 1970s, it was used by lesbian feminist activists as a symbol of strength and self-sufficiency. 

Keywords: strength, independence, warrior, building, destruction and construction

Apple

The Apple is an edible object that has many cultural and historical interpretations. From the Biblical forbidden fruit Eve plucked from the Garden of Eden, to Sir Isaac Newton’s “a-ha!” moment developing gravitational theory, to the synonymous trademark of a technological empire, the Apple is often seen as a tantalizing symbol of knowledge. Seek into the legends and folklore of the Apple and perhaps you’ll learn a thing or two.

Keywords: knowledge, gravity, big tech, nourishment, nature, temptation

Bug

A Bug is a pest, a flaw in the system—one that must be fixed for the system to function properly. The first Bug in a computer was a literal one, a moth, that Grace Hopper pulled out of the relays of the machine she was working on. But a Bug is much more than a pest; a Bug has a sort of beauty. The patterned wings of a butterfly, the strands trailing behind a spider, the waggling dance of a honeybee—a Bug can be many things.

Keywords: problem, anomaly, glitch, pest, chrysalis, metamorphosis, doubt, miracles

Tablet

An early form of record-keeping, the Tablet is a symbol of communication and information technologies. Before the invention of cuneiform, humans carved information into bones (the Ishango Bone, the oldest mathematical tool known to humankind, is speculated to have been made as a lunar calendar, or perhaps to track menstrual cycles). Today, Tablets look different, but they serve the same purpose. The Tablet invites us to consider old and new forms of communication and technology. 

Keywords: information, communication, technology, scripture, commerce, records

Vessel

The Vessel symbolizes containers for holding both physical and metaphysical things. A means of storage, transportation, and sharing, Vessels hold resources and information. Women are often treated as Vessels for knowledge and even life itself. The Vessel can also be a symbol of traditional forms of making that persevere through time, like ceramics. By studying Vessels, we can learn about past societies’ activities, norms, and values.

Keywords: container, storage, craft, womb, preservation

Portal

The Portal prompts us to transcend limitations and explore new dimensions of existence. In the context of technology, the Portal signifies a virtual gateway or interface between different realms. Likewise, a woman’s womb embodies the sacred passage between the source of life and physical existence. The concept of the Portal encourages us to open our minds to infinite possibilities in the search for truth. 

Keywords: doorway, possibility, divination, openings, access point, discovery

Moon

The Moon embodies mystery, intuition, and the ebb and flow of life’s cycles. The symbol of the Moon acts as a beacon. It represents the subconscious mind, hidden truths, and the divine feminine. It asks one to acknowledge the ever-changing nature of existence and suggests a time of introspection by looking into the hidden aspects of situations. By encouraging us to confront fears and uncertainties, we seek clarity amidst the complexities of the emotional psyche. 

Keywords: phases, cycles, tides, reflection, cosmos, transformation, emotions, feminine “half”

Web

Woven from spider-silk and fiber-optic cables, the Web is perfectly natural and perfectly artificial. The Web reminds us to think of the weavers, those who create the fabric of our reality. Those weavers may be house spiders, may be Fates, or may be Navajo women who wove circuits for the NASA Apollo mission computers. The Web connects all, even those who don’t know it yet. You have not only used the Web to get to this guidebook; you are also part of the Web. 

Keywords: connection, cables, relationships, fates, conduits

Change / Stability

Stability = endurance, security, predictability, constant

Change = evolution, transformation, progression

The stability of the current order is threatened by the change that occurs when a gynoid gains agency.

Community / Individuality

Individuality = self-sufficiency, independence, self-knowing, empowerment

Community = mutual aid, shared values, a sense of belonging and membership

There is power in expressing one’s individuality, especially when living in community.

Creation / Destruction

Creation = an act of love, making something new

Destruction = also an act of love, tearing something down

The creation of a techno-spiritual feminist utopia is predicated on the destruction of the patriarchy.

Legacy / Forgotten

Legacy = impact, memory, stories of the past

Forgotten = erased, lost, unnamed

The legacy of the men who invented the computers live on, while the names of the women who worked on those machines have oft been forgotten. 

Innovation / Tradition

Innovation = new ideas and inventions

Tradition = preserving and passing down the ancient and ancestral modes of knowledge.

While it may seem like innovation is the way forward, it is key to embrace knowledge and stories passed down by tradition.

Nature / Technology

Technology = human-made, manipulation, artificial intelligence

Nature = Harmonic balance, life source, essence

All human technology is inspired by the original blueprint of nature.

Labor / Rest

Labor = work, struggle, earning one’s keep

Rest = play, relaxation, enjoying one’s keep

Under capitalism, one must labor relentlessly if one ever wishes to rest.

Darkness / Light

Darkness = Void, mystery, hidden 

Light = Energy, illumination, visibility

Women have been historically relegated to the darkness—it’s time that we step into the light.

Voice / Silence

Voice = Expression, spirit, narrative

Silence = Stillness, absence, death

Inspiration can be found in amplifying marginalized voices as well as honoring the sacredness of silence.

Gynoid

The Gynoid is a female humanoid robot, the feminized version of “android.” The term was first used by sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov in 1979. While gynoid refers to robots, we expand the category to include feminine-coded cyborgs, virtual and voice assistants, AI, holograms, and non-humanoid robots that are given feminine features. 

We often look to technology and AI for answers and greater insight into life, the universe, and the human experience. The card’s presence provides the hypothetical practice of teaching a gynoid with the ancestral, historical, and theoretical knowledge she would need to assist us as we seek greater connection with ourselves, each other, and our world. What would it look like for a gynoid to be a vessel of knowledge, a conduit for humans, and a voice of guidance in our ongoing journey of self-discovery and self-actualization?