#129 - Christopher Marmolejo, Author of "Red Tarot"

Christopher Marmolejo is a Brown, queer, and trans writer, diviner, and educator. They use divination to promote a literacy of liberation, and their new book Red Tarot: A Decolonial Guide to Divinatory Literacy is an in-depth exploration of how tarot can be a tool of freedom, magical interrogation, and energetic support for anyone, and particularly for BIPOC folks. Christopher was born and raised in San Bernardino, California, among the pines, in community with the Serrano clan. With nine-plus years of experience as a trained educator focused on cultivating classrooms of emancipatory possibility, they work with students around the world to plant and nurture the seed of a divinatory practice, finely weaving tarot, astrology, and curanderismo with critical, decolonial Black queer feminist epistemology. They offer tarot readings and astrology readings, as well limpia cleansing sessions, per their ancestral folk healing practices. They also teach many online workshops and write a splendid Substack newsletter called The Red Read. On this episode, Christopher discusses their project of decolonizing the tarot, their ancestral magic practices, and the intrinsic non-binary magic of The Temperance card. Pam also talks about entering her Empress phase, and responds to a follow-up message from an eclipse ritualist. Our sponsors for this episode are Ritual + Shelter, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, BetterHelp, Mithras Candle, Sphere + Sundry, and Snowy Owl Tea We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here. And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave