Reverend Stephanie Red Feather’s Empath Activation Cards is, to say the least, a spiritual tool of initiation in the highest order! She is correct in asserting that this is not just an oracle deck . . . it is a rite of passage! Better yet, you do not have to be attuned to any one body of knowledge or the other to benefit from it. Empath Activation Cards is entirely cross-cultural in its design; any person from any path or background can easily understand the oracle and initiatory offerings in this deck.

​

Initiation has taken many forms over the centuries. From puberty rites to granting entrance to a certain class or society, the varieties of initiation differ in their type and function. However, one thing remains painstakingly clear in the technological commotion of the twenty-first century: our access to initiation in the modern world is sorely lacking. Bombarded by frenzied and instant access to social media, politics, and world events, we are caught in a swirl of confusion and left with little guidance on how to grow and evolve into our individual and collective potential.

​

The human condition has long been lured by the search for meaning. We ache to understand our place in the world and how we may fulfill a sense of purpose. Initiation is itself a method of achieving such an understanding of ourselves and the world around us. As noted by the great anthropologist Mircea Eliade, initiation itself represents a fundamental “change in the existential condition” of the self.*

 

As one undergoes the initiatory process, the initiate emerges from an initiatory process made anew. The past self (pre-initiation) is but a mere shadow, a memory. One is no longer ruled by the whims that plagued their life before initiation; the desires of the initiate are now changed in that they are more concerned with the collective or the transpersonal rather than the individual. It is a spiritual transformation, a rebirth.  

​

At the same time, the initiate’s social makeup has transformed as well. It becomes incumbent upon the initiate to utilize their newly acquired knowledge and understanding to serve the community. For what good does it do to evolve into a higher state of being without returning that good fortune back to your fellow sisters and brothers of humanity? This is the higher aim of the bodhisattva—to ensure enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. As such, Stephanie is authentic in her commitment to the bodhisattva ideal. Her goal is to ensure the initiation and enlightenment of her fellow human beings in order to relieve the suffering we so often face in our daily lives. She wants to ensure that we reach our full potential as souls who inhabit a conscious universe.

​

Although it may not seem so on the surface, our modern world is rife and abundant with initiatory tools and methods. We are entering a time in our collective humanity where our accessibility to esoteric technologies is such that has never been imagined. It is to our highest benefit that we have access to this information, and we are even more blessed to be able to receive such a magnificent tool of modern initiation in this initiatory oracle deck.

​

I have been lucky enough to be one of the first people to utilize the cards in this book.  From the outset it was my intention to go through them and their guiding text from beginning to end, as an evolutionary process of initiation incorporated into my own daily spiritual practice. As so often is the case with these types of practices, I did not realize the extent that the imagery and ritual activities would impact me.

​

Reverend Red Feather has truly become a conduit for a higher order of consciousness. Each card, each image, is a key (an “activation code”) unlocking a door of limitless possibilities within the subconscious mind. As I moved through each initiatory path—meditating upon the striking textures, geometry, and colors on the cards—I found parts of myself that I never knew existed before, awakening. The ritual activities—and particularly the incantations—that accompany each card are just as much of a key as the images themselves; a guiding hand activating a deeper understanding of one’s place in the universe. Together the cards and incantations form a synthesis of poetic and artistic alchemy. The cards augment and enhance the experience of the incantations and vice versa.  

​

   I quickly realized I could not take this process lightly . . . I began to slow down and take days, even a week, to reflect upon each card and the lessons it contained. It was soon apparent that the Empath Activation Cards became an integral part of my spiritual practice, a daily inspiration that continues to lead me into new directions when exploring the magnificence of being human.

​

I have known Stephanie for many years. She has been a friend and confidante, guide and mentor—not only for me, but for the wider spiritual community we are both a part of. One of the greatest gifts she offers as a medicine-carrier and light-worker is her ability to add clarity to any situation. As will be noted in her previous work, The Evolutionary Empath, and can be identified in this guide book, Reverend Red Feather provides a lucid understanding of esoteric concepts and practices that even those of us who are not familiar with them can understand.

​

And—I had no idea—she is an incredible visual artist to boot! Every one of these cards deserves a place on the walls of the most esteemed galleries and temples. According to the great mystic, author, and founder of the Society of the Inner Light, Dion Fortune, “We take spiritual initiation when we become conscious of the Divine within us, and thereby contact the Divine without us.”[1] These works of art are truly codes to activate your consciousness and direct it to a more cosmic, divine mission.

​

What you have in this deck is an entire mystery school curriculum in one fell swoop. It will expand your understanding of who you are and open the codes and pathways in your inner self so that you can embrace the unlimited potential awakening within you. To receive some wisdom and guidance for a situation or question, utilizing the cards as an oracle deck works just as well selecting a card at random. Thankfully, Stephanie will be making her artwork and incantations available for purchase as well, so that readers (myself included) can decorate their sacred space with these amazing works in order to be uplifted and inspired each and every day.  

​

Reverend Red Feather has already done the work of formulating a profound system of oracle and initiation for the twenty-first century. Now all you have to do is sit back and receive.

​

In sacred relationship,

Daniel Moler

​

Daniel Moler is an author, artist, and a sanctioned teacher in the Pachakuti Mesa Tradition, a cross-cultural shamanic lineage. He is the creator of Psychonaut Presents: MotherVine, Shamanic Qabalah: A Mystical Path to Uniting the Tree of Life & the Great Work, Red Mass, and Machine Elves 101, among other works published around the world. He can be found at www.danielmolerweb.com.  

 

* Mircea Eliade, Rites and Symbolism of Initiation: The Mysteries of Birth and Rebirth (New York: Harper & Row, 1958), x. 

 

[1] Dion Fortune, The Training and Work of an Initiate (San Francisco: Weiser Books, 2000), 28.