Inspiration

“I’ve compiled this deck of cards to let you know that inspiration can be cultivated and be a driving force throughout life—rather than showing up every now and then and just as mysteriously disappearing, seemingly independent of your desires. Inspiration is for everyone! It isn’t reserved for high-profile creative geniuses in the arts and sciences—it’s inherent in your Divine birthright.” – Wayne Dyer

Featuring excerpts from the book of the same name, the Inspiration Your Ultimate Calling deck contains 50 cards featuring beautiful nature photographs—flowers, sky, sea, forests, rockscapes, and more. One side shows the image and an inspirational suggestion, while the other elaborates on the particular theme.

Here are some of Dyer’s words of inspiration found in this deck:

Believe in Universal Timing – You must believe in a Universe that’s created and guided by an intelligence greater than your ego—a Universe where there can be no accidents. When an idea’s time has come, it can’t be stopped. And the reverse of this is true: An idea whose time hasn’t come can’t be created.

See the Perfection of the Plan – Why not look at your entire life as the unfolding of a plan you participated in before you arrived here? By doing so, you’ll shift from blaming others and circumstances to being responsible and feeling your purpose. Whatever shows up in your life is a part of the perfection of this plan.

Be Inspired – When you’re inspired, you’re not judging others or yourself. You aren’t bothered by behaviors or attitudes that in uninspired moments are frustrating. When you’re inspired, your heart sings in appreciation for every breath; and you’re tolerant, joyful, and loving.

Connect with the Universe – Give yourself permission to get away so that you can camp in the outdoors; swim in a river, lake, or ocean; sit by an open fire; ride on horseback; or ski down a mountain slope. Wherever you live, you’re only a few hours (or even moments!) away from being connected to the entire Universe.

Act on Your Inspiration – Regardless of how absurd your inner callings might seem, they’re authentically yours. They don’t have to make sense to anyone else. The willingness to listen and act on your inspiration, independent of the opinion of others, is imperative.

While many of the excerpts found in the Inspiration Your Ultimate Calling deck are indeed wise and uplifting, some seem contradictory—much like the book itself. For example, some quotes make God to be somewhere “out there” (like in nature), while others seem to affirm that the Eternal is within. If All That Is resides inside, why would we have to travel outdoors to access it? And, if all people and circumstances are, on some level, a part of Perfection/God, how is it that some elements are “uninspiring” and negative while others are “inspiring” and good? Who makes this arbitrary delineation, anyway?

Another contradiction arises with the topics of living in the Now versus excavating and evaluating the past. One card says “By training your memory, you’ll be able to return to early childhood recollections of love, peace, and joy—and back even further to your origination”, but another card admonishes “Thinking about where you’ve been on what you did wrong in the past are impediments to an inspired life.”

While most of the cards in the Inspiration Your Ultimate Calling Deck are breathtaking, the photos are marred (in my opinion) by artificial white butterflies arranged within each image. Some of the photos are so arresting they’d be *excellent* for meditation upon the theme, but the cheesy white butterflies detract from contemplation.

Overall, fans of the book will no doubt enjoy this deck. However, I find the information a bit superficial and some design elements distracting (namely the white butterflies and circles made of dotted lines interspersed at the bottom of the card), so it’s not a deck that I would use.

Below are 6 card images from this deck: