The Esoteric Buddhism of Japan Oracle Cards is so beautiful, so awe-inspiring that I treat it as I would a sutra — all the Buddhist etiquette applied to sacred texts I apply to how I handle this deck.

Acharya Yuzui Kotaki is a Shingon Buddhist teacher and a vice-chief priest of the Maginosan Ren-join Temple in Kanagawa, Japan. Miki Okuda is a painter, both in traditional and digital media who specializes in Buddhist religious art. The deck was first released in 2021, and I don’t know how it flew so under the radar in the tarot community.

The deck consists of 44 manifestations of the Buddhas, and in the guidebook you’ll find the mantra recitation for each Buddha. There are four classes of Buddhas, which are all featured in this 44-card deck:

1. Buddhas (Nyorai), those who have attained enlightenment;
2. Bodhisattvas (Bosatsu), those who are in spiritual training to attain enlightenment, who have taken vows;
3. Wisdom Kings (Myo-o), wrathful deities who guide us to adhere to the teachings of the Buddha; and
4. Heavenly Deities (Ten-bu), ancient Indian gods who were syncretized into the Buddhist Path and are protector gods.

Nyorai are the Buddhas. Of the Five Compassionate Buddhas, Dainichi Nyorai rules the center; Ashuku Nyorai rules the east; Hosho Nyorai rules the south; Amida Nyorai rules the west; and Fukujoju Nyorai rules the north. The deck includes a sixth, Yakushi Nyorai, better known as the Medicine Buddha.

The Myo-o are the Wisdom Kings, often appearing as wrathful deities. There are seven Wisdom Kings featured in this deck.

Aizen Myo-o, for instance, classically depicted with red skin, is the Wisdom King of love. If you’re using the deck for divination, when Aizen Myo-o appears, the message relates to love and relationships, and how you might better express your feelings.

Kujaku Myo-o is the Wisdom King who helps us to eradicate poison. When you invoke him through his mantra, Om mayura-krante svaha, you can manifest miracles through his power and protection.

Then there are folk deities, such as Sanpo Kojin, the fury of nature personified as a god, or the Four Heavenly Kings.

Let’s spotlight a random selection of cards from the deck just to take a closer look–

Komokuten, for instance, is the heavenly king of the West. His messenger spirit is the dragon. He along with Tamonten, Zochoten, and Jikokuten guard the four directions for the Five Compassionate Buddhas.

Benzaiten is the synchronization of the Hindu goddess Saraswati. Benzaiten is the Japanese goddess of water and music, who blesses you with musical talent, popularity, and fame.

Dakiniten is the mistress of the kitsune fox spirit and granter of wishes. She’s also a messenger for the Lord of the Underworld and Daikokuten (pictured on Card 39).

The accompanying guidebook is a quick and easy read, while also serving as a fantastic introduction to Shingon Buddhism (Japanese esoteric Buddhism). It covers the organization of Buddhas, the six realms, and how to work with the two forms of mandalas — the Diamond Realm Mandala and the Womb Realm Mandala. There’s also information on the guardian Buddhas of each zodiac sign.

Personally, I don’t use this deck for divinatory readings. I work with them as prayer cards that I place on my home altar or as a focal point during meditation. I’ll recite the mantra to invoke a particular Buddha while the illustrated prayer card is set out in front of me.

The cards themselves feature Okuda’s illustration of the Buddhist divinity and then the name given to that manifestation of the divinity. There are no keywords and the ascribed meanings aren’t printed on the cards.

The focus is the religious art, and so if you’re familiar with each bodhisattva’s or wisdom king’s attributions, key symbols, etc., then it’s all there in the illustration. Otherwise you would be beholden to the guidebook.

My critique isn’t of the cards themselves, but of perhaps a disconnect between the market this deck has been targeted at and the stylistic attributes of the cards. The depth that this deck goes to in terms of delineating esoteric Buddhist principles is impressive, which means for the average non-Buddhist who is intrigued by the art and thus picks this deck up, the operability might go over their heads. Whereas those who might appreciate its depth might not be all that into divination oracle cards. Hence the conundrum.

I do think having added keywords for each Buddha’s blessings would have added to the deck’s marketability, maybe a short phrase in small font just below where you currently see the card number and names.

The guidebook provides the kanji for each Buddhist divinity, the mantra for invoking the divinity, and the oracle card correspondences in the event you use the deck for divination.

A section on the Buddhism guidance and wisdom to be learned from that particular divinity and a profile explaining the divinity is perhaps my favorite part of the guidebook, which turns the deck set into a fantastic Buddhist study tool.

For the deck collector looking to tick the checkbox on a Buddhist themed deck in your oracle collection, this is worlds beyond one of the best I’ve seen. The creators approached the undertaking with reverence.

The detail work is at a microfine level, the colors luminescent, and the matte cardstock the perfect canvas to illuminate the art. And the guidebook is a fantastic primer on Buddhist cosmology.

If you are Buddhist yourself, I’m really loving this deck as a meditation tool set, or just for general veneration, or to work with as altar cards.

If you want to learn a little bit more about East Asian esoteric Buddhism, then this is a fantastic starter pack.

The artwork is out of this world. The level of talent here is a phenomenon. And the matte cardstock is really luxe, really high quality.

FTC Disclosure: In accordance with Title 16 of the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations Part 255, “Guides Concerning Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising,” I received the deck from the publisher for prospective review. Everything I’ve said here is sincere and accurately reflects my opinion of the deck.