"Oracle of the Hekatean Path" Oracle Deck Review

The “Oracle of the Hekatean Path” oracle deck is by Kenn Payne, Chris Butler and Lo Scarabeo, and available everywhere. 60 cards depicting Hekate’s epithets, associations and symbols that were created to provide messages direct from the Goddess herself, as well as provide enlightenment from your psyche. Kenn is a member, torchbearer and Keybearer for the Covenant of Hekate. Chris Butler has also created several decks and courses around tarot. Check out their work!

• Guidebook: Over 100 pages including short card meanings in multiple languages, and two tarot spreads.
• Artwork: By Chris Butler, using clipart and digital collages, with credits given at the back of the guidebook.
• Inclusivity: TBC
• Environmental Impact: TBC; Printed & Bound in China. 

Unique Deck Points

This whole deck is for those looking for more love letters to Hekate. It’s clear that the people who created this deck have a good understanding of not only who she is historically but also what she means to others. I thought this was fantastic. 

This deck is solely related to Hekate. There are epithets, symbols and relationship associations to her, and the deck has a guidebook that includes multiple languages – English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Greek. The guidebook has very minimal descriptions, so as to leave you to explore your own intuition or use it for building advice from Hekate herself, if this is what you wish to use the deck for.

The artwork isn’t to my taste – there’s a lot of digital collages around that could do this style better I feel, such as ArtbySafara or even Turkish Sevgi Aygun. I go into this more below, but I think it’s unique digital artwork for Hekate I haven’t personally found before – it’s usually black and white, or super dark graphics, but this deck features a vibrant spectrum of colour.

The Downside of the Deck

I’m not in love with the artwork. It feels like something your Nana or your crystal collecting Auntie would own and that’s fine; that popular digitalised artwork to showcase “otherworldly” aspects that even AI is still churning out tonnes of, as it’s meta-loaded training was full of this type of spiritual artwork. It feels really similar to so many decks, that I believe it genuinely takes away from the core message within its imagery. I would have loved to see photographs of someone exploring the Hekatean path, such as herbs on their workshop space for Pharmakeia, actual cord cutting ritual for Cords, or a helping hand for Soteira. Photos that show viewpoints through the eyes of someone on the Hekatean journey or exploring it for the first time, exploring all of these themes. 

I’m sad to write negative points of decks because I know they’ve been worked on really hard, but when you make the artwork this big – make it at least more interesting, and original. Working with Hekate doesn’t feel “run of the mill”, but this deck does.

My Favourite Card

I honestly struggled to find a favourite, if I can share with you. It’s weird – I deeply resonate with these cards’ messages, even though I don’t love the artwork and there’s not much to go off in the guidebook. I decided to pull a card for this section and I got “Devotee” and a card about dedication. Either a call to arms to work with Hekate theirself, or to take a hard look at what I’ve dedicated myself to but not actually finished yet. This brought me a moment to sit with myself, ask if I’ve got too much going on and is this why I have not finished certain things (like chase up beta readers, or to have as much chaos going on in my personal life that needs addressing first to limit distractions, or maybe finish this article that… started in May 2024 but here we are late Autumn). I guess this ultimately is why I love the deck, despite not being obsessed with the artwork or minor details – I would imagine Hekate to be absolutely no thrills no bullshit too, keeping it simple and clear and grounded, and this deck matches this tone.

Why I Love This Deck

I actually feel more vibes with this deck than to other oracle decks I’ve added-to-basket recently. I was super excited when it came, and it’s continued to be one I turn to, especially this past Samhain and will be used on November 16th. There’s a no nonsense approach with it, and I love that there’s so much history/key information been brought into this deck from records rather than personal gnosis. I wish there was more “new” information for me from this that hasn’t come up in previous research, but alas – I’m a greedy gal.

I feel that those who would love this deck are those who work with Hekate, or those who are drawn to darker and more shadowy aspects of spirituality. The messages in this deck are not sugar-coated and can be quite intense at times, so it may not be suitable for everyone. If you’re someone who is looking for deeper insights and guidance from a goddess known for her wisdom and magick, then this deck may be perfect for you.

If you’re interested in learning more about the “Oracle of the Hekatean Path” deck, you can do so here. Any click-throughs may lead to the affiliate programme awarding us compensation which helps compensate the writers on the website, pays towards the web hosting and all the other boring behind-the-scenes bits.

Thank you for reading my super honest review! Until next time xox