This material is for informational and educational purposes only and is not medical, psychological, or psychotherapeutic advice. If you are experiencing an acute psychological condition or need professional support, please contact a doctor, psychologist, psychotherapist, or crisis service.
A person looks at metaphorical maps, and in the window, images of childhood, roads, and open doors can be seen.
The Metaphorical Map does not reveal what it conceals: the unconscious. It creates a scene where a person can hear their own response. Author's illustration MriyaRun.
On the table lies a map. On it — a woman beside open doors. One person sees freedom. Another sees danger. The third notices that the woman seems to be waiting for permission to leave. The fourth is angry: "Why is she even standing there?" The image is the same, but the stories are different.
In this lies the main intrigue of metaphorical associative maps. The map does not know a person and does not preserve the secret answer. It is sufficiently ambiguous to serve as a screen for associations, memories, fantasies, fears, and hopes. We look at the picture, but gradually begin to speak about ourselves.
Exactly because of this, the MAC can be useful in areas that are difficult to grasp through direct questions: why I can make others happy, but I don’t rejoice for them; why the success of others causes sorrow or fear; where love ends and fear of losing begins; why an adult still waits for their parents’ permission for a vacation, desire, or independent life.
This article is not an "unfolding" guide for decoding cards nor a collection of ready values. It is a broad psychological overview: from the earliest OH-cards to modern MriyaRun decks, from Jungian projection to transactional analysis, from jealousy to separation, and from childlike scenario resolution to adult choice.
Where did metaphorical maps come from
Here is the translation of the provided Ukrainian text:
The history of modern associative decks did not begin in a therapist's office or as a psychological test. It was started by Canadian artist **** Ely Raman (1930–2007) ****. In the mid-1970s, he worked with small painted images that could be held, combined, and used as a stimulus for conversation and imagination. To the set of 88 images, he added 88 card frames with words. An image placed in a frame with a word immediately changed the context: thus, 7,744 basic combinations emerged — and countless personal readings.
First edition of the original deck of OH cards official materials date back to 1981. The German publisher,Moritz Egetmeyer (Moritz Egetmeyer), saw the potential, founded OH Publishing, and helped the new format go beyond artistic experimentation. Joan Lawrence (Joan Lawrence), together with Ramon, conducted seminars, described practices, and popularized the ethics of work; their book, The Little Book About the OH Cards, became one of the early guides in the genre. Subsequently, there were SAGA for creating stories, ECCO with abstract images, PERSONA for studying people and interactions, HABITAT on the connection between humans and their environment, and other decks. The format entered education, facilitation, creative practices, counseling, and psychotherapeutic work as a helpful tool.
Elle Raman — Canadian artist and creator of the first OH-cards
Elly Raman is a Canadian artist who sought to bring art beyond gallery walls and bridge the distance between the image and the viewer. The photo was provided by Dmitry Telushkin for publication in MriyaRun.
Історичний огляд Cartas OH уточнює послідовність подій. Перші OH-карти з’явилися 1981 року. У 1983-му Елі Раман познайомився з Моріцем Егетмаєром, який на той час працював у гуманістичній психології. Моріц побачив у поєднанні випадково витягнутих зображень і слів інструмент для пошуку особистого сенсу, а 1984 року заснував у Німеччині OH Publishing. Саме видавнича й просвітницька робота Егетмаєра допомогла формату поширитися в різних мовах і професійних середовищах.
Raman said that maps quickly make people talk to one another, and they stop being strangers to one another. At the same time, the most significant downfall of the first OH maps was not the technology, but the ethics. A participant may not show the map, explain their reaction, or accept another person’s interpretation. In the OH protocol, it is explicitly stated: there is no “correct” reading of the image. The sense belongs to the person who is looking.
Moritz Egetmeyer during the interview about OH-cards
Moritz EgTestMethod — publisher who helped OH-Maps become an international genre. Image from the official OH Cards Institute interview.OH Cards Institute.
Moritz EgTestMethodare and Andres Alvarez Garbin
What happens when we look at a map
The rule doesn’t operate by one “secret mechanism.” In the process, several ordinary psychological processes are encountered simultaneously.
Ambiguity.When a picture doesn’t explain itself completely, the brain constructs a story using the available experience. We notice certain details and overlook others, attribute motives to characters, and imagine past and future scenes.
Association.Color, pose, distance between figures or a small object can evoke a recollection, a bodily sensation, or a phrase that once frequently echoed at home. The image often reaches a recollection more readily than a direct question like “What are you feeling?”
Projection.The part of the personal content we experience is perceived as a property of a character on a map. "She envies," "he is weak," "the children have left" — these statements can narrate a picture, or they can reveal our current theme. This does not make the reaction flawed. It becomes material for investigation.
Narratives.A person connects disparate elements into a story. A story provides the ability to see sequence: what happened, what the hero wants, what holds him back, what he needs, and which steps are possible. Where there was formless tension, language emerges.
Psychological Distance.It is often easier to initially say, "This girl is afraid to ask," than to immediately admit, "I am afraid to ask." A map creates a buffer space. The crucial condition is to return to oneself from the character: "Where does this exist in my life?"
MAK is not a standardized diagnostic test. One test cannot establish a traumatic injury, the type of attachment, a disorder, or a "true desire." It helps formulate a hypothesis, but does not prove it.
Why it seems magical: Jungian perspective
In jungian psychology, an image is not merely decorative to a thought. A symbol can contain more meanings than a rational definition can immediately encompass. A forest can simultaneously be a danger, a freedom, an unknown, a maternal space, solitude, or a transition. A symbol lives on until its meaning is exhausted by a short formula.
Карл Густав Юнг описавпроєкціюяк автоматичний процес, у якому неусвідомлений зміст сприймається зовні — в іншій людині, події чи образі. Що менше ми знаємо про об’єкт, то більше простору для такого доповнення. Неоднозначна карта майже спеціально залишає цей простір відкритим.
The robot can be cautiously compared to theelement of actively experienced: the person does not simply name what is seen, but enters the image into the dialogue. What happened in the moment before this scene? What does the character want? What does he not dare to say? Where within me do I feel his state? How did the story change if a helper had appeared? The image becomes a bridge between the consciously held position and what has not yet been given words.
Юнгіанський термінархетипчасто використовують надто вільно. Не кожен намальований міст автоматично є архетипом переходу, а кожна темна постать — Тінню. Архетипічне прочитання доречне як один із рівнів, якщо образ справді розгортає ширший мотив: шлях героя, вигнання, повернення, смерть старої ідентичності, зустріч із помічником, спуск у підземелля. Особиста асоціація завжди важливіша за словник символів.
«Magical» coincidence occurs when a randomly selected card perfectly aligns with the current experience. Partly this is a force of projection and selective attention: among many details, we recognize those that are already emotionally charged. Partly it is the ability of a symbol to unite contradictions. The card did not foresee the event; it provided a form to a question that already existed within.
Why are MACs similar to Tarot — and why are these different practices?
Similarity is indeed present. Both the MAC and Tarot use compact images, random selection, symbols, and card sequences. Both formats can evoke strong associations and help build a story. The ritual itself—pausing, formulating a question, drawing a card—enhances focus.
Excellence begins with the source of value.
In the tradition of Tarot, there is a well-established system: senior and junior arcana, suits, numbers, positions, and card interpretations. Practitioners can use it for divination, spiritual practice, or symbolic reflection—depending on their approach.
In MÁC, there is no mandatory dictionary or built-in function. The author or psychologist does not need to inform: "This map means separation" or "You are forbidden to succeed." The question sounds differently: "What exactly do you see here?", "What detail caught your attention?", "How is this related to your life?" Authority shifts from the explainer to the participant.
Therefore, the proximity of MAC to Tarot lies in its imagery, randomness, and ritual of attention. The difference is in the contract. MAC does not predict the future nor delegates card decisions. Its task is to expand perception, after which the individual returns to facts, boundaries, consequences, and their own choice.
To make others happy or to be happy for others
These two moves are easily intertwined.
Being kind to others can be a free expression of love: I know what you like, and I want to give you a gift. But sometimes this comes with a fearful contract: “If you are satisfied with me, I am free.” Then a person guesses your desires, agrees to something they don’t want, resists refusing, and gradually loses contact with their own “want.”
Joy for anothermeans supporting their individuality. In a partner, a colleague, or a friend, there is success that does not belong to me. Their world expands, and I do not disappear. Here, jealousy, envy, and possessiveness can rise.
For operation, two cards are suitable: "I, When I Make Someone Happy" and "I, When Someone Is Happy Without My Participation."
Question:
- What is happening with my body in each scene?
- What kind of clothing do I expect for the tour?
- What do I fear if I stop being convenient or replaceable?
- Foreign success really does something that takes from me— or is it only reminding me of my unfulfilled need?
- What would joy for another look like without self-destruction?
Envy and Jealousy: Protection from Comparative Suffering
Znečinenie často dochází späť okamžite po zachoplení. "Ji prostě pošlašlo", "nic zvláštního", "on zmienil sa", "tyto vzťahy v konečnom priestore neprerijú". Tak psychika zmenšuje význam toho, čo bojí sa bojať, strašno stráviť alebo trhanne nemati.
Revenge obsessions do not reduce to love. They can be mixed with fear of abandonment, possessiveness, shame, lust, a need for control, past experience of betrayal, and the belief that "I can be replaced." It is important to distinguish the internal scenario from the actual behavior of the partner. If agreements are violated, there should be a discussion about the facts. If the threat primarily exists in the imagination, it is worth investigating its source.
Two people stare at a map, and behind them, a cluster of flowering branches, thorns, and a children's room appear.
In the near future, we see a partner and our own history simultaneously. Maturity begins where these two spheres can be distinguished. Author illustration by MriyaRun.
Schedule with three cards:
- What do I fear losing?
- What am I writing to another person without sufficient facts?
- What is my need to ask for a direct response?
Map does not resolve whether to trust a partner. It helps prepare for a more precise conversation: instead of "you always choose others," it becomes "when our plans change without discussion, I feel anxious and want to discuss how we notify each other of changes."
Projection and Love: Seeing a Person Through One's Own Image
Beloved almost inevitably contains a projection. We still know very little about another person, but we already see in them a promise of a home, freedom, protection, recognition, or a new life. The projection creates distance to closeness, and eventually, the real person no longer fits into the imagination.
Then there is the struggle: "be the way I felt you at the beginning." One demands more intimacy, while the other protects with distance; one controls, while the other disappears; both try to return to the feeling of unity.
Useful schedule:
- How do I see my partner?
- What qualities, values, or strengths did I place in him/her?
- What do I know about him/her from facts?
- What will change if I return the projected part to myself?
Restoring the projection does not mean stopping to love. This is the possibility of letting the partner go beyond the role of the rescuer, the ideal mother, the omnipotent father, or the proof of one's worth.
Separation and adaptation: the right to belong and the right to be separate.
Separation and adaptation are often imagined as a sharp break with parents. In reality, psychological independence includes the ability to maintain a connection without giving the other person the right to define one's feelings, body, profession, relationships, and pace of life.
The child adapts to the family because it depends on her. She notices what is accepted of her, what calms her, and which parts of herself are safer to hide. This can form implicit rules: "don't contradict," "don't be weak," "don't overstep," "don't distance," "don't feel," "don't be more important than mom."
The old adaptation in adulthood often appears as a character trait. A person automatically justifies themselves, seeks success, chooses unavailable partners, or waits for permission to rest. Matrii can help make this automaticity visible without declaring that the "map has revealed the truth."
The Practice of "Two Loyalties":
- Choose the card that shows your fidelity to the family.
- Choose the price of this fidelity.
- Choose the connection with close people where there is still room for your life.
Ask yourself: what do I want to keep? What do I need to give up? What guilt will I have to bear to not return to the old role?
Parental prohibitions, permissions, and drivers.
The transactional analysis describes the life scenario as a way to organize the experience and relationships from an early age. A child makes inferences in the context of limited possibilities: how to get contact, avoid punishment, remain part of the family. These decisions once helped adapt, but they can limit adult life.
In the tradition of transactional analysis, they speak of prohibitions in the form of "don't be yourself," "don't be close," "don't grow up," "don't reach," "don't think," "don't feel." There are also transactional permissions: to be, to want, to feel, to make mistakes, to have boundaries, to be successful, to stay close without merging.
Tai Chi Kaler described five typical driver messages:
- Be perfect. The value depends on perfection.
- Make others happy. Safety depends on others' approval.
- Be strong. The need for help is perceived as a weakness.
- Try. The struggle and effort are more important than the end.
- Run. Calmness causes anxiety, and time always seems to end.
The driver is not a diagnosis. Each strategy has a useful quality: quality, attention, endurance, diligence, speed. The problem arises when it becomes the only way to say "I'm okay."
Schedule "Message – Decision – New Permission":
- Which rule do I still follow?
- Which childlike decision helped me adapt?
- What need did this decision try to suppress?
- What mature authorization do I need now?
- What specific action will make this reality this week?
Important not to stop at the beautiful phrase “I have the right.” If the permit relates to rest, a mature step could be a free evening in the calendar. If the limit is a refusal — a short refusal without long justification. If support is involved — a specific request to a specific person.
Closing needs: what a card can do, and what it cannot do.
The need does not close itself by self-awareness. One can clearly recognize their loneliness and remain lonely; understanding the need for safety and continuing to live in a dangerous situation. Insight is the beginning of the journey.
After working with the card, it is beneficial to go through four steps:
- Name the experience:what I feel?
- Identify the need: What I lack—protection, connection, autonomy, recognition, rest, clarity?
- Verify Reality: Which facts support my story, and which contradict it?
- Consider the action:What do I need to consider regarding who I can turn to and what terms or agreement I should formulate?
If the material triggers flashbacks, panic, intense distress, or a desire to harm oneself, independent practice should be discontinued and professional help should be sought. For traumatic material, stabilization, appropriate pacing, and presence of a trained professional are crucial.
Online MriyaRun MAK: A timely assignment online.
Digital decks are convenient when paper isn’t available, one wants to maintain a daily practice, or quickly review which topic resonates before purchasing a physical set. They also assist a practitioner in working remotely: showing a map on the screen, associating dates with client times, fixing key words, and concluding a session with a specific step. At the same time, the online format does not suppress ethics: a person has the right to skip images, not explain personal reactions, and pause the practice.
In MriyaRun, there are online decks available for various psychological topics:«My Myth: The Hero’s Journey»— about crisis and transition;«Children Underground»— about the internal child, adaptation, and early experiences;«Dreams, Wants, Feelings»— about desires and personal choice;«Unrestricted»— about bodily sensations, consent, and female sexuality, 18+.
A simple online practice consists of five steps:
- What one question would you like to ask about yourself, rather than requesting predictions for the future?
- Open the map and name the first three details that caught your attention.
- Describe the scene: what is happening, what the hero wants, and what is standing in the way of the hero?
- Return the association to life: where does this topic manifest now, and what facts support this?
- Complete with one strong step or by making a note in your calendar.
Dmytro Telushko — author of MriyaRun maps
Dmytro Telushko — psychologist, author of MAK-cards and founder of MriyaRun
Dmitry Telushko — psychologist, author of psychological exercises and MAC-cards, and founder of MriyaRun. Photo from Dmitry Telushko's professional website..
Author-direct Ukrainian MAC MriyaRun develops a psychologist and project founder, Dmitry Telushko, who developed theandprojects. In his decks, the image merges with thematic dramaturgy, psychological questions, and practice that brings people back to their own solution. This is evident in various lines: the archetypal change route in "My Myth," the research of desires and female subjectivity in the series "Dreams," working with early experiences in "Children Underground," permission and separation in "I Have the Right," and embodiment and consent in "Bodyless."
Special feature of the approach lies in the fact that the deck is conceived as a part of a broader process of self-reflection. The map helps to notice the image and feeling; the questions translate them into language; the workbook or daily journal keeps the observations in time; the specific action returns ownership to the person. That is why the MriyaRun MAK exists as printed sets and as online tools, and alongside them, psychological diaries and practices are created.
Дмитро не предлагает универсальных тлумачень карт. В центре остаётся субъективный опыт человека: то, что он видит, какие ассоциации возникают, как они связаны с фактами, и что он хочет сделать дальше. Такая позиция продолжает этичную линию первых OH-карт, при simultaneously раскрывая её в современном украинском контексте — словом наших семейных сценариев, войны и принудительных изменений, разделения, телесности, мечт и права жить своим жизнью.
Full Overview of MriyaRun Cards
Full Overview of MriyaRun Cards
On August 26, 2026, in the MriyaRun category of MAK, there are ten printed positions presented. Three of them form a single series titled "Subterranean Children," and two form a series titled "Dreams." Additionally, separate decks can also be tried out in the online space of MAK MriyaRun usingand.
"My Mif: The Hero's Path" — Changes, Crisis, and a New Phase
Deck "My Myth: Hero's Path"
The deck of 50 cards is based on an archetypal structure of a journey: call, boundary, trial, allies, Shadow, return. It is appropriate when a person is experiencing a transition and does not understand where they are. The main question is: "What is the task of this stage, rather than how to get rid of it faster?"
"Mriy. Want. Imagine" — a wish, femininity, and personal choice
Author’s deck addresses themes of femininity, sexuality, roles, boundaries, and internalized images through the recontextualization of the myth of Persephone. It is worth choosing this deck for requests such as “What do I want?”, “Where is my desire, where is my expectation?”, and “Which part of me remains in the underworld.” It is important in this work not to substitute personal experience with a ready-made mythological schema.
«Мрії», частини 1 і 2 — рішення, суперечності й особисті сенсі
First part of the deck "Mriya"
Two decks of 50 cards combine surreal images with folk sayings on the reverse. The strength of the format lies in the tension between the image and the phrase: they can support each other or contradict each other. This is convenient for daily practices, creative writing, exploration of inner voices, permissions, prohibitions, and scenario decisions.
«Діти підземелля» — внутрішня дитина без солодкої ідеалізації
Series consists of 150 cards divided into three separate parts.
«The Fairy Tale World» — first part of «Children Underground»
«Казковий світ» (1–50)- children's fears, fantasies, defenses, dreams, forgotten resources, and deep needs. Suitable for a gentle introduction through a symbolic language.View deck.
«Дворове дитинство» (51–100)- physical and social experience: group, empathy, belonging, boundaries, superiority, contact with others. Especially relevant for themes of adaptation and how the child learned to occupy a place among people.View the deck.
«Game, Bile and Magic» (101–150)— complex group situations, guilt, child cruelty, independence, boundaries and the return of strength. This part is better used slowly, allowing the right to postpone the card.Look at the deck.
«I have the right» — permission, boundaries, and separation
Resource Pool "I Have the Right"
100 cards for working with permission to be, feel, want, ask, rest, say “no,” and not disappear for someone else’s comfort. On the face side — a symbolic image, on the reverse side — the card and a question. The deck fits well with themes of parental restrictions and the driver “Make others happy,” especially after a permission is granted, a real action follows.
«I live my happy life» — from inspiration to everyday reality
Sto karty o tіlu, chomadzi, hovori, daju, blizkosti, hory i mайбутнє. Якщо «Я маю право» більше фокусується на внутрішньому дозволі, ця колода переносить увагу до проживання власного життя. Корисне запитання: «Який найменший прояв цього права можливий сьогодні?»
«Uncensored» — desire, consent, and embodiment, 18+
The translation of "Колода «Безсоромна»" is:
Deck "Uncensored"
Here is the translation of the provided Ukrainian text:
Stamps for research on female desire, fantasies, satisfaction, agreement, boundaries, and relationships with the body. Its task is to date the language themes that are often hidden in shame. Stamps should not be used for pressing, "revealing real desires," or work without clear consent of the participant.
Paper Deckonline version 18+
How to choose a deck that fits your needs
- Changes, crisis, new role: My Mif: The Hero’s Journey.
- Mriya. Bajay. Fantazuy.
- Internal voices, script rules, creative solutions: Mriya."Miracles."
- Childhood, adaptation, vulnerability, belonging, and boundaries: "Children of the Underground.""Children of the Underground."
- Parental prohibitions, the right to privacy, and the word "no": "I have the right."
- Daily fulfillment of desires and connection with one's own life: "I live my happy life."
- Language, consent, intimate desires: Shameless metaphorical cards, 18+
Deck shouldn't be the "strongest." It should meet the need and level of readiness. For daily practice, sometimes one resource map is sufficient. For early traumatic experience, it's better not to start with the most painful image.
Five Rules for Unsafe Work
- State your request first.Not "what's wrong with me?", but "what do I want to understand about my reaction to someone else's success?".
- Say in the first person.«I see», «it seems to me», «an image arises in me» — instead of universal values.
- Do not explain the map for another purpose.Even if the answer appears obvious.
- Verify facts. Especially in topics of betrayal, violence, health, money, and important decisions.
- Complete with action or a flourish.A record, conversation, boundary, pause, and appeal—these are what bring the abstract to life.
When a map becomes a mirror, not a reflection.
Metaforic maps work convincingly precisely because the image is not confined to one meaning. A person contributes to it their biography, cultural images, current conflict, and physical state. In Jungian terms, this is the space of the symbol and projection; in transactional analysis, the possibility of seeing an early decision, driver, or prohibition; in everyday human speech, the way to finally say what has long been hard to put into words.
Her strength diminishes when the leader takes the right to truth. "I know what your map means" returns the person to dependency. "What does it mean for you — and what do you want to do with this?" returns authorship.
Exactly so, MAK evolved from El Ramón’s artistic conception to modern thematic and digital decks. MriyaRun continues this line in Ukrainian: the image becomes the entry point into a conversation about boundaries, desire, childhood, love, scenarios, and the next step. The map does not live out our lives. It can help us notice which lives we are still postponing.
View all paper-based MAC cards for MriyaRunor try online decks.
For written continuation of practice, one can use«Daily Journal of My Borders», and for working with personal histories and symbols —the workbook «Narrative Therapy».
When an imagined life remains equally attractive for years, it helps to examine the image separately from motivation. From Fantasy to Individuation asks what another life is promising, separates an activity from a desired identity, and turns the image into a small reversible experiment rather than a sudden decision.
Sources and Notes
- OH Cards Quick-Start Guide— ethics of OH, subjective sovereignty, and the principle of the absence of a "correct" interpretation.
- Official Presentation of OH Publishing- deck composition, 7744 combinations, international development and separation from oracle practices.
- Moritz Egetmeyer Interview on Gestalt TV— documentary interview of publisher OH.
- History of the OH Cards OH — OH Cards History— chronological first OH cards, Elly Ramani's acquaintances with Moritz Egertmayer, and the establishment of OH Publishing; source of a shared photo of Moritz Egertmayer and Andrés Álvarez Garbin.
- OH Cards: The Game of Inner Vision— An Early Publication on Elise Ramon’s Imagination and the Practice of Using Cards.
- Jung Lexicon: Active Imagination, Projection, Symbol — dictionary of terms in analytical psychology with references to Jung's collected works.
- MriyaRun: MAC catalog— current stock of printed decks, verified 26.08.2026.
- MriyaRun: Online- current digital versions and thematic overview.
Material has an educational nature. MAC-images do not establish diagnoses, predict the future, or replace psychotherapy, medical assistance, or decisions based on facts.