Occult Bookstore Near Me on East 14th: Aum Shanti Bookshop's Tarot Corner

Type occult bookstore near me anywhere between Union Square and Stuyvesant Town and the result that keeps its lights on until eight every night is Aum Shanti Bookshop, at 230 East 14th Street between Second and Third Avenues. It is a compact shop that mixes the shelf of a spiritual bookseller with a working reading corner, so you can leave with a book on Jyotish astrology, a pack of sage and a twenty-minute tarot session in a single stop.

What makes Aum Shanti different from a general bookstore is that the books share the floor with the tools they describe. The shop's own category list runs from books, calendars and almanacs to tarot and oracle cards, pendulums, candles, incense, Goddess Fragrances, sage and cleansing supplies, singing bowls and journals. If you came for a title on chakras or a new deck, you will find the matching candle and incense within arm's reach rather than in another store across town.

The crystal cases are a large part of the draw, and the shop publishes prices for many pieces. Large tumbled carnelian is $12.95, labradorite cabochons are $14.95 and polished jade towers are $25.95, which makes it a sensible first stop if you are starting a small altar on a student budget. Further up the scale sit a labradorite Ganesh carving at $50.00 and an amethyst cluster mounted on a metal stand at $99.00.

The top shelf is where collectors linger. A hand-carved garnet Ganesha is listed at $800.00, and an 8mm bracelet of Libyan Desert Glass, the pale yellow natural glass found in the Sahara, is $425.00. You do not need to buy at that level to enjoy the case, but it helps to know the full price spread before you ask to hold the brightest stones, since the most dramatic pieces are also the most expensive ones in the room.

The real specialty is the reading bench. Aum Shanti lists a rotating group of readers by name, including Joseph Eriq, Eden, who works in Jyotish or Vedic astrology, Alex Santiago, the psychic Joan Carra, MaryAnn, Delaney, Francesco, Jackie, Kayla and Diana. The house menu is $35 for a twenty-minute psychic tarot reading, $55 for thirty minutes of tarot and $70 for forty minutes, while sessions with Joseph or Joan run $40 for twenty minutes or $80 for forty.

Astrology sits on its own line: a session with Alex is $80. If you are new to birth charts, bring your exact birth time and place, because Vedic and Western charts both depend on it and a reader cannot do much with a birthday alone. Readings here are offered for entertainment purposes only, as the shop states plainly, so treat them as a structured conversation about your questions rather than as advice.

Booking follows clear house rules. Phone readings and any appointment made in advance are paid ahead of time, either online, by Venmo to @AumShantiBookshop or by PayPal. Sessions are scheduled in twenty-minute blocks, and the shop asks clients to arrive ten minutes early, so the reader can start on time and you get the full block you paid for.

Timing your visit makes a difference because the store is open every day from 11am to 8pm. Late morning on a weekday is the calmest window for browsing the book shelves and asking questions at the crystal case. Evenings and weekends are when most people are free to shop, so if you want a reading at a specific hour, pay for it in advance instead of hoping a reader is free when you walk in.

The shop has a family tree worth knowing. It opened in December 2014 under the name Aum Namaste, an offshoot of Namaste Bookshop near Union Square, in a storefront at 226 East 14th Street. In April 2018 it moved a few doors down the same block into a larger space that had been Discount Cleaners, and took the Aum Shanti name, as East Village blog EV Grieve reported at the time.

The owner, Rakesh Samani, says he opened the store to raise awareness and build a community after time spent in Vipassana meditation. That intent shows in the events side of the business: readers are available for private parties and gatherings, and the events page has been announcing a Chakra Center on the same block. For a shop of this size, the mix of retail, readings and gatherings is what keeps regulars coming back between purchases.

If you prefer browsing online first, the shop ships crystals and other goods within the United States, with a $5 charge on orders under $50 and free shipping from $50 upward, though it does not deliver to PO boxes. That is handy if you see a tower or carving in the store, want to think it over, and would rather not carry a heavy stone through the subway. Questions can also go by email to aumshantibookshop@gmail.com.

Make an afternoon of the block. Two short streets south, Webster Hall at 125 East 11th Street has been a concert hall since the nineteenth century and is a natural follow-up if you are staying out for a show. To the northeast, Stuyvesant Square spans East 15th to 17th Street and is split by Second Avenue, a quiet pair of fenced gardens where you can sit with a new book or deck.

For a longer walk, head west along 14th to Union Square Park, where the Greenmarket sets up on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, then continue up to Namaste Bookshop to see the store that Aum Shanti grew out of. Comparing the two is a good way to understand how different their shelves feel, with Aum Shanti leaning harder into readings and stones, and its parent shop organizing its shelves into sections from Kabbalah to Shamanism and Reiki.

A few practical notes. Readings must be prepaid by card, Venmo or PayPal, and the second phone line, is listed if the main number is busy. The shop sits on a busy commercial block with no dedicated parking, so the L train is easier than driving. Bring a small notebook if you book a reading, since twenty minutes passes fast and it helps to jot down the cards that came up.

Aum Shanti suits anyone who wants an occult bookstore that is as much about practice as about reading: first-time tarot clients, astrology-curious friends, and people building an altar one stone at a time. It is less suited to collectors hunting rare antiquarian grimoires. Go for a twenty-minute reading, a stack of almanacs and a piece of carnelian, then walk it all over to Stuyvesant Square before the park gates close.