THE HERMIT (IX) REDUX

The Hermit (IX) from Gioseppe Maria Mitelli Tarot,
commissioned in Bologna, 1664

I've been fascinated by this version of The Hermit ever since I first came across it in The Art of Tarot. I can't say I understand its symbolism, only that it speaks to me very deeply the way my dreams sometimes do, stirring some wordless depth and coaxing a puzzled recognition.

I've been thinking a lot about this particular Hermit recently as I feel I've been stumbling along in my life, both literally (knee osteoarthritis acting up) and figuratively (you don't want the details :-D). At the same time I know there have been times when I have flown, balanced and energized. How is it one finds one's self in either state at any given time? That's just some personal projection on to this version of IX that I think of from time to time.

At another time when I sat with this version of The Hermit I had thought, so, we are able to fly, why is it we do not? And at yet another time I thought "in this world we stumble, in others we fly..." We are creatures of both flesh and spirit.

As to how these musings might fit in with the more traditional sense of IX? Maybe: the road to wisdom is long; sometimes we fly, sometimes we crawl or stumble. Also, maybe that aspect of The Hermit that represents the "wounded healer" (those who are wounded sometimes become healers themselves) can be seen in this rendition.

P.S. added hours after posting: A friend just emailed me a link to a Poets.org article on poetry and animals. In it is this paragraph:

"In other cases, the animal becomes a metaphor to venerate humanity, or more specifically, the poet, as in "The Albatross" by Charles Baudelaire. The poem follows a majestic bird after it is captured for fun by the crew of a ship, and describes its awkward appearance on board and its humiliation by the deck hands. The final stanza, here translated by Richard Howard, declares:

The Poet is like this monarch of the clouds
Riding the storm above the marksman's range;
Exiled on the ground, hooted and jeered,
He cannot walk because of his great wings."

Wow! How's that for a more painful take on this version of The Hermit? (See also the comments to this post, made before I received this link.)

To view two other versions of The Hermit card and read some of the other sorts of meanings I've seen for IX over the years, click here.

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‘til next time, keep enjoying The Tarot,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)**** SEE ALSO: Roswila’s Dream & Poetry Realm for Tarot poetry and Roswila’s Taiga Tarot for taiga (illustrated tanka).****