A NEW MEANING EACH WITH IMAGES FOR: The Hierophant, all 4 Pages, The Eight of Wands, The Eight of Cups, The Seven of Swords, & The Three of Pentacles

I'm trying a new approach to posting additional meanings I've stumbled across for the cards. Usually I cover only one card in depth, but I've collected a great many more meanings for most of the deck since my last post. So thought I'd include one card each from the basic sections of the Tarot: The Majors, The Courts, and the four Minors. Each will be preceded by an image for that card from a different deck. I had great fun searching for an appropriate image to go with the one meaning I've chosen to post for each. And I chose what I consider to be somewhat unusual or maybe quirky meanings from my readings for myself.

Please note that the below is intended as only a tiny taste of the cards; a quick Google will produce a wide variety of takes should you not be familiar with them. (Given my heavy reliance on projection of my feelings and experiences onto the cards, I recognize that I may very well reveal more about myself here than I do about any particular card. However, this is exactly my point: I use the cards as a path to self-discovery and healing. I hope what I post here that comes out of that process will be useful in some way to other seekers.)

First card for today is:

THE HIEROPHANT (V)

-- The world's teaching and pressure deeply impressing/forming both the conscious and the unconscious mind.

This Hierophant image is from one of my favorite old decks in my collection, The Xultun Tarot (Mayan mythology). He always looks to me as if he's really into inculcating his audience and that he has a great deal to say.

Second card for today is:

THE FOUR PAGES

Well, not "a card," but "cards," actually. I sometimes get a feel for the overall effect or function of type of card (by its number, say, or suit, etc.) In this case, it was for the four Pages in the Court cards:

-- Pages in general can encourage taking a more youthful stance, i.e. less about one's stash of knowledge and experience, and more about just putting one's self out into the world to see what will happen. The particular suit of the page and/or the details of its illustration can help further refine what the card is representing.

The four pages above are from the Rider/Waite/Smith deck.

Third card for today is:

THE EIGHT OF WANDS

-- Spirit breaking through in a moment of mystical union with everything manifest.

The Eight of Wands above is in the Lo Scarabeo Tarot. Most frequently the wands on this card are up in the air, nowhere near the ground. I like the sense of imminence and the physical world in this one.

The fourth card for today is:

THE EIGHT OF CUPS

-- Putting a distance between one's self and some emotional event(s) in order to survive it all. To have time to heal enough not to be destroyed or destabilized by it. In a more difficult sense, using drugs or alcohol, etc. to create that distance. Though even there what looks to the outside world as destructive, can very well be life saving on the person's inner plane.

The Eight of Cups above is in the Anna K. Tarot. Usually the figure is walking away from a bunch of cups, and almost as often, away from the viewer. Here, it's from a relationship (anyone remember that old song "Silhouette on the Shade"?). And the movement toward the viewer makes it more personal, more immediate. Of course, those two figures could simply be sadly watching the foreground character leaving. And I'm sure there are other readings that could be made. But that makes my point about how evocative this particular Eight of Cups version is.

The fifth card for today is:

THE SEVEN OF SWORDS

-- Feeling that things have been stolen from you; taken away by life or some actual person(s). But it's how life goes: we lose stuff, we lose out, we lose people. Shit happens!

The Seven of Swords above is in the Rider/Waite/Smith deck. I looked at a lot of Seven of Swords cards, but none of them (IMHO) beats this one for getting across that feeling of thievery.

The sixth and last card for today is:

THE THREE OF PENTACLES

-- You are being put on alert. Someone around you may be quite a piece of work. Watch out. The nastiness may be extremely well hidden by an earnest, sugar wouldn't melt in his/her mouth aspect. [I laughed in a somewhat embarrassed way when I found this meaning, as this is my primary card in The Tarot, right up there with The Hierophant. Blush! Having stumbled across this meaning with respect to a situation I've been in, will (hopefully) serve to keep me honest, too.]

The Three of Pentacles above is in The Circle of Life Tarot. I'm not overly fond of round cards, but this one is too perfect. Those little figures are either sneaking in or sneaking out of that window, and I always feel they can't be trusted to be up to any good! :-)

And on that self-conscious note, I'll end this post. Now that I've actually put it all together I don't think its approach can make any difference in the long haul, in how fast I get new meanings posted here. But it was entertaining to produce and there's a lot to be said for that in my life these days. LOL ... my moods are like those little figures in The Three of Pentacles above, not to be trusted one inch in all their comings and goings!

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N.B. A small thing, but just in case: some of the extra reference links offered at the very end of my oldest (years old) posts no longer work. As there are so many posts here to go through I am choosing not to search for and change all of those links that are "dead." (Though I do immediately delete any I stumble across that now lead to questionable sites.) If you are interested, you can try Googling for the name of the site or article referenced. I've found that some are still around in new locations or incarnations, some not.

'til next time, keep enjoying The Tarot, in whatever ways it comes to you in your life,





[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: (charter member); Roswila's Dream & Poetry Realm for Tarot poetry; Roswila's Taiga Tarot for taiga (illustrated tanka); Trying to Hold A Box of Light for digital photos only; and THE MARKER TAROT.

FURTHER EXPLORATION OF THE HIEROPHANT (V)

It's been a long time since I've done a thorough post exploring THE HIEROPHANT (V) and in that time I've gathered many more thoughts and "meanings" for this card, which I'll share later below. But first, here are some more unusual versions of this card.

The Hierophant (V) in the Gothic Tarot of the Vampires

This is a rather unusual imagery in some ways for V, yet it carries that sense of bowing to a greater power and/or knowledge. It almost looks like a torturous baptism. BTW, I like this deck as a whole, even considering its occasional bloody images.

The Hierophant (V) in the Mother Peace Tarot

I'd waited it seemed for ages "back in the day" for this deck to be available. But was somewhat disappointed as much of the artwork leaves a bit to be desired. Simply as artwork, without even considering the content/meaning of the images. V in this deck always gave me a bit of a giggle as The Hierophant (in the black "skirt") looks like a man in drag. Which, given this is a feminist deck, can be rather meaningful, actually. Is the power and wisdom V is seeking to bring through and in that process identify with, that of the Great Mother Goddess? Of course, if that figure is meant to be a woman, the same might be true.

The Hierophant (V) in The Xultun Tarot

This one of my all time favorite Hierophants. It's so rich (pregnant? or has V been swallowed by the mystical Jaguar? etc., etc.). I'll leave it to you to explore on your own what it may be saying. (See that Jaguar patterned "speech balloon" in the upper left?)

The Hierophant (V) in The Rider/Waite/Smith Tarot

And for comparison, this RWS deck version is probably the most commonly recognizable Hierophant.

I would have had a very hard time choosing which card to post more exploration about today, as I have a huge folder of notes, covering all 78 cards. However, each year at Samhain (Halloween; ancient Celtic New Year) I randomly pull one card from the Majors to represent and offer some guidance for the New Year. This year I got The Hierophant. The first "meaning" below is the one I keep coming back to when seeking to ease anxiety about my inner-self and outer-world relationships.

MEANINGS/INSIGHTS/READINGS FOR THE HIEROPHANT (V) (a/k/a The High Priest or The Pope), SOME LESS COMMON OR EVEN QUIRKY -- Please note: The below is not intended to be an exhaustive exploration of this card; a quick Google will produce a wider variety of takes should you not be familiar with it. (Given my heavy reliance on projection of my feelings and experiences onto the cards, I recognize that I may very well reveal more about myself here than I do about any particular card. However, this is exactly my point: I use the cards as a path to self-discovery and healing. I hope what I post here that comes out of that process will be useful in some way to other seekers.):

-- Secrecy is part of life ... can one know the Great Mystery's mind? Most deception is simply ignorance wearing the disguise of knowing what's going on.

-- Two paths for one sacred energy. Choose the less conflicted, if less exciting one.

-- Don't take things at face value. Wait for your intuition's whisperings.

-- Be more in your body, and less in your head.

-- Clinging to traditional thought in order to deny possibly disturbing new thinking and (especially) the subtle prodding of intuition.

-- Understanding is not an end in and/of itself. What we do with it; how we live it out in the world is the fruition of that knowledge.

-- Domineering personality, at the very least, intensely charismatic.

-- Can sometimes herald a mediumistic state on the part of the reader. If V doesn't offer enough connection on its own, surrounding (or additional) cards should.

-- Time to hear what established wisdom has to say about this. As opposed to your own creative or intuitional sources. You need not give over to that conventional thinking in order to learn from it.

-- Heavy handed, fundamentalist, narrow minded guilting at its worst.

-- The moral underpinnings are what are important here. Not the details, or emotions and fuss surrounding it all.

-- Can indicate someone like a snake oil salesman. Impressive, giving a good show, but selling worthless stuff. And watch the snake oil salesman within: Don't believe everything you think.

-- Don't waste your time and energy trying to thoroughly explain to others what you believe to be true. Attend to your own beliefs as they evolve. They are both guiding and reflecting your actions.

-- Having trouble learning from others and sometimes one's own intuition. The very newness being defended against may herald a treasure's advent.

-- Information; i.e., that which bridges the mental and physical aspects of being. (A similar triangulation is seen on The Lover and The Devil cards. What differs may be where that bridging is being done. Maybe: V = Conscious; VI = Superconscious; and XV = Unconscious.) BTW, that old name for V, The Pope or Pontiff, means bridge builder.

Lastly, for an abstract Hierophant card, scroll down to The Found Tarot post just prior to this one.

And if you'd like to read other posts on this card, click on the "THE HIEROPHANT" Label at the bottom of this post. Then scroll past a repeat of this new post to get to the older.

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N.B. A small thing, but just in case: some of the extra reference links offered at the very end of my oldest (years old) posts no longer work. As there are so many posts here to go through I am choosing not to search for and change all of those links that are "dead." (Though I immediately delete any I now stumble across that lead to questionable sites.) If you are interested, you can try Googling for the name of the site or article referenced. I'm finding that some are still around in new locations or incarnations, some not.

'til next time, keep enjoying The Tarot, in whatever ways it comes to you in your life,





[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: United Haiku and Tanka Society (UHTS) (charter member); Roswila's Dream & Poetry Realm for Tarot poetry; Roswila's Taiga Tarot for taiga (illustrated tanka); Trying to Hold A Box of Light for digital photos only; and THE MARKER TAROT.

For the Found Tarot: THE HIEROPHANT (V)

The first Hierophant (4-14-12 11684v2b) I've found in my pix! Albeit a very quirky one, but a High Priest nevertheless. At least to my eyes. I see the HP standing with arms spread in the middle top, blessing the two acolytes just below. This photomorph's mundane name is "Straddling the Worlds," so in that sense it can also be read as The Hierophant. Here's V in the well-known RWS deck for comparison:

As to any "message" from this card for me today? Given the difficulty I had getting a decent quality and size of RWS Hierophant image to post here, I'd say that straddling worlds can be difficult at times. But sometimes it's the only way to bring through what we need. And that being stubborn (sometimes mistaken as placid, smile) like a bull also serves. (V is often attributed to the astrology sign Taurus the Bull.)

I'd also like to mention that I've started posting again to my Taiga Tarot blog. The post today is my version in that deck of the Nine of Pentacles.

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*ABOUT THE FOUND TAROT: Since sometime in 2009 I've been making occasional posts here of photos of mine in which I see Tarot cards. However, I don't take these pix with the Tarot in mind, rather only see cards in them at some point later once they're on my computer screen. If you'd like to see previous Found Tarot posts, you can use the search function at the top left of this page, or the Found Tarot label at the very bottom of this post.

N.B. A small thing, but just in case: some of the extra reference links offered at the very end of my oldest (years old) posts no longer work. As there are so many posts here to go through I am choosing not to search for and change all of those links that are "dead." (Though I immediately delete any I now stumble across that lead to questionable sites.) If you are interested, you can try Googling for the name of the site or article referenced. I'm finding that some are still around in new locations or incarnations, some not.

'til next time, keep enjoying The Tarot, in whatever ways it comes to you in your life,

THE HIEROPHANT (Ganesh) in The Secret Dakini Oracle

The Hierophant (5 Ganesh/Lord of Obstacles) in The Secret Dakini Oracle

In the previous post I spoke about how one can identify one's own "family" of cards in the Tarot. Although The Hierophant happens to be one in my family (I'm a 5 by birth date and my name also adds to 5), that is not why I chose it today. I just had a feeling this particular version had something to say to me after a particularly hard day dealing with many both worldly and emotional issues. As my move to California on February 6th gets closer, the problems multiply and my ability to cope shrinks.

As soon as I pulled this card up on my screen I got what it had to say, and then some! Yes, we may be caught in a huge web of snafus, delays, problems, hostilities, etc., but with dear Ganesh at our center we will make it through.

Then I noted that in this deck Ganesh is named "Lord of Obstacles," as distinct from "Remover of Obstacles" as He is almost always called. This points to something I have thought for some time. That Ganesh may serve an even more primary purpose than removing obstacles, He may place those we most need and can learn from in our paths to begin with so that we will be empowered by dealing with them. This is not to say that He does not also remove obstacles. E.g., many times today I felt Him moving me forward; in essence pushing the obstacle of myself out of my own way. :-D Oh my, I just flashed on a childhood memory that illustrates this. I was terrified to ride my first two wheeled bike without my father holding the seat behind me to keep me upright. He insisted I would do fine, then gave me a good shove to get me going, and let go. And I did do just fine.

And how might all this relate to Tarot "meanings" for The Hierophant? The Hierophant is, IMHO, above all about spiritual lessons/teaching. Especially intuition, i.e. "inner tuition." (Along with The High Priestess.) It is often due to those tugs and little shoves of intuition that we move in ways from which we learn.

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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).****

THE HIEROPHANT (V; The Pope)

TODAY’S CARD IS The Hierophant (V). The rendering below is from the The Mary El Tarot and is used by permission:



Here’s The Hierophant in The Rider/Waite/Smith Tarot:



MY TAROT BACKGROUND: I’ve been studying, collecting, and teaching about Tarot cards for over 30 years; my other two passions are dreams and poetry (see link at bottom to my dreams and poetry blog).

Over these years, I have collected my notes about Tarot card meanings in piles of envelope backs, yellow sticky notes, pieces of old flyers, etc. It occurred to me that I should assemble these notes on meanings so that I could more easily refer to them. Ergo, this blog. I will not include here the more traditional meanings (as I learned them), but only those that were – at least to me – less common when they occurred to me.

Books and web sites abound for the more traditional meanings of the Tarot cards. If you are a beginner with The Tarot, I highly encourage you try some of the links listed as resources at the bottoms of previous posts here or do a web search of your own. Tarot is an extremely diverse and exciting field.

I ultimately offer any of the meanings I post here hoping to contribute to the rich and constantly evolving universe of The Tarot.

THE HIEROPHANT:

In the Mary El Tarot V is visually very pleasing and also quite different from many other renderings. For one, I revel in its being female, as V is usually male – sometimes titled The Pope. I chose The Hierophant to look at today because it is in my personal family of cards in The Tarot (one can determine cards of personal relevance by birth date, astrology sign, and numerology--see Resource link at bottom of this post). V also holds an additional resonance for me because Ganesh appears on The Hierophant in the Secret Daikini Oracle, and Ganesh is my dearest Deity.

DIFFERENT TAKES ON MEANINGS FOR THE HIEROPHANT (V; THE POPE):

Not listening to one’s friends, or intuition, or dreams, or some professional one has consulted, when it might do well to at least hear what’s being offered.

Stuck in the middle.

Required to act as a mediator, as opposed to initiating any action of one’s own.

Secrecy.

Not wanting to or not able to connect with others.

The issue in question is an unconscious process, or elements of the unconscious are very much in play, so all the information needed to make a decision or move, is not yet available.

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That’s all for now on different takes on The Hierophant.

Resource: Innerchange-Tarot, how to determine your Tarot “profile,” i.e., cards in the Tarot of particular relevance to you. This site also has some other good articles on The Tarot.

‘til next time, keep listening to and 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 some articles about Tarot.****