Wheel of Change Tarot
created by Alexandra Gennetti
Published by Destiny Books, 1997
ISBN #0-89281-609-0

The Book says: When the Hermit is part of your Tarot spread, you will want to consult your inner truth for answers. The card is a reminder that what is really true and right for you is within you waiting to be noticed. A good way to get in touch with inner thoughts and your inner teacher is to spend some quiet time alone and in nature. This card may be present to remind you that you simply need more retreat time. Like the Hermit, you must shine a light into the darkness and illuminate what needs to be seen. The Hermit is a card of keen introspection and observation and reminds us that to be truly alive to the world, we must have time to open to all that surrounds us. Like the Hermit’s beacon of light, the truth comes from inside and calls to us; we only need to pay attention.

TarotBroad’s Buzz: Here we have yet another side to the Hermit – the solitary philosopher and alchemist. This is the scientists seeking to find the answer to the mysteries of the Universe. The mad professor who is determined to solve the riddles surrounding him. He is a Hermit because involvement with other people merely distracts him from his task. He believes he can find the answers he seeks by looking at the stars, the natural world around him and within himself. He is introspective and observant; his senses have been honed to a keen edge. But there is a danger to this side of the Hermit too.

He has little patience for human frailties and fears. He is a seeker and nothing will stand in the way of his quest. He is Victor Frankenstein seeking to understand the meaning and creation of life. He is J. Robert Oppenheimer, “father” of the atomic bomb. This Hermit represents the pure quest for knowledge with no concern about its possible applications. His unquenchable thirst for knowledge leads him down paths which conventional minds might prefer to avoid. In recent times the Hermit is seen among those working on cloning. In fact as a quote from the original Planet of the Apes says “how can scientific truth be heresy”. To me this encapsulates the Hermit’s philosophy. How can knowledge be evil or wrong?  If humans don’t continue to grow and learn and explore then we are not taking advantage of the very thing that supposedly raises us above the other animals – our intellect.

At the same time the Hermit is a beacon, a light of hope in the darkness. For with each step he makes on an intellectual level, he forces us to grow on a spiritual and ethical level as well. We might not keep us as easily as we would like or hope, but that seems to be the nature of humanity. We have to face the worst in ourselves before we can step back from the darkness. The Hermit’s lamp guides the way in both directions, forcing us to face facts we might prefer to ignore but also giving us the tools to deal with them.