Category Archives: Hanged Man

Blue Rose Tarot Hanged Man

Posted on by
Reply

Blue Rose Hanged Man

 

Blue Rose Tarot
Created by Paula Gibby
Published by Soul Guidance

The Book says: But the Hanged Man teaches us that this is precisely what is necessary in order to continue upon the last half of the Great Journey, where the stages become so delicate and subtle that it takes an embracing of all possibilities simply to perceive and attempt to navigate through them.

But to step out of the paradigm that today’s world wraps around us…well, it is easier said than done. A world in which the spiritual and magical hums softly, so softly just below the surface of our consciousness. And it is indeed a difficult song to hear through the stifling atmosphere of our own personal paradigms.

We humans do hate to relinquish all our “pet” beliefs, prejudices and opinions.  When we are in the middle of a paradigm, it is hard to perceive or imagine any other.  But that is precisely what must happen.

TarotBroad’s Buzz: The man in black seems to be saying “follow me and I’ll lead to you to a place you never knew existed”. All you have to do is change how you look at your world. It suggests that there is another world that exists beneath or next to our own, a world we are not usually able to see.

I find it interesting that the adult is showing the children the path to new perceptions. It has been my experience that children usually lead us to new perspectives and to question our long held beliefs. I also like the suggestion that there are layers to our reality, realities within realities, like those Russian dolls which have successively smaller dolls within the larger one. This Hanged Man is like a Monty Python skit which pokes fun at commonly held beliefs and causes us to stop and reconsider our perspective. It is that wonderful book that uses fiction as a way to shine light on something and forces us to look at it anew.

I also think the children in the card symbolize how our perspectives and attitudes change as we mature. As children we believed the Moon followed us home and watched over us but as adults we realize that is an illusion. However how many of us still cling to that belief in our heart. The Hanged Man shows us that we sometimes need to expand our boundaries and explore new perspectives. We may need to sacrifice the comfort of long-held beliefs and not allow complacency or laziness to keep us in a rut.

Transformational Tarot – Reflection

Posted on by
Reply

Transformational Reflection

 

Transformational Tarot
Created by by Arnell Ando
Published by US Games ISBN:1572815396

The Book says: Reflection, meditation, a time for deep contemplation. Feeling the need to sacrifice oneself for a worthy cause, or for others. Spiritual awareness obtained by letting go of outdated patterns and beliefs. The ability to perceive things from opposing viewpoints. In it’s reversed this card can warn of a tendency towards co-dependency, self-denial, playing the victim or passive/aggressive power games for persona gain.

TarotBroad’s Buzz: I found this card intriguing. The message I immediately got from it is changing your perspective – one religion’s martyr is another’s demon. Reflection forces us to pause and thing about the polarity and divisiveness we live with daily. It also asks us to stop for a moment and think before we act. It calls on us to look at things from someone else’s perspective, to transform our view of the current situation. As we see when learning history, perspective alters whether an even is “good” or “bad”. Columbus’ “discovery” of America was good to Columbus but bad for the native population. Politicians who reinforce and support our beliefs are seen as good while those espousing different viewpoints can be seen as bad. But the reality is that both may have good and bad points.

Reflection is about those shades of gray with which I personally have so many problems. I hate having to make exceptions and go beyond very simplistic views of “right” and “wrong”. Reflection shows that life is never that simple. Good and evil, right and wrong, sinner and saint are relative terms and can vary according to where you stand and what you believe. So Reflections reminds us all that sometimes we need to turn our beliefs on upside down and see if they’re still useful and healthy. And it’s also a reminder not to rush forward but to stop a minute and reflect on our beliefs, our actions and our lives.

Mansions of the Moon – Hanged Man

Posted on by
Reply

Mansions of the Moon Hanged Man

 

Mansions of the Moon Tarot
ZADOK (dahogue@nctc.net)
Self-Published

The Paper says: The crucifixion of Jesus Christ & the burning of an accused Witch. Horrible and inhuman torture in the name of religion.

TarotBroad’s Buzz: To me this card contrasts the difference between a willing sacrifice and an unwilling one. Christ has always been portrayed as a willing sacrifice who allows himself to die on the cross in order to save humanity’s souls. He might have dreaded the upcoming pain and death but he ultimately gave himself over to the inevitable; to his mission in life. Compare this to the terror the victim at the stake must have felt – fury, mind-numbing horror and ultimately a sense of betrayal and futility. And the Earth is home to both types of sacrifice every day.

The key to this card is to remind us how easy it can be to fall into the trap of creating unwilling sacrifices and how difficult it can be to stand up for our beliefs, even at the risk of losing our lives. It makes me think of the question would I be willing to sacrifice myself for the greater good? This is not an easy concept to grasp or to resolve. And does our sacrifice actually make a difference? If one believes in an afterlife then even death is just a transformative process. As Imhotep says in The Mummy “death is only the beginning”.

Celtic Wisdom Tarot – The Dedicator

Posted on by
Reply

Celtic Wisdom The Dedicator

 

Celtic Wisdom Tarot
Text by Caitlin Matthews, art by Olivia Raynor
Destiny Books, 1999
ISBN 0-89281-720-8

The Book says: Sacrifice, serene submission to one’s life pattern, faith integrity of one’s actions, initiation, finding knowledge within, dedicated service to higher cause or calling, period of waiting or transition.
Reversed: Selfish inability to relinquish, unwilling or blind bondage to destiny, unappreciated or useless sacrifices, failure to commit, pride or ego cause delays.
Soul-Wisdom: The Dedicator of Lore makes a willing sacrifice to become one with the lore of his tribe, in order to be a transmitter of wisdom. This principle is one that many students, spiritual initiates, and heroes undergo today in order to be worthy lore-keepers. What duties arise from your beliefs?

TarotBroad’s Buzz: This card reminds me of the story of Branwen, sister of Bran the Blessed. Her mistreatment by her husband, the King of Ireland, led to her brothers coming to rescue her. In the course of the ensuing battle Branwen’s husband used the Cauldron of Rebirth given him by Bran. Any of his warriors that were killed were placed in the cauldron and reborn, although unable to speak. Finally Efnissien, Branwen’s brother, climbs into the cauldron and breaks it at the cost of his own life.

The Dedicator shows a gateway through which all of your perceptions and beliefs are altered and transformed. As a result of our sacrifice we are gifted with an otherworldly wisdom, with knowledge previously unanticipated. But the key is that this is a willing sacrifice, like Efnissien’s. We lose our innocence, our unawareness of the deeper mysteries of life. But what we gain is knowledge, wisdom and insight. The world will never look the same to us and we can mourn that loss as we celebrate what has been gained. As we move to the next level of awareness and experience, we are healed and made whole for the continuation of our journey.

Wheel of Change Tarot – Hanged Man

Posted on by
Reply

Wheel of Change Hanged Man

 

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

The Book says: The image of the Hanged Man shows the solar king turned on his head, ready to being the journey back to the darkness he has come from. The Hanged Man symbolizes the sacrifice of the sun’s light at midsummer, when the long hours of daylight are beginning to slip away. When interpreting this card in a reading, think first about the aspect of reversal in this card. The sun has turned the corner and is beginning the downhill part of his travels. You may have reached a turning point in your life or in one particular aspect of it. However, the appearance of this cad in a reading does no mean that you are “over the hill”. After examining this aspect of the card, look also at the sacrifice required to make the turning, for no transformation will occur without this sacrifice. Examine the nature of sacrifice in your life: what kinds of sacrifices have you made of your own time or energy in order to make changes? Perhaps by giving up something at this time you may be able to take the downhill path towards the change you have been wanting. This card implies such a crossroads; you are at a point of change, but you must let go of something or this change will not take you to the retuning path. Focus clearly on the turning point; the journey and the sacrifice will seem like a clear and unavoidable choice.

TarotBroad’s Buzz: The Hanged Man is naked and exposed, stretching towards whatever awaits him. He is calm and centered, understanding the necessity of this sacrifice and appreciating the fact that this is part of the cycle – sacrifice and rebirth, release and regeneration. He accepts and embraces his role in the cycle. This card is a reminder that we all go through these types of phases in our life. But in addition, the Hanged Man forces us to stop long enough to consider our options and reflect upon our life up to now.

He is fully connected to the natural cycles of the cosmos and appreciates his importance in this cycle. But he has voluntarily put himself in this position; he can release himself at any time.

To me this card speaks of leashed power and strength, the ability to subsume our own personal desires and goals for the greater good of our world. It is the contained energy present in the seed just before it bursts and begins sprouting. Yes, this card is about sacrifice but it is also about untapped potential and unlimited possibilities. All we need to remember is that we can achieve our goals and our potential as long we are willing to release ourselves and drop the past behind us like a discarded skin. Like a snake, now is the time to shed the useless things we’ve been carrying and allow ourselves to move forward in our new, fresh skin.

What story do I need to tell right now? The High Priestess + The Lone Man (Old Path)

Posted on by
2

Old Path High PriestessOld Path Lone Man

Fascinating!  I think maybe things are starting to turn around a bit for me.  Maybe this is what the cards were trying to tell me.  I need to share my story, tell my truth to others.  It’s time to explore the inner me, the hidden me and my unique and different perspective on the world.

There is something very powerful and empowering about these two cards in response to this question.  They are both Major Arcana which to me suggests this is has the potential to be a major, life-altering event for me.  If nothing else it can help shift my perceptions in a way so that I start to consider the value I can bring to whatever endeavors I pursue.

The High Priestess shows me that I have the ability to tap into my deepest self, my true nature.  I can re-connect with my instinctual side and learn how to channel that in a way to benefit me and others.  I love the image of the High Priestess walking in a woodland surrounded by wild creatures.  She is part of this natural landscape.  She is the guide, the interpreter between human’s wild nature and our civilized side.  She can help us reconnect with our wilder, more instinctual selves but only if we are truly ready for it.  I have often had a resistance to the High Priestess and now I think that might be due to the fact that I wasn’t ready to work with her energy.  Perhaps now I am ready.

The Lone Man with his closed eyes and emptying purse reinforces that sense of being in tune with one’s deepest self, one’s wild essence.  He too is framed by a natural landscape with various wildlife visible.  His eyes are closed so he cannot see the butterfly, bird or hart but I’m sure he senses them.  His eyes may be closed but his other senses are more open and aware.

The combination of these two cards tells me that I need to open myself up to exploring my other senses, getting more in-tune with my intuitive side.  I am very left-brained and that served me well up to this point.  Now it’s time to let the right-brain come out to play.  I have to be willing to let go of the need for perfection or being able to objectively verify my experience or knowledge.  It’s time to learn to trust my instincts and listen to that inner voice.  Perhaps once I am able to feel more confidence in this area I can help other similarly challenge left-brained thinkers explore this path too.  That’s the story I need to share.