Hello there, and welcome you to my little corner on Hive.. the Tarot Corner <3. I'd like to start this series off with some poetry:
Just means silence
Sitting quietly
In reflection
Going inwards, into Darkness
Exploring and allowing
There are many ways
Of loving yourself
They are not all love and light
-Kavi - Poet and Musician
Tarot Is Not Scary!
To many, pulling up a card can be scary, especially specific cards like Ten of Swords or The Tower. Does this mean that something bad is gonna happen? No, as my teacher Lindsay Mack would say: «View Tarot as medicine».
To me, the cards in a Tarot Deck and whatever you pull on a given day, is simply a representation of what is already there.
The Tarot Corner
My initial plan with the Tarot Corner concept, is simply to write a series of posts, one for each card in the deck and what they represent for me. I also hope to inspire and encourage you as a reader to reflect upon, and even share, what they represent for you. Whether you do that as a comment in my posts, or write your own.
On a more general level, I hope to meet people that either share my passion for tarot, or are interested in learning more about it.
I also wish to encourage you to tune into your intuition, and have a critical mindset of what the tarot cards may have represented in traditional schools, contra what each card represents to each of us on an individual level.
When it comes to interpreting the meaning of the different cards, I think it's very important trust your own intuition, regardless of what the guidebook may say. To see each individual card in your journey (The Hero's journey) in the context of yourself, your life and the cycle you are in.
This should always be honored.
The Hermit Card
Okay, so let's get started with The Hermit. I think the poem at the top perfectly captures the essence of what The Hermit is all about.
This is one of the cards I pulled almost every day when I was in my "Dark Night of the Soul" (I'll be doing a separate post on this at a later time) back in 2014-2015.
The Hermit can be brutal... Especially if you don’t know how to be with yourself.
The poet Rupy Kaur once wrote:
"Loneliness is a sign you are in desperate need of your self".
It took me seven years to get there. As I pulled the card again and again, I came to acknowledge that there were deeper and deeper layers in this specific card, along with the intimacy I had with myself.
The biggest consequence of me pulling this card over and over again for such a long time was that started to feel less lonely because I was beginning to recognise that being with me, regardless of my life situation, was the medicine I needed to love myself. And thus I became immune to bad friendships, toxic foods, toxic behaviour of people around me, as well as a much less toxic and self-destructive attitude towards myself.
The Hermit invites us to have the courage to tune into ourselves. And to walk towards whatever you view as an unacceptable aspect of yourself - uncritical, with love, understanding, empathy and compassion.
Some questions to ask yourself if you are in the energy sphere of The Hermit is:
- What made you this way? or Who?
- Who are you behind the mask of self protection?
- What unbearable thing happened that made you divorce yourself? ("I will love myself when I" …. "have that job", "lose that weight", "get that boyfriend", "have that car", "have that pay check", etc.)
That shit is hard.. For me personally, probably the hardest thing I've had to do in my entire life. It is shining the light of your shadow aspects, and it lets them unfold without resistance.
For me The Hermit has a similar energy frequency as Ten of Swords and The Tower. It is a consequence of peeling away a layer of your ego. If The Tower represents a change that you are unwilling to accept, but it is happening anyways, The Hermit is an invitation to examine how you’re dealing with it.
Are you gonna dig deeper into the grave? Or are you willing to walk in the light of truth of how you yourself are responsible (even if just a little) for the circumstances you’re finding yourself in?
The Hermit is card number six of the Major Arcana in the Tarot Deck. It prepares you for the The Tower and The Death card. And this is where The Medicine of The Hermit is so profound: It will give you the wisdom, the knowledge and the tools you need to deal with change when it comes, with grace and love towards you.
The Hermit is represented in the classic Rider Waite Tarot Deck as an old man walking in the snow with a light lantern. He does not know where he is going, but he's trusting himself with each step of the way. Lighting up with humbleness where he is in the midst of darkness.
The metaphor in this card is trusting yourself even if you don’t see the results or where you are going. To trust in you. And that life will guide you towards a better version of yourself.
I find this quote from Jordan Peterson suiting:
«The price that you pay for Wisdom is radical disillusionment»
In other words, things don’t always work out. The Hermit is an invitation to trust yourself despite not trusting yourself, because you don’t have any other choice. It can be a consequence of hitting rock bottom. Taking each action, step by step.
And yes, it will provide you (if you wish) with wisdom. No wonder he is depicted as an old man in the traditional Rider Waite Tarot. As previously mentioned, The Tarot are already there regardless if you pull a card or not. The cards only manifest as your current inner journey.
There is an enormous wisdom and courage in resting in the unknown.
Some manifestations of the The Hermit in popular media are Dumbledore in The Harry Potter series, Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and Hecate from Greek Mythology.
Some others representatives of periodically going inwards towards the energy of The Hermit can be represented by The Buddha, when he was meditating under The Bodhi three or Jesus when he spent 44 days and nights in the desert.
For me personally, I'm certain I would not be my authentic self without The medicine the Hermit provided me. I now know that whenever I pull this card, it's an invitation to go to the places I don't want to go. And giving me unconditional love in the stillness of just being with whatever arises within my being. I know that if I resist, it will come out regardless, but in less healthy ways.
The Hermit is a pathway to the unconscious. To self discovery. To going towards the truth of who you are.
The lantern the old man holds, symbolise the courage to see reality as it is. And with that, a new opportunity will arise; The next step in the right direction for you (even if it feels like the wrong direction).
Here are some representations of the Hermit from my Tarot decks:
Closing remarks
If you made it all the way down here, thank you so much for reading! <3 I sincerely hope you enjoyed my interpretation of The Hermit, a card that holds a very special meaning to me.
But this is obviously just my interpretation. Is there anything you agree or disagree with? And what does The Hermit represent for you?
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