Tarot’s #9, The Hermit - “Lighting Your Own Way in the World”

#9, The Hermit (RWCS Deck)
solitude, the inner journey, guidance

Yesterday morning we had one doozy of a Void of Course and it left lots of us feeling ungrounded and anxious.  Voids, of VoCs occur when the Moon is about to change houses and there are no more planets in the Moon’s present home to guide her on her way.  Lady Moon is left to drift without a celestial body to help ground and stabilize her energy.  (see blog: "A Void Is A Void, of Course of Course" or "Slipping Into The Moon's, Void of Course") Left to her own devices, Lady Moon drifts aimlessly and turns inward much like her tarot card, # 2, The High Priestess. 

There are times in our own lives when we likewise feel uncertain and turn inward.  We sit in our metaphoric towers using our intuition to guide us through the darkness as we reflect on our lives.  Sometimes the journey gets a little edgy, but nothing that can’t be handled with a bar of really good chocolate and our favorite book.  However, there are times when our fears and anxieties gain the upper hand and a tower feels too exposed.  That’s when we head straight for a cave – the deeper, the darker, the better.  This is the territory of tarot’s #9, The Hermit.

Where the High Priestess uses introspection coupled with delicate, high-mindedness, The Hermit, forges a path through the discomfort and travails that come from following one’s destiny.  His path is very rough at times because he joins the fray in the real world.  As a result The Hermit, who is further along the journey of the soul, needs a deeper retreat from the world in order to reaffirm his connection to Spirit.  The risks The Hermit takes in life and the demands he places upon himself are far more rigorous than those of the High Priestess.  Where she represents reflected light and a passive nature, he represents true illumination – the kind you carry with you to light your way in a not always serene world.

In the RWCS depiction of The Hermit, we see Diogenes, the Greek philosopher who, taking a vow of poverty, lived in a large clay urn in Athens’ marketplace.  (Close to shopping, reasonable rent) He carried a lamp through the streets looking for an honest man. #9, The Hermit, asks us to retreat into ourselves so that we can honestly assess what we’ve learned along life’s journey and plan for where we go once we leave the sanctuary of our cave. He also asks us to shine the lamp of enlightenment on ourselves; to put our lives in perspective.  That’s a scary thought, because we are our own toughest critics.  However, the cave of The Hermit gives us time to think and heal, to make adjustments to our life path as we find necessary.  Once we reemerge into the sunlight, our lantern is held firmly in our hand and we are ready for the next step in our journey.

LADY ORACLE

Dreaming Way Tarot – a terrific tarot deck!  Click here to purchase!

Rome Choi's fabulous Dreaming Way Tarot

I Feel A Dark Moon Rising - Meditation With the High Priestess

Corrine Kenner and John J. Blumen's
depiction of Lady Moon, or tarot's
#2, The High Priestess from "Wizard's Tarot"©

Wasn't it bad enough to coping with Mercury Retrograde this month?  Now we have to endure (cue the organ music please) the dark of the moon.  Today I received several emails and calls from friends and clients who confided that they were having an 'off' day.  Some flat out said they felt weird.  Considering it's three days before the new moon, I'd say that's fairly typical.

What exactly is a dark moon and what good is it?  Glad you asked.  From new moon to full moon we say the moon is waxing and from full moon to new moon it's waning.  As the moon turns in orbit, its illuminated surface turns to directly face us (waxing to full) and as it completes its rotation the unlit side reappears and the lighted portion disappears (waning to dark) once more.  The last portion of the waning crescent moon disappears completely to the naked eye about three days before the new moon.  This month, Saturday, April 21st marks the start of a new lunar cycle, so for 18th, 19th and 20th we're in the dark, so to speak.

We feel more introspective during the dark of the moon.  We're

#1 The Magician from "Wizard's Tarot"©
by John J. Blumen and Corrine Kenner

more prone to retreat from friends and family and do a little soul searching.  That's a good thing too, because we need a chance to center ourselves for the manifestation opportunities that come during the waxing moon.  The dark moon can effect everyone differently on different months.  Some months pass and you wonder what all the fuss was about.  Other times you will feel like your skin is too tight and your aura is sore to the touch.  Whatever happens, honor your feelings.  That's not giving you permission to be rude, mind you, but a little retreat is good for the soul.

In the tarot deck, The High Priestess represents unconscious thought and intuition.  Where The Magician's colors are bright under the direct light of the sun, hers are more subdued by the indirect light of the moon.  She sits quietly in her chamber in meditation and contemplation, yet it's during the dark of the moon that she makes her strongest connection to her psychic gifts.  Her example can guide us on the moonless nights.  When you feel edgy and restless don't seek to escape, go inside yourself.  You are after all, your own best friend.



LADY ORACLE