The Hierophant says life is your teacher. Every experience is a lesson – a learning opportunity for growth and the solid understanding that conflicts are openings for new life to take seed. When you begin to feel oppressed by the “shoulds” and “oughts” of life – listen to your “inner” teacher. Once all the facts have been gathered by your conscious mind, they are fed into your subconscious, which sorts, assimilates and sends back a flash of intuition – the correct analysis. A simple good wish made for another puts divine power into action. As your prayers rise towards God, they are transformed into benedictions which descend from above. The search for “truth” is a prayer which is followed by illumination, consolation or grace and it always results in harmonious spiritual respiration.
The triple cross represents complete and perfect spiritual respiration – horizontal and vertical. Horizontal respiration – love of Nature, love of ones neighbors, the love of God and the beings of the spiritual hierarchies is united with the triple love of God – faith, hope and love which gives “meaning” to your beliefs. From this reflection arise new interests, versatility, decisions, change, excitement, adaptability and freedom as you perceive the freedom to obey or disobey your beliefs – monitored by your own conscience and forming strong ideas about your own existence. “True” learning comes from questioning your “core” beliefs – look deeply into the teachings and traditions which have formed your direction in life and begin the work of your Self development.
Use your human situation in order to transcend your unevolved aspects. Through intuition you become united with the Universe – you learn to hold the two opposing forces of life in balance – having recognized that you can not resolve them. You “play the game” by understanding the rules and manners of the existing hierarchy and seeking out authorities in your field – making new allies by listening to your conscience. Share this wisdom with others – you are a teacher.
To use Sacred Magic – paralyze the five currents of the will – the desire to be great, the desire to take, the desire to keep, the desire to advance and the desire to hold onto at the expense of others. Be filled by Will from above. If you wish to purify the five currents of the will, practice the three traditional vows – for these are the keys to the kingdom of heaven:
- “Obedience” – the practice of silencing personal desires, emotions and imagination. Obedience results in order – universal peace whose root is LOVE which arises from faith and confidence. He who recognizes God – obeys.
- “Poverty” – the practice of inner emptiness which is established as a result of obedience, allowing the soul to receive revelation from above.
- “Love” – putting into practice the resolution to live according to the Universal law – where the heart is love, for the heart lives only when it loves.
It is the purity of your will, not its force which constitutes the basis of “divine” magic, which does not force but establishes freedom of choice through the presence of the true, the beautiful and the good. Love is attained through faith by means of hope. Seek purity of heart – love, have compassion and show tenderness.
The spiritual as comprehended by the intellect – an acceptance of the external/collective intellect as opposed to your own. Organized religion and other systems of belief, ethics and morality. Any strong philosophical belief structure within which you are operating. Faith in the earthbound aspects of spirituality. Thought forms and ideologies that you become attached to because they are bridges to your own. This is the young and/or undeveloped mind attracted to and studying the thoughts of others. This is a link between ordinary worldly consciousness and the intuitive knowledge of God’s law. Here then is the establishment, the norm, the administrative arm of the Emperor to administer the laws by which a “below” can be established to the “above.” Aristotle taught, like the Tarot here, that in any society/state the form of religion practiced was fashioned after the form of government. Here we have consensus reality, society, “common” sense, organized religion, bureaucracy. The Hierophant presides over the realm of freedom/uncertainty.
Questions to Answer:
- Who are you looking to for assistance, direction or learning?
- What law or rule do you feel you have transgressed and who would hold you accountable?
- What traditions are you upholding?
- What traditions are you rebelling against?
- What are you learning?
Special Messages based on card position:
In the first position: This path is to administer and administrate the word of God – to help society function according to divine truth and law. Even the professor of law or a philosophy professor is at home here.
In the second position: You have aligned yourself, your time and your habits, with others, with establishment and established ways of doing things. You have enjoyed doing the expected – pleasing yourself and your group.
In the third position: This is an opportunity to avail yourself of an established source, such as a given religion or philosophical school of thought. Truth is being presented in a package that is highly palatable – do not miss it – for it has been cooked especially for you.
In the fourth position: Here is an early passion for formal religion, such as a desire to join an order or become a priest. Also, here is the passion for the nation-state, such as a desire to run away and join the Marines. The love is for the group and the group belief. This is the mark of an early disciple to any system of thought or love.
In the fifth position: Your mind is not on frivolous things, but on the rudiments of what makes you tick, of what makes everything tick. You are centered on your personal belief system, evaluating the group to which your personal beliefs adhere and the universal systems to which that group adheres. This centering exercise cum evaluation is in preparation for some major work and you want the horses to be lined up just right.
In the sixth position: The heart’s biggest question in the near future regards its relationship to the heart of the society to which it belongs. Do they beat as one?
In the seventh position: Your mind runs society’s mores up the flagpole to test them in the wind of truth. Are they alive, flexible, inclusive? Can they be projected into the future without stretching the imagination?
In the eighth position: Your belief group is the most prominent, pre-eminent aspect of your material life. You may well be making your living on – line serving up God’s reality in portions that people can swallow. You are putting your spirituality out there with others where people can touch it and try it on for size themselves.
In the ninth position: You are immersed in your faith, your belief system and the people sharing it with you. This is worship – what we want most and when we do it right, what we get the most out of. This is the balance of give and take, from above to below and back again. Done right – it does not matter which came first, the chicken or the egg.
In the tenth position: Listen to these guides of grace shedding new light in old corners. You may view this as a new turn on an old truth or as a new pattern of truth speaking an entirely new language. It will expand your awareness by giving you new friends to play and study with. Pay more than usual attention to dreams, channeling, meditation, all inner resources, as well as the marvel of serendipity in everyday events.