Esoteric Tarot Course
Lesson 6
- 78 Card Deck of your choice (required)
- Your Tarot Journal (required)
- “The Tarot Trumps and the Holy Grail,” by Margaret Starbird (buy if you can afford it)
- “Tarot Journeys,” by Yasmine Galenorn (buy if you can afford it)
- “Tarot in Ten Minutes” by RT Kaser (buy if you can afford it)
5-The Hierophant
The next stop on our journey will be the Hierophant. First let’s look at what Margaret Starbird writes in “The Tarot Trumps and the Holy Grail”. Read the section titled “The Pope” starting on page 27.
Go to your journal and start a new page with the word “The Hierophant” and the number 5 at the top. Now take out the Hierophant out of your deck and look at it. Again you may want to step into this card and see if the Hierophant has any messages for you. Be sure to write everything down in your journal. What do you feel, hear, or things that just pop into your head. Again we are exercising our intuition. What do you see on this card? See if any of the following are on the card: color, figures (both human and animal), shapes, landscape, vegetation, heavenly bodies and symbols.
Now in your journal write down what this card is showing you. Write down any key words that come to mind while looking at this card. This is very important since these are words you are being shown. Be sure to do this before continuing with the lesson.
WHAT DO THESE SYMBOLS MEAN??
D E S C R I P T I O N
On this card we see the Hierophant sitting between two pillars and is he wearing a triple crown. In his left hand he holds the triple cross. While his right hand forms the ecclesiastical sign of esotericism. There are two crossed keys at his feet. And before him kneel two initiates or subject priests.
T H E S Y M B O L S
First, this card has the number 5 on it. Five symbolizes change, freedom, adventure, and adaptability. Five may symbolize competition, conflict, and the need for mediation. The number five also reminds us of our five senses, five fingers, and five appendages (the head, arms, and legs). Geometrically, five points define star-shaped pentacles and pentagrams, which symbolize the human form.
The Hierophant represents organized religion and all the temporal power and ritual that goes with it. Structured, dogmatic, orthodox, organized, the outer church. The Hierophant is the symbol of conventional religious conduct, unquestioned acceptance of childhood-taught beliefs, blind faith, the rigid theologian rather than the questing and questioning philosopher. The two monks can represent the dualities again from the columns- the male and female, one monk has red roses (desire) while the other white lilies (purity)
Grey Pillars: wisdom, mundane part of life that moves on, but does become part of the spiritual side, male and female symbol of union on top
Red over garment: creative and active energy coming from the Hierophant
Blue in Clothes: spiritual side
White in clothes: purity, divine will, the three crosses on yoke may have many of the usual meanings of the number three, spiritual-emotional-physical, the three sides of the god/goddess, the three sides of the Christian God, etc.
White ear flaps and tabs: one writer states that these are close to the throat and are indicative of Taurus which is ruled by Venus, and the throat represents stimulation of those related glands- also one might think of that chakra, speaking forth or perhaps not.
Gold Tiara, triple- three layers in the crown, the conscious, subconscious and unconscious minds; again the three fold nature of life, of the mind…in the crown the top part has three trefoils for the three layers of the mind, the second has seven trefoils- 7 chakras or 7 planets; the last row has five trefoils which stand for the four elements and the spirit element above.
Shoes are white-spiritual grounding.
Crossed golden keys: knowledge known only to those of the spiritual world, these can unlock the gates of ‘heaven’- using that to mean whatever heaven you might like
Red carpet with black stripes: black foundation, red for the physical activity of the earth plane — this is a card very attune with what is going on in the real world, as dictated by the spiritual!
MEANINGS:
Conventional conduct
Conformity
Adherence to the outer forms of religion
Education
Knowledge
Ritualism
Kindness
REVERSED MEANINGS:
Unconventional
Original
Daring
Unorthodox
Receptive to new ideas
Over-kindness
Weakness
GUIDED MEDITATION: If you have the book, “Tarot Journeys” by Yasmine Galenorn read the Meditation for The Hierophant starting on page 73. This is an excellent book and brimming over with insights. Notice that this meditation is appropriate during Yule, or whenever we need to reinforce our self-discipline and our desire to learn, even though we might make mistakes in the process. Be sure to choose one of the exercises to do.
Let’s Play a Game
This time I want you to take out The Fool, The Magician, The High Priestess, The Empress, The Emperor, and The Hierophant. Shuffle these cards. Lay out a three-card spread, Past, Present and Future.
Tarot In Ten Minutes
Now it’s time to get out your “Tarot in Ten Minutes”.
“Coins Are About Money” (remember they evolved into the suit of Diamonds)
Complete each of these readings.
Reading #14, Will I Be A Rich Man?”
Pages 122 to 127
Do Extra Credit
Reading #15, How’s My Money Doing?”
Pages 128 to 134
Do Extra Credit
Reading #16, How Much Can I Expect to Gain?”
Pages 136 to 146
Do Extra Credit
Questions:
1. After reading the section “The Pope” in “The Tarot Trumps and The Holy Grail” I would like for you to write a paragraph giving me your take on this. Write any questions you might come up with.
2. What were your key words? What do you feel this card represents? Who is someone you know or know of that this card could represent?
3. If you have the book “Tarot Journeys” do the meditation starting on p. 73 and write me a note letting me know what you thought of it.
4.In the section “Let’s Play a Game” tell me what position each card was in, then write at least oneparagraph telling what the cards are saying.
5. In the section “Tarot in Ten Minutes” send in each reading and the extra credit.
Email your answers to: EMysterySchool with Tarot 6 Answers in the subject line.
