Curious Christian

Reflections on culture, nature, and spirituality from a Christian perspective

Meditations on the Tarot – The Hierophant

Published by

Matt Stone

2006-10-26

Who is the hierophant?

The hierophant puts us in the presence of an act of benediction, of blessing, of bestowal of Spirit.

As we approach the hierophant we find him seated between two temple pillers. In his left hand he clasps a sceptre with a tripple cross and with his right hand he blesses supplicants – supplicants seeking the keys to the kingdom – with a threefold blessing.

And he blesses them thus:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

The hierophant is the one whom understands the mystery of the magician, the Lord of earth, air, sky and sea.

“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Tags Christian, Meditation, Tarot

6 responses to “Meditations on the Tarot – The Hierophant”

steve

2006-10-26

matt
which deck does this card come from?
steve

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philjohnson

2006-10-26

Steve – it is from the Rider-Waite deck that is distributed by US Games Systems Inc.

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Matt Stone

2006-10-26

Correction. It’s the Universal Waite deck. Same design as the Rider Waite deck but with softer colours and sharper images which bring out a lot more detail.

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sally

2006-10-27

Thanks for this Matt- I know you regualry meditate upon Tarot- but would be interested to hear what benefits you feel you gain from this and how/ if you would consider this compatible with an orthodox faith.
btw – I also meditate on Tarot- but am trying to glean some more insight fro a presentation next week!
Sally

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Matt Stone

2006-10-27

Sally
To be honest I do not see a lot of difference between what I do with tarot and what alt worship teams do with images they draw from street scapes. You are basically reflecting on a series of images and seeing what that evokes and responding prayerfully. Comes back to what I’ve said previously on living incarnationally within secularized SACRED spaces as opposed to sacralized SECULAR spaces. The distinction between the two approaches is not nearly as big as people might think once they take a deeper look. If anything, the difference is just that the biblical connections are more explicit in tarot imagery in comparison to street scape imagery. It’s all a matter of context. Esoteric symbolism is a language. Language is the DNA of culture. If esoteric symbolism is part of your cultural DNA, if occulture permeates the cultural air you breathe, then you may find these exercises intelligible and useful. If not then I may as well be speaking in Swahili and that’s ok. The crucial question for the global conversation is, is Swahili contextualisation still seen as legitimate by non-Swahili speakers?
In terms of benefits, it all comes down to whether it helps you grow in faith, hope and love. If it helps, great, if it doesn’t, then walk on. I don’t know if I’d call my own practice regular. It’s just one tool in my meditation kit bag which I pull out when it feels appropriate.

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Steve Hayes

2006-10-28

More commonly known as “The Pope” — I find the “hierophant” thing rather odd — again, one of Waite’s idiosyncracies.
Represents religious power, the secular power of the church, church as institution, concerned for its institutional power. Linked to the Emperor, perhaps, but also over against the Emperor (Henry barefoot in the snow at Canossa). The beast from the land in Revelation 13, the Grand Inquisitor in The brothers Karamazov.
—
This will be the fifth and final attempt to post this — man these typepag “gateway timeouts” are a pain!

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