The Circle is Cast.
We are between the worlds
And what happens between the worlds
Affects all the worlds.
(traditional Circle casting)
This week, our reading brings a message as profound as anything I have ever seen in all my years.
First, the rather shocking string of Major Arcana cards continues. Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised, given the times we live in. Still, it is rare to have such unrelentingly complex and deep influences at work.
Yet this week’s card not only results in a six week streak of Majors, it also is the third time (the charm?) that The Hanged Man has visited us this year. And each time it has come during a Full Moon, including the June Lunar eclipse, which was the exact opposite of this week’s Lunar eclipse.
In June, the Sun was in Gemini, and the Full Moon was in Sagittarius. This week, also bringing a Lunar eclipse, the Sun is in Sagittarius and the Moon will be in Gemini.
The Hanged Man’s astrological correspondence is with Neptune, and Annie Heese and Adam Banks of Café Astrology tell us that Neptune is currently in the sign of Aquarius, which also happens to be the sign of the Great Turning – the age which we are now entering.
They explain, “Humanistic ideals and a belief that technology and social reform can create a utopia become powerful and inspiring images at this time. Personal and selfish concerns seem petty and ignorant – and all the more so if they are part of the status quo. Liberty, equality, fraternity: are they the ultimate answers or only the foundations for something that transcends them all?”
This seems well-aligned with the meaning of the Hanged Man, for he is nothing, if not transcendent and idealistic.
He has a halo around his face, his eyes are open, and he is at peace. Upon examination of this demeanor, it becomes clear that he has chosen this situation, and that there is some important reason he hangs upon this T-cross, which is the Cross of Tau, named after the Greek letter it resembles. An ancient predecessor to the Christian cross, it is believed to have originated with the Egyptians. When a ruler was initiatied into the Egyptian mysteries, a tau was placed against his lips.
The Hanged Man’s legs are in an odd position, one crossed behind the other, like the number four. This number is symbolic of Earth, and stability. So although he is hanging upside down, he is still grounded, in a non-ordinary way.
His position looks like “The Tree” yoga position or a dancer’s pose. In fact, if you reverse the Hanged Man, you will see he is in the same pose as the World Dancer figure in The World card.
However, unlike The World figure, who extends the two magic wands she holds, the Hanged Man has his arms behind his back. His power is not yet revealed, but withdrawn, or still in the process of being understood.
The Hanged Man is, in my experience, the card that often calls to artists, explorers, and those who are willing to sacrifice conventional wisdom and appearances for some deeper mystical path. Like Odin, Who chose to hang from Yggdrasil in suffering for nine days, in order to receive the gift of the Runes of wisdom, the Hanged Man willingly sacrifices worldly comfort for his holy purpose.
Perhaps, then, the Hanged Man suggests that we suspend our normal activities and step into an alternative universe not easily categorized. Are you being asked, during this Neptune in Aquarius time, to withdraw from the status quo?
This would certainly be a welcome insight for us during this time of year, as it gets harder to focus on work accomplishments while the holiday festivities take center stage.
It also might suggest that we would do well to pare down our usual activities, taking our cues from the ongoing Mercury retrograde. We might all do better if we’d postpone moving forward making deals and plans, instead putting that energy into reviewing, revising, and repairing what has gone before.
But I can’t help but feel there is much more to this. With the heaviness of all the preceding Majors, compounded by the dual Lunar eclipse appearances of this card, I offer this additional insight from Annie and Adam:
“The Gemini-Sagittarius polarity is a mental axis, where Gemini represents the ‘lower mind’ and Sagittarius represents the ‘higher mind.’ The Gemini Moon encourages us to think logically, while Sagittarius persuades us to think in a far broader manner. Sagittarius symbolizes the quest for meaning and ideas that expand upon the here and now.
“Gemini is quite comfortable in his or her immediate environment or neighborhood, while Sagittarius stimulates us to venture beyond. Neglecting either end of the axis will surely backfire on us. Ideally, a balance should be found between the two energies, and this is what the Full Moon invites us to do.”
The axis reference again points back to The Hanged Man, for the World Tree of Yggdrasil is, in fact, the axis mundi – the axis pillar that is the center around which the world turns. It is the connecting pole uniting the three Worlds – Heaven above, the Underworld below, and the Middle Earth of our daily reality.
As above, so below, the Hanged One is discovering. He is on the path of enlightenment. This act of surrender is how he relinquishes control, pauses, and waits for the next step. And as all initiates know, that next step is the ultimate release and transformation we see in the card that follows him in the Major Arcana – Card 13, Death.
Like a pupa that is suspended between the worlds, the caterpillar is dying, but the butterfly, symbol of the soul, is yet to be born.
As the Earth’s shadow darkens the Full Moon this week, and we move into the final weeks before the Solstice, in what ways are we invited now to relinquish ego and willfulness? Where in your life are you hung up, having to wait, and learn patience? What challenging, but ultimately liberating spiritual lesson is being taught?
I believe that there is something extraordinary, unprecedented at work. Let us move out of our comfort zone, our mundane reality. Although it is not easily understood by those on the outside who observe, we are between the worlds. Wisdom is calling from within – soul to soul, heart to heart.
Fear not. The Circle is cast.
Surrender and see now with vision given by Unconditional Love.
I love the Hanged Man! Thanks, Beth! They say we in the Western World hate the Hanged Man because we are impatient and selfish when his surface meanings are waiting and sacrifice. But I have always thought those meanings to be as superficial as anything in our world today. If only we could get it into words they could understand, like “risk and reward” or “there is no free lunch” maybe that would get the idea over. Enlightenment’s evidence is his halo! Thanks again!
When I saw the card I said…uhhh three times this year and I was right. The message is always the same for me. To surrender, knowing as you once said for this card in a previous post, that in surrendering we will find the peace of unconditional love and faith. It seems I need to be shouted at on this topic. Thanks!
yes I was told Hanged man is Neptune. Interesting Neptune rules Pisces ruler of the 12th house of spirituality, occult and imagination. I was born in Neptune in Sagittarius (freedom) generation. It’s impossible for me to be “restricted” in the 12th house matters. But why restrict imagination and spirituality anyway? The world is a playground and Death is just the beginning 🙂 thanks for the insight! Neptune in Aqua always brings me hung-up situation in 7th house matters (I am Leo sun) I learned patience and love myself from over a decade of this.
I love this interpretation of the Hanged Man. He turne dup just the other day in a personal reading I did (in a spot where I would have preferred not to have him, don’t you know) and your words have shed light on what it means for me. Thanks!
Wow! This run of majors is pretty amazing, and they’ve all been spot on for me. Thanks so much for these weekly posts, I always look to them for guidance.