Meaning: wisdom, elders, tradition, culture, guidance, counsel, religion, spirituality, spiritual leader, orthodox, dogma, rules, Sacred texts, higher knowledge, mastery, ancient, teacher, mentor, wise counsel, ethics, morality, marriage, commitment, rebellion, unwanted commitments, breaking or against the rules, hastiness, symptoms of youth, temporary

The Hierophant (V) represents any and all things orthodox and traditional, a lot of which are being challenged in today’s society, sometimes for good and other times… not so much. It is true that it seems nowadays some old ways of thinking seem to harm more than help, but it is also true that there are many positives and plenty of good reason in having tradition and heeding and revering teachings and advice from ancient pasts. Can you think of any? In a way, without it, we are trees without roots, ungrounded and floating in the air at the whims of every storm. Chaotic. Lost. Without direction.

“Wisdom is not a product of schooling but the lifelong attempt to acquire it.” – Albert Einstein

For beginners:

The Hierophant tells of the wisdom in the Sacred and spiritual truths of life bestowed upon elders or spiritual leaders through the generational passing down of knowledge and practices. It tells of the ancient and the masterful. Time allows mastery. One lifetime of practice and dedication eventually forms an adept, imagine many!

What creators or academics, for example, seek is mastery in their fields and with that sometimes comes impatience to get to the top and to be there already. We often forget that mastery takes time and dedication, which as a young person we cannot rush or take shortcuts in. Think of all the trials, experimentation, injury, and even death that occurred when our ancestors were in the process of discovering what humans can or can’t eat or what sort of plants and materials can be used for medicine or building. They eventually found a way to keep and record the data through language which enabled them to pass on their findings and teach what they learned until it became common knowledge—knowledge which you and I benefit from today. The Hierophant encompasses all of this and more.

The Hierophant’s shadow aspect is essentially the opposite of the above. We might be making unwise decisions or rushing into things when this shows up in a reading. This could also indicate bad advice. Tune in to determine which message in any given reading resonates with you most. Since The Hierophant is widely viewed in the Tarot community as a card of marriage, the negative/shadow aspect of it in this sense is unwanted commitment. In a love reading, this might mean the person you are inquiring about or the querent (person inquiring) is unwilling or unready to make a lifelong commitment after all. These are just some of the ways The Hierophant can be interpreted.

ex: The Hierophant + The Fool = rushing into marriage, infatuation, need to weigh options, being reckless, obnoxious or negligent, a necessary part of the growing/learning process, taking advantage of one’s youth, questioning tradition and religious beliefs, learning about other religions, rebelling

ex: The Hierophant + The Empress = elderly woman in querant’s life, mature woman/feminine, advice from feminine mentor or teacher, good decision, good sense, positive outcome, traditional woman, woman with traditional or certain religious beliefs, marriage material, woman you can bring home to the parents, spiritual woman, admirable

More about the deck:

As mentioned previously, The Lovers Mythology Deck is not a Tarot deck. It is a hybrid deck consisting of the 22 Major Arcana cards in Tarot, all 36 cards of the Lenormand, and the rest being supplemental oracle cards which allow for a dynamic and multifaceted reading you can use with your other favorite decks or on its own. There is a twist, however. For example, in The Hierophant card you see *blurred* in the image above, there is a book. The book pops out and it grabs your attention for good reason. This represents the Holy Texts so prevalent in our society today, and the spiritual wisdom found in all of them.

If you’ve used Lenormand cards before, you know that there is a card called “The Book.” This is partly what I mean when I say “each card is multifaceted,” you will find that each card’s different layers will be revealed to you depending on the reading and the more you use the LOMY deck. You might even get this Hierophant card come up in a reading and notice The Book right away, and instead of reading it as The Hierophant, choose instead to read it as The Book. This is perfect. It’s how I intended this deck to be used. You will find similar themes like this throughout the deck, and the more you use it, the more its dimensions will be revealed to you.