Journey in 78 Steps

Daily Draw: XII - The Hanged Man

This card shows a peaceful man hung upside down by his right foot.  His left leg is bent at the knee and tucked behind his right leg and his hands are behind his back.  He has long hair and a golden halo surrounds his head.

He is tied to a three sided beam that ends on the left side with a shape that might be a pot of some sort that vaguely looks like an animal's' face and ears with two curved shoots projecting outward, while the one on the right side looks curled in.

The background is a sort of muddy violet, and the card's border is blue and green knotwork divided into rectangular sections, suggesting that the Water element is in play here.

The Hanged Man's clothing include a grey (possibly chain) tunic, belted at the waist, tights in a red and black diamond-checked pattern, and soft red shoes.  The tights and shoes especially remind me of the Fool.

This version of the Hanged Man very much reminds me of one of the Christian Saints - some situation where a person does not so much sacrifice themselves, but does allow themselves to be sacrificed with grace for the sake of upholding their ideals.

The faith of the Fool that all will go well is put to the test here - can one hang onto that basic trust in the good of the universe when everything has turned upside down and it seems as if others are out to harm you?  Or does  the Fool, who didn't worry about the possibility of falling, maintain that same lightness of being when he is suspended?

Today, that is what strikes me about the Hanged Man - it asks us to sacrifice our fear, and our excuses for why we can't keep the faith when times are difficult and beyond our control.  This figure has a choic... sacrifice that trusting outlook by rejecting it and resisting ... or uphold it and maintain it even if it means allowing himself to be sacrificed instead, trusting to the very end that it will be all right.

That's a tough thought... which is why those who managed it are labelled 'saints', I suppose.

Daily Draw: XII - New Vision

XII - New Vision (Hanged Man)

There are two figures in this card, though they seem to be the same person, transforming.  First, there is a shadowy green figure on his hands and knees down in the grass (or a part of the grass) at the bottom of the card.  He's looking down, focused on his earthy environment, and looks like he's slowly crawling or getting ready to stand up.

Directly above him, as if this is the crawling figure after he's risen, is another figure - this one in an energetic stance as if he's dancing or preparing to take flight.  There  is a strong hint of wings unfurled in the light behnd him, along the horizon and overhead is a heavily starred night sky.

The figures are connected by a network of threads which seem to be roots, bloodveins, leaves, and finally feathers.  Behind the figure are outlines of geometric patterns... a square (divided into four triangular quadrants), a triangle capping the square like the roof on a house, and then a circle which, along with the white light behind it, reminds me of a full moon.

The colors of the card seem to move upward through the elements, from earthy green to fiery yellow, airy white to watery blue.

This is a very different take on the hanged man, focusing not so much on the 'hanging' aspect as on the new perspective and yet, I can see the sacrifice and patience required here - - this speaks to me of transformation that happens, not in a flash but at an evolutionary pace and at each stage, the person that came before must be sacrificed to make way for the one to follow... the earth bound crawler sees only earth, but to rise up, he must sacrifice who he is and what his perspective is in order to stand and greet the sun.  The standing figure, again, over time must sacrifice his roots in order to fly upward, where 'upright' no longer has meaning.

This card reminds me that 'reality' is based on one's vision and in order to see wider possibilities, we have to be willing to leave behind what we believe is important - to sacrifice our security in the limitations of where we are now.  And the process is slow and gradual, not a rapid shift from one reality to another.  There's a comforting message in that, too... change will not happen before we ourselves have already changed enough to be able to handle it.

In terms of my day, it's not such a profound message, but one that makes me smile ... I am away from home because I had some business to conduct and a friend kind enough to drive me out and let me stay in his home until the weekend, when he can drive me back.  I got what I needed to do done on Monday, and now I'm simply 'hanging out' until it's time to go home.  For him as well, there are a lot of changes in the air, and decisions are being made very gradually, but it's easy to see that the main choices have been made because there is a shift in his focus... a subtle shift from 'if' to 'when'.

Daily Reading: 2 of Staves / XII: Sacrifice

External theme of the day:
2 of Staves

A man in a red tunic, green leggings, leather boots and a fur cloak stands on the bank of a river looking across at an estate.  He holds a silver globe in his right hand and a staff in his left.  Next to him, another wand stands, either planted or stuck into the ground.  Both staffs have green leaves sprouting from them.

What comes to mind right off is that I'm waiting for this guy to decide to show up and look at the plumbing situation in my house before it turns into that river!  Right now, the invisible plumber (who never did show up today but says he 'should' make it out today) is holding my world in his hands - I can't go anywhere, we're babying water usage as much as we possibly can, and I hear the clock ticking before this stops being a prevention issue and turns into a gigantic disgusting mess to deal with.  He's got his eye on things - we're on the schedule - but it's up to him when he decides to cross that river and show up.

My, I'm reading things literally this week.

Spiritual Response: XII - Sacrifice

So how to bring my spiritual ideals into this situation?  Depicted on this version of The Hanged Man, we see Orpheus and Eurydice.  Orpheus has gone to the Underworld to petition for Eurydice's life and Persephone grants him that desire if he can lead her out without once looking back.  But Eurydice does not know about this condition and pleads with Orpheus to look at her - and when he can't stand to hear the pain in her voice, he turns to look and reassure her...and in doing so, she is lost to him and destined to return to the Underworld.

Twisted tale of sacrifice, that... no matter which way he'd gone, he'd have had to sacrifice her... either by hurting her through nonresponsiveness or by giving into her (less aware) insecurities and losing her altogether.

In order to save her and keep her, he had to do nothing - just walk out with her and put the details of their relationship on hold until they were in a safer place.  And she needed to sacrifice her need to understand everything and just trust that things would unfold.  She didn't know that he'd saved her... she didn't trust that she knew what he felt, and in questioning these things and pressing for an explanation and reassurance now, please, she lost everything.

I wasn't sure how this lined up to the Hanged Man, but that's it.. sometimes you have to just let things hang and not attempt to force a specific response, otherwise you run the risk of your taking action being the cause of everything turning to dust.

Applying this to my plumbing problem?  Keep waiting.. don't get pushy.. keep being inactive in terms of water usage (not starting to rationalize that a load or two of laundry can't hurt...).  Just wait.

But...but... but... Orpheus, baby, do you love me?

 

Daily Draw: XII - The Hanged Man

my description - a nude man is hanging upside down from an ancient tree.  His arms are bound behind him, the cord that holds them wrapped around his chest.  His right leg is crooked and tucked behind his left leg, which is tied securely by the ankle to the tree.  His mouth is stuffed with leaves, giving him the appearance of a living Greenman, and his hair is brushing the roots at the base of the tree. 

There are blackberries and bluebells in the foreground and what I think is mistletoe hanging from the tree, which also is laden with some sort of unripe fruit.  Behind the tree, there is a golden meadow of wildflowers and wheat and a scythe near the wheat.  The time of year appears to be early autumn?  Scattered about are bright red blossoms... poppies?

The blackberries, the fruit still ripening.. the mistletoe, the wheat... everything here, our Hanged Man included, is suspended in this moment in time, preparing for their own sacrifice and harvest. The poppies remind me of death and remembrance and of course, Remembrance Day and those who have sacrificed themselves in battle - but this sacrifice is of a different sort.

This is the sacrifice of action - of choosing to give up one's right to fight against and struggle and move, and instead to let go and allow a situation to develop without one for the greater good, even if it means the loss of oneself.

It's easy enough to think of the big examples of this - it's a big concept.  Odin suspended from the World Tree, Jesus crucified, the god of the harvest mown down to feed the village and make way for winter, and then the examples in history... conscientious objectors and passive resisters who have made change by choosing not to act but to Not Act, and been locked up, called Traitor (this card's old name), suffering ridicule and contempt and deprivation without responding in kind.

It's harder to think of the little examples.. the daily ones.  It doesn't seem to be very comfortable to choose not acting as a giving act, but then I look at our cats - and in the span of a week and a half, our older cat has gone from crying mournfully at the sight of the kitten to what I am seeing today... laying there peaceably, flicking his tail, while the kitten jumps and attacks and generally runs around like a miniature tazmanian devil, and the older one looks for all the world pleased to be used as living cat toy by her.

I think of my plans for the day - and it was a carefully orchestrated list - and setting it aside in favor of a spontaneous visit from a woman who badly needed to talk over a stressful situation, not needing to do anything for her but listen.  I think of overhearing my daughter on the phone telling a friend she isn't going to take sides in a battle because she cares about both people involved.

Voluntarily choosing to do nothing, even if something personal must be let go for the greater good.  It's everywhere and is a very active choice to remain passive.

The left leg - passive response - is tied to the tree of life, while the right - active response - is tucked away for now.    This is a difficult card for me, but I think I get it, at least in glimpses.  It makes better sense if I don't think about it too much... don't get to active with it.  This man has not been sacrificed.. he is fulfilling his purpose peaceably, like the wheat and the blackberries and the fruit ripening until it is ready to fall from the tree.