Divine Intervention? Or I'm nuts...

Okay, there is a logical explanation here, but since basically the logical explanation is that I've really flipped out completely and my brain is worse than mush, I think I'd rather look at the other one. Due to recent events as hinted at in my posts combined with what may be politely called my 'moon time', I've been deeply depressed, crying alot and having suicidal fantasies over the past two or three days. Trying to get ahold of myself and knowing that doing a reading in such a state was only going to reflect my own depressing thoughts back at me, I decided to reset my decks (i.e. put them all back in proper suit order) and put them aside for a few days. Did that with the Archeon, and then decided to do the Lin Shojo Manga as well. Now, if this was a new deck I'd only used once or twice, I'd not be much puzzled by this, but I've had it for almost two years now, done daily readings with it for several months at a time, and this is probably the second or third time it's been reset this way, not to mention I always go through each card individually when I buy a deck.


Anyway, I do this by going through one card at a time, forming five separate piles as I go. I put the Hermit in with the major arcana, followed by several more, then start to worry about the fact that the Wheel has not shown up, and there are only three cards left and it's not any of them. Then I do a double take as I realize that one of the cards left--is the Hermit again! Go through the sorted cards all over again, and find that yes, there are two Hermits and no Wheel! Okay, this is creeping me out because I KNOW I have done readings with that deck where I've gotten the Wheel, and I haven't noticed any excessive occurrence of the Hermit with that deck. Go through one more time. The Wheel DID finally show up---one card up from its proper place, in between Justice and The Hanged Man, but I'm left wondering about how I could have been reading regularly with a deck for this long without noticing the extra Hermit, and definitely thinking that my finding it in this way at such a time implies some sort of meaning...if nothing else it certainly gave me a temporary distraction from my negative thoughts!

Furnacechant- that does seem strange!

Perhaps the fact that you didn't find the extra hermit 'til today DOES have significance...

perhaps you are needing to 'withdraw' from some situation that is causing you pain...let go of all the baggage and follow the beams of the lantern...

I hope the wheel of fortune starts to turn for you soon and life starts to look a little brighter!

all the best

xx

I see it a little differently. Maybe you've got too much of the Hermit going on in your life. Too much alone time. Too much withdrawing from things because you're depressed. Too much introspection. I think it would tell me, if it were me, that I needed to get out of myself and doing things again with---and for---others. That's a great cure for depression.

I'm not familiar with that particular deck, but I wonder if the two Hermits were originally stuck together and somehow got unstuck when you began using the deck. That would explain why you didn't notice it originally. But it doesn't explain why you didn't notice the second Hermit any of the other times you've reset the deck. (BTW, I do the same process when I buy used decks and when I need to reset a deck I've been using.)

Looking at your post metaphorically, you noticed that you were in need of a change (the missing Wheel). Then you were confronted with the fact that you're deep into a solitary period (two Hermits). You finally found the change you'd been looking for, and it was located between cards that tell you to adopt a new perspective (Hanged Man) and to strive for balance (Justice).

Your cards gave you a mini-reading that you apparently need to see at this point in your life. So, no, I don't think you've flipped out completely.

As for not noticing a predominance of Hermits in your readings with that deck, I've seen posts from people who keep all three Magus cards in their 80-card Thoth deck or both Temperance cards in their Golden Dawn Magical Tarot and they haven't noticed any predominance of either card in their readings.

So going back to why you've never noticed there were two Hermits in that deck before, you didn't need to notice that until you did.

HTH,
Rodney

Sounds to me like your extra Hermit card was really being Hermit until now - hiding out and doing his best not to be noticed! Even real hermits will probably feel the need to show themselves eventually though (say, when the tea supply runs out and they have to come out of their cave and visit the supermarket to stock up again ), so if ye look at it that way (which, of course you don't have to, as it seems I've watched way too much Monty Python), it would be only right that your extra Hermit would feel he had to come out of hiding eventually - Maybe that Wheel of Fortune told him he had to give up playing hide and seek or else he'd be snitched on.

I had a similar experience with my cards today, too. Must be something in the air!
Or perhaps we're both nuts

Given that much of my stress of late has centered around the loss of friendship, maybe the extra Hermit is quite literally just "Not as alone as you might think?"

Still not sure just who I CAN call on, but at least maybe I can be aware of the possibility. I'm also thinking now maybe I should put that extra one back in the deck. My first instinct was to separate it out and put it away with my crystals, but seeing as it hasn't skewed my readings up to now---you never know when a double-Hermit might be needed again!

It is strange that you've not noticed him before - but as you've been using the deck with the extra Hermit, maybe leave it in.

Everything happens for a reason I believe.

You know what happened in your instincts.