MAAT Study Group- The High Priestess

juliecucciawatts

The Full Moon Cycle of Virgo
( The Full Moon in Virgo will always occur between February 19-March 20)

Full Moon in Virgo key phrase:
"I analyze”

Planetary Ruler Neptune( Rogers-Tallagher says "Neptune is where you hear yourself sigh or feel yourself slip into a daydream.")

The full moon cycle of Virgo(the virgin) represented by the the High Priestess in the MAAT Tarot takes on the qualities of the barren earth of early spring. The quiet moon of the Virgin earth has great power that lies dormant within her. She is the barren landscape, pure and empty space, soon to be awakened by the growing strength of the Sun. The term “Virgin” in its earliest form simply means not taking a partner or not staying with a man. Unfortunately this term has taken on a modern, puritanical meaning, narrowly defined as being celibate. The High Priestess represents the Maiden in the ancient Lunar Trinity of Mother, Maiden, Crone. She is a time of freedom and daydreams when one analyzes the choices at the gateway to fulfillment. This moment of contemplation is of paramount importance as it is the decision one makes just before irreversible change.

In MAAT Tarot the High Priestess is portrayed as the Sleeping Goddess. This image represents all virginal females of myths, legends and ancient stories. One of the oldest of these sleeping female images is the Sleeping Goddess of Malta. As people arrived in Malta from Sicily around 5000 BC (and again about 3500 BC), there was a great surge of temple building in Malta, especially with the second wave of immigrants. One of the most mysterious of temples is called the Hypogeum. This temple was painstakingly hollowed out of the rock creating what looked like a vertical labyrinth. Over the course of 600 years 7,000 bodies were laid to rest in the Hypogeum. Within the Hypogeum a small statue of a sleeping priestess was found in a niche near the entrance. She lies comfortably on her side, apparently asleep. Questions come to mind as to who she is and what she represents. Is she similar to Buddha, dreaming the world into existence or a priestess undergoing an initiation? Has she entered the cave to receive the souls of dead ancestors into her womb as they await rebirth? Is she there to receive the wisdom from the ancestors during Dream State? Is she the High Priestess drawing intuition from her dreams? Clearly the Sleeping Goddess is as mysterious as the powers that awaken within the maiden as she moves out of her dormancy.

The High Priestess in MAAT Tarot is symbolic of the unmarried woman or maiden. Her body forms the rolling hills and mounds of Earth, which makes the transition from silent winter to awakening spring. She is not unlike the Sleeping Beauty of children's fairy tales, who is about to be awakened by her handsome prince (who would be The Fool of Spring Equinox). She is very much like Vesta, a virgin fire goddess of Rome. Her fire is concealed within her body; much like the fertility of Earth is concealed within the frozen ground of winter. Vesta is based on the earlier Greek goddess Hestia, a goddess of the hearth, who also represents the Full Moon in Virgo very well. Myth tells us Vesta was given a choice of marriage between Apollo and Neptune but refused both, desiring to be ‘virginal’. Eventually Zeus granted her freedom and she became an important religious symbol. Vesta's temples are round with a central sacred fire and this fire was tended and maintained by young female initiates called vestals. These girls kept the eternal flame of the temples burning. The vestal virgins went through three phases of service: that of student, then as priestess, and finally as teacher. Vestals were by no means celibate, though their career as a vestal ended when they bore their first child.

Brigit, another virginal goddess, is considered Goddess of Fire, Patroness of smithcraft, poetry, and healing. She bestows her blessings on any woman about to be married or handfasted ("Bride" is derived from Brigit). On Brigit's Day, in honor of the Irish Goddess Brigit, 19 Priestesses (no men were allowed) kept a perpetual flame burning in her honor (See Wheel of Fortune).


Other names: All virgin Goddesses including the Christian Virgin Mary; Semetic Lilith; Roman Diana; Durga; Greek Athena Hestia, Vesta and Artemis; Gnostic Sophia; Celtic Arianrod, Brigit


Symbols: Unseeded ground; unsprouted seed; barren winter landscape; unplowed field; The Maiden; Sleeping Goddess; Yin; Sleeping Beauty


Attributes: Intuitiveness; Female energy; Receiving information from within


In a Reading: This card signifies the use of intuition
and inner guidance as personal council. The answer lies within.
This card puts you on notice that it is time to listen to the voice of your muse or your inner voice.
 

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annik

In this card, I am fascinated with the tri-legged candle holder (it look like that to me). It makes me think of the Pythia (the priestess of Apollo). And the night sky too is fascinating. It look like a spiral, as on a snail shell. It is inducing a contemplative mood (at least to me). And the woman seems to be in a dream quest or waiting to be aroused. I find her position a bit sensual.
 

Barbaras Ahajusts

Aces

I noticed from reading on your site, www.newmoontradingco.com, in the study Maat link, that there isn't anything for the World or the 4 Aces.

Are these not available?

I'm interested in reading more!
Thanks,

Barb
 

crazy raven

This card is beautifully erotic and innocent at the same time. This youthful girl/woman is our innermost essence…….a guide that leads us to ecstasy if we are willing to approach her with an open heart and mind.

When our overworked brain is exhausted, she helps to silence the babble, so the body can let go and sink into the mysteries of a hidden energy, a higher vibration that heats our blood and organs yet at the same time, cools the mind.

Rooted in our true nature, her energy nourishes us within and without. It’s as if we can see her energy pattern as well as feel it genitally. What’s happening? What’s going on? We are becoming deeply aware and more sensitive to our physical sensations and intuitive feelings. Our senses are awakened. These must be respected and explored further if we are to make use of them.

Instead of stagnation, there is beauty, warmth, full awareness, growth and change. Our tree or tree of life will soon bud and begin to blossom.
 

Surja76

As to Shamanic spiritual meaning.

Lit lamp - a symbol of providence and purification. In ancient times, priestess were agents of misguided souls.
We can see the tree - shamanistic tree "life tree" (body of the girl, body of the tree) - the conductor of dead souls (rooted in the land) to the heavens (tree, future)
It was believed that at the time of sudden death, non-confession pure soul, separated from the body, became unprotected (naked priestess, bare wood) and easy prey for demons. Priestess (Shaman) should return the escaped soul of the body, and get on it and release the soul in heaven.

Priestess - full of vitality and health of the woman she is look like this "life Shamanic tree", her legs fallen down on the floor (roots) and head to-bed (in the clouds), it is a bridge between the worlds (tree = body). Link - a spiral, infinite life cycle time. The birth, growth and development of death, dying off.

As to practical reading:

This is lazy, passive girl who is well treated by her parents (lit lamp = family fire). She is look like Snow White girl in the gnomes house, waiting for the kiss of charming prince who will wake her up from her dream.
But she is hanging up in the air. She is not in clouds and at the same time she has no stable ground under her feet. She has no any practical experience in love and in life and does not know what to do. She is well educated but she does not know how to use what she knows, has no any purpose and aim in this life and is not sure what to do in her future.
 

Kimber

I'd like to hear from Julie regarding the planetary association with Neptune to this card. Neptune is definitely a planet for higher consciousness and intuition, but it is also a planet of dissolution. I get the higher consciousness connection to the High Priestess, but I don't see the "other side" of Neptune in this card at all.

Kimber
 

juliecucciawatts

Kimber said:
I'd like to hear from Julie regarding the planetary association with Neptune to this card. Neptune is definitely a planet for higher consciousness and intuition, but it is also a planet of dissolution. I get the higher consciousness connection to the High Priestess, but I don't see the "other side" of Neptune in this card at all.

Kimber

How many times have you had a dream that upon
awaking simply could not be remembered? This is
the otherside of Neptune. It is also what makes the
subconcious so hard to tap into. When we
are using the intuitive mind sometimes we nail
it and sometimes the insight proves to be
untrue. Here we have to wonder will the
high priestess bring back secret wisdom from her
dream or will she remember nothing? Or will
she dismiss her dream as nothing?
 

Surja76

juliecucciawatts said:
How many times have you had a dream that upon
awaking simply could not be remembered? This is
the otherside of Neptune. It is also what makes the
subconcious so hard to tap into. When we
are using the intuitive mind sometimes we nail
it and sometimes the insight proves to be
untrue. Here we have to wonder will the
high priestess bring back secret wisdom from her
dream or will she remember nothing? Or will
she dismiss her dream as nothing?


Yes agreed completely.

Neptune is the main planet for Pisces:

"Pisces - the dedicated people who are prone to feedback and self-sacrifice. They repelled all areas of life, requiring active participation, the struggle. They do not like to take an active position in life. But gladly enjoy the peace and comfort. They have too much attention to their experiences give oppressive everyday. They absolutely must find the strength for a particular class, associated with spiritual development. Pisces possess extraordinary intuitive abilities and hypersensitivity, which make it easy to move the barrier between the material and as fantastic worlds. Pisces are too shy and insecure. In real-life situations they often lack persistence. Can succeed only through cooperation. It is easy to fall under the influence of people or circumstances. It depends on the will of others,'s point of view of ideology, which is currently being implemented in their minds."


Is not it clear characteristic of High Priestess? Neptune is sounds sharply in High Priestess Card and makes it more ambiguous.

I am always surprising. This is one of the powerful cards of the Deck...
But it can be easily pushed out any small Court Card.

She can be kicked by the Queen of Swords because High priestess is hardly ever be able to the open struggle in swords. High priestess has the same sharp mind as the Queen of Swords but she will never use it against another person if she consider it is far from her moral principles. She is not a leader, she prefers to stay in shadows.

High Priestess can be fooled by Queen of Coins. High Priestess has all efforts and enough knowledge to spread her abilities, but she is absolutely impractical. She is able to gave a birth to very bright idea but she will not be able to find idea how to sale it. She considers that all ideas should be served for mass and free of charge.

She can yield in love to Queen of Cups. Neptune is water. And High Priestess has strong abilities in love. But Neptune is DARK water, muddy...
High Priestess love as Neptune love is look like dark cave, who is waiting for lonely stranger. Who knows when this stranger will be able to find this cave.
Neptune gives overstrain sexual feelings. But the sexual energy is not in the way of real relationships, but goes back to the creative realization in music or spiritual practices.
She has so muddy ideals of love in her head she is not able to avoid, so that some times she looses many good opportunities in love in comparison with Queen of Cups who is always ready to express her feelings and is not related conventions of her mind.

The same to Queen of Wands. High priestess is not able to shine so bright like Queen of Wands because she is lazy.

So that High priestess in spite of her abilities and knowledge is fully necked before practical real world. She is always in her Neptune world - muddy and spiritual, she is dreaming and sleeping too much.
The main problem of the High priestess in her self-doubt. She should find strong steel shaft inside, productive SEED, to develop her strong position, begin to live her own mind, find exact purpose in this life and begin to act at least. To understand what she is not common Queen, she is the 2nd Card among the great hierarchy of Major Arcanums. Neptune pushes High Priestess to regeneration after long time dream, after long time stagnation.

=======================

From other side there is spiritual side of Neptune. Neptune - a planet, which takes its pupils from the material world to the level of spiritual. This is planet - conductor. Neptune is the symbol of intuition.
It serves as a symbolic expression of the revival of cosmic energy from water depths of the primeval ocean. Ocean - the source of universal life, containing within it the seeds of many things.
High Priestess is a symbol of generative heart of the universe and the sum of all possibilities of existence, but she may embody at the same time as a creative creativity, and the destructive and negative qualities. There is illusion and phenomenon of dream we can not understand the edge between dream and reality.

Therefore, besides intuition, clairvoyance, and hypersensitivity, Neptune is also illusion and delusion, obsession, mysterious fog, which lost the usual connection between phenomena. Neptune is the planet of drug addiction.

In ancient times Shamans used drugs in order to wipe the edge between reality and dream, to make their feelings of outer and inner wold sharper.
Hence there are our distrust of intuition, because it is very difficult to avoid distortion and misunderstanding of information we receive from God.


By the way the most powerful ceremonial Black Candles are made the time when Neptune is in its the best position. It makes in the purpose to protect Magician from distortion of reality. it helps him to keep his feet firm on the ground while his head is fighting with evil forces, it is the way which helps him come back to reality and at the same time not allow then to sank to the evil illusion and differ good seed from bad under the ritual.
 

juliecucciawatts

Excellent!!!!
 

Penthasilia

Maat tarot IDS

Card/Number: The High Priestess/32

Card Image: see attached

First Impression: I have always liked the priestess depicted as the sleeper. This is a stunningly beautiful card, soft and surreal.

Card Description: A young, naked girl lies half on a bed, draped in a white gauze cover, sleeping/journeying. An incense burner on a 3 legged stand emits a low flame with smoke drifting upward. A spiral forms behind the girl, the entryway to the otherworld. Below her, the tree of life rests, a symbol of shamanism.

Masculine/Feminine/Neutral: Feminine

Colors: creamy pastels of pink, blue and white, brown

Senses: the cloth rests lightly on your skin, the sweet incense fills your mouth and nose. Your body tingles as it begins to separate, preparing for the journey.

Symbols: sleeping virgin, spiral, flame, tree

Story (intuitive): I lie down, prepared for my journey, the request is simple- but yet complex- to hear the divine truth. The scent of the hawthorn rose kyphi smoke fills my nose and mouth and drapes the candlelit room in a hazy fog. I lay, stretched, ready to begin. At first, there is nothing, just the idle chatter of my mind. Slip away, slip away, slip away... Deeper, deeper I go. Then, it starts- the tingling, the buzzing, as spirit begins to lift slightly above skin. I wait. Then, there it is- I feel it before me, the door to the otherworld, spiraling slowly. I speak the words, "I will gladly make the sacrifice.". For these need to be said, remember, as in the end, one day it may happen, the day that you are not able to return. This needs to be acknowledged before you can go, and fully accepted and understood. I feel it- the words/the sacrifice are heard. Yet tonight, my spirit stays. "Why can I not leave?" I ask. "Why do you want to go?" is the response. "I want to go beyond myself tonight, to hear the divine truth, to learn wisdom, and to know that- for certain- it comes from You, and not from inside me." I reply. There is no response. So I wait. I wait, trying to leave again, but feeling the force holding me inside. I rail out in anger and frustration, "WHY???!!!". The response comes softly whispered, "You always journey away my child. Take the path that few have walked. Do not journey without tonight, but rather- journey within. Journey deep within yourself, learn the truth, for that voice deep in your soul speaks the divine truth. Listen to it.". I quiet my soul, and listen. And I hear the voice, and I learn. What was told to me cannot be repeated, but needs to be heard. Learn from the Priestess and journey. Journey within, journey inward to hear the divine truth that speaks from the soul. Then, journey outward to spread it. Learn to listen, hear the Voice.

Astrologic: full moon cycle of Virgo, planetary ruler: Neptune

Keywords: intuition, mystery

Meanings: receiving information from within, use of intuition as council

Quote: "I analyze"
 

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