Intuitive Tarot~High Priestess II

Following the movement and energy of the Magician we have the High Priestess. Her stillness and silence are illustrated in this card through the use of the cool blues and filmy watercolor. Her intense eyes look right through you, you can't hide from the High Priestess!

Because she looks at you with such intensity she knows you. She sees your greatness and your faultlines so clearly. She knows the path you are on and she knows what you need to learn and internalize along the way. Therefore, trust her words and trust that the tools she gives you will be of use to you...even if none of it makes any sense right now.

Conway states that the image of the python in this card relates to: the python, whose breath wafted up from the Delphian caves to grant the gifts of prophecy and inspiration. So the python relates to Pythia, the oracle of Delphi which I did not know about until I looked it up just now.

I personally would have liked her hands showing. Any thoughts on why her hands are hidden, off out of frame of the card? I do have an obsession iwth hands though so maybe it doesn't bother anyone else.

This is a captivating image. The High Priestess is clothed only with a flowing, sheer blue mantle. Underneath she is naked. The blue color of her mantle and her nakedness represents her purity of body, mind and spirit. The mantle echoes the veil draped behind her. The veil that separates the Holy of Holies from the mundane world. Behind the veil lies the Divine presence, holy wisdom. Only the High Priestess, who has devoted her whole life to her vocation, the study of the Mysteries, is qualified to pass back and forth through the veil. Her headdress is blue at the outer edges and white at the crown chakra which represents her connection to the flow of divine wisdom.

The abundance of blues withing the image convey a sense of peace and tranquility. The blessings of communion with the divine.

I find the inclusion of the python on this card an interesting addition. The veil, pillars, and temple seem like Judeo-Christian symbols. They speak of heavenly knowledge, inspiration from above. The Python of Delphi, however speaks from the Earth Mother, a more ancient, primal knowledge. The python in this image coils itself at the root chakra. The High Priestess is open to both sources.

If one should approach the High Priestess, she will share her knowledge, but only as much as she feels appropriate.

minrice said:

I personally would have liked her hands showing. Any thoughts on why her hands are hidden, off out of frame of the card? I do have an obsession iwth hands though so maybe it doesn't bother anyone else.

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A very interesting observation. In many High Priestess cards, she holds scrolls of secret knowledge in her hands. Perhaps that is what she is holding, but will not allow us uninitiated to see it.

desertrat said:

The abundance of blues withing the image convey a sense of peace and tranquility. The blessings of communion with the divine.

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That is how I feel also, after all the fire with the magician the High Priestess here is like a cool, refreshing drink of water! The blues are beautiful.

desertrat said:

The Python of Delphi, however speaks from the Earth Mother, a more ancient, primal knowledge. The python in this image coils itself at the root chakra. The High Priestess is open to both sources.

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I like it, I hadn't thought of the root chakra. Makes sense. I also thought about how the snake could be a warning, as sometimes the HP comes up when someone's motives aren't pure or they are a little on the shady side. Specifically a woman being shady. That's an intuitive cue though I think.

As for her hands, yes could be what she is holding is concealed from us. Or perhaps we just choose not to focus on what she is holding as we are so focused on her? I don't know, it's interesting to think about.

minrice said:

I also thought about how the snake could be a warning, as sometimes the HP comes up when someone's motives aren't pure or they are a little on the shady side. Specifically a woman being shady. That's an intuitive cue though I think.

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I had completely forgotten about that. Yes, it makes sense. Our intuition may be all we have to rely on when determining whether a person is trustworthy. Kind of a gut reaction, again connected to the root chakra area.