Is the Hierophant a Dictator?

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Going with Umbrae here .. by the Symbolism (I am relying on Pams drawings RWS and using some Christian based symbology) I think the Heirophants power weilded is intended to benefit and enlighten (Upright position)

KEYS
Keys symbolize power and authority. Christ by employing this symbol clearly designed to signify his intention to confer on St. Peter the supreme authority over His Church. In Isaiah 22 we see "the key of the house of David" is conferred upon Eliacim, the son of Helcias, as the symbol of plenary authority in the Kingdom of Juda. The promise of Matthew 16:15-19.


BLESSING
The three extended fingers suggest the Holy Trinity, while the two closed fingers represent the twofold nature of the Son. The blessing is used to express a wish or desire that all good fortune, especially of a spiritual or supernatural kind, may go with the person or thing, as when David says: "Blessed art thou, and it shall be well with thee" (Ps. cxxvii, 2). It signifies the sanctification or dedication of a person or thing to some sacred purpose; "Christ took bread and blessed, and broke" (Matt., xxvi, 26).


CROWN
Representing Christ the King and Messiah, which literally means "the anointed one." The Messiah was prophesized from antiquity to be the king who would come and restore the good fortune of the people of Isreal. (Rev. 14:14) describes the last judgement. "Then I looked, and lo, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head."

or on some cards the Hierophant wears the:

MITRE
The mitre is a kind of folding-cap worn by Bishops. It consists of two like parts, each stiffened by a lining and rising to a peak; these are sewn together on the sides, but are united above by a piece of material that can fold together. Two lappets trimmed on the ends with fringe hang down from the back.

LILY
The white lily symbolizes purity, and innocence and is the traditional flower of Easter. The three petaled lily is also representative of the Blessed Trinity.

ROSE
The red rose has always been a sign of love. It is referenced in The Song of Solomon, a poem of lovers, "I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me. It is also seen as the symbol of purity, and the Passion of Christ.

STAFF
The staff or 'crosier' is an ecclesiastical ornament which is conferred on bishops at their consecration and is the symbol of authority and jurisdiction. It represents the staff of the 'Good Shepherd' who watches over his flock.


STOLE
A liturgical vestment composed of a strip of material from two to four inches wide and about eighty inches long. The stole, being the badge of the diaconal and priestly orders, is worn only by deacons, priests, and bishops.





Would a Dictator in the negaitve sense (someone who instructs, dicatates, uses their authority and power to over-rule in a destructive manner) be the Hierophant reversed?

Blessings
Elven x

Crowqueen said:

but the teachings and enlightenment gained from some sort of religious belief - whether rational like the Hierophant or unrational like the High Priestess - should override the imperial assertions of the Emperor (who is of course associated with good aspects of order and protection) who has committed many political crimes in the name of religion.

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Have to disagree with your there, Crowqueen. Inquisitions are usually found in the church--which often had it's own tortures and torture chambers. Which is not to say that the Emperor won't happily use the excuse that those natives are heathens to enslave them and make a profit out of selling them. And, of course, sometimes the head of the church and the ruler of the state are one in the same, as in England, or Ancient Egypt or Rome where the Emperor was the highest priest as well as the ruler of the empire.

None of this, however, releases from responsiblity the leaders of a Church, which, in its fanaticism and misguided belief that it's "saving" people, urges its priests to brutalizes "heathens" for practicing their own religion instead of that of the Church--whatever that religion may be. THAT dictatorship is squarely on the shoulders of the Hierophant. Not the Emperor.

And a religion, just by being a religion, doesn't automatically enlighten. Some teachings can blind people to truths rather than offer them insights. Fanaticism is equal to greed in it's cruelty and brutality. And in such cases we're lucky if an Emperor steps in and offers order and protection. It's by way of the Emperor that you and I have the freedom to practice the religion of our choice, rather than being under the dictatorship of a theocracy. A theocracy that might force us to practice a religion we don't want to follow...as some Romans tried to do to the Christians, and so many Christans, alas, did to pagans and Jews around the world.

TemperanceAngel said:

Now I have just stumbled across this definition and one appointed by the senate of ancient Rome. Would this equate to The Pope, which could also be The Hierophant?

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In the RW deck the Hierophant was originally the Pope. But was "toned" down by Waite (perhaps not enough in my view). I don't personally see this card as a dictator but it's definitely possible. To me this card can symbolize the spiritual, but it may also represent organized belief, tradition, and instruction in regards to spiritual matters.

Interesting discussion.

I've always liked the Heirophant, although it is not a comfortable card. For me the card has two sides to it which are at the same time contradictory and complementary.

Yes, I believe the Heirophant represents rules, traditions, institutional tradition, conformity, obedience. All those things are there, and it is the negative side of the Heirophant that most people see and that seems to cause uneasiness.

BUT there is also another side to all these rules. Tradition and rules are not a bad thing when the rules and traditions are a form on knowledge. The Heirophant also represents to me entrance into the mysteries, being able to use and understand traditions in a way that brings insight and allows for new understanding, a way to connect the all too material world to the world of intuition, unconsciousness, and knowledge.

While the HP is clearly united with the unconscious and intuition, the Heirophant allows us to make the connection from daily existence to those mysteries. If we think of all serious practitioners of "mysteries," whether that person be a shaman, a guru, a taoist monk, a buddhist, a Christian devotee, a Jewish Prohpet--almost all of those people had to follow a path of discipline and learning, ritual and practice to achieve their insight.

The two sides of the heirophant are connected, there's intuition as well as rationality there. I would almost say that the Hermit and the Hanged Man have to thank their existence to the work of the Heirophant. I think the Heirophant can represent a very rule-bound mind set, and so the message is to get far enough into the rules to be able to use them in a new way, not to simply submit to them.

My thoughts.

Nuncle

The Hierophant in the RWS pack seems a bit schizoid to me. The image itself is of a Pope in the Roman Catholic Church, while the title "Hierophant" refers to a High Priest of the Mystery schools in ancient Greece. It's as if they couldn't make up their minds which it was going to be. Both systems are hierarchical in nature. A Pope during the Middle Ages was a dictator, absolutely, but not so much nowadays.

-fof

fools_fool said:

The Hierophant in the RWS pack seems a bit schizoid to me. The image itself is of a Pope in the Roman Catholic Church, while the title "Hierophant" refers to a High Priest of the Mystery schools in ancient Greece. It's as if they couldn't make up their minds which it was going to be.

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Well, part of ithat is due to the fact that Waite (et al) used the old Tarot as a template. So the "Pope" card was the inspiration. However, the Golden Dawn folk--bless their hearts--were trying to find the one mystery behind all religions. The unified field theory of mysticism, if you will.

So they had no problem with mixing Ancient Egypt with Jewish mysticism and Christianity--and Rider had no problem putting all three, sometimes, in one card.

And I can't say he's wrong. He's going for the archtype behind all these religions, which really does cross almost all belief systems (there's a Mayan myth, I believe, of the son of a god who sacrifices himself to help people).

Elven said:

STAFF
The staff or 'crosier' is an ecclesiastical ornament which is conferred on bishops at their consecration and is the symbol of authority and jurisdiction. It represents the staff of the 'Good Shepherd' who watches over his flock.
Elven x

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Not to be difficult, but that staff is not a crosier, or "Shephards Hook." I don't know it's right name, but it represents the 7 deadly sins.

LOL!! sorry magpie - Yes, not a true interpreation on pams card there I included it because on some decks (Im sure) Ive seen it in the Hierophant card - its like the crown - sometimes the headwear is a bit different too (for that sort of traditional card drawing)

Blessings
Elven x

Hi Temperance Angel

To me the Hierophant is a mediator between you and God wether that be a priest, a pope, a shaman, or your higher self.
I think the reversed meaning of the card can be someone who uses this position to take advantage of people beneath him, abuses his power.

I see a dictator more as the reversed potential of the Emperor as he is more of a physical leader than a spiritual leader. Of course where church and government intermingle the lines would be blurred between Hierophant and Emperor.

My 2 cents for what it's worth.


Marie

From what i can gather The Heirophant holds the keys to initiation ,in many spiritual traditions there is a lineage of power and when a master dies he may choose one of his initiates to pass his spiritual inner contacts too ,this initiate can then work with these inner contacts and has the power to initiate others into the lineage ,hence the keys .This may all sound a little far fetched but a lot of magical texts and experiences can only be truly understood if taught by someone from that lineage ,so that both the practical and theory become clear .
However when I read the Heirophant nearly always symbolises marriage or if in combination with the HP a spiritual relationship which transmutes sexual energy into spiritual .