Reversals -- High Priestess

High Priestess is properly the most profound card to read in the majors. She already means so much when upright, turning her upside down, makes my head spin.

Instead of sitting the priestess is now floating between to grounded pillars. Pillars are in black and white, meaning could be the foundation, and our world is very much either black or white. (Which, I believe, is true, even if we do claim to be able to see all kind of angles in life).
The priestess’ curtain is decorated with the same kind of apples that is on the Empress’ dress, life – which is funny, as one would think it is the way to the land of death.
Walking through the reversed card will offer no solution or answer, as you are met with one moon after the other, the beginning is turned to the end – you are getting all tangled up in the black and white until it is all grey. Priestess is not offering any guidance this way, or maybe you are not asking for it, even you have the need for it.

When the priestess is a card that needs attention, she is kind of like The Tower I think; telling you that you act as if you know the secrets, only you don’t and your acting as if you did, only make it worse for you in the long run, harder to realise that you are on the wrong track here. She would warn you about not learning from your mistakes, which will only make you do them over and over again.

When she is acting as a signpost to the past card, she would defiantly tell about the veil of self deceive. You have decided what you wanted to see in the past card, but are you sure that is what really is there, when you look again?

When the HP is blocked, she could be a right down b****, nagging and splitting people around her apart. We once talked about the PMS syndrome, that HP would be the one showing that. She is likely to use her wisdom in a evil manner, just for the sake of it, when she is blocked or out of balance with her self. She would be the evil stepmother or the nagging mother in law.

It can be a bit hard to determine whether she is looking downwards or directly at us, I guess that will have to depend on who is looking at her. I have days she does one thing and days where she doesn’t. Still the attention would be upwards, what card is above her, that needs her attention.

Views on the High Priestess

This confident, quiet icon of feminine qualities sits between two pillars (a gateway) closed by a curtain yet showing or hinting at what is beyond. In her lap she holds knowledge (the scroll) and at her feet is a cresent (new moon phase) moon, emphasizing the new-full-closing moon-crown on her head. Her robe disolves into water. The Moon, water, knowledge, gateway and hidden possibilities are strongly evident.
REVERSED: Cyclic effects of an evolving process in one's life are disrupted, something may have stopped or jumped ahead out of sequence. Intuition has been replaced by logic or apathy. The opportunity to ask and learn, or to listen to advice, is avoided or unappreciated. Simple dialog and honesty may prevent one from going ahead or passing through an experience. The contrasting pillars that hold up the veil are, of course, reversed -- suggesting that one's perception of order and rules is that life has become reversed. The patient attitude of the HP may become one of impatience, or dialog and sharing or helping/mentoring others may be shunned. A proactive attitude may be taken up where one goes out and pushes ones beliefs onto others or becomes an anti-something activist.
PAST: One had a loss of connection with ones world and beliefs, or had neglected to remain grounded while seeking inner growth. PRESENT: One stands to lose touch with inner values and suffer from a loss of sharing or learning. FUTURE: A re-thinking of plans and taking time to distance oneself from a seemingly unadvoidable course of action is needed. Perspective and quiet time will help.
ASTROLOGICAL CONNECTIONS: There is no way that the Moon cannot be related to this card as depicted in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. The ebb and flow of emotions are the drivers behind the human experience. Logic belongs to other cards and will give vision and shape to overall experience, but here, one has to be in touch with the rhythm of life in order to learn and grow.
COMMENTS: This is my perception of this card. When I find this card in a spread I look for how a rhythm or flow in the other cards can bring a balance or direction to the question or issue asked about. In the website that provides headlines-tarot-astrology readings and charts there is a May newstory that tells of a photo of Earth taken from Mars. The tarot spread has the HP Rx. There are six Major Arcana cards in that CC spread, the HP Rx being in position 8.
SPREAD: 1st: 7-Wands, 2nd: Death, 3rd: 10-Wands, 4th: World Rx, 5th: 8-Wands, 6th: 7-Cups Rx, 7th: Moon Rx, 8th: HP Rx, 9th: Chariot, 10th: Emporer. The photo of Earth seen from the Moon signified a change of perception of our world's status and well-being decades ago. Seeing Earth from another planet may herald a change in our perception about our universal views. The presence of the Moon Rx prior to the HP Rx and the Death card in position two may point to the discontinuous space program of the US. The Chariot and Emporer may point to the continuation and ultimate outcome being a positive one. Dave.

beautiful written Dave !

Thank you Bec

That was a non-book reply. I try to work on my own perceptions instead of doing the cookbook approach. Not that I don't use or read them -- I'm reviewing the court cards now in Mary Greer's Tarot Reversals, having read the rest of the book. Next I'm going to start reviewing some of the various spreads, trying to find those that resonate or would be most useful. Thank you for your feedback. I notice that while only a few are participating in our thread at this point that we are getting a lot of viewers. Thats good. Dave.

Reversed HP

When the HP comes up reversed, one of the first things I think about is that this person is not only out of sync with himself but his immediate world and the world in general.

Since I tend to associate the HP with the "spiritual mother" the one who teaches us to nuture our inner selves, when she is reversed it means that the individual is usually going against their "own flow, so to speak. They are going with the "accepted", the "norm" as opposed to listening to the "right answer" for them.

It can also imply to me that they lack the courage of their convictions. Water over their heads...like "hearing" under water. You hear something, but you are not sure what it is. Think this portends "caution" in any decision that the surrounding cards may be....

I personally don't think the HP is ever vindictive, ala PMS. I don't think she judges ever upright or reversed. For her, everything just is. Reversed this may imply someone who likes to assign "blame" or who has a "right/wrong" good/evil" kind of mentality which to me is the opposite of her.

Just some random thoughts here....

Ruby Red Slippers


P.S. I love this card, she's definitly one of my favorites!

Are we going to continue through the majors reversal???

The way that I handle reversals is to consider the positive attributes of the card, and imagine the absence or opposite of that particular characteristic.

An HP is normally a trusted person who gives counsel, who educates on ecumenical matters, who ministers tot he sick and downtrodden, and acts as a religious functionary.

The reversed HP would violate trust, spill confessional secrets, set bad examples, ignore the pain of others and eschew her official duties.

Martha Stewart is a good example of a reversed real life HP. She was seen as the guru of family and home. Now, we find out that she's a shrew, who may have broken securities laws. Not quite the self-sufficient Suzy Homemaker she sought to portray.

Waite Coleman Smith deck only:

Kings 1 7:23 discusses how outside the Temple of Solomon, Huram (also Hiram) built a sea “cast in metal, and circular in shape measuring ten cubits high, it took a line of thirty cubits to measure around it…”

Behind the High Priestess (and because of the designations upon the pillars we know that she sits at the Temple…we see water. Based upon the construction notes provided in the book of Kings 1, we know there was no water inside the temple. Therefore the view must be from the inside of the temple looking out…

However the Pillars…we are told that (Kings 1 7:21) that the Pillar Jakin was to the south, and Boaz was to the north…therefore, the view is from the inside of the Temple of Solomon looking East from the West, towards the outside.

The High Priestess in this card does not keep us out of the Temple, or guard us from entering, she guards us from leaving…from removing the secrets…

(Bookish Interp): subject to the tides of womanhood, indicating passion, female issues, loss of secrets.

My Interpretation – Reversed, she is underwater – deluded by the moon which she once commanded –she still sits before the Empress and the Emperor. At her darkest hours she reveals that our shortcomings are short lived, our base desires often drive our motives…things that we do ‘out of the goodness of our hearts’ often have a much darker motive…the darker side of sexuality.

I confess that if I saw the High Priestess reversed my gut reaction would be to put the card upright A bit of a magical reaction. Perhaps superstitious.

I can't remember if I've ever see this card reversed. I guess a lot would depend on the other cards in the spread but I would tend to read such a card as the interior voice gone wrong. The voice might not be heard or it might be misinterpreted. Sometimes it is our own desires we hear, not the voice of wisdom but we rationalise to suit ourselves.

Quote:
*************
However the Pillars…we are told that (Kings 1 7:21) that the Pillar Jakin was to the south, and Boaz was to the north…therefore, the view is from the inside of the Temple of Solomon looking East from the West, towards the outside. (Umbrae)
*************
Reading this I got to thinking about when I see things in the cards that "look east" I tend to think of the sun rising in the east, and that we always get a "do over" as they say in the movie "City Slickers"...the sun always rises in the east no matter what else is going on.....

Now Umbrae, you have me thinking here about this and the HP, since I never thought about her looking east....thanks for the insight...

Ruby Red Slippers

When she is in reserved she seems closed minded. and will not let her intuition guide her but will ignore what is infront of her. She usually sits observing the situation upright before taking action but reversed she doesn't sit patiently anymore. It could be that she's tired of that and decides to break the mold of her old self. Because of this it will bring her less satisfaction if it is not something that she is not used to.