The Hanged Man

[septemberwitch]

Okay. So the hanged man has been haunting me and I haven't wanted to blog about it for some stupid reason. To me this card is a time of waiting for the most part. It can represent things being put on hold or delays. I hate waiting so that is likely why I didn't want to talk about it...lol. This card also represents sacrifice, sacificing something now in order to have something better in the future. It can also mean self sacrifice. Perhaps someone is in a situation where their wants and needs always seem to take a back seat. This is just one example that comes to my mind anyhow. There is also a sense of enlightenment I get from this card, like as though by looking at things from other angles we get a better perspective of the truth of a matter or situation. I could see it as a turning point as well. So I see this as plans being put on hold or just simply no movement at the time. Just my take.

Reversed- I see a solution has come to end a problem. Seeing a light at the end of a tunnel.
A new understanding of a situation has brought peace and resolution. No longer allowing others to demand that their needs come first. The waiting has ended! I am sure there is so much more and would love to hear how others see it!

Thanks

 

[Johnny30]

Hi!

I love when The Hanged Man comes up in a reading. To me, it signifies that all is not lost, but working out the solution to the problem will require you to think outside the box, and I think that this is a good pharse to have at the back of your mind when he appears (as he himself is looking at life from another perspective!!). I also like to think that he is asking us to be sure that the outcome we desire is actually the outcome that is best for us!

Reversed - I like to think that the way forward is becoming clear and that the lessons you've learned on the journey can be applied to other aspects of your life!

Hope this helps!

 

[septemberwitch]

( like to think that the way forward is becoming clear and that the lessons you've learned on the journey can be applied to other aspects of your life!)


I like that!

 

[nisaba]

I've been spending a bit of time with some of my Hanged Men recently. It's time well-spent. I;m coming to the opinion that at this stage of my life, tehy don't represent frustration, being stuck or held back, at all. Now they are about peace, about sacred space, about meditation. I'm a big girl - I can deal with that if I have to.

 

[Starshower]

Here are some of my own musings when I see this card. Often when I just gaze at a card, I find some relevant everyday phrase pops into my head, which leads me into the card's meaning for me.

1) Sometimes the Hanged Man is above water, which I see as the Unconscious ... he is 'reflecting' (or passively being reflected?) from a different perspective.

2) Another phrase that I associate with him is 'hang in there' - i.e. wait & see. Stay passive awhile. Things will occur to you, or change, when the time is ripe.

3) 'Suspended animation'. His hands are often tied behind his back, so he is temporarily out of action. Awaiting fresh inspiration.

4) The triangle formed by his crossed foot behind his other leg is the symbol of Divine power / ideas / Grace coming down into the physical world.
So he is passively undergoing a process of 'downloading' new understandings; like Odin 'getting' the Runes from hanging on the World Tree in the Norse myth.

 

[septemberwitch]

Hi Starshower

I like #2 hang in there.. good advice!

 

[balenciaga]

I view the Hanged Man more like the way Mary Greer sees it (see "21 Ways"), like one is in "the belly of the whale", a very low point. One must face the fact of sacrifice, self-denial, must give it up and let it go. I get it when there is no where else to go with a mind-set, perspective - I've "hit rock bottom".

 

[Modern Mystic]

I interpret this card as "dancing to the beat of your own drummer" and following your own mind and opinions on things, it can also mean eccentricity because this card corresponds to Aquarius (I read that somewhere).

He hangs by his ankles, the part of the body associated with Aquarius and every book on Tarot I've read says this is a rather odd position in medieval and Renaissance art and was not used very often. There is also an old opinion that this was a common punishment for rebels and traitors, it's not often used by today's readers but I still think it ought to remain a possibility. And of course rebels of all stripes also fit nicely with the Aquarian connection!

 

[PAMUYA]

Okay. So the hanged man has been haunting me and I haven't wanted to blog about it for some stupid reason. To me this card is a time of waiting for the most part. It can represent things being put on hold or delays. I hate waiting so that is likely why I didn't want to talk about it...lol. This card also represents sacrifice, sacificing something now in order to have something better in the future. It can also mean self sacrifice. Perhaps someone is in a situation where their wants and needs always seem to take a back seat. This is just one example that comes to my mind anyhow. There is also a sense of enlightenment I get from this card, like as though by looking at things from other angles we get a better perspective of the truth of a matter or situation. I could see it as a turning point as well. So I see this as plans being put on hold or just simply no movement at the time. Just my take.

Reversed- I see a solution has come to end a problem. Seeing a light at the end of a tunnel.
A new understanding of a situation has brought peace and resolution. No longer allowing others to demand that their needs come first. The waiting has ended! I am sure there is so much more and would love to hear how others see it!

Thanks

I have had the Hanged Man mean other things as well: By doing nothing, you have others “show their hand” first, or you must wait for someone or something to happen before making an important decision...or The Hanged Man might be telling you that there is never a right time, like to have children, start now. This can also mean you are waiting for someone else to do something wrong..so you will not be seen as the “bad guy”..to save face.

Just a few more things to throw into the pot.