Night Sun - The Hermit

The symbols at the top are Virgo and Iod.

The Hermit is solitary, reflective, isolated.
He holds a lantern, illuminating his path into the unknown for a journey, traveling physically as well as internally.
But at the same time there is a hesitancy to him, indicating that perhaps this card can stand for slow travel or stagnancy.

There's an air of "dare" or "challenge" in his expression - a half smile.
Is he looking at me as if to say "I'm off - into the abysssssss - I dare you to come with me!".
Or perhaps "When I am there - I shall visit you in your dreams...".
I love it!

The single snake entwined around his staff - half live, half wood. A symbol of healing. (everywhere in this deck - the Rod of Asclepius. Asclepius, the son of Hygeia - both Greek Deities or healing... "In honor of Asclepius, a particular type of non-venomous snake was often used in healing rituals, and these snakes – the Aesculapian Snakes – crawled around freely on the floor in dormitories where the sick and injured slept" - huh - interesting ).

[N.B. that Asclepius' rod was confused with Mercury's Caduceus, which is now erroneously mostly used today, as a symbol of healing. Mercury is not a healer. He's a clever negotiator and trickster].

So - his journey is always one of self-healing and of learning what will be healing for others. The Bodhisattva "bound for enlightenment".
His receptive (Left) hand is painted blue...