The Hanged Man — Arcana XII

The Hanged Man — Major Arcana of the Tikkoun Tarot de Marseille

The Hanged Man is far less sinister than his name might suggest.

True, a rope suspends him from a gallows by his ankle... but his left leg is free. And his hands? Are they bound or joined for reflection? Is he enduring his torment... or practicing yoga? Or is he simply playing a game of "tag"?

In any case, his mischievous smile suggests that his inaction is deliberate. It represents a meditative and contemplative pause before action. Around him, other clues evoke the posture of a fetus in the womb... just before birth. In fact, he is upside down to better come into the world.

The Hanged Man embodies the very enigma of the tarot. The more you observe him, the more questions arise. With his feet in the air and his eyes on the stars, he allows himself to view the world from a new paradigm: the beginning of his transformation.

Based on "Saint Jerome Supporting Two Young Men Wrongly Condemned to Death," by Perugino (1448 - 1523)

Lights

Interpretation

With the number 12, the Hanged Man invites us to suspend time.

This card encourages us to change our perspective to see our world differently. It suggests taking a conscious pause and observing our beliefs from the viewpoint of someone who considers all possibilities. Literally, turning oneself upside down radically alters the point of view.

Viewed in this way, the Hanged Man is like a camera with an infinitely adjustable depth of field. Suddenly, we make visible what we could not see... or were not looking at.

Finally, in its quantum version, the Hanged Man is ultra-magnetic. When his vision is fully conscious, his desires spontaneously become reality. And he radiates with brilliance...

His mantra: "Everything comes in due time to those who have stopped waiting!"

Shadows