The Rider Waite Hanged Man is depicted hanging upside down from his ankle, one leg crossed behind the other, arms behind his back. He is shown in the pose of a medieval punishment for traitors, known as ‘Bafflement’.
My perspective of this card is that it shows a descent of ‘spirit’ into ‘matter’ – the lower self is sacrificed to allow the birth of the Higher Self, or your true spiritual nature. We grow and evolve on our journey through life and the appearance of the Hanged Man indicates a ‘re-birth’ of some kind.
This card is connected to the Hebrew letter Mem which means ‘water’ and its planetary correspondence is Neptune, a watery planet who rules the feet. Neptunian energy encapsulates the qualities of dissolution, creativity, spirituality, compassion, sacrifice, universal love and understanding.
Since The Hanged Man’s feet are uppermost, spiritual energy is being absorbed or received, traveling downwards to be given expression through the head, which corresponds to the Hebrew letter Shin, meaning Fire. The head is Binah descending into matter, initiating separation.
Given the watery nature of this card, and the feminine nature of Mem, he reminds me of a baby waiting to be born (we descend into life headfirst), with an “umbilical cord” wrapped around his ankle connecting him to the cross, or Tau. He patiently waits to take his first breath (Aleph) in order for the synthesis of Fire and Water to occur.
The Hanged Man represents not the act of redemption, but the willingness to be redeemed by sacrificing the lower self. He represents all forms of life-giving sacrifice, rejecting self interest in favour of the greater good. When he is negatively aspected, Neptune may be inclined towards alcoholism or the avoidance of mundane responsibilities and realities.
The Hanged Man also brings to mind the mystics and shamans who enter trance states and other worlds for the purposes of healing, prophecy and knowledge. In a divination, the Hanged Man can represent a time of waiting after the adjustment required in Justice and before the massive change to come in Death as a result of that adjustment.
When negatively aspected, apart from looking like he’s a member of the cast of River Dance, he may be indicating punishment or unwilling sacrifice. Be on the look out for deceit and lies.
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