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This article is about the tarot card. For the TV series, The Hanged Man (TV series).

The Hanged Man (XII) is a Major Arcana Tarot card. It may also be known as The Traitor, particularly in older decks. Image File history File links Acap. ... The Hanged Man was a British crime drama series that was broadcast for eight episodes in 1975. ... The Major Arcana (Trumps Major, Major Trumps) of the Tarot deck consists of 22 cards. ... This article is about the general history, iconography, and uses of tarot cards. ...

Description and symbolism

In modern versions of the tarot deck, the card depicts a man hanging by his foot upside down, typically from a cross or gallows.

In his book The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, A.E. Waite, the designer of the Rider-Waite tarot deck, wrote of The Hanged Man : The Pictorial Key to the Tarot is A. E. Waites influential guide to Tarot symbolism, published in 1910 in conjunction with the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. ... Arthur Edward Waite in the early 1880s Arthur Edward Waite (October 2, 1857 - May 19, 1942) was an occultist and co-creator of the Rider-Waite Tarot deck. ... The Rider-Waite Tarot deck is probably the most popular Tarot deck today. ...

The gallows from which he is suspended forms a Tau cross, while the figure -- from the position of the legs -- forms a fylfot cross. There is a nimbus about the head of the seeming martyr. It should be noted (1) that the tree of sacrifice is living wood, with leaves thereon; (2) that the face expresses deep entrancement, not suffering; (3) that the figure, as a whole, suggests life in suspension, but life and not death. [...] It has been called falsely a card of martyrdom, a card a of prudence, a card of the Great Work, a card of duty [...] I will say very simply on my own part that it expresses the relation, in one of its aspects, between the Divine and the Universe. The Tau cross The Cross of Tau; also called the Tau Cross, St. ... Notional arms – Argent a fylfot azure (a blue fylfot on a white shield) – exemplifying the design of the fylfot commonly shown in modern heraldry texts. ... Nimbus may mean: Halo, light or mist around an object Nimbus program, spacecraft used for weather research Nimbus cloud Nimbus (motorcycle) Nimbus Records is a classical music record company Nimbus, fictional broomsticks from the Harry Potter series Nimbus Land, a fictional location in the Super Mario RPG video game The...

Waite continues, "He who can understand that the story of his higher nature is imbedded [sic] in this symbolism will receive intimations concerning a great awakening that is possible, and will know that after the sacred Mystery of Death there is a glorious Mystery of Resurrection."

Some of those using tarot as an aid in an attempt to gain occult or psychological insight have seen this card as expressing themes connoted by a number of keywords, including:

• Sacrifice ----- Letting go ----- Surrendering ----- Passivity

• Suspension ----- Acceptance ----- Renunciation ----- Patience

• New point of view ----- Contemplation ----- Inner harmony

• Conformism ----- Nonaction ----- Waiting ----- Giving up

Divination Usage

Interpretation

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The Hanged Man is a card of profound but veiled significance. Its symbolism points to divinity, linking it to the Passion of Christ in Christianity, especially The Crucifixion; to the narratives of Osiris (Egyptian mythology) and Mithras (Roman mythology). In all of these archetypal stories, the destruction of self brings life to humanity; on the card, these are symbolized respectively by the person of the hanged man and the living tree from which he hangs bound. Its relationship to the other cards usually involves the sacrifice that makes sacred; personal loss for a greater good or a greater gain. Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... The Passion is the theological term used for the suffering, both physical and mental, of Jesus in the hours prior to and including his trial and execution by crucifixion. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      Christianity is... The Crucifixion usually refers to the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth in circa 30 CE, and its representation in art. ... For other uses, see Osiris (disambiguation). ... Egyptian mythology or Egyptian religion is the succession of tentative beliefs held by the people of Egypt for over three thousand years, prior to major exposure to Christianity and Islam. ... This article or section contains too much jargon and may need simplification or further explanation. ... A head of Minerva found in the ruins of the Roman baths in Bath Roman mythology, the mythological beliefs of the people of Ancient Rome, can be considered as having two parts. ... Marcus Aurelius and members of the Imperial family offer sacrifice in gratitude for success against Germanic tribes: contemporary bas-relief, Capitoline Museum, Rome For other uses, see Sacrifice (disambiguation). ... SACRED SACRED was a Cubesat built by the Student Satellite Program of the University of Arizona. ...

The Hanged Man is often associated with Odin, the primary god of the Norse Pantheon. Odin hung upside down from the world-tree, Yggdrasil, for nine days to attain wisdom and thereby retrieved The Runes from the Well of Wyrd, which the Norse cosmology regarded as the source and end of all Mystery and all knowledge. The moment he glimpsed the runes, he died, but the knowledge of them was so powerful that he immediately returned to life. This interpretation highlights the necessity of undertaking acts of personal sacrifice in order to achieve one's own higher spiritual good. For other meanings of Odin,Woden or Wotan see Odin (disambiguation), Woden (disambiguation), Wotan (disambiguation). ... Norse, Viking or Scandinavian mythology comprises the indigenous pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian peoples, including those who settled on Iceland, where most of the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ... For other uses, see Yggdrasil (disambiguation). ... This article is about the number. ... Technical note: Due to technical limitations, some web browsers may not display some special characters in this article. ... Wyrd is a concept in Anglo-Saxon and Nordic culture roughly corresponding to Fate. ... The term Sacred Mysteries generally denotes the area of supernatural phenomena associated with a divinity or a religious ideology. ...

Another meaning resides in the journey of life. Certain aspects of life — for example sex — are viewed one way by children and a different way by adults. The Hanged Man is the initiate into mysteries. He understands the Truth because he sees it from a different angle. Time Saving Truth from Falsehood and Envy, François Lemoyne, 1737 For other uses, see Truth (disambiguation). ...

The most common interpretation of the card is of an outcast of society that appears to be a fool but is in actuality completely in alignment and integrated. The inversion of The Hanged Man furnishes an advantage opaque and impenetrable to others.

Mythopoetic approach

Le Pendu from the Tarot of Marseilles

He is closely associated through his cross sum (the sum of the digits) with The Empress, which in many mythologies is his mother or wife. He is the Dying God who dies each year, whose rebirth renews the world. Ideally, he is a willing sacrifice, though life sometimes demands sacrifices of the unwilling. Image File history File links The Tarot de Marseille: XII Le Pendu. ... Image File history File links The Tarot de Marseille: XII Le Pendu. ... Le Bateleur, The Mountebank, the first trump in the Tarot de Marseille. ... Easy Cross Sums puzzle The Cross Sums is a very common type of logic puzzle that is often referred to as a mathematical transliteration of the crossword. ... The Empress (III) The Empress (III) is a Major Arcana Tarot card. ...

He is also associated with The Knights of the minor arcana; all these heroes are willing to die for their mission.

His cross sum makes him a solar hero. There are 12 months in a solar year (as opposed to 13 months in the lunar year). In some way he represents the solar cults who rode down and vanquished the old goddess cults (metaphorically or otherwise), though some accommodations were reached. Solar year The period of time required for the earth to make one complete revolution around the sun, measured from one vernal equinox to the next. ... Since there are about twelve lunations (synodic months) in a solar year, this period (354. ... Goddess worship is a general description for the veneration of a female Goddess or goddesses. ...

When Key 21 (The World) is placed above The Hanged Man, it makes an ankh, the Egyptian symbol of life, another association with The Empress. He represents the deal life made with death; that in return for reproduction, we are mortal. This is illustrated by the death of Osiris; even though Isis brings him back again and again, in the end, she has to be satisfied with leaving him in the underworld and using her arts to conceive a child with him. Their child, Horus, is a sun god, and in some sense, Osiris reborn. The World (XXI) The World (XXI) is a trump card in the tarot deck. ... For other uses, see Ankh (disambiguation). ... The Empress (III) The Empress (III) is a Major Arcana Tarot card. ... This article discusses the ancient goddess Isis. ... For other uses, see Horus (disambiguation). ... A solar deity is a deity who represents the Sun. ...

The Hanged Man is every hero committed enough to the adventure to die for it.

The Hanged Man's association with the Empress can be ennobling or pathological. If the Empress is the object of desire, the Hanged Man is the one who desires. That desire can be destructively consuming or defining. If the Hanged Man appears with the Empress, it can signal consuming longing.

When he appears in a throw, he often signals a past sacrifice (of the Querent or otherwise) whose energy is either still enriching the Querent's life or being misspent. He can also represent a sacrifice the Querent is being set up to make. That can be a good thing (initiating the Querent into the mysteries, saving the world) or not so much (duping the Querent into an unwise sacrifice). He may also signal something about the person's relationship with their partner or parent. A Querent is an individual who goes to some form of psychic reader - whether Tarot, runes, etc. ...

Trivia

• His leg position is the same - though upside down - to that of The Emperor (from Tarot de Marseille, forming the number 4 or Jupiter sign)
• Odin hung from a tree to gain enlightenment.
• Saint Peter was crucified upside-down.
• A boss character from The House of the Dead is named after this Tarot card. He is a gargoyle-like zombie with a pair of giant wings. He attacks by charging and summoning bats. He is also one of the few bosses capable of intelligent speech.
• In the X/1999 Tarot version made by CLAMP, The Hanged Man is Subaru Sumeragi
• The Jeffery Deaver book, "The Twelfth Card", includes a character who leaves the card "The Hanged Man" at the crime scene.
• Tarot cards are used throughout much of Europe to play Tarot card games such as French Tarot and Austrian Königrufen. In English-speaking and Spanish- speaking countries, where the games are largely unknown, Tarot cards came to be utilized primarily for divinatory purposes.
• American psychotherapist Sheldon Kopp used The Hanged Man as a title to one of his books, sub-titled Psychotherapy and the Forces of Darkness (ISBN 0-8314-0036-6) as a metaphor for a stage in life felt to be comprised primarily of stagnation and despair and rebirth into a renewed life.
• British novelist Lindsay Clarke used The Hanged Man as a chapter title in his novel The Chymical Wedding: A Romance (ISBN 0-330-30968-4). The Chymical Wedding won the Whitbred award for best novel in 1989. John Fowles wrote 'The best reason to read The Chymical Wedding is ... it offers us: keen insights into human characters and a vital rendering of the perilous bliss and darkest imaginings of our fragile world.'
• In 1945 Mussolini was hanged upside down after his death in Piazzale Loreto, Milano.
• The Hanged Man and other members of the Tarot pack are alluded to in T.S.Eliot's poem The Waste Land.
• An image almost identical to The Hanged Man is one of the nine images appearing in the book The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows by Aristide Torchia in the film The Ninth Gate. The plot of the movie revolves around interpretation of these images.

The Emperor (IV) The Emperor (IV) is a Major Arcana Tarot card. ... Le Bateleur, The Mountebank, the first trump in the Tarot de Marseille. ... For other uses, see Jupiter (disambiguation). ... For other meanings of Odin,Woden or Wotan see Odin (disambiguation), Woden (disambiguation), Wotan (disambiguation). ... “St Peter” redirects here. ... Flag Ship from the video game Gorf A boss is an enemy-based challenge in video games that, once encountered, stops the games progression until the player is able either to surmount the enemy or is thwarted by it. ... The House of the Dead is a first-person, light gun arcade game released in 1996 by Sega. ... X/1999, an early work of the hit all female manga-ka group CLAMP, details the apocalypse in a very literal adaptation of the Book of Revelation. ... Jeffery Deaver (born May 6, 1950, in Glen Ellyn, Illinois) is a mystery/crime writer. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... Austrian-style 54-card Tarock hand: the Fool; six trumps; King, Queen, 1 of hearts. ... It has been suggested that Tarocchi be merged into this article or section. ... Austrian-style 54-card Tarock hand: Königrufen (The Calling of a King Tarock) is a 4 player Tarock variant played in Austria and nearby areas in Central Europe. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... The High Priestess, card number 2 in the major arcana. ... Sheldon Kopp was a psychotherapist and author, based in Washington, D.C.. He was born in 1929 in New York City, and received his PhD from the New School of Social Research. ... Lindsay Clarke (born 1939, Halifax, West Yorkshire) is a British novelist. ... John Robert Fowles John Robert Fowles (March 31, 1926 – November 5, 2005) was an English novelist and essayist. ... Benito Mussolini created a fascist state through the use of propaganda, total control of the media and disassembly of the working democratic government. ... Thomas Stearns Eliot, OM (September 26, 1888–January 4, 1965) was a poet, dramatist and literary critic, whose works, such as The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, The Waste Land, The Hollow Men, and Four Quartets, are considered major achievements of twentieth century Modernist poetry. ... The Waste Land (1922)[1] is a highly influential 434-line modernist poem by T. S. Eliot. ... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... The Ninth Gate is a mystery/Horror thriller/Neo noir film based on the novel The Club Dumas by Arturo Pérez-Reverte. ...

References

• A. E. Waite's 1910 Pictorial Key to the Tarot
• Hajo Banzhaf, Tarot and the Journey of the Hero (2000)
• Most works of Joseph Campbell
• Juliette Wood, Folklore 109 (1998):15-24, The Celtic Tarot and the Secret Tradition: A Study in Modern Legend Making (1998)
• T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land"
• Francesca Lia Block, The Hanged Man (1999)

Arthur Edward Waite (October 2, 1857 _ May 19, 1942) was an occultist and co-creator of the Rider-Waite Tarot deck. ... The Pictorial Key to the Tarot is A. E. Waites influential guide to Tarot symbolism, published in 1910 in conjunction with the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. ... For other uses, see Joseph Campbell (disambiguation). ... Thomas Stearns Eliot (September 26, 1888 - January 4, 1965), was a major Modernist Anglo-American poet, dramatist, and literary critic. ... The Waste Land (1922)[1] is a highly influential 434-line modernist poem by T. S. Eliot. ...

External links

• "Hanged Man" cards from many decks and articles to the iconography