tarot work diary no. 3 | the hierophant, five of wands, ace of wands
this is my weekly tarot work diary, in which I use the cards to draw insights for my artist-business life.
this week, I’m feeling called to consider the role of spiritual leadership (Hierophant) — as an expansion of my role as creative guide, while allowing my own processes to take shape as primal forces of starting energy (Ace of Wands), and embracing the fight (Five of Wands) as a way of creation.
a summary distillation
the hierophant — embodying the spiritual channel
five of wands — embracing the inner fight
ace of wands — birthing in raw, hot stuff
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the hierophant — embodying the spiritual channel
the hierophant is my soul card. it’s a card that’s always perplexed me — the typical reading of it to mean conformity to the traditional structures of religion, culture, and orthodoxy — a conformity which feels like the exact opposite of my personal sense of purpose — which is that of challenging the status quo, and creating my own rules of being in the world.
but as I read interpretations of the Hierophant as more a metaphor for a divine channel of occult wisdom, and as a personal practice of spiritual awareness — I’m thinking of how perhaps this card can feel like an invitation into the role of “spiritual guide,” and simultaneously, pushing me to confront the systems and structures I’m up against — be they spiritual, cultural, or institutional.
reflection questions:
What does the invitation of Hierophant as “spiritual guide” ask of me?
What is my relationship to serving as the Hierophant?
What are the sources of “Hierophant” in my life?
How does the role of Hierophant relate to being an artist, and an entrepreneur?
perhaps I could interpret this card as about spiritual leadership and service — as being a channel and translator for the divine energy. while I’ve never openly claimed a role as a “spiritual guide,” I do think that the act of conversing with inspiration and creative force is a sacred act that requires a deep intuition — bridging the world between the human and the otherworldly/imaginative.
perhaps part of the ongoing invitation, then, is for me to distill down the liminal practices of creativity into processes, systems for others — to access creative spirit within themselves.
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five of wands — embracing the inner fight
Jessica Dore in Tarot for Change frames the five of wands as a metaphor for thinking about the conflicting parts of the self — as outlined in internal family systems therapy.
in 78 Degrees of Wisdom, Rachel Pollack writes:
“It is in the nature of Wands to see life as battle, but in its best sense battle becomes an exciting struggle, early sought after…
“The Fives in general show some difficulty or loss, but the element of Fire translates problems into competition, seen as a way in which people communicate with society and with each other.. they seek not to destroy but only to compete for the sheer joy of action” (78 Degrees of Wisdom)
when I sit with this card, I think of particular creative projects that feel fraught with struggle and the energy of fight — not that the project requires me to fight against it, but that the project itself is born to fight: systems, institutions, the status quo. I also think of work that feels in a sort of stasis because there’s tensions within me, pulling at it from all directions.
reflections:
Which projects or areas of my work life do I feel the most inner conflict around, or resistance towards?
What are the different parts of me at play, in this conflict? What do they desire?
How can they engage in a playful discourse or "play-fight” to resolve this conflict?
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ace of wands — birthing the raw, hot stuff
I absolutely love Jessica Dore’s interpretation of this card — as a force of magic to pull us into the creative, psychic impulse; that which precedes action and creation, that which gives us a sense of direction —
I see the wand as having to do with our desires as well as our “intuitive appraisals” — that initial spark of response within us before we have time to think about what something means…”
“The hot stuff, raw stuff, the stuff with the fire in it. Where the potential for new life and new learning lives. It is the more subtle and less measurable material of the human experience that can and does rule the dense, and when we learn to work with it in service of our growth and evolution, that’s magic. And that’s what the wand does best.” (Tarot for Change)
the ace of wands felt powerful for me — as a channel to sense into the shape of my own creative impulses, particularly those that feel urgent, primal, messy, and elemental — to not be afraid of them, but to embrace them as a gift. it also felt timely, as last week was a week in which I articulated a vision for a new tango project, and birthed a podcast.
reflection questions:
which creative projects carry the energy of Ace of Wands — as a potent beginning?
what does this Ace of Wands energy want to bring forth?
how does it want to bring it forth?
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reflecting on the message
looking at these three cards as a whole —
the Hierophant as a call to step into the role of spiritual leadership
the Five of Wands as a signal of inner conflict & fight instinct in my creative projects
the Ace of Wands opening up a powerful path to new, creative manifestation of what’s most primal and raw
translated into the concrete:
I see an invitation for me to pursue a specific new project that’s been on my mind for a long time (building a digital world about tango) — and all the hot, complicated, mess around gender dynamics that it will open up for me.
I feel called to give myself more space to fight — through my creative projects and visions. perhaps what I need to do is define what I’m fighting against — first and foremost, within myself, but also, externally (ie, power systems, patriarchy, conformity, groupthink, shallowness, toxic masulinity).
I’m curious to explore HOW to step into my role as a “spiritual guide” — traversing both the worlds of the internet + art + spirit. if I were to serve as "Hierophant” / POPE of this church of my own making (where what we worship is The Universal Creative Energy), what advice would I be giving? How would I practice my service and devotion to that Creative Force, in the most giving way that I can?
In thinking of these cards as granting me permission to, I see ROOM TO FIGHT-PLAY (5 of wands), ROOM TO SPIRITUALLY LEAD (hierophant), and ROOM TO CREATE A NEW MESS (ace of wands)