Cult of Tarot Forum

This card is brimming with symbolism so I am going to take a stab at some of it and really hope for some help to fill in the many blanks I shall leave.

The High Priestess is probably one of the most "popular" of all the cards of the Tarot. She's the one I suspect most people fancy represents them. And of course we do, just look her. She's beautiful and wise and spiritual and complex. Just like we all are.


Waite even says that in many respects she is "the highest and holiest of the Greater Arcana."

I would never seek to de-mystify her if that were even possible. But let's take a look at how she is portrayed here.

The High Priestess, as I understand her is about knowledge, or rather the wisdom that comes with knowledge. She's the patron saint of the Undeclared Major, learning for the sake of broadening the mind and spirit. She is able to advise on complex situations as they arise by drawing on a wide base of experience, but not necessarily directly. Her insights may appear mystical but they are not mystical so much as they are highly skilled intuition and highly tuned instinct developed through much effort. "Miracles" are often attributed to what I would call "High Priestess Moments," instances when events seem to be influenced by unseen forces, but are really the result of skilled (even if unconscious) human interventions.

Now lets look at the symbols on the card:

She is holding the Tora, she wears a crucifix and has a crescent moon at her feet. So 3 major religions are covered. She is a student of spiritual topics and has synthesised all the information into a broad understanding of what moves the hearts and minds of mankind.

She is flanked on either side by pillars bearing the initials which stand for Boaz and Jachin. This Priestess is guarding the gates of the temple of Solomon whose pillars bore these same letters. (More information on how this temple and these pillars could figure into interpretations of the card would be very appreciated!)

These pillars were also engraved with...

Pomegranates, lots of them. And on this card they appear on the wall or curtain behind the High Priestess. Because pomegranates have so many seeds, they have been associated with abundance, though abundance of exactly what depends on where you are looking but I think this versatility makes it a great symbol for tarot reading. Fitting with the spirit of this card, it could be an abundance of knowledge or wisdom. However, there is a strong cultural tendency to always associate female characters with fecundity so many will say that is the abundance these fruits represent.

Due to their chambered structure, almost honeycomb like, pomegranates are also a symbol of unity and oneness. There are many many legends and myths associated with the Pomegranate (could it have been the "apple"in the Garden of Eden?) from all over the world and through the ages. Far too many to list here.

What is your connection to the High Priestess? How do interpret the symbols in this card, what does she bring to your readings?

I recently noticed something about this card that I'd overlooked in the past - i.e. that the bottom of her robe seems to be (or have become) foam-flecked waves that wash over the centre of the crescent at her feet. They could almost have washed under the pomegranate curtain from the body of water behind it. It's more obvious in the cards that show her dressed in blue. The Moon/tides/feminine connection is the first thing that comes to mind for this symbolism, but Waite doesn't mention water in The Pictorial Key to the Tarot - all he says re. her robe is: The vestments are flowing and gauzy, and the mantle suggests light--a shimmering radiance.

Here's a link to The High Priestess from The Pictorial Key to the Tarot at Sacred Texts.

Pen:

Waite doesn't mention water

once again, Waite is next to useless. water is obviously a huge factor in the HP card - it corresponds to the female water suit Cups and therefore love, the subconscious, the mystical, and familial ties. the HP is affiliated with Pisces, the mutable water sign - water of water as it were - the last sign of the Zodiac. water is the essence of life on earth. and it definitely is in the background of the card and seeping in as it were between the 2 pillars. this suggests the circularity of water - its cycle from rain to rivers to sea - as well as our drinking it to survive, being 9/10th water, and passing it as well. the HP is porous, she lets the water in; she is liminal and liminality.

further to this, the HP is sometimes considered a falsehood - for instance, her association with Pope Joan. i contend she represents reality and truth, hidden away from the world - arguably, by the Hierophant. in this way she is represented by Persephone, held captive in Hades, hence the pomegranates. her familiarity with Christianity/Islam/Judaism suggests she finds the common thread in all of them, rather than being a zealot of "my way or the highway" religion. she is the calm at the center of the storm; the camel in the eye of the needle. in this way, she is the opposite of the Hierophant, who uses his position for earthly gain, to control humanity, and has not only lost touch with God, but corrupts and traduces Him.

combining the life-giving properties of water, the end-of-cycle aspect of Pisces, and the metaphor of Persephone, this card represents what has been called The Eleusinian Mysteries. the 3 pomegranate seeds Persephone eats underground mean that for 1/4 of the year, she must return to her subterranean captivity, hidden from the world. in this way, she represents the seed itself, reborn in spring sustaining the cycle of life on earth.

.

Joan Marie wrote: ↑25 Nov 2018, 17:16
She is flanked on either side by pillars bearing the initials which stand for Boaz and Jachin. This Priestess is guarding the gates of the temple of Solomon whose pillars bore these same letters. (More information on how this temple and these pillars could figure into interpretations of the card would be very appreciated!)

I was trying to find out more about this today. Apparently freemasons use pillars representing Boaz and Jachin in their lodges. There are differing theories as to what they symbolise. Here are just some briefly:

- Boaz means 'strength' and Jachin means 'establish'
- Jachin typifies unity from being, Boaz unity from love
- They represent harmony and balance/male -female/active-passive
- They represent two of the three pillars of the Jewish Tree of Life

Since Solomon's pillars were originally supposed to have been made of bronze, there must be a significance to Waite's use of black and white, (suggesting symbology of yin-yang/light-dark/active-passive/seen-unseen/conscious-subconscious etc.). This could fit with the theory they represent harmony and balance. Solomon's pillars were also decorated with many pomegranates, so perhpas that's why they were included in the card also.

I came across these articles if you want to go into detail concerning the history and theories about them. I'm sure you can find many others too. I think you could spend quite a long time just exploring this one aspect of the cards (and not necessarily come to a definitive conclusion...)
http://www.rimasons.org/trestleboard/21 ... az-joachim
https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jachin-and-boaz
http://www.templesecrets.info/pillars.html
https://www.sacred-texts.com/eso/thp/thp22.htm
http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/l ... lliam.html

Also 1 Kings 7:13-46 gives the construction which I'll include here (from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?s ... ersion=NIV)

"...Huram was filled with wisdom, with understanding and with knowledge to do all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all the work assigned to him.
He cast two bronze pillars, each eighteen cubits high and twelve cubits in circumference. He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars; each capital was five cubits high. A network of interwoven chains adorned the capitals on top of the pillars, seven for each capital. He made pomegranates in two rows encircling each network to decorate the capitals on top of the pillars. He did the same for each capital. The capitals on top of the pillars in the portico were in the shape of lilies, four cubits high. On the capitals of both pillars, above the bowl-shaped part next to the network, were the two hundred pomegranates in rows all around. He erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. The pillar to the south he named Jakin[g] and the one to the north Boaz.The capitals on top were in the shape of lilies. And so the work on the pillars was completed."

Pen wrote: ↑28 Nov 2018, 14:43 Waite doesn't mention water

I hear this sentiment a lot but I find him to be amusingly vague. I do think he expected the cards to speak for themselves. It seems he valued mystery and our own journey to uncovering things.

As for the water, I like to observe the image and see where it takes me:

The water looks deep and still. It feels dark and full of secrets. I think about the deepest parts of the ocean, where mysterious and unknown creatures lurk. With all of our modern science, we still haven't uncovered the deepest parts of the ocean! (Talking about the subconscious here!) The ocean is also crucial to our entire ecosystem--the health of the Earth. I also notice, interestingly, that the water doesn't go forever to the horizon. There is land on the other side. This might suggest a large undertaking to reach the other side. But how harmful could a big, seemingly peaceful body of water be?

I also wonder about the water in all the other cards and thinking of one continual body. Is this the deepest body of water in the deck? Is it where all the other bodies originate, or where they flow to?

Thanks for the insights everyone!

personally, I think Waite is not only intentionally vague but intentionally misleading. knowledge is a journey, and if you explain the journey people will stay at home watching tv thinking they've been there, done that.

the HP is the number 2 card, represented in Hebrew as Beth meaning house. this could represent mother earth in a sense, or the seat of learning, or the body as temple, or the tabernacle and the holy of holies (hence, Solomon).

We all fancy being her. Astrologically, she's one of mine: "Moon in Scorpio in house 12, the moon as symbol for the lunar consciousness, Scorpio standing for the powers of the unconscious. House 12 stands for the mysteries." I have a lot of stuff going on in my Scorpio house 12 - Moon, Neptune, and North Node conjunct - and I can vouch for the fact that it pretty much means diddly squat if you don't work at it. And didn't Crowley totally spill Waite's GD beans? https://www.corax.com/tarot/cards/priestess.html

But we're only at II. Remember that. She's a Major, but a very low Major. She's set herself up on a throne, she knows some things, but not everything. Again, Pope Joan, a bit of a pretender. Her aspirations are honorable, other than the self-aggrandizement. The drive is "The desire to find the inner sources, the own springs". We're at desire here. The work has a long way to go.

BlueStar wrote: ↑28 Feb 2019, 18:32

Joan Marie wrote: ↑25 Nov 2018, 17:16
She is flanked on either side by pillars bearing the initials which stand for Boaz and Jachin. This Priestess is guarding the gates of the temple of Solomon whose pillars bore these same letters. (More information on how this temple and these pillars could figure into interpretations of the card would be very appreciated!)

I was trying to find out more about this today. Apparently freemasons use pillars representing Boaz and Jachin in their lodges. There are differing theories as to what they symbolise. Here are just some briefly:

- Boaz means 'strength' and Jachin means 'establish'
- Jachin typifies unity from being, Boaz unity from love
- They represent harmony and balance/male -female/active-passive
- They represent two of the three pillars of the Jewish Tree of Life

Since Solomon's pillars were originally supposed to have been made of bronze, there must be a significance to Waite's use of black and white, (suggesting symbology of yin-yang/light-dark/active-passive/seen-unseen/conscious-subconscious etc.). This could fit with the theory they represent harmony and balance. Solomon's pillars were also decorated with many pomegranates, so perhpas that's why they were included in the card also.

I came across these articles if you want to go into detail concerning the history and theories about them. I'm sure you can find many others too. I think you could spend quite a long time just exploring this one aspect of the cards (and not necessarily come to a definitive conclusion...)
http://www.rimasons.org/trestleboard/21 ... az-joachim
https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jachin-and-boaz
http://www.templesecrets.info/pillars.html
https://www.sacred-texts.com/eso/thp/thp22.htm
http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/l ... lliam.html

Also 1 Kings 7:13-46 gives the construction which I'll include here (from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?s ... ersion=NIV)

"...Huram was filled with wisdom, with understanding and with knowledge to do all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all the work assigned to him.
He cast two bronze pillars, each eighteen cubits high and twelve cubits in circumference. He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars; each capital was five cubits high. A network of interwoven chains adorned the capitals on top of the pillars, seven for each capital. He made pomegranates in two rows encircling each network to decorate the capitals on top of the pillars. He did the same for each capital. The capitals on top of the pillars in the portico were in the shape of lilies, four cubits high. On the capitals of both pillars, above the bowl-shaped part next to the network, were the two hundred pomegranates in rows all around. He erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. The pillar to the south he named Jakin[g] and the one to the north Boaz.The capitals on top were in the shape of lilies. And so the work on the pillars was completed."

Super summary! There is clearly imagery/symbolism of the temple here. The paradox of it all is the mix of earthy pomegranates, cradle moon, and silvery, watery lower robes between the polar, enclosing masonic pillars-- vitality of nature meets receptive meditation. Journey towards wholeness. Mysterious!

One of my favorite cards in the RWS, though it took me reaching middle age to appreciate her properly. I had to slow down, calm down, become more reflective and meditative in my own lifestyle to be receptive to the wisdom of this card.

She is everything The Magician is not and that is intentional. He is the Yang archetype and she is the Yin. He is active, she is receptive. He reaches for and channels energy through Willpower and Desire. She is the receiver of divine knowledge who does not have to act physically or psychologically the same way. She is the mystic who exists in a state of consciousness where the Divine makes itself known all on its own.

The water behind her is that of the deepest shared human unconsciousness, the realm of archetypal reality. We can only reach it by awakening the part of ourselves that the High Priestess represents and opening ourselves up to receive it.

... sadly for me, I'm still the sort of person who does better at awakening their Inner Magician vs. their Inner High Priestess. I need to consider how to bring both of them into better equilibrium in my own life.