Can 'Lucifer' be the Hanged Man #12 card ?
Can 'Lucifer' be the Hanged Man #12 card ? Here are a few depictions of the card for reference first:
The Hanged Man...also known as Perspective....now also known as "Lucifer"....here's why I think this is an awesome pictorial for the meaning (credit to Alannah for first posting this picture @ http://www.templeilluminatus.com/photo/lucifer-by-vkacademy?context... ) :
What is the central meaning for the Hanged Man?
- Letting go...as in accepting God's Will (give me a chance to explain...just a little more)
- Giving up control
- Accepting what is
- Putting others first
NOW WAIT A MINUTE, ERIC !! You said this would all make sense....Lucifer isn't this way!
...TRUE.....and that's my point. He is the card's "shadow side" (or Reversed). The shadow side of every card is the not-so-well known or publicized meanings that are just as much true as the upright meanings...just from a different 'perspective' (like how i tied that all in...LOL)
Lucifer...Satan....the Devil....whoever you may call him....he IS the Hanged Man's other half to complete the whole story.
Let's look at the original card again...upside down or Shadow side:
This way what does the card suggest? The man is now grounded again, able to walk on his OWN TWO FEET, under his OWN power. What about his head? It's still a-glow with enlightenment ! But wait....I thought the man got his enlightenment while hanging upside and submitting? He did....but he also CAN on his own...
...just like Lucifer did !
Remember the first card above said "New Vision"? The figure was 'standing tall' with wings spread, leaving the corpse on the ground that was a slave to the 'old ways'.
..and what about the last card, the one I used in a blog about
'PERSPECTIVE' ( http://www.templeilluminatus.com/profiles/blog/list?tag=hanged&... ) ? The red-haired lady is "outside" the crystal ball prison, in control of her own destiny now...no longer the slave to religion.
Keeping these images in mind lets see the meanings of the Hanged Man again...as it's 'True' other "Shadow"
- Reversing...turning the world around...overturning old priorities
- Seeing things from a new angle or perspective
- Up-Ending the old order...doing an about-face
- Living in the moment...for the NOW !
- Defiance
- Self-assertion
Sound more like the Lucifer you know? Let's look again:
What we are witnessing is the moment Lucifer made his choice to rebel...and just BE HIMSELF ! On the left...heaven...his appointment there, where he was told what to do and had limited choice. On the right, FREEDOM as not a PLACE, but an IDEA....where he stretches his hand out in acceptance (notice the other is more closed with a "shackle of light" restricting it's movement).
Notice, also, the color of his wings: white on left from that of God's control, dark on right to show expansive freedom like that of space. In-between there is a struggle for control, for power, and for self-enlightenment. Both God and now Lucifer know this....the time for a new perspective has come...and Lucifer chose FREE WILL.
Whether I believe in Lucifer or not is unimportant...only the symbolism here to help see the relationship of the meanings of both Light and Shadow...neither one more important than the other....both necessary to the True meaning of the Hanged Man card.
Which side are you? Do you submit to what others tell you is right...or do you find you listen to what your heart tells you? You may have more in common with this card than you previously thought !
Cheers !
Eric "MoonLightTrucker"
Comment
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Comment by Joe B on October 26, 2012 at 5:08am -
I definitely agree with you there regarding one's own drum.
Odin has always been one of my favorites, and my familiarity just makes the association with this card more prominent. there's something regarding "inward" learning there, too, as the hanged man (and Odin) are in a fixed position and not actively (in the physical sense, at least) adventuring for knowledge.
and that's one more association of Odin with shamanism, or of mystical trance (of being "carried away by the Spirit")
for me, he's just so much more interesting than Lucifer, and very paradoxical in certain ways. there are literally hundreds of names for him (many playing on his one eye, grey beard, or wandering nature). he's very much like the original wandering cowboy (think Rooster Cogburn) and in this way, represents that independent and rebellious nature
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Comment by MoonLightTrucker on October 26, 2012 at 12:23am -
F.Y.I.
I didn't know that followers of Lucifer were termed "Left handed"....this brings the meaning of Lucifer's left hand being 'shackled' and restricted by the light to an even more level of interest to me....Hmmm? Sometimes I write what I see even before I completely understand the whole picture....and after I step back....I see it's even more of a shocker !
-Eric MLT
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Comment by MoonLightTrucker on October 26, 2012 at 12:19am
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@ Joe Bonhage...Hey Joe ! Thanks for the input !
I agree with you that it isn't necessarily important to read the cards as "Reversed", although in my experiences I have read them both ways (depending on the deck...and depending on the reading). With the Osho Zen, I do NOT "flip" the cards at all (it's just a feeling I get not to with them). I see your point with relationships of the cards and sometimes proximity to others will flavor the meaning one way or the other. What's more is I am a BIG advocate when it comes to "everyone dancing to their own drum" in regards to what they see, when they see it. I've had people tell me "You're doing it wrong"...only for me to map out years of my life myself in detail that have passed TRUE (while they still don't know what day it is).
I support your way as much as I support mine....as long as it helps you understand ...you're doing it right FOR YOU !
Also thanks for the history lesson...not too familiar with the runes, but you have peeked my interests now. Thanks !
May you stay in your light (whether it be bright or shadow),
Eric MLT
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Comment by Joe B on October 25, 2012 at 11:08pm
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I always associated the Hanged Man with Wotan, the AllFather who hung himself from Yggdrasil and came to the knowledge of the Futhark - the runes, written language
he is also the god of the berserker - of dissolution of or of giving oneself up to the Spirit. the god of war and of death. and also of wisdom, for he sacrificed his eye to drink from the Well of the Wyrd found at the foot of Yggdrasil
in many ways, he is comparable or relatable to Lucifer. indeed, he was demonized by the Christians who eventually subjugated the old, "Heathen" ways of the Norse
in some ways, it could mean that sacrificing your ego desires can lead to more substantial gains - usually pertaining to a perspective, but sometimes indicating something physical that one might be deprived of, etc.
also, I don't interpret "reversals"
for me, determining a card's meaning is more about the relationships between the cards drawn. so a reversed card is just a reversed card, just like I'm the same person whether you're looking at my front or back or I'm standing on my head. I just don't see the cards, or the archetypes behind the cards, as being so 2-dimensional, but more alive
but that's just me
nonetheless, it's an interesting and well-constructed perspective
thanks!
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