The Hermit - The Way to Wisdom

Normally when I draw a card each day I don't usually ask a question. I do pay attention to how the card relates to my life and perhaps to what is going on around me. Tonight I asked a closed question, which really doesn't lead to a very clear answer and opposed to an open ended question. What I think my psyche was really asking, was how to find the way to wisdom, and this is what my answer directly related to.

Often when it comes to reading the Tarot we might not like the answers revealed relating to our question. We want a happily ever after scenario, which is magical thinking and not realistic.

This was the case today when I pulled The Hermit in hopes I'd get an answer that I wanted to hear as opposed to what I actually needed to hear. This card is the image of The Fool's last moral lesson. Here is the mythic image of Cronos, who's name means time, carries the lamp of insight and understanding that has come from loneliness and patient waiting, which The Hermit card implies.

The lesson and the gift of patience with the limitations of our mortal life and with solitude, comes self-discovery and then comes acceptance. This is the way to wisdom.

There is no crystal ball into the future, and I'm sure as heck not a psychic. I think often times we know the answers to many of our questions before we even ask, but we often need to see a kind of tangible clarity that lies within the archetypal meaning of the cards, reflecting our present situation, and what's going on within our psyche.

We can't always get what we want, but I do believe we get what we need, and this will help us to find the way to wisdom. The Hermit's lamp is the beacon of light in the dark, pointing us in the right direction along our path.





Then flash the wings returning summer calls
Through the deep arches of her forest halls.
–Oliver Wendell Holmes (1841–1935)

The Emperor - Holding His Emotion

I so down with aspects of The Emperor and what he represents. I know it's my own issues with authority figures and I'm often uncomfortable, weary and I often question authority.

The power of Zeus's personality gives me pause to think, as he grew up with a violent, sociopathic father Cronos, who killed his five children except for Zeus. Cronos had intended Zeus to be among his murdered children but his mother presented Cronos with a swaddled stone instead of a baby, which Cronos promptly swallowed. Zeus escaped his fate at the hands of his violent father thanks to his mother Rhea, who'd saved her son's life.

Zeus representing both the positive and negative aspects of the father, he typifies the archetypal man who holds his emotion in check, with the kind of personality that could become oppressive, tyrannical with ideologies that interfere with life and personal growth.

Zeus's dark side can express rigidity, self-righteousness, inflexibility, arrogance, anger, and vindictiveness when and if his authority is challenged. This negative and destructive part of Zeus's personality is the worst  face of authority, is an abuse of power and control, embodying so much of what is wrong with our world today.

Many of us can be dominated by an inner dialogue and a scenario that we can repeatedly replay and act out in our lives, where there exists a dominating inner father, which restricts and constrains our relationships and happiness, especially if we've had emotionally unavailable or absentee fathers for whatever reason. It's been my own personal experience that we have to find ways to heal from this legacy or we are bound to repeat it with the next generation, passing it on to our own children, and on to our children's children.

The positive characteristics of The Emperor encourage us to foster self-respect, self-discipline, the spiritual ideals and ethical principles we need, in order to meet life's challenges, learning to rely on our own
resources and or to learn how to reparent ourselves if necessary.

The Hermit - Solitude and Silence

The Hermit is the last of the moral lessons the Fool must learn. The lesson of time and the limitations of mortality, and to know and accept that human beings are all ultimately alone. It might sound cynical to say, but there is no 'happily ever after', and there is no one to rescue us to 'make it all better.'

Living in a very rural, coastal and rather isolated place lends itself to really getting in touch with my 'inner hermit'. If I didn't know and accept, deep within myself that this was true, I would've never decided to live here. The silence would be deafening, and the solitude would feel like a kind of confinement. and I'd have to leave.
 It's a conscious decision to self-impose solitude and silence, no matter where we are. If a person isn't comfortable in their own skin, such a psychological introspective location of the mind will never do.

The Hermit is a card I rarely draw, but I am reminded that for me today, it's arrived at just the right time. Regardless if one is alone or in a relationship, it's essential be comfortable, and to even want to spend time alone. It is during this alone time when and where we renew ourselves, and can be quiet enough to hear that quiet voice that has important things to say to us, gives insight, wisdom and discernment in making decisions. 

Taking the time to make solitude and silence a priority in our busy lives enriches our relationship with spirit, with others, and with the God of our own understanding.

The Hermit - Who's In Charge of Your Attitude?

Generally my attitude toward life is to know I am blessed, especially because I see how much I have to be grateful for. Don't get me wrong, there are days when I can feel like, well what my late husband use to describe feeling like re-fried shit, and needless to say, on those days my positive attitude can be lacking, if not non-existent.You get the picture.

There are also many days when I feel really blessed, especially when I know the universe and the God of my understanding provides a day of synchronicity and where I get the clear message that whispers to me, "you are blessed." I love those days!

This is the kind of day I had today.  My day started with learning about Charles Swindoll. Actually with Marie Forleo, who told me about Charles Swindoll.  He said this. 

"Life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it."


" The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, gift, or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes. 

Charles Swindoll 

Next thing that happened was I got to do my laundry. I know I must sound like I've gone completely doolally, but no I haven't. Why doing my laundry made me feel so blessed was because for many months I have had some serious plumbing issues, and I haven't been able to get fixed for one reason or another. My sweet neighbour friend Tex that I'd blogged about, who had been on the program Canada's Worst Handyman,  and who had magnificently fixed my plumbing problem. 

I have had a washing machine for some time now, that was very generously given to me. But because of my plumbing issues, I haven't been able to do any laundry, unless at someone else's house. 

Today my friend Tex once again arrived to install more pipes, and to hook up my washing machine! I was never so happy and excited to do laundry in my life! I wasn't able to pay him, but he was thrilled to be given one of my horse portrait oil paintings, an old bike I no longer used, that he was going to give his wife, and a brand new sweet kitty for his little daughter. It made me feel so good, twice blessed really.

So what does this have to do with Tarot? Drawing The Hermit this evening was a confirmation, and an affirmation. The lamp that Cronos, the ancient god, whose name means time, carries the lamp of insight and understanding, gleaned from being alone and having a willingness to patiently wait. With this, comes a wisdom, a developed mind and heart, a firm sense of identity, and a deep respect for one's own limitations. And for the blessing of being in charge of my attitude today, I'm very grateful.

Ace of Pentacles - New Beginnings

Poseidon, seen here in the Ace of Pentacles, is a real big guy, the son of Cronos and Rhea, brother to Hades and Zeus. He is the "husband of the earth", the god of fertility, of all the waters and of the earth's surface, possessing great power and strength. Poseidon is a mover and a shaker.

All the Aces are powerful, always representing new beginnings and innovative ideas.
Here we find a wellspring of raw energy toward creativity and inspiration. The Ace of Pentacles symbolizes the material plane, in the form of the physical body or monetary things.


Since paying off my mortgage in November I am finally beginning to feel less of a financial burden. Struggling on your own so long is a real challenge. As much as I can stress about this pressure, I really wouldn't have changed it, because it has made me the person I am, and I have come to greatly love, and appreciate the kindnesses of others toward me. I have learned a lot about myself, some positive, some negative, which is all part of the learning process in the cycle of life

The little pleasures have so much to offer us, and if we can't appreciate them, no sum of money, or things will ever bring happiness.
When we are little, we have a true sense of awe, wonder and joy, taking such pleasure in simple things, and time spent with those we love and who love us.
A day at the beach with my little cousins, picking berries, spending time in the garden with my grandfather, exploring the woods, playing with my dog, or feeling such excitement over the first snow fall, were all things I remember, and I think it is important to be in close touch with these things to keep them at the forefront of my mind, knowing it is the simple things and especially our relationships, is where we find real pleasure, happiness and wealth.

 Yesterday I was very sad to learn of the death of another beautiful friend, who was a very kind, down to earth, humble man, who was very much loved and respected. Lately there have been a number of people that have died in our close knit community, that will be greatly missed.

The weather today is very Wintery with a storm in progress, but it doesn't bother me one bit, because I am appreciating the simple things.
I put on a big pot of chili in my slow cooker for supper. I finally got my internet going after being able to get myself a new router yesterday, my car insurance paid, and am well prepared for a power outage or a flat tire because I was able to afford some kerosene for my lamp, and a handy-dandy emergency, portable air compressor, and good sized order of groceries. My good neighbour just arrived to plow me out.

Life is sweet, beautiful, good, and so very transitory. I intend to savour every minute, as it is, for however long it is. I am grateful for life, every day.

The Hermit - The Way To Wisdom

I love the Hermit card, as I have always had a thirst to understand spiritual matters. This is a card of strong healing, as a result of solitude, loneliness, patience, and from which comes, insight and understanding.

 Who is this Hermit? He is the ancient God Cronos, who's name means time. The Fool, the first Major Arcana card of the Tarot deck, has four moral lessons to learn, and the last of these, is the lesson of time within the cycle of life, and the lesson of mortality.

Deciding to move to the countryside, being in close contact with nature, has allowed me to focus my mind and heart. Through quite reflection, and the solitude of living alone has provided me with serenity amidst the storms of life.

Spending my childhood and early youth, and early adulthood in the city, I understand all that it has to offer. As an adult I came to the realization I was unhappy, and that I was the only person responsible for my own happiness. After asking myself, when was I the happiest in life, the answer came to me immediately. It was when I spent hours in the country. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to now live in rural Nova Scotia for twenty years.

Some folks don't understand why someone would want to live in the country. I understand why folks want to live in more urban city locations, but I know I would be very unhappy, and out of touch with that serenity and solace, that I had longed for since I was a child.

There is a deep part of my soul that has become the Hermit, and believe this is why I identify with this card so much.

 I think of the wise words that the late Robin Williams echos my thoughts and feelings about the Hermit.

  " I used to think the worst thing in life is to end up all alone. It's not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel all alone." 

Canada Geese - The View From My Studio - Catherine Meyers Photography