Tarot card meanings have been explored for centuries, and one of the most notable major arcana cards is the Hierophant. You might have pulled this card and are now asking yourself: “What is the Hierophant meaning?”
Tarot is a form of divination, meaning it is used to predict the future. Tarot cards are designed to be a tool for exploring human awareness, which means that we can use them in any circumstance.
The Hierophant card stands for someone knowledgeable and understanding with faith and religion.
I am here to teach you about the different divination meanings of this card, its position in the tarot deck, representation, and most importantly, what meaning this card brings with it.
The Hierophant Meaning: Understanding The Major Arcana Card
In a tarot reading, The Hierophant card depicts a man knowledgeable in matters of faith and religion. He is someone who has spiritual guidance, energy protection, and lightheartedness.
This card also relates to education, teaching, and knowledge, as you cannot learn if you don’t have faith. Therefore, the Hierophant meaning is guidance and teaching, with a certain emphasis on education.
The Hierophant tarot card can represent someone in charge giving you advice or counsel or passing on information about something. This person might be your boss or teacher but can also be anyone who has knowledge that you do not.
The lessons you learn symbolized by this card is about supplying someone with the knowledge to help them succeed in their endeavors or teach them how to do something they need to know how to do.
When comparing this card to the others in the tarot deck, we see that it is the male version of the High Priestess.
Today, we can look at the Hierophant and think of the High priest, the Pope, a religious figure, the emperor, or other male figures of authority regardless of spiritual beliefs.
If you’re a beginner to tarot card reading, here are the keywords that relate to the Hierophant upright meaning:
• Master of spiritual practice
• Tradition
• Spiritual wisdom
• Morality and ethics
• Thinking inside the box
The Hierophant Description
The Hierophant is a tarot card that shows a figure wearing elaborate robes, holding a staff in one hand and pointing to the sky with the other. It belongs to the Major Arcana tarot cards and is known as the “dispenser of divine truth.”
He expresses religious authority, spiritual leadership, and guidance from one knowledgeable person to another. We need to understand how this card relates to our present day, so we need to study its symbolism.
In the Rider-Waite Tarot deck, we can see the Hierophant holding a papal cross in his right hand and a three-tiered crown on his head, showing that he is an authoritative figure.
Under the Hierophant’s feet are two keys that, in their own way, show that benediction is at hand and that this person is the key to understanding spiritualism.
Another meaning of the Hierophant lies in his left hand, which symbolizes his blessed teaching and unwavering faith.
He represents the need for spiritual guidance or wisdom and that many answers lie in the spiritual realm. The Hierophant may also represent a moment of enlightenment or a time of spiritual awakening, which can change everything for you.
The Hierophant card is connected to the number five in numerology and shares many similarities with the Priestess. This makes sense as there is an inherent link between knowledge and spirituality.
10 Upright Hierophant Tarot Card Meanings
The world listens to the teachings of the Hierophant and his triple cross, and if he appears in your tarot reading, here is what it means:
1. Religious rules
As one might expect from seeing the Hierophant, the card represents religious rules. If you’ve pulled this card from your tarot deck and can’t seem to figure out the tarot meaning, just look at the card’s symbolism.
In any case, this card might be telling you that you need to follow some rules. Of course, these rules don’t need to be religious. They can also be rules you need to follow if you want to stay in a long-term relationship.
2. Look to tradition
The Hierophant is a card of tradition, and it can represent someone who has a lot of experience in their field. The Hierophant is often associated with the Pope or other religious leaders.
This is why the meaning behind that card can be to look to tradition or find your answers in tradition. Of course, this can be a simple hand kiss or something more intricate in your past, only you know.
3. Normality
The Hierophant tarot card meaning normally refers to someone who has a lot of knowledge and wisdom, and they are usually seen as someone who can teach others about everyday life and what they know.
The Hierophant meaning might be hidden under the cloak of religion and spiritualism. This is why this card might be telling you that you need to challenge your normality and see if your relationship habits are toxic.
4. Is it moral and ethical?
The Hierophant is the card of morality. It is a card that signifies the need to be moral and follow the rules.
What does any of this have to do with you? This card is telling you to ask yourself if you’re doing something wrong.
Are you in an open relationship? Did you cheat on your partner? This card is questioning your ethics and making you apologize for cheating .
5. Agape love
If the Hierophant appears in a love reading, it might mean the partners are doing everything right in their relationship and might be reaching the highest form of devotion: agape love.
Of course, this also might mean you are on a deep spiritual journey with your partner. There is nothing better than experiencing spiritual love, which is a great love omen.
6. Think of your values
The Hierophant can be a great teacher, mentor, or guide in your life. This card represents someone who has a deep understanding of spirituality and values.
If this card appeared in your reading, it means that you might be ignoring the core values every couple should have or that you don’t know the value of love.
Also, you might want to meet a high-value woman or a high-value man, but you don’t have your values sorted out.
7. Spiritualism
The Hierophant card can represent someone who has spiritual knowledge or someone who has been ordained as a priest. In any case, spiritualism and spiritual balance just shine out of this card.
It might be telling you to set yourself some spiritual goals, become a spiritually empowered woman, or focus on your spiritualism as a whole.
8. Career change or move
The Hierophant tarot card means a career is about being able to see the bigger picture and having a sense of direction. What this card might be telling you is that you’re in for a surprise career or job-wise.
It’s telling you what you need to focus on this year, and it’s most probably your career. It can also mean you are in for a change or move with your job.
9. Focus on the law
No, I don’t mean the law of attraction. I mean the real law. If you pull the Hierophant and Justice card in the same tarot card reading, it is a surefire sign you might be having legal problems.
Especially if you think of the Taurus and yes or no meaning of the Hierophant tarot card, you see that some unforeseeable problems and legal matters might need solving.
10. Wedding is in sight
Are you ready for commitment? It’s not me who’s asking this – it’s the Hierophant. If you pull this card in a reading together with the Lovers, it’s a 100% sign we are talking about marriage.
Get your act straight, think of what marriage really is for you and expect your partner to pop the question soon.
Trust The Hierophant
Yes, it is time you ask yourself: Is the thing I am doing moral? Am I doing the right thing? Maybe this is exactly what the Hierophant is trying to tell you. Maybe you should look to the traditional values you left behind.
In any case, the Hierophant reversed means the exact opposite of this. While we know the Hierophant as the religious father, the reversed Hierophant card meaning is non-conformity and rebellion.
Remember, this card aims to help you in the form of a religious father figure. I hope my article helped you decipher the Hierophant meaning, symbolism, and depiction.