There’s something about a new year coming around that brings freshness with it – the idea that we have turned a corner in time that somehow negates the past year to a certain extent, and have a clear new board to start writing our stories on.
Numerologicaly speaking, 2021 is a 5 year (2+0+2+1=5) In Tarot terms, that means 2021 belongs to the realm of the Hierophant.
The Hierophant is a polarising figure in the Tarot because of it’s similarity to figures from organised, patriarchal religious orders that has given a lot of us who are not committed to that path a terrible amount of prejudice and persecution over the centuries. I have known readers who have visceral reactions to this card; something in this or past lives rebels against the image instinctively, and they find it difficult to reconcile themselves to the card and read with it.
As an energy, the Hierophant, like any Major Arcana card, presents a multi faceted picture. The opportunities and challenges it presents form the theme of what 2021 holds for us as a whole.
So what can we expect from a Hierophant year? What are the areas we can expect to see movement in?
The Teacher/Student Space
A really good way of looking at the Hierophant card is as a Teacher. You are either being called to teach a subject you are awesomely adept at, or to find a teacher in a field you have been drawn to. That teacher can be in any form in this day and age – internet, book, podcast, mentorship. A teacher doesn’t have to be there physically to have an impact on your journey and learning. The Year of the Hierophant can very much be a year of the Teacher-Student journey, one where learning is elevated and experiences serve as lessons for deeper understanding.
There is a responsibility endowed onto you should you enter the Teaching space – you are disseminating sacred knowledge, preparing your students in your lineage to do the same in the future. Make sure it’s a desire to teach, and not the power/ego soothing that comes with having students look to you that is your motivator. Be sure to be teaching from your reservoir of inner wisdom trainer then repeating ingrained dogma.
Institutions/Organisations
For a very long time, the Hierophant stood for customs, traditions and the organisations in society that held them. While this thinking is starting to pivot, it is interesting to pose the question to yourself – how do I “fit in” with traditional societal structures, or ideas about gender, sexuality, spirituality, career, family, etc? Ironically, a lot of us on the myriad of paths that see us come into contact with Tarot are not people who typically “fit in” in one way or another, which gives some reason as to why the Hierophant has been such a difficult card for a lot of readers to work with. Perhaps issues like this will come to you over the year that see you question the “should nots” and “could nots” in your life – where did they come from, do they still have meaning for you, have they inhibited you in some way, limited your growth? How do you overcome this?
This year could see continued questioning of governing bodies, or organisations that have traditionally had a lot of influence in society – are they serving the needs of the people? Are they relevant in their current form? What do we as a society need from them and how do we keep them accountable?
For some of us, we see the word government or institution and think “systematic oppression” based on our negative experiences. Don’t forget that there is healing in the Hierophant card – perhaps this cards energy for you this year is working through that and healing from it.
Spirituality
There are two sides to spirituality in the Tarot; one is represented by the High Priestess, the raw, innate inner knowing, connection and gifts we all possess, and the Hierophant, who represents the systemisation of spiritual experience, the practice of keeping & passing knowledge and traditions to the society they serve.
I often see the Hierophant as the medium between worlds, the Connector, the Gateway through which the spiritual passes through to the mundane. We need Hierophant in all forms in society – not the ones who have allowed ego to overtake their duty, the ones who serve truly to do the spiritual work needed in community.
We need community in spiritual work – it’s just too lonely and weird to do all this alone. The Hierophant is about spiritual authority – who has it in your life, how is it manifested? Organised religion and its dogmatic ways are being looked over in favour of individual paths and connections to the divine – it’s not just a Pope or Priest or Rabbi that stands in for the Hierophant now. It’s the Tarot readers, the Healers, the Diviners, the holders of sacred space and circles, and so many more.
A Hierophant year could see you turning to those you have appointed a spiritual authority in your life as an extra resource to help on your individual journey and connection to the Divine. Someone has something you need, and to move forward you need to reach out.
A Hierophant year can also see you defining your own spirituality, finding your tribe, questioning your religious upbringing and being mindful of who you give spiritual authority to.
Here’s to the energy of the Hierophant and its guiding force over 2021.