World Spirit Study Group The Hanged Man (12)

Seed Crystal

A muscular, blue man hangs from one foot over a a swirling pool or well. His eyes are closed, and his face focussed and serene. A flowered cord binds his right foot to the bough of a great tree. He holds a rod or staff, its decorations of feathers and shells hang down on either side of him. He holds his left foot near his right knee. His hair hangs into the swirling waters, which hold symbols or runes or patterns.

The imagry (the great tree Yggdrasil, Odin who voluntarily sacrificed his sight by hanging from the tree to be given inner sight and runes) are Norse.
 

flowergrrl

I've seen HM cards that looked very distressful. This one isn't. It seems like he's meditating. Hmmmm, the High Priestess is blue and the Hanged Man is blue. Any reason for the color?
 

Sulis

The World Dancer is blue too, I've heard of a link between these 2 cards before. In most decks the World Dancer and The Hanged Man both have their legs crossed in the shape of the number 4.

Maybe the blue colour is to represent spirituallity, calm, healing (all traditional meanings for the colour blue).

I love this card, I think it's my favorite Hanged Man in all of the decks I've seen. The colours are beautiful and the pool around his head is just gorgeous with all those colours and patterns - it reminds me of the beautiful stained glass window in the 3 of Cups (which is another very spiritual card in this deck). My daughter who's 5 says this is her favorite card in the deck -she calls it 'the man washing his hair card' :)

Love

Sulis xx
 

flowergrrl

Sulis said:
Maybe the blue colour is to represent spirituallity, calm, healing (all traditional meanings for the colour blue).


True. I didn't think about that. Thanks.:)
 

Seed Crystal

Sulis said:
... My daughter who's 5 says this is her favorite card in the deck -she calls it 'the man washing his hair card' :)

I just love that!

Seems such a card of calm determined concentration, very peaceful, expectant and open... this character is caught in a moment, but somehow it make me think of years of spiritual discipline, refined down to one moment of ... spiritual achievement or culmination.
 

RedMaple

Man Washing His Hair Card

Sulis, I'm so glad you posted that....I remembered it from another thread, and have seen it that way since.

I like your thoughts on blue -- isn't Krishna the blue god? I'm not sure what that signifies for him, but I'll look it up.

I love the peacefulness of this card. It captures the spirit of the card so well, I think.

I think of the number 4 as completion - as in the four quarters of the world, four directions, four elements, etc.

RedMaple