An "awakening" is a moment of clarity in which a new insight or understanding is gained. With this new awareness the experience of life is seen differently, and new possibilities are opened. Changes in patterns of thought, emotions, and behavior occur. An awakening allows the possibility of growth to new levels of psychological and spiritual maturity.
Which is a very succinct summation of the Hero's Journey, a journey that I have read a thousand times and that I continue to live in various stages and parts of my life. To my great delight, I recently learned something that I knew once, a long time ago, that links Tarot and the Hero's Journey. You may ask, how can you learn something that you knew? Well, that's easy enough. Some things we learn and forget that we've learned them, or don't know that's how we learned them and then a new connection gets made and we realize that we knew something in a way we couldn't put words to and thus we learn it again.For certain Tarot Card readings, the querent (the person asking the question) is asked to pick a card to represent them. I have always and forever picked the Fool as my card in the deck.
I think, looking back, it's because of how the Tarot was taught to me by my grandmother, who told stories about the cards to guide me in understanding them. More than that, though, it was a tale of how people live and grow, which may be why I so identify with the Fool; but it wasn't until decades later that I learned that the stories she told me were the basics of a hero's tale journey that the Fool goes on, an abbreviated version of which I am about to relate.
The Fool's Journey is a view of the Major Arcana as a metaphor for the journey through life. Each card or set of cards stands for one stage of that journey, different experiences that a person must incorporate to realize wholeness. The descriptions show how each card is connected to those that come before and after.
The Fool
We begin with the Fool (0), a card of beginnings. The Fool is each of us as we begin our journey of life. The Fool is "foolish" because only a simple soul has the innocent faith needed to undertake such a journey with all its hazards and pain. At the start of his trip, the Fool is a newborn - fresh, open and spontaneous. The figure on the card has arms flung wide, and head held high. Ready to embrace whatever comes his way, but seemingly oblivious to the cliff edge he is about to cross. The Fool is unaware of the hardships ahead as he ventures out to learn the lessons of the world.
The Fool stands apart from the rest of the Major Arcana because zero is an unusual number. It is poised between the positive and the negative, just as the Fool is poised at the edge of a precipice. At birth, the Fool is set in the middle of his own individual universe. He is strangely empty (as is zero), but imbued with a desire to go forth and learn. This under taking would seem to be folly, but is it? Only at the end of his journey will the Fool know the answer to that question.
Another important point of the Fool, as postulated by Joseph Campbell when talking about Monomyths, is that he doesn't always pay heed to conventional wisdom. It's not that he ignores it, per se, but when the authority figures are saying, "we've always gone south, we sort of succeed there but we can't go north because no one has ever done that," the hero/fool is the one to goes North because he understands definition of insanity.
The Magician and the High Priestess
The Magician is the "positive" side, representing the active, masculine power of creative impulse. He is also our conscious awareness, the force that allows us to impact the world through a concentration of individual will and power. The High Priestess is the "negative" side, the mysterious unconscious. She provides the fertile ground in which creative events can occur. The High Priestess is our unrealized potential waiting passively for an active principle to bring it to expression.
Do not, however, allow the terms "positive" and "negative" take on the connotations of "good" and "bad," for these are human distinctions that apply to neither the Tarot nor the two concepts represented by the Magician and the High Priestess. The Magician and the High Priestess are absolutely equal in value and importance. Each is necessary for balance. We may view the "negative" as our Shadow, but without shadows, we cannot see the light, and without a ground of potential, we cannot create. That is why I like the Taijitu symbol, since it shows not only two halves but also the two halves intertwined by having a part of each in the middle of the other, represented by the dots of black and white.
The Empress
As he grows, the Fool becomes more and more aware of his surroundings. As with most babies, he first recognizes his Mother - not only the warm, loving woman who nourishes and cares for him, but also Mother Earth, who nurtures him in a larger sense.
The Empress (3) represents the world of Nature and sensation. A baby delights in exploring everything using all senses indiscriminately. He cannot get enough of the sights and sounds that enchant his senses.
So too does any awakened person, no matter how large or small the awakening. If you've ever encountered a smoker or drinker who has stopped smoking or drinking, they will tell you how things are different; how their senses seem to be coming back to life in new ways as they encounter the Empress anew.
The Emperor
The next person the Fool encounters is the Father in the figure of the Emperor (4). He is the representative of structure and authority. As a baby moves out from the safety of his mother's arms, he recognizes that there are patterns to his world. Objects respond in predictable ways that can be explored and learned. The child experiences a new kind of pleasure that comes from discovering order.
The Fool also encounters rules. He learns that his will is not always paramount, that there are certain behaviors that are necessary for his well-being and that there are people in authority who will enforce such guidelines. These restrictions can be frustrating, but through the patient direction of the Father, the Fool begins to understand their purpose.
Not only that, but the Empress and Emperor are joined much the way that the Magician and High Priestess are. While the Empress is loving and nurturing, she also has rules. Mother Nature offers an abundant feast for the senses but the beauty of diving a coral reef has rules to keep it from being deadly. The Emperor is nurturing as well, not only providing rules and structure but also teaching how good rules should not be arbitrary.
The Hierophant
Eventually the Fool ventures out of his home into the wider world. He is exposed to the beliefs and traditions of his culture and begins his formal education. The Hierophant (5) represents the organized belief systems that begin to surround and inform the growing child.
A Hierophant is someone who interprets arcane knowledge and mysteries. In the Rider-Waite deck we see a religious figure blessing two acolytes, perhaps he is inducting them into church membership. While this image is religious, it is really a symbol for initiations of all kinds:
- Being trained in all the practices of our society
- Becoming part of a particular culture and world view.
- Learning to identify with a group and discovering a sense of belonging.
- Learning the customs of his society and showing how well one can conform to them.
The Lovers
Eventually, the Fool must face new challenges. He experiences the primal urge for relationship, not just a sexual urge, but also in the drive to connect with another person. Prior to this point, the Fool had been mainly self-centered. Through his transformation and the initiations of the Hierrophant, the Fool has come to a deeper understanding of the wider world that he first glimpsed through his time with the Emperor and Empress. Now he feels the balancing tendency, pictured in the Lovers (6), to reach out and become half of a loving partnership. Though this is what he desires, he doesn't yet know how to attain it so he makes his best attempt at it.
This is also a time when the Fool needs to decide upon his own beliefs. It is well enough to conform to the norm while he learns and grows, but at some point, he must set his own values if he is to be true to himself. He must start to question received opinion and form his own.
The Chariot
Eventually the Fool becomes an adult, bearing within a strong identity and a certain mastery over himself. Through discipline and will-power, he has developed an inner control that allows him to triumph over his environment.
The Chariot (7) represents the vigorous ego that is the Fool's crowning achievement so far. On this card, we see a proud, commanding figure riding victoriously through his world. He is in visible control of himself and all he surveys. For the moment, the Fool's assertive success is all he might wish, and he feels a certain self-satisfaction. This is the assured confidence of youth, and a point where many people feel they've reached the end of their journey, not realizing that he's barely reached the point of equipping himself for the arduous task ahead.
Strength
Over time, life presents the Fool with new challenges, some that cause suffering and disillusionment. He is presented with many occasions where he has to draw on the qualities represented by Strength(8). He is forced to develop his courage and resolve and to find the heart to keep going despite setbacks.
These challenges also enable the Fool to discover the quiet attributes of patience and tolerance. The realization that the willful command of the Chariot must be tempered by kindliness and the softer powers of a considerate, loving approach. Strength is really the amalgamation of the Chariots and the Lovers.
Even as he gains these masteries, however, intense passions still surface. Just when the Fool thought he had everything, including himself, under control, he discovers that he is not and can still be buffeted by the whims of Nature.
Hermit
Sooner or later, the Fool is led by life to ask himself the age-old question "Why?" He becomes absorbed with the search for answers, not out of an idle, intellectual curiosity, but out of a deeply-felt need to understand why people live, if it is only to suffer and die. The Hermit(9) represents that need to find deeper truth.
The Fool begins to look inward, trying to understand his feelings and motivations. The sensual world holds less attraction for him now, and he seeks moments of solitude away from the "getting and spending" of society. In time he may seek a teacher or guide who he feels can give him advice and direction.
In many ways, this step of the Fool's life is like beginning a new journey. It's only later, when the journey is over, that the Fool is able to look back and see that this was merely the continuation of the next phase of the journey.
Wheel of Fortune
After much soul-searching, the Fool begins to see how everything connects. He has a vision of the world's wondrous design; its intricate patterns and cycles, the Taiji of the world. The Wheel of Fortune (10) is a symbol of our mysterious universe whose parts work together in glorious harmony. In seeing, however briefly, the beauty, order and harmony of the world, he finds some of the answers he has been seeking.
From this new perspective, some of his experiences appear to be the work of fate; a chance encounter or miraculous occurrence begins the process of change and the Fool may recognize his destiny in the special sequence of events that led him to this turning point, whether he is riding the wheel up or down.
It is possible that this may lead the Fool to change habits and activities, moving off in an entirely new direction on his journey. Having been solitary, he may feel the call to action again. Before glimpsing the wheel, the Fool was focused narrowly on his own concerns. Not quite self-centered, but still only seeing the Ying of the world without recognition of the Yang. Now his perspective is much wider, and he sees himself within the grander scheme of a universal plan. He comes to recognize the balance of the Taiji that he first saw within the Magician and High Priestess as it applies to the wider world and his role within it.
Justice
Having had his eyes opened, the Fool must now decide what that vision means to him and his journey. He must look back over his life to trace the cause and effect relationships that have led him to his current situation. He knows he must take responsibility for his past actions so he can make amends and ensure a more direct, honest course for the future. The demands of Justice(11) must be served so that he can wipe the slate clean.
This is a time of decision for the Fool. He is charting his future direction and making important choices. Will he remain true to his insights, or will he slip back into an easier, more unaware existence that closes off further growth? How many times have we all chosen to stop our journey because it was too hard to finish the transformation?
Hanged Man
The Fool pushes on and decides to take whatever steps are necessary to correct past errors. It is the irony inherent in the universe that this is when the Fool discovers that the wisest action is sometimes inaction. In the past, the Fool had solved all his problems by jumping in to do whatever needed doing. With his glimpse of Taiji and the beginning of an appreciation for balance, he begins to understand the power of simply letting go. He discovers that relinquishing his struggle for perfection still enables everything to work out as it should.
Becoming open and vulnerable, the Fool discovers the miraculous support that his Inner Self provides. He discovers a surprising joie de vivre by surrendering to his experiences rather than fighting them.
The Strength and control he has learned in the past are still there, still valuable, but learning that he doesn't need to impose his will all the time as he did in the Chariot provides him with both a new freedom and a better understanding of Taiji. The Fool feels suspended in a timeless moment, free of all urgency and pressure. In truth, his world is turned upside-down, with the old priorities no longer so important. The Fool is now the Hanged Man, apparently martyred, but actually serene and at peace; the picture of the paradox that balance represents.
Death
But this new understanding requires changes, the elimination of old habits and tired approaches. When he felt the need to control more things in his life, his requirements were greater. Now that his understanding has grown, his requirements have diminished and so he wants to cut out non-essentials and get back to basics. He goes through endings as he puts the outgrown aspects of his life behind him. He completes certain experiences in a process that may seem like a little Death (13). It is the death of his familiar self that allows for the growth of a new one. In many ways, it is the conscious recognition that the old Fool is not the new Fool.
Death and change can be painful; and both have a grieving process associated with them. At times it seems to the Fool that this inexorable change is crushing him, but eventually he rises up to discover that death is not permanent, but simply a transition into a new, more satisfying way of life. And the sense of loss and grief doesn't always go away but it changes over time to reflect the Fool's understanding of Death and change.
Temperance
Since embracing the role of the Hermit in his life and getting that glance at Taiji, the fool's emotional pendulum has swung back and forth. The grief he felt over the death and changes, the joy he felt at glimpsing the balance of the Wheel of Fortune, the realization that to continue on his journey he had to make decisions that would change him further, all of these have caused him to swing like a magnetized needle on a piece of cork set down in a bowl of water.
Now, just like the needle finally coming to a rest and pointing North, he realizes the balancing stability of Temperance (14). By experiencing the extremes, the Fool has come to understand the wisdom of moderation and has been able to begin incorporating Taiji into his life. He is combining all aspects of himself into a centered whole that glows with health and well-being.
The angel in this card is every bit as powerful as the figure in the Chariot, but they are worlds apart in terms of how they apply that power. The Fool in the Chariot is attempting to control while the Fool in Temperance is using his power for balance.
Devil
The Fool has come far on his journey but he is nowhere near finished. And now he comes face to face with the Devil (15). Now the Devil is not an evil, sinister figure that exists separate and outside of us but something much scarier: the knot of ignorance and hopelessness that resides within each of us. Our material wealth may make us oblivious to our own ignorance but it's there all the same.
As the Fool continues his journey and heads deeper into understanding of Taiji, he comes to realize what he doesn't know. The card shows two lovers, chained in service though seemingly unaware of their chains. So are we unaware of what we don't know until we seek to learn more. Such are the chains of our ignorance, chains easily broken by learning and continuing our journey.
Tower
The chains of ignorance can be broken, but rarely is such an education without cost. The Fool has experienced change and death before, in setting aside his past life to go from the Chariot to Temperance, but this is a harder lesson to learn and one that does not come as gently. Unlike the slow lightening of the dark sky as the dawn breaks, this is far more abrupt, like a flipping on of a room light.
Many may be frightened at the immense change that is required to break free and may try to slowly remove themselves from the chains of ignorance that bind ones self to the Devil of ignorance and hopelessness, but this only allows us to be freed from his chain and we are still kept captive in the Devil's tower.
The only true freedom from such ignorance requires breaking free. Where the Fool had leisure to slowly embrace the changes represented by Death, here they have to be made quickly, forcefully and with the potential to hurt. This card has a bolt of lightening destroying the tower, a quick flash of light that will forever open the tower to the light of day. The figures cast down from the tower wear crowns and were the ignorance and hopelessness that the Fool was letting rule him, even though he didn't know it.
It is unfortunate that such severe destruction may be required if the Fool is to free himself, but the resulting revelation makes the painful experience worthwhile.
Star
Having freed himself from the prison of the Devil, the Fool is now filled with serenity and calm. The Star(17) shows a naked woman, no longer bound by the prejudice of her shame to hide who she is. Radiant stars shine in a cloudless sky serving as a beacon of hope and inspiration.
The Fool is blessed with a trust that completely replaces the negative energies of the Devil. His faith in himself and the future is restored. He is so filled with joy that his one wish is to share his riches generously with the rest of the world. His heart is open, and his love pours out freely. This peace after the storm is a magical moment for the Fool, but it is like the eye of the hurricane in that its peace can easily be disrupted.
Moon
Having faced the Devil of his own ignorance and defeated it, the Fool has not yet reached his journey's end and is, in fact, at the most dangerous time of the journey. The very openness he feels from having defeated his own ignorance leaves him vulnerable to the illusions of the moon. His joy comes from having the emotional high of defeating the Devil, positive emotions are pouring forth freely, but he hasn't reached the stage of mental clarity. While in this dreamlike condition, the Fool is susceptible to fantasy, distortion, false pictures of the truth.
Here, all of the senses that he discovered at the Empress' feet and mastered have reached a point of supersaturation and he doesn't know yet that he cannot necessarily trust them.
The Moon(18) stimulates the creative imagination. It opens the way for bizarre and beautiful thoughts to bubble up from the unconscious, but deep-seated fears and anxieties can also arise. These experiences may cause the Fool to feel lost and bewildered, but this is a different battle than that of the Devil. While the Devil requires education to overcome, defeating the fantasies of the moon requires self-actualization.
Sun
It is the bright sunshine that illumines all the hidden places. It dispels the clouds of confusion and fear. The Sun (19) "enlightens" so the Fool both understands and feels the perfect order and goodness of the world.
Now he enjoys a vibrant energy and enthusiasm. The openness of the Star has solidified into an expansive assurance. Positive emotions blend with mental clarity to produce a radiant vitality. The Fool is the naked babe pictured on the card, riding out joyously to face a new day. No challenge is too daunting. The Fool becomes involved in grand undertakings and achievements as he draws to himself everything he needs. He is able to realize his greatness. He is very similar to the Fool in the Chariot and yet very different. Still in control and yet realizing that he neither knows everything nor can control everything.
Judgement
The Fool has been reborn. The card of Death represents change more than death of the Fool, but here he has finally finished those changes and has been reborn, shed of his false, ego-self, manifesting his radiant, true self. He has discovered that joy, not fear, is at life's center.
The Fool feels a sense of absolution. He can forgive himself and others, knowing that his real self is pure and good. He may regret past mistakes, but he knows they were due to his ignorance of his true nature. Now he feels cleansed and refreshed, ready to start anew.
It is time for the Fool to make a Judgment(20) about his life. His own personal "day of reckoning" has arrived. Since he sees himself truly, he can now make the necesary decisions about his future. He can choose which values to cherish, and which to discard.
The angel on the card is the Fool's Higher Self calling him to rise up and fulfill his promise. Now he realizes his true vocation - his reason for entering this life. Doubts and hesitations vanish, and he is ready to follow his dream.
World
The Fool now reenters the World (21), but this time with a more complete understanding. He has integrated all the disparate parts of himself and achieved wholeness. He has reached a new level of happiness and fulfillment.
The Fool now experiences life as full and meaningful. The future is filled with infinite promise. In line with his personal calling, he becomes actively involved in the world. He renders service by sharing his unique gifts and talents and finds that he prospers at whatever he attempts. Because he acts from inner certainty, the whole world conspires to see that his efforts are rewarded. His accomplishments are many.
So the Fool's Journey was not so foolish after all. Through perseverance and honesty, he has reestablished the spontaneous courage that first impelled him joyfully on his search for Self, only now, he is fully aware of his place in the world. This cycle of development is over, but, in fact, the Fool will never stop growing. Soon he will feel ready to begin a new journey that will lead him on to even greater levels of understanding.
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