The Hanged Man indicates a time of surrender, introspection, and stillness.
Their vision and body hang in reverse, and that’s where their wisdom comes in. Nothingness is something.
The Hanged Man wants you to stop movement. Releasing expectations and stepping back offers space for a solution to take shape.
If you’re not completely pressing pause, you’re in yield mode, giving up control while life does its own thing. You might need to stand on the sidelines while life plays out for a minute.
This kind of thinking doesn’t come easy. Western thought and patriarchy emphasize dominance and control; we can only build something magnificent by picking ourselves up by the bootstraps (or so we’re told). Perhaps this is one reason this image appears so puzzling to us. The idea of passivity is foreign.
The Hanged Man teaches us that life has its gait, and sometimes, we get in trouble when we force it to trot faster than it wants to go. Honor the energies moving as they are and know the pace you’re going is fine.
This card once appeared for a friend who was undecided about a move. She spent a good amount of time in limbo when, suddenly, the right door opened for her to relocate. There was no amount of knocking that would have made that door open sooner; she just had to wait. The Hanged Man might be appearing to tell you to stand by while things happen behind the scenes.
The Hanged Man can also be a highly spiritual card. In her book Tarot Wisdom, Rachel Pollack points out that in the hanging figure, the root chakra faces up; earthly desires and control are surrendered to the divine. The Hanged Man could be a call to release material concerns and connect with divinity (in whatever way you define that!) for illumination and help. Meditation, yoga, reading sacred texts, ritual work, and journaling can help center your spirit and carry your prayer to the right places.
The Hanged Man can also imply sacrifice. In their hanging posture, they submit to a higher vision or calling. This could relate to a goal that requires your full, unwavering dedication. On a personal level, the Hanged Man’s sacrifice could be telling you to put your struggles aside in service to someone or something else.
The suspended nature of the Hanged Man doesn’t always paint a rosy picture of patience. This is especially true if the card is drawn reversed, surrounded by more card reversals, or other cards that elude to a dead-end. In this case, the inertia you’re experiencing may be self-imposed, and action is needed.
In relationship readings, the Hanged Man can indicate a waiting period before things open up or improve. If about a romantic interest, it may suggest that they are emotionally or circumstantially unavailable.
There’s even more to this enigmatic card. Early Renaissance tarots equated this card with thievery. These Hanged Man cards depict a traitor strung upside down, with stolen coins falling from their pockets. Thus, this card was equated with thievery. (If you are interested in further study, there’s also a fascinating tie to Renaissance shame paintings. These were portraits painted on the side of buildings to show the public who the local traitors and thieves were).
The shady meaning of this card can apply in certain scenarios. I see the thieving message as applicable when surrounded by other cards that strengthen this message, such as the Seven of Swords or the money-craving Four of Pentacles. As with any tarot reading, use your judgment, consider the context of the question, and trust your read on the cards.
As if this weren’t enough! There’s more…
While reading tarot at an event many years ago, a querent identified the person on this card as her husband, who died by suicide. The inverted pose suggests hanging or leaving the body and passing into spirit. This is a rare interpretation.
Such a read on this card is only recommended when prompted by the querent or when it makes sense, contextually.
The Hanged Man is quite the card; it strikes the heart with fascination, fear, and wonder. The imagery hits us on a visceral level and can evoke various reactions and feelings.
While this card carries significant and varied meanings, it most commonly encourages acquiescence, pause, and sacrifice.
Sources
Greer, Mary. Archetypal Tarot. San Francisco, CA: Weiser Books, 2011.
Greer, Mary. Tarot Reversals. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2002.
Pollack, Rachel. Tarot Wisdom. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2008.
Snow, Cassandra. Queering the Tarot. Newburyport, MA: Weiser Books, 2019.
Tea, Michelle. Modern Tarot. New York, NY: Harper Collins: 2017.
Wen, Benebell. Holistic Tarot: An Integrative Approach to Using Tarot for Personal Growth. Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books, 2015.
Video
Tarot Spread
If you are drawn to the Hanged Man and want to dig deeper, get them outta your deck, make them your mascot, and draw some cards from the rest of the deck with this tarot spread I created!
