Tarot Pull: The Hermit
Back with yet another member of the Major Arcana this week, though admittedly, this is not a random card pull. Instead, I’m going to focus in on a card representing what I should be doing in the next few weeks as I prepare to query— becoming The Hermit.
The Hermit is (and always has been) one of my favorite tarot cards, and not just because I’m a writer with social anxiety who tends to be hermit-ish to begin with. I actually started pulling this card quite a bit right before the Pandemic began in early 2020. We’d just moved to our home in WV, and I thought I was extremely isolated from friends, family and work colleagues. At the time, I thought ‘yeesh - how much more of a hermit can I become?’ Well, we all saw how that turned out.
The good news is that The Hermit probably doesn’t represent oncoming plagues. If you draw it, don’t feel like you have to start stockpiling toilet paper.
Let’s jump in!
Pictured: The Hermit from the Wild Unknown Tarot deck
Common keywords for The Hermit include:
Upright – Soul-searching; introspection; being alone; inner guidance
Reverse – Isolation; loneliness; withdrawal
For more in-depth information on the card, see Biddy Tarot’s article here.
I’m going to go a little crazy here showing off examples of The Hermit card in my various decks, but there’s good reason for it! A lot of times when I delve into different imagery from deck to deck, it’s because I love the variation. With The Hermit, however, I feel like most of my decks are consistent with both imagery and meaning. In each, you will spy a few or all of the key characteristics: a lone figure; a light to guide their way; a staff to help them feel out the course; and a long road ahead. Of course, each representation has its own nuance (and personality, as I like to say) that adds layers and can help guide you in your art. That being said, the core of what makes The Hermit who he is remains unchanged.
Starting where I often do, I’ll point to both The Wild Unknown (pictured above) and Madam Clara’s 5-cent (pictured here) decks. Both of these decks steer clear of humans entirely. Instead, these gorgeous tarot cards use nature to tell the story of the Major and Minor Arcana. In one, a turtle ducks into his shell while in the other, an Anglerfish swerves through the waters, his lamp shining the way.
Both creatures couldn’t be more perfect to represent The Hermit. While the slow and steady turtle constantly bears a shelter in which they can find solitude, the Anglerfish resides in some of the deepest parts of the ocean, largely unbothered by human interference. At all times, they carry with them the capability to be entirely alone with themselves— to find dark quiet.
That’s what The Hermit is all about: not just cutting yourself off from the world (though that may be necessary), but intentionally finding quiet with yourself. It means shutting off the distractions modernity constantly lobs at us and existing right where you’re at, staring your true self down with an honest eye.
If you think that sounds easy, I’m not sure whether to applaud you on the years of therapy and meditation you’ve surely undergone, or to be suspicious about your self-awareness. Setting aside time to simply be with you in all your perfect imperfection can be terrifying. It’s also the best way to find the answers that no one and nothing can provide except for you. It’s a lonely road, but it’s a beautiful one if you can tune in.
That’s the other piece of The Hermit that has made it one of my favorite cards in the entire tarot system— the representation of a journey through darkness.
Looking at The Hermit in the Ethereal Visions deck (pictured left), the Star Spinner deck (pictured center), and the Rackham Tarot (pictured right) deck, you see this aspect of the card come through crystal clear. While they look very different, both the Ethereal Visions and Star Spinner’s Hermit stand tall with their lamps raised high as they proceed down an unknown path. The wisdom they gain along their journey will serve as a beacon to others as well as themselves. They are quite literally light in the darkness. While The Hermit depicted in the Rackham deck seems to carry no lamp, this man is clearly a seasoned traveler forging a path, unafraid and confident.
In all three versions, we’re called to be like The Hermit.
Proceed into the darkness with your lamp shining bright. Set forth on the journey, trusting yourself even when (perhaps especially when) you are traveling alone. You know the way whether you realize it or not.
Finally, I wanted to highlight two versions of The Hermit that might look familiar. These examples are fun to use because they create an echo effect for me in which other traditional storytellers’ work circles back to influence mine in unexpected ways.
In The Wonderland Tarot deck (pictured here), The Hermit is represented by the sleepy dormouse. Similar to the turtle Hermit in the Wild Unknown deck, the dormouse has his shelter at the ready. He’s not actually headed anywhere. Instead, the mouse can access quiet amidst the Mad Hatter’s chaos any time he chooses. When he emerges, the light he’s kindled in that dark teapot is held aloft for others to see.
His fire comes from within before he can share it with the world.
We’ll end with what is undeniably the most startling Hermit out of the bunch— the classic “Pale Man” monster from Pan’s Labyrinth as shown in the Tarot Del Toro deck (pictured here). First, if you’ve never seen Pan’s Labyrinth, please stop reading this right now and go watch it. The film is everything you could ask for in plot, pacing and cinematography. It is stunning, and it actually changed the course of my art forever.
While the monster here is terrifying, the artistic decision to use him as The Hermit makes complete sense. This monster lives in total solitude. Without spoiling the film, this Hermit is a sage in his own horrifying right. His purpose is to teach a lesson…one that he holds in silence and stillness. He sees the world differently (literally, in fact) as a result. I wouldn’t want to run into this particular Hermit, but its application here still rings true for the card.
What does all of this mean for you and your art? I’m willing to bet any one of these versions could inspire unexpected thoughts and feelings in context of a spread. Whether you’re looking for clarity on a character’s motivation (see a fun character development spread here) or plot guidance, The Hermit flags the need for solitude and contemplation. It can also signal wisdom acquired through a literal or figurative journey, and the ability to guide others as they stumble through the darkness.
As a writer, I don’t hesitate to take The Hermit’s advice to pull into my own shell to think. However, when I pull this for one of my characters, it can often flag a deepness I didn’t even realize was there.
Nearly all of our characters are on a journey of some sort. Do they have the wisdom to guide others? What about for themselves? Do they have a light to illuminate their path, or are they stumbling? What do they need to do or find in order to confidently walk the road to self-knowledge? In the end, only you and your character can answer that. Fortunately, you know the way even if it isn’t immediately clear.
