I have decided to write all my tarot card blogs on cards that make me uncomfortable. The Hierophant is another card that has made me squirm in my seat. The card shows a religious leader: order, structure, belief systems, following the group, and being in an institutional setting are all ideas that make me, a trickster and a gemini, very uncomfortable. The Hierophant is formal, official, and often times depicted as a pope or some other male figure of religious authority. I would often get the Hierophant in my readings, and I would always cringe (immediately referencing the dominant religious leaders of our society). Pushing forth to gain greater understanding of this card, I decided to step outside of myself and look at the Hierophant from a different perspective. Disengage my reference of the dominant religious systems, and look to the Hierophant as a religious leader that I can get down with.

I find that the Hierophant can be an awesome omen of portals opening to new knowledge, to secret knowledge, and the mysteries of the universe, though I tend to not like the way that this card unveils itself, it is definitely a powerhouse card. Whether it regards school of academia, or religious pursuits, the Hierophant tells us that it is time to listen to the rules of the system to attain or achieve the gateway through the portal to new knowledge and mysteries. Rules, rules, rules. All of life runs on rules, whether they are the rules of society, or the rules of gravity, the world runs on rules. Even magick runs on rules, and once you understand the rules that govern magick, your practice becomes much more effective. The Hierophant tells us to learn the rules.

The Hierophant asks us to balance the energies of masculinity and femininity within ourselves, the projective and receptive archetypes that reside within us all. Balance is an interesting concept. Often in the magickal lifestyle we must maintain a balance. Many times in my life this card has represented the necessity to do the hard work of learning, the effort of gaining skills that will help in the long run, because it is important, and not because it is something that I like. In the world of magick there are many many venues of exploration. With the High Priestess we delve directly into the ethereal magick, and with the Hierophant (or High Priest) we delve directly into the books, the mathematical equations, the scholarly knowledge that will lead us with a map through the world of magick. In my experience it is important to do both in order to keep balance.

Cheers!

As I have been working here at the Green Man, meeting new people and doing my healing work, I have found that there are a lot of people who do not know what shamanism, or a shaman, is. Shamanism is a form or practice of spiritual communion that is pre-organized religion, having been with mankind since the beginning of time. Wikipedia defines a shaman as: 

“A person regarded as having access to, and influence in the world of benevolent and malevolent spirits, who typically enters into a trance  state during a ritual, and practices divination and healing.”

I imagine you’ve now read this definition and are wondering exactly what that means. A shaman is a worker and weaver of the spirit realm. A shaman works with and within the spirit world to manifest healing and understanding in the mundane world; a messenger of God, if you will. 

I think the best way to describe it is to explain it in a way that juxtaposes it against current dominant religious practice. In Christianity (in the way that I was taught to practice it) you are one of the many sheep in God’s flock. You pray to deepen your connection with God and to feel the power of God’s presence realizing that your destiny is mapped out and you will be consistently tested for your faith and devotion. You find solace in God. As a Christian practitioner in my early years I was highly devoted and looked for understanding and enlightenment through all of God’s teachings. I knew that people could be healed through prayer and that the community of God’s followers was my community.

In the shamanic belief system we are all one, part of the same energy field and part of the same universal truths. You pray to energy of the universe and work with archetypical elements within that universe to bring healing and understanding to people. You pay attention to the messages that come from nature and from spirit and you integrate those messages into your journey (destiny). You are constantly tested, but not in the same way as the Christian paradigm, you are tested to see if you are learning your lessons and following the guidance of spirit. You are also tested with power; once you have learned to work with your own personal power outside power will test you and stalk you in order for you to face complete personal actualization. Truth is at the core of shamanic practice (as is actually usually true for most religious beliefs). As a practitioner of shamanism my cosmology is constantly growing and evolving as I gain greater and greater insight into the mysteries of life. 

Base Christian tenets actually are not that different from shamanic beliefs if you are able to hear the truth under the propaganda, however, a shaman talks to God, where a Christian talks at God. But what about Wiccan traditions compared to Shamanism? Actually, I learned Wicca first and I found that to be a great advantage when I began learning shamanism as I had already begun to re-acclimate myself to nature’s rhythms. Wicca tenets and shamanic tenets are very very similar, and generally in my own observations I have found the real difference to be the practitioner and their relationship with the practice. 

Have I answered the question yet? Maybe I should say this: a shaman is a mediator between you and the spirit world. If you need spiritual guidance and healing a shaman will talk to the spirits to do both for you. I hope that I have made this more understandable, and that I haven’t offended anyone with my Christian comparison. It seems many people understand the Christian cosmology and so that is the widest reference I could make. 

Many blessings to you on your journey; may you pray deeply and commune with spirits when they come calling. 

Xoxo

Giana

Those of you familiar with the writings of Eckart Tolle (The Power of Now, A New Earth) are no doubt versed in the concept of the ‘pain-body’. While reading an excerpt from one of Tolle’s books I was struck by the similarities between the Q’ero’s view of soul retrieval and the pain-body. By combining the knowledge of the two concepts I have no doubt that we can transcend our old stories, and step into a path of light.

The ‘pain-body’ is a term that is used by Tolle to explain how people shift from being calm, centered, and grounded to seeking out pain and conflict. The pain-body is almost described as an outside entity that takes over the physical body and leads them to seek out discord in their life (with their spouse or loved ones). Tolle does this as a means of explaining how the experience affects the outlook of an individual, and takes control of their functions (the pain-body is not an actual outside entity). When a person is acting from their pain-body they are looking to invoke the pain of their past back into their current situation. Many times this will happen as a means of projection, but other times two people’s pain-bodies with instigate conflict with each other in order to feed themselves. Once the pain-body has been thoroughly engorged it will subside and the person who was affected by it will become the nice, happy person you always knew them to be; that is, of course, until it gets hungry again!

The pain-body is an excellent way to describe the wounded soul. In the Q’ero tradition trauma of the past will exert itself over a person whenever affinity energy enters into their environment. When a person believes that ‘such and such always happens’ they are coming from a place where the original wounding occurred. To further explain this, I like to use the example of a child being spanked by their parent when they are five years old. To many of us spanking is such a common thing that we may not realize there is trauma associated with it. Well let’s say this five year old grows up, and the soul fragmenting that happened from the trauma of the spanking has never been retrieved (hence soul retrieval). Whenever this adult comes into a situation that bares the same energy signature of that initial spanking (like authority exerting power over them in the workplace) they may find that they are unable to control their hurt feelings, their rage, or their strengthened defiance. They are being led by their five-year-old perspective as soon as the affinity enters and they are again acting out as a five year old would. This soul fragment is dictating the actions and reactions in this adults’ life; this inability to be grounded and centered is the same as being guided by the pain-body.

Both the Q’ero and Tolle recognize the importance of acknowledging the existence of the pain-body/soul-fragment; by acknowledgement one can no longer be blindly led. Further, the Q’ero use the soul retrieval technique to disconnect the individual from their wound/trauma and guide them to reclaim the soul fragment, and heal the pain-body. This is important work. Too many of us are being blindly led by our past hurts and re-creating them in our future. By disconnecting from the trauma of the past one can be whole as they step into who they are becoming. For more information on soul retrieval please see my YouTube video on the subject.

Xoxo Giana