The Hermit, Path 20 on the Tree of Life

The Hermit walks Path 20, called the Path of Yod on the Tree of Life which connects Tiferet (Beauty) and Chesed (Mercy) on the Tree of Life.  This path represents the connection between beauty and compassion and the balance between inner wisdom and outer action. 

The Hermit must balance introspection with action and use inner wisdom to guide their efforts towards compassion and mercy.  It is a reminder to take time for self-reflection and to trust in one’s inner guidance.

The path of The Hermit teaches us to balance our inner and outer lives to live with greater compassion, mercy, and wisdom.

The path of the Hermit, the Way Shower, the Adept.  Here are the opportunities to explore the teachings of all those who brought knowledge to humanity.  It is the path of inner teaching.  All experiences we have of inner wisdom & learning are from this path.  This path places before us opportunities to become a new person.  On a spiritual level, it stimulates a greater commitment to the spiritual life.

Benefits: Spiritual guidance, ancient teaching, commitment, helpfulness, service and guidance to others, acceptance of change and of the spiritual.

The Hebrew letter representing this path is Yod.

Yod relates with the hand and speaks to the operation and operator of the world. Building upon what came before there was an ethereal tool that could be used to create things the primordial mud that can now be shaped and now Yod is the hand of the operator which uses the creative powers and the intelligence to know how to use the primordial much which came before.  In a simpler sense it is the power of spirit to govern and guide the material he created.  The Yod is drawn as a dot and describes that creation came from a single point and that singularity is the essence of all of life.  To us this may be experienced as the singularity in our hearts which bring life to our bodies and this is the same power of spirit to govern and guide the material universe.

In her book Kabbala Pathworking, Sandy Anastasi suggests some of the areas Path 20 can helps us work on include: Gaining inner peace, joyousness, elation; Being comfortable with your self, dealing with loneliness by accepting yourself and becoming whole; Improving your ability to relax; Accepting that you "can't go back"; Being able to focus on your goals; Self-empowerment, strength and fortitude, coming from a sense of your individuality; Strengthening your connection own your Guide; Realizing and accepting your own power.

Andy Matzner, in his book Tarot for Transformation, Using the Major Arcana to Discover Your Best Self and Create a Life Worth Living says of The Hermit:

The quieter you become, the more you can hear. Ram Dass.

He says of the Hermit: I am inspired by the Hermit to focus on emotional intelligence. Because being able to recognize and then process what you are feeling is all about the pause. The space in-between. The moment in time between stimulus and response...

The goal is for you to create a healthy relationship with your feelings. This is dependent on two skills. First, self-awareness will allow you to understand and make sense of your emotional landscape. Second, self-regulation will give you the ability to experience and manage what you are feeling in healthy ways.

In his book The Soul's Journey, Finding Spiritual Messages in the Tarot, James Ricklef says of the Hermit:

If you light a lamp or somebody, it will also brighten your path. Buddhist Saying.

The Hermit can represent a guru, an unorthodox or even iconoclastic teacher or guide to help you along your soul's journey. Thus, a spiritual quest is also a typical meaning for this cars, as well as withdrawal, solitude, and seclusion. Considering the characteristics of asceticism and austerity attributed to the hermit archetype, this card also indicates turning away from worldly concerns to those of the soul.

One of the ways he suggests one might wish to use his book is to do a daily draw and review the basic messages and then consider one of the messages for the card as a lesson or insight to keep in mind throughout the day. In the case of The Hermit the messages to chose from are: When the student is ready..: ...the teacher will appear; Being the teacher; The Hermit Fallacy; Inner depth reveals the beauty of the outer world.

Do any of these speak to you right now?

While both Andy Matzner and Sandy Anastasi focus only on the Major Arcana, James Ricklef also has information on the Minor Arcana. Since I chose a card for each of the Sephirot I thought I'd share some of his information on these too.

Four of Cups: The typical image on this card speaks of boredom and ennui, as well as of not seeing the advice, gifts, and opportunities that the Divine offers us. It also comments on the stability of our emotions and the security of our relationships.

His messages to consider with the Four of Cups are: Boredom versus your fuller life; Prayer and guidance; An anchor for emotional stability; Non-attachment versus apathy; Listening to your heart.

Six of Pentacles: The Six of Pentacles is often interpreted as charity, which is a quality that is easily seen as being spiritual. This seems simple, yet there is a surprising amount that can be said about generosity and its important role in our spiritual journey.

His messages to consider with the Six of Pentacles are: Random acts of kindness; What hampers our charity?; Why bother with charity?; Charity of the Spirit; Charity and our divinity.

Where will your journey take you?