The Hierophant (or Pope) - Five

The Tarot of Marseilles

In the Tarot of Marseilles, the Pope wears a red cape and a blue robe, with his right hand raised in a blessing gesture. When the tarot was invented, the Pope controlled a large portion of central Italy, so the papacy was not just a religious authority, but was a political and military force as well. In modern decks he is called the Hierophant, applied by Antoine Court de Gébelin in the 18th century. According to Gébelin, the title Hierophant was used for the chief priests of the Eleusinian Mysteries in Ancient Greece. Gébelin was the first thinker to begin interpreting the Tarot as an arcane repository of esotericwisdom. He asserted that the primitive worldwide civilization had been advanced and enlightened, and that the Tarot contained a secret philosophy, driven underground by mainstream religion. According to Gébelin's theory, the priestes of Ancient Egypt had used the Tarot images to illustrate the Book of Thoth. He connected the Tarot cards with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, and suggested ways to read the cards. Soon after, the Art of Tarot Reading was born.

The number five represents the marriage of male and female, as the even number two is added to the odd number three. It therefore symbolises procreation, fertility and sexuality. The Pythagoreans used the five pointed star (pentagram) to symbolise "health". In the cosmogony of Pherecydes of Syros, the pentagram represents the five corners of the Universe where Chronos (Father Time) planted the seeds of creation. Five is the number of quintessence, the fifth element, also known as aether. In Greek mythology, Aether is a primordial deity of the "upper sky" or "outer space". He is said to be either the son or sibling of Erebus (Darkness). He was also thought of as the son of Chronos. The fifth Orphic hymn describes Aether as "the high-reigning, ever indestructible power of Zeus," "the best element," and "the life-spark of all creatures."

The Sanskrit word for Aether is Akasha. The meaning is often interpreted as "space" or "sky". In Buddhism, Akasha is divided into limited space (ākāsa-dhātu) and endless space (ajatākasā).  The earliest Buddhist texts explain that the four primary material elements of earth, water, fire, and air, are metaphors used to describe the sensory qualities of solidity, fluidity, temperature, and mobility. Akasha represents that which cannot be sensed externally, but is felt within. To me, the Hierophant card represents the sense of health, wellbeing, aliveness and spiritual nourishment. It represents finding the "space" within, which Buddhists often refer to as "empitness" but might also be called a meditative state of mindfulness.

To me, the Hierophant represents the fifth element, the infinite oneness of cosmic consciousness. The Pope was believed to be God's authority on Earth, a spokesperson for the divine, and so this card portrays a connection with the divine, and the ability to listen to the inner silence during deep meditation. This state of mind brings a sense of wholeness and well-being, symbolised by the Pythagorean pentagram. This is the symbol of humanity's oneness with the divine, triumphing over the illusion of separateness.