Introduction
Attributed to one of the three mother letters, the Thoth Tarot Hanged Man represents the element of Water. Or, as Crowley calls it, ‘the spiritual function’ of Water. Evolving its meaning through the Aeons, The Hanged Man conveys some of the most profound secrets of magick. The Hanged Man was picked by my viewers over Universe, Adjustment, and Fortune. Respecting that choice and appreciating all votes, I’ll discuss some of my favorite symbolism in the card.
Shapes and Forms
The Hanged Man’s posture is rather peculiar. The legs form a right angle and an upside-down number four. Also, a cross standing above and connected to an equilateral triangle formed by the arms stretched at a 60° angle. Essentially, the Thoth Tarot Hanged Man expresses the Golden Dawn symbol of the triangle and the cross. According to the Book of Thoth, this:
“gives the symbol of the Triangle surmounted by the Cross, which represents the descent of light into the darkness in order to redeem it…”
Relation to Other Cards
Like other decks, the Thoth Tarot associates the number four with the Emperor symbolizing the mind’s reasoning and rational faculties. The three (or the triangle) are linked to the Empress, relating to consciousness’s imaginative qualities. This can be found in the card’s number 12, as 1+2=3. Through this posture, the card expresses rational thinking above desire.
Activity and Passivity
According to Eli Serabeth, this stage occurs when the seeker deliberately stops the Wheel of Fortune, and the Path of Qoph, occupying the same area within the pillar of mercy. While that stands for activity, the Hanged Man represents passivity. And together, they balance the whole. Through this, one stops the closed internal pattern, opening themselves and immersing in the eternal motion. The seeker becomes the object of desire. Thus subjective and objective Self unite.
Hebrew Letter
Being the 23rd path, the letter Mem connects Hod (Splendor) to Geburah (Severity). This is why scholars say it displays the ‘Image of Severity.’ Mem is 40. It is spelled מימ (Mem Yud Mem), enumerating 90. Also, 650 when using ם Mem final, which is 600. Although that means Water, it (really) implies all things liquid. And particularly life-promoting and creating fluids like blood and amniotic fluid. It is regarded as ‘Astral Fluid’ and the underlying consistency of everything. Supposedly, you can think of it as the underlying principle of fluidity, sustaining everything. Mem or 40, Crowley reveals, is the “might of the tetragrammaton fully developed by Malkuth, the symbol of the Universe under the Demiourgos. Like the Aum Mantra, the M sound alludes to the ‘return to Eternal Silence.’
Meanings and Aeons
Like Shin (ש) and Aleph (א) symbolize baptism in Fire and Air, Mem (מ) suggests baptism in Water. Conventionally, the Hanged Man represents the act of sacrifice, the ‘supreme formula of adeptship’ during the Aeon of Osiris. Also, INRI and IAO adepts of which actually invented it. On the contrary, The Book of Thoth views the sacrifice notion as incorrect to the current Aeon (of Horus) and the fully evolved human being.
The Aeon of Isis
Associated with the mother’s womb and Water, the Aeon of Isis viewed that as an actual sacrifice of a pregnant woman. Then the card was called the ‘Drowned Man,’ as the baby was positioned upside down in the womb. While I’d rather not discuss that, it explains ATU 12’s original attribution to Water. During the Aeon of Isis, people viewed all birth as an emanation from the womb perfectly sufficient without male intervention. Said differently, they believed everything emerged from and eventually returned to the Great Goddess.
The Aeon of Isis
Assigned to the Hebrew letter Shin (ש), the Aeon of Horus moves away from the balance of sacrifices, redemption, and paying debts.
“In the former Aeon, that of Osiris, the element of Air, which is the nature of that Aeon, is not unsympathetic either to Water or to Fire; compromise was the mark of that period. But now, under a Fiery lord of the Aeon, the watery element, so far as Water is below the Abyss, is definitely hostile unless the opposition is the right opposition implied in marriage. But in this card, the only question is of the “redemption” of the submerged element, and therefore everything is reversed. This idea of sacrifice is, in the final analysis, a wrong idea…”
Water
Likening it to a spiritual appendix, Crowley notes that Water is an ‘element of illusion’ and also an evil legacy from the old Aeon. Though, The Hanged Man is the card of the ‘Dying God,’ its role in the new deck is of a cenotaph. According to Cambridge Dictionary, the latter is a public monument built to remember particular people. The Hanged Man serves as a manual on how to make things right if Dark Ages occur. Yet, things were initially wrong if they needed to be made right.
Now the sacrifice, Crowley clarifies, is (really) the annihilation of the Self in the Beloved, the condition of progress. It’s not a ‘sacrifice’ but a union.
Connecting to Everything
It is also the moment of orgasm when the ego and the senses of separateness are temporarily annihilated. When that happens, one is connected to everything else in the cosmos. Apparently, that includes the object of desire, which is the HGA. Defined by all mystics as ‘marriage,’ the relationship to the Beloved (or the HGA) is very sexual. The Thoth Tarot Hanged Man depicts that union. This explains why scholars like David Shoemaker note that the HGA often communicates to the person through the object of their attraction.
Colors
The whole card radiates green, and three green disks stand out. Being in the color of Venus, green symbolizes Grace. The Air above the Water is also green, permeated by the light of Kether. Green, Crowley explains, is the color of hope that lies in love. This is also depicted in older decks like the GD or Arthur Waite, where the figure is suspended from a tree or a pillar. That tree resembles Daleth, the 14 path which attributes to Venus.
Snakes
Lon Milo Duquette calls this ‘nothing less than the cosmic sacrifice that creates the Universe.’ Eli Serabeth views it as a suspension or crucifixion in space. That is also expressed by the serpent below the Ankh Cross, which Crowley defines as the ‘creator and destroyer who operates all change.’ The serpent of new light begins to stir new life in this inferior darkness of death. The Ankh Cross is equivalent to the Rosy Cross. And the process depicted births a new child, symbolized by the coiled snake below the figure. This is emphasized by the card’s color gradient, the light at the top, whereas the darker and denser colors at the bottom. It’s light descending into matter.
The Forces of Nature
As a background, the tiny squares behind are the Elemental tablets, with their sigils and names representing all forces of nature.
Esoteric Titles of the Thoth Tarot Hanged Man
ATU 12’s esoteric name in the Golden Dawn system is ‘The Spirit of the Mighty Waters.’ Based on Sepher Yetzirah, the Book of Formation, the Hanged Man is called ‘Stable Intelligence,’ or ‘Stable Consciousness.’
Behavior and Meanings of the Thoth Tarot Hanged Man
According to the book of Thoth, the behavior of ATU 12 is expressed through the following:
“Let not the waters whereon thou journeyest wet thee. And, being come to shore, plant touh the Vine and rejoice without shame. ”
The exact section recognizes “enforced sacrifice, punishment, loss, fatal or voluntary, suffering, defeat, failure, and death,” as the card’s meanings. I don’t know about you, but to me, these don’t necessarily match the symbolism of the Thoth card. I wonder what you think of that.
Certainty and Ecstasy
“It should be the chiefest aim of the wise to rid mankind of the insolence of self-sacrifice, and the calamity of chastity; faith must be slain by certainty and chastity by exctasy.”
One aspect of that is following the Book of the Law, not pitying the fallen, and neither ending up consoling others nor being consoled. Another is threatening animals and kids with respect and aiding them in various ways. The card also encourages helping others achieve identical transformation, not by redemption, but by recognizing and appreciating their starry nature. Supposedly, that’s what Dion Fortune describes as bringing the light into the world of shadows on a grand scale. But that’s just my opinion. Let me know what yours is. Also, your thoughts on the Hanged Man and my review of it.
