Question by Anne: What does the hanged man in Tarot mean regarding relationships?
Two years ago when I got a Tarot reading I asked about my love life as I was single. She pulled three cards which she said referred to three different men. Two of them I knew immediately who they were, the last one however was a little iffy. It was the hanged man, she said it symbolized someone from my past who may come back into my life but has certain reservations and won’t be quick into a relationship. Does this make sense? Also what other things could that card have meant? I trust her intuition but I am just curious.
Best answer:
Answer by p????? ?????™ of the West
Most times the hanged man means change, the death of old ideals or feelings to make way for new ones.
Was the card upright or upside down? It fell in the “what could be” part of the spread?
Remember, readings change with time and circumstance. At the time of the reading this new man could cause huge changes in your life, or way of looking at things.
You could probably get a different interpretation of the cards now, because the future is fluid, it changes. That’s why no card reader or psychic can ever tell you with 100% accuracy, what will happen in the future.
I would tell you more detail, but, I need you to touch my cards first.
Add your own answer in the comments!
Tarot is an intuitive craft. No other person can interpret your readers cards for you… only she can. If you want another reading to clarify what this one meant, either ask her to read for you again, ask her for clarification on that card, find a different reader or buy yourself a deck and read for yourself.
The hanged man has implications of putting things on hold for the sake of wisdom, making sacrifices to achieve enlightenment or an improved skill. That is a simple explanation, but tarot readings go beyond the surface meaning of the card. They provide symbols intended to be used by an interpretive, intuitive mind and only that particular reader can tell you what a card means in her particular reading style.
-Scarlet
If I pulled it when doing a reading for someone, and the question was about love relationships, I’d say, “So you were on a break, after all.” 😉 Ok, that’s only funny if you know about Ross & Rachel.
But the Hanged Man does mean stepping aside from things, pulling back, pausing, to get perspective on a situation. To lift yourself up above it so you can see it objectively, and giving yourself a time of non-action that you need to gain insight and wisdom. So it does mean taking a break, but it means coming back from the break ready to move to a new place. The new place may be a deeper level of commitment, or it may mean a break-up, though. It could mean some kind of dramatic or even traumatic experience in your life, that makes you grow and change in some way, so that when you step back into your former life, you’re not the same person you were.
Very rarely would I read a major arcana card as applying to someone else, though. Usually it refers to the Querant, the person for whom I’m doing the reading. So I would have read the hanged man as you, that it was you who was going through a transition where everything in your life was put on hold, and when you came out of the transition, you would look at everything differently.
First of all, if it was two years ago, a lot has changed since then, and the cards probably do not apply.
The hanged man does imply a time of delay as others have stated. There is also a strong aspect of spirituality involved. The person feels that they must make certain sacrifices in order to be right spiritually.
I agree with the other answers you’ve had so far so I’ll just add a bit more to it, maybe it’ll help.
The Hanged Man is symbolic of the crucifixion, it has a theme of self sacrifice to it as well as suspension.
The imagery of the card that was drawn is very important, did the reader use a standard Rider-Waite deck or something else?
In the RW the man has a halo, or aura of bright light, behind his head.
So there is an element of martyrdom about the imagery in there.
It’s possible you have an admirer who likes you but has never made a move.
A good soul who would stand back and let others take the place that he wants.
Perhaps he doesn’t think he’s good enough for you?