The High Priestess
What you sense before you can explain it.
Quiet reflection brings answers that noise cannot. Trust what you sense beneath the surface.
- intuition
- stillness
- the unspoken
Traditional association: Moon
What the card shows
A woman in blue robes sits between a black pillar and a white pillar marked with the letters B and J. A crescent moon rests at her feet and a scroll is half hidden in her lap. Behind her hangs a curtain patterned with pomegranates.
Two is the number of pairs and thresholds. The pillars mark a doorway between opposites, and the curtain hides what lies beyond it. The Moon, her usual association, is the traditional symbol of intuition and what is not yet visible.
▲Upright
Stillness before deciding: listening to what is unspoken, in the situation and in you.
What do I already sense but have not said out loud?
▼Reversed
Intuition is drowned out, or secrets are kept too tightly.
When did I last go quiet enough to hear what I think?
The High Priestess in a reading
In love
Noticing what is left unsaid between people, and what you have not admitted to yourself.
Reversed: Intuition is drowned out, or secrets are kept too tightly.
At work
Gathering information before acting; trusting a quiet read of the room.
Its shadow side: secrecy, holding back too long.
As a Major Arcana card
Life's big themes and turning points. A Major Arcana card points to a bigger theme than the everyday cards around it.
Related cards
The Minor Arcana cards that share the number 2.
Two of Wands
Two of Cups
Two of Swords
Two of PentaclesRead it with other cards
Questions about The High Priestess
What does The High Priestess mean in tarot?
Stillness before deciding: listening to what is unspoken, in the situation and in you. Keywords: intuition, stillness, the unspoken.
What does The High Priestess mean reversed?
Intuition is drowned out, or secrets are kept too tightly. Blocked: noise and busyness over the inner voice. Inward: feelings hidden even from yourself. Excess: overthinking, reading too much into small signs.
What does The High Priestess mean in love?
Noticing what is left unsaid between people, and what you have not admitted to yourself.
What does The High Priestess mean for work?
Gathering information before acting; trusting a quiet read of the room.
What question does The High Priestess ask?
Upright: What do I already sense but have not said out loud? Reversed: When did I last go quiet enough to hear what I think?
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