The Hierophant
Learning from a shared tradition.
Learning from established wisdom or community can steady you.
- tradition
- guidance
- belonging
Traditional association: Taurus
What the card shows
A robed figure in a triple crown sits between two grey pillars, one hand raised in blessing. Two crossed keys lie at his feet and two figures kneel in front of him.
The Hierophant is the teacher of established ways. The pillars and keys point to a doorway to knowledge that is passed on in a community. Taurus, his usual sign, is steady and loyal to what has been proven.
▲Upright
Belonging to a tradition, a group or a teacher, and learning the established way first.
Which tradition or teacher is serving me, and which am I following out of habit?
▼Reversed
Inherited rules are being questioned, or are stuck in place.
Whose rules am I living by?
The Hierophant in a reading
In love
Shared values and rituals that hold people together.
Reversed: Inherited rules are being questioned, or are stuck in place.
At work
Formal learning, mentors, working inside an institution or a recognised path.
Its shadow side: conformity, doing it because it has always been done.
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 5.
Five of Wands
Five of Cups
Five of Swords
Five of PentaclesRead it with other cards
Questions about The Hierophant
What does The Hierophant mean in tarot?
Belonging to a tradition, a group or a teacher, and learning the established way first. Keywords: tradition, guidance, belonging.
What does The Hierophant mean reversed?
Inherited rules are being questioned, or are stuck in place. Releasing: stepping away from convention. Blocked: unwilling to learn from others. Excess: rules held as dogma.
What does The Hierophant mean in love?
Shared values and rituals that hold people together.
What does The Hierophant mean for work?
Formal learning, mentors, working inside an institution or a recognised path.
What question does The Hierophant ask?
Upright: Which tradition or teacher is serving me, and which am I following out of habit? Reversed: Whose rules am I living by?
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