Key 2 - The Intuitive

Traditional Title: The High Priestess

The Moon

The Intuitive archetype senses the root essence of consciousness.

Affirmation: I trust the silent wisdom that rises from within.

UPRIGHT: Intuition, Receptivity, Reflection, Rhythm, Mystery​

REVERSE: Repressed Feelings, Ignoring Intuition, Superficiality, Lack of Depth, Excessive Reactivity

RIDER-WAITE-SMITH DESCRIPTION

A solemn young female sits upon a throne with a crescent moon at her feet. While she’s in this position of high esteem, she’s rather young in appearance. The High Priestess sits inside a temple upon a cubicle stone, which represents the soul or the container for creation or the formation of matter. Her inner robes and her headscarf are white, representing her purity and her virginity. Her outer robe is blue which flows like a waterfall. This represents the stream of consciousness that flows through the rest of the deck. Anywhere that we see water in the remaining cards, the original source of that water is the robe of the High Priestess. The water represents that prima materia, the root of matter. According to ancient hermetic teachings, what causes matter to manifest are the thoughts of the One Mind. This is known as the first hermetic principle of mentalism, which says that The All is Mind. The High Priestess is the subconscious aspect of this universal mind. She is simply pure virgin potential. She is receptive and births whatever seeds the Magician plants within her. As her robe dissolves into water, it reflects the concept of water taking form while remaining pure, which correlates with virginity or purity. The High Priestess’ crown shows the phases of the moon, referring to the cycles of nature and the principle of rhythm. Her headdress and robes are drawn to replicate flowing water, and the Moon is at her feet.

She sits in front of a veil on which are pomegranates arranged in a Tree of Life pattern. The veil is stretched between two pillars and on the veil is an embroidery of pomegranates representing feminine sexuality as well as palm leaves which represent masculine sexuality. This relates to the hermetic principle of gender, that interplay of masculine and feminine energies that are needed for creation. The pomegranates portrayed, and partly obscured, on the veil are depicted in the form of the Tree of Life, reminding us that this is the pattern of all things. The horns of her crown touch Chokmah and Binah of the supernal triad on the tree, connecting her to the celestial realms. Behind the veil is a vast sea of cosmic mind. The veil itself might serve to separate the unconscious and conscious mind, the living and the dead, and the supernal realm from the mundane. Altogether, this collection of lunar symbols conveys notions of secrecy, divine knowledge, faith, divination, and implicit communication between the seen and unseen aspects of a unified whole.

The High Priestess, who sits between black and white pillars labeled B for Boaz & J for Jachin, represents the middle pillar. These pillars represent to principle of polarity, and the lotus flowers at the top of each of the pillars represent the blooming of feminine subconscious force. The scroll that peeks out from the position of Hod/Mercury an onto the High Priestess’ lap says TORA on it, which represents and relates to the laws of the universe. In times past, a High Priestess would be living in the cloisters of the ancient temples. A contemporary example would be a quantum physicist seeking to understand the laws of the universe and matter, often finding themselves relying on their own inner knowing.

SYMBOLS

Long cascading blue gown: Her robe flows in waves of energy. This represents the principle of vibration. It says that all things vibrate; all things move. The blue robes of the Priestess also bring to mind the Virgin Mary as the “Star of the Sea.”

Veil: The veil is decorated with pomegranates and palm trees. The pomegranate is associated with the Virgin Mary. In Christian symbolism, the pomegranate frequently graced the fabric of garments, representing the abundance of Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection. Pomegranates are often portrayed in the hands of Mary or the young Jesus.

Equal-armed cross: The equal arm cross is positioned on her chest at Tiphareth, alluding to solar deities and the son, representing the balance of the four elements and the principle of correspondence, as above, so below.

Headdress crown with horns: This crown alludes to the solar disk, cow horns crown of Hathor. It also represents the Egyptian goddess Isis, who was the original High Priestess of the ancient Egyptian mystery schools. Some legends say that Isis taught women how to harness the cycles of nature, dig canals from the Nile, and water the fields. The crown may also represent a triple lunar crown reminiscent of Hekate as the maiden, mother, and crone.

Scroll: The word TORA is visible on the scroll in reference to the Torah, or law. This represents the divine law and alludes to gnosis, or self-knowledge.

Two Pillars: The black pillar to her right, which is marked with the initial B, is Boaz and the gray pillar to her left, which is marked with initial J, is Jachin. These pillars of Solomon’s Temple are called the Pillar of Form (Boaz) and the Pillar of Force (Jachin), and they are the two side pillars of the Tree of Life.

TREE OF LIFE CORRESPONDENCES

As card 2, the High Priestess signifies the reflection of consciousness, acting as the conduit that receives and duplicates the creative force. The number 2 arises from the separation of the masculine principle of number 1 into positive and negative elements, and this duality signifies the feminine principle. The Tree of Life, which serves as a profound symbol of the entirety of creation, emanates from three “veils of nothingness.” These veils that underlie the manifest universe are known as ain (nothing), ain soph (nothing without limit), and ain soph aur (limitless light). It is from these veils of nothingness that Kether, the first sephira on the Tree of Life, emerges as a point of light without dimension. The third path on the Tree of Life commences at Kether (Crown) on the Middle Pillar, which is associated with Neptune and represents the divine source, or the Ultimate Reality principle. This path traverses the Abyss, located below the supernal sephiroth (Kether, Chokmah, and Binah), which shrouds the connection to the source of life in mystery. The High Priestess’ path leads to Tiphareth (Beauty) on the Middle Pillar, which is associated with the Sun and represents the Light of the Soul and mastery over the four elemental aspects of Personality. The High Priestess is traditionally associated with the Hebrew letter gimel, which has a numerical value of 3. Gimel can be interpreted as the expansion of consciousness across the desert of the Abyss to discover the unknowable intention behind existence. Since the High Priestess corresponds to gimel, this archetype represents communication between like ideas across distances as is experienced in telepathic communication.

Platonic level (Metaphysical Principles):

The Moon is nocturnal and feminine, with a nature that is cold and moist. The Moon’s symbol features a waxing crescent, symbolizing its role in reflecting the Sun’s light. The Moon represents the matrix of being.

  • Receptive and reflective.
  • Biological forms and matter.
  • The cyclical process of birth, development, and decline.
  • Variability and inconstancy.
  • The nature of interdependence.
  • Attunement in a home, family and community.

Jungian level (Psychological Principles):

Positives

  • To intuit.
  • To relate and respond.
  • The capacity to feel, process, and reflect on one’s emotions.
  • Connecting, belonging, and caring for others by reflecting back their light.

Negatives

The negative expression of this archetype manifests as heightened emotional volatility, instability, a tendency toward dependence, reluctance to mature or embrace independence, and a tendency to offer assistance without discernment.

The Moon in an Astrological Chart

When the Moon forms a major aspect with another planet within one’s birth chart, the secondary planetary archetype tends to channel itself through various aspects of one’s life governed by the Moon, which includes emotions and moods, early familial environment, and intimate relationships and domestic life.

Mythic level (Mythic Deities and Figures):

Greek Goddess: Hecate

Hecate, the goddess of magic, witchcraft, and crossroads, governs the mystical aspects of night and the unknown. She is often associated with the mysteries of the occult and the hidden realms, embodying a deep connection to the subconscious and the esoteric. This makes her a fitting representation for The Intuitive archetype, which similarly taps into the unseen and the intuitive knowledge that guides one through life’s uncertainties.