from the hierophant to the lovers

hello, friends. with so much happening in the sky and on earth, i hope you’ve managed to carve out time for rest, for connection, for care. i know that the news is grim, that so many things feel like they’re slipping out of our grasp. i know you’re probably scared and sad, just like me. if you have favorite places to donate, to learn, to support, please feel free to drop them into the comments of this post, and i will boost them on socials and in future newsletters. and in the meantime, i hope that these words help you feel less alone.

later today the sun moves from the steady, solid earth of taurus to the brilliant, curious air of gemini. this is a fascinating shift, an opportunity to act on the tension that we’ve felt building within us. within the move from taurus to gemini, the hierophant to the lovers, the five to the six, we see a real trust in the self, a belief that we know ourselves well enough to build the kind of life that satisfies us on a bone-deep, personal level.

take a few deep breaths, grab something comforting to drink, and let’s get into it.

from the hierophant to the lovers

the hierophant, and taurus, are often painted as stuffy figures of tradition, ritual, and history. and by contrast, gemini can seem flighty, flaky, easily distracted, difficult to pin down. the contrast between these two energies is dramatic, and the shift from fixed earth to mutable air can feel dizzying, distracting. it can seem like we’re being whipped up into a frenzy, getting pulled in a million directions.

i’d like to challenge those rather tired and simplistic notions.

venus-ruled taurus is fixed earth: focused, determined, patient, driven, dedicated, pleasure-oriented. this is an energy that is devoted to what they love, that is willing to put in the effort to get what they want, that values comfort and sensuality as much as stability and safety. and in the astrological correspondences developed by the order of the golden dawn, taurus is associated with the hierophant, our figure of spiritual interrogation, of institutional knowledge, of tradition and ritual and collective belief. with the hierophant we consider the personal boundaries that we set through a broader lens, explore the various systems and structures that already exist in the world, begin to see our work within the context of community.

and while it’s tempting to only see the hierophant as a pope or a spiritual guru, someone that holds authority and wisdom in a clenched fist, someone who claims to have all of the answers but only parses them out in small, cryptic words and phrases, i don’t find this particular interpretation very useful. when we consider the numerological meanings of the number five, (and as may is the fifth month of the year, this feels relevant apart from the tarot and astrology), we find new layers of possibility in this much-maligned archetype. the number five is a digit of change and freedom, of adventure and movement, of recognizing internal and external tension. five isn’t content to follow the rules - instead they want to make their own world, decide for themselves which rules they want to follow.

taurus, like all fixed signs, so often gets labeled as stubborn - but there is comfort in the familiar, even if it’s also stifling us. taurus season gives us chance to see what chafes, and which boundaries we’re willing to explore beyond. this isn’t change for change’s sake, isn’t just a fickle kind of restlessness - instead it’s an opportunity to examine where we are comfortable, and what that comfort offers us. are we still finding joy in the familiar? or are we simply too afraid to look beyond what we know?

this new season of gemini, our mercury-ruled sign of mutable air, wants us to stretch our wings, break free of those old limits, and begin to create a life for ourselves that is based on curiosity, wonder, joy, connection, potential. gemini loves to gather and share information, is able to hold many details and questions at once, wants to build and create and collaborate with various groups of people. the tension that we examined with the hierophant eases with the lovers, our sixth card of the major arcana and the archetype associated with gemini.

the lovers is a card of connection, expansion, of finding our people and learning more about who we are, what we want, and where we want to go. the number six is associated with choice and responsibility, balance and harmony, nurturing and care. it’s finding opportunities for mutual aid and collective healing, taking ownership of the life we want, and making decisions that reflect our most authentic personal values. and given that 2022 is a six universal year, it’s a beautiful time to reflect on the choices we’ve made this year, both individually and collectively.

if the hierophant lets us recognize the spiritual communities and beliefs that exist, the lovers urges us to start building our own community, one that reflects our many facets. how do we care for ourselves, and for one another? what does it mean to wander, to question, to discover?

the shift from five of six is one of pure possibility. where have we felt ourselves being confined, constricted, cramped? what old ideas or narratives or patterns have been holding us back? where have we been going through the motions? six wants us to claim freedom for ourselves, to wander with joy and awe, to find people that see us in all of our magic and brilliance as well as for our flaws and uncertainties.

who are you, and what old habits are you ready to leave in the past? when do you feel the most like yourself - and who in your life facilitates that feeling? how do you let the world see you? what are you discovering, and how do those discoveries teach you more about the person that you are?

for more on the lovers and gemini season, check out my latest round of tarotscopes on autostraddle. and make sure you’re following me on instagram and tiktok for tarot spreads, writings, and announcements on my latest work.

wishing you an inspiring, joyful, and safe gemini season.

images from this post feature cards from the queer tarot and the celestial bodies oracle. all photographs by meg jones wall.