Tarot Archetypes & The Soul’s Path
Ordination, May 2002
Traditional cultures acknowledged the role of the Shaman as a wounded healer. There was great practical wisdom in the requirement to face—and then return from—one’s own death in order to become a shaman or healer for others.
The deaths we all face wear many different masks at different times, and are experienced cyclically. Facing and returning from death is not a one-time accomplishment; it is part of an on-going process of growth.
This is why I value hearing about the struggles, sorrows, doubts and fears of fellow chaplains and ministers, and not merely about their successes. We can so easily become distracted by the drive for accomplishment, missing our soul’s path without even noticing.
We cannot be authentic and compassionate spiritual helpers for others without facing our own struggles. Although no one willingly chooses to embark on a true descent to the underworld, if we make it through, we are always restored to wholeness in a way that would have been impossible otherwise.
As long as we are alive, we continue to grow. We can share the wisdom gained by embodying what we’ve learned, rather than offering opinions to others about what they should do. We are then able to be present in a loving, open way, as a witness to their journey.
In the western book of wisdom known as the Tarot, these principles are encoded in the archetype of The Hermit, the wise sage who guides us on our soul’s path. Emerging from his cave, he stands at the crossroads and holds his lantern high, allowing the light of The Star within it to illuminate the way. His function is to witness and bring light. He doesn’t tell you which way to go—he lights the path and encourages you to choose your own way.
The Star within the lantern is the archetype of higher guidance. The light of The Star represents the grace and self-confidence that flows through us when we are open to higher guidance. By following that light, the traveler finds her way through the crossroads.
The crossroads are a place of transition, symbolizing the intersection of past and future, body and spirit. Traditional folktales recount stories of travelers meeting The Devil at the crossroads, and selling their soul in exchange for success, fame and wealth.
When we meet The Devil at the crossroads, we are really asking ourselves:
“Will I follow my attraction towards wholeness, or choose from fear?”
In the Tarot, The Devil archetype reflects the fundamental choice we make in life—following our soul’s path, or wandering in fear. Fear is the hidden motivation that lies beneath the drive for attainment, in the misguided belief that it will protect us from pain and death.
Regardless of which choice we make, sooner or later we all encounter death. The shaman does not become a healer because she is a great hero. Facing death is the only way to learn that fear will never protect her. Once death has been unmasked, she is able to refuse The Devil’s bargain.
Embodying this truth, the shaman becomes a way-shower for others.
Like The Hermit, she stands at the crossroads, holding up her lantern—a witness for the soul’s path.