Tarot card meaning · Major Arcana · IX The Hermit tarot card meaning

The Hermit is the card of stepping back to find your own answer. Upright it means solitude, searching and time alone that is needed. Reversed it means withdrawal that has gone too far, isolation instead of rest. In a yes or no reading it is not yet: this needs time alone before it needs an answer.

solitude
searching
inner light

Yes or no: Not yet
Reversed: No

Arcana: Major
Number: 9 (IX)
Element: Earth
Astrology: Virgo

The Hermit tarot card, Rider-Waite-Smith deck — Rider-Waite-Smith, 1909

Upright

The Hermit upright meaning

An old man in a long gray cloak stands alone on a snowy peak. In his right hand he holds up a lantern with a six-pointed star inside it, in his left a tall staff. He is looking down at the path, not out at the view. It is dark, and the lantern is the only light.

Upright, The Hermit means you need distance to see this. Time away from the person, from the noise, from everyone's opinion. The answer is not out there in another conversation. It is in you, and you will only hear it when it is quiet.

In love it often means someone has pulled back to think. That is not the same as gone. The Hermit withdraws to work something out, and he carries the lantern so he can find his way back.

Reversed

The Hermit reversed meaning

Reversed, the lantern has gone out, or the hermit has stopped walking. Solitude has turned into isolation. You, or the person you are asking about, have pulled so far in that nothing can reach you.

It can mean loneliness that has become a habit. Refusing help. Going silent not to think, but to avoid. Sometimes it means the opposite fault: being so afraid of being alone that you will not take the time you need.

Reversed reads as no because nothing can move while someone is that far away. The first step is coming back to people, even just one.

Love and relationships

The Hermit in love.

If you are single

This may be a season for yourself, and that is not a failure. Use it to work out what you actually want, so the next person meets someone who knows. Love can come later, and better, for it.

In a relationship

One of you needs space. It does not have to mean the end, but it has to be allowed. Upright, the distance helps. Reversed, it has become a wall, and someone needs to knock.

About an ex

About an ex, The Hermit says they are inside their own head, working through what happened, and not ready to talk. It also says you may need the same. Distance first. Any return after a Hermit comes from reflection, not from being chased.

How they feel

The Hermit as feelings

As feelings, The Hermit means they are thinking about you, privately, and not saying much. Reflective, cautious, maybe unsure of themselves. They need time alone to understand what they feel. Silence here is processing, not indifference.

What to do

The Hermit as advice

Step back and get quiet. Stop asking other people what to do. Spend real time alone with the question, no phone, no cards, and see what comes up. Then, when you know, come back out and act on it.

The question everyone asks

Does The Hermit mean they need space, or that they will come back?

It means they need space first, and that is honest, not a polite no. The Hermit withdraws to think, and people do come back after a Hermit, usually once they have worked something out. The card does not say how long. Reversed, the withdrawal has gone too far, and nothing changes until they choose to step back toward people.

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Yes or no

Is The Hermit a yes or a no?

Not yet This needs time alone before it needs an answer. The light you need is your own.

↺ No Reversed: You have withdrawn so far that nothing can reach you. Come back to people first.

A single card answers a single question, and only if the question is narrow. If yours is about a person, I can read the whole thing for you.

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In my readings

When The Hermit comes up for me.

The Hermit comes up a lot for people whose person has gone silent. The client wants to know what the silence means. Most often this card says they are thinking, alone, and nothing you send will speed it up. That is hard to hear, and it is also usually true.

I look at the rest of the spread for what they are thinking about, and what happens when they come down off the mountain. Sometimes the client is the Hermit, and the reading is about them needing time before they choose. Either way, what helps most here is usually an honest reading: seeing the situation plainly, so the waiting has a shape.

If this card is about someone

One card shows a corner. I read the room.

When a card keeps coming up about the same person, the question under it is bigger than its meaning. These are the two ways I can help with it today.

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Questions

What people ask about The Hermit

Is The Hermit a yes or no card?

It is not yet. Upright, the situation needs time alone and reflection before it can be answered. Reversed it is a no: someone has withdrawn so far that nothing can reach them right now.