Between the dates of April 17 and May 5, I chose three cards per day most days. Some of those cards were Major Arcana cards, including the Hanged Man. Interestingly, I picked him twice during those two weeks.
So let’s have a closer look at the Hanged Man:

Description
My initial reaction to a person hanging upside down is omg why is he being punished? But if you look closer, you can see the Hanged Man is not looking distressed or uncomfortable. He has a relaxed expression and the body language tells us he is not suffering.
The words associated with this card are surrender, new perspective, circumspection. It also implies a pause, or suspending action to experience emotional release.
Interpretation
Several sources I consulted suggest the Hanged Man is hanging upside down by choice. He put himself there. The question is, why? It appears he felt stuck in his life circumstances and wanted to look at his world from a different perspective. So he turned himself upside down and voilà, he’s looking at the world with a fresh view.
There is a halo present around the Hanged Man’s head. This suggests because of his position, he has gained new insights or awareness.
It’s almost like he took a pause from whatever was troubling him, turned himself upside down to look at his situation from a different perspective, and as a result has learned that there is more than one way to approach his circumstances.
Personal circumstances
My writing feels like I’m blocked. I am lacking fresh ideas, and I don’t know where to look for inspiration. I feel like I’m hanging in suspension.
The Hanged Man card tells me to look at my current situation with fresh eyes. Inspiration is everywhere, I just have to look at the circumstances differently. (Note to self: is there a tree I can hang myself upside down in nearby?)
Perhaps it’s time to put some of my projects on hold for a while, and allow an infusion of new ideas to form by doing something unrelated to writing. My old methods aren’t serving me well anymore, it’s time to let them go (emotional release) and embrace new opportunities.
What if something new is just beyond the horizon but I can’t see it coming because I’m stuck in a rut and holding on to too many old mental models of behaviour?
I can do that, surrender and open myself up to new experiences. Now that the sunny and warmer weather has finally arrived after a cold, miserable spring here in Toronto, I plan on unplugging more and spending some time in the garden. Perhaps, as I dig in dirt and tend to flowers and vegetables, my brain will be able to come up with fresh ideas to propel my writing forward again.
But there is one thing that’s nagging at me. How come this card appeared twice? What does it mean when you keep picking the same card from your deck of 78 cards?
Picking the same tarot card repeatedly
One source I consulted suggests the universe is trying to tell me to listen to my own intuition better, to allow myself to feel a deeper level of consciousness.
If this happens to you, ask yourself what you saw when you picked this card before, and why you might not have received the message then. Is something blocking us from allowing the message to penetrate our minds? (source: biddytarot.com)
Most people who do tarot readings ask the tarot a specific question before they pull their cards. The cards that appear address their questions by guiding them to tune into their subconscious.
So with repeating, or stalker cards, the universe is saying “stop and listen, didn’t you get the message before?”
There is an interesting approach on how to deal with stalker cards outlined by labyrinthos.co. Click here to learn how.
I have a couple of personal situations going on which alerted me to pay closer attention to the Hanged Man when he started stalking me, both in life and in writing. So this was a good alert for me to pay attention to my situation, take a pause, and look beyond my immediate circumstances. Perhaps new opportunities are on their way – my job it to allow them to surface so I can embrace them, which I can only do if allow myself to see them coming. So, fresh perspective, surrender, and embrace the new is what I took from the Hanged Man tarot card.
Did you ever have stalker cards follow you around? What did you do about it? And did you follow the advice of the Hanged Man when he appeared in your reading?
Thank you for following along. For more about my tarot card journey, click here.
This made me chuckle. I got the hanged man so many times in my first two years of doing cards. I like the term “stalker”.
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I like the card, I like what he represents. I hope I’m doing this right… 🙂
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I’d say there is no right or wrong…if you find guidance to help you, then it’s all good.
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This is fascinating! I continue to get the Hanged Man in every reading since 12/2018. It’s part of why I decided to retire early, based on a reading I had in New Orleans at Christmas. He keeps popping up, though. “Stalking” me, as you perfectly put it. I’ve unstuck my life in every way imaginable since 2018. I’m perplexed… The Fool keeps showing up, too. Hmm…
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Really you got the Hanged Man many times? I like him, and I like what he represents (fresh perspective and all that).
The Fool is a great card to have too because he is the one who travels through the entire deck. And if you pulled him when you first started changing your life in 2018 then he was spot on.
I had other cards that stalked me so I may do another session on this topic at a later date.
Thank you for commenting! 🙂
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I’m loving this. I’d never have thought of the hanged man as being a positive card, yet it is. I often tell myself that it’s all about perspective, and this card is the embodiment of that concept. I’ve been feeling stuck lately too. I wonder if I’d pull that card given the chance?
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I guess what tipped me off is his expression and relaxed body language…not looking distressed. 🙂
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I see the greenery at the edges, I see the relaxed look, I’m thinking “acrobat”. So maybe not just changing perspective but doing something fun or silly… “childish”
That’s me though. I am childish by nature.
I wanna know why his hair is hanging but the bottom of his tunic thingy stays in place? 😆
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Now you made me go look again. 😛
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maybe you should write about somebody in isolation…Ya know
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Two times with the hanging guy… I’d say listen closely to him. He seems to be offering some good advice.
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Yes it seems that way. 🙃
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Eventually you will want a Tarot deck that you “connect” with, and once you have used it enough to to reinforce that connection you will find that it has a sense of humor, as well as getting annoyed with you. If do use the “ask a question’ format, and if I ask the same question too often I either get a snarky answer or a funny one…That’s been my experience.
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Really? So living with teenagers doesn’t give me enough snark and attitude? 😂
Too funny.
I’m practicing with the question thing but I find I get defensive at times. 😉
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I’ve had certain images or things appear to follow me…I always wonder if it’s the universe trying to tell me something…
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Probably is .. 😳
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The world works in mysterious ways…
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This is interesting.
I think so long as the hanging man isn’t hanging from the tree with a noose around his neck, he’s probably pretty relaxed.
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Yes. He’s hanging by choice and happy about it.
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Interesting interpretation, the hanged man is just hanging in limbo (see what I did there- awe forget it, it was terrible) you’re burnt out, with looking after family and all that, being stuck inside, inspiration takes energy. Hopefully with all the gardening you do, something (ANYTHING) will help you unlock that creative energy. Thanks for posting this. I look forward to Tarot Tuesdays.
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Thank you for reading! Hey, that’s cool, hanging in limbo. I like it. 😀
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I wonder if the Hanged Man is suggesting pole-dancing. 😉
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Pf. I’d break my neck.
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Lol
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