Tarot card meanings › Major Arcana
The Hanged Man Tarot Card Meaning
The Hanged Man tarot card means pause, surrender and a new point of view. Pause, and see it another way.
Upright
- Pause
- surrender
- a new point of view
Reversed
- Stalling
- pointless sacrifice
- refusing to let go
Yes or no
Maybe
The Hanged Man is card XII of the 22 major arcana.
What the card shows
A man hangs upside down by one foot from a T-shaped tree in leaf. His other leg is crossed behind, his hands are behind his back, and a halo shines round his calm face.
This is the card as drawn by Pamela Colman Smith for the 1909 Rider-Waite-Smith deck, which is in the public domain.
Upright meaning
The Hanged Man is read as a pause you choose. Nothing moves, and that is the point: seen upside down, the problem looks different. It points to waiting, letting go and giving something up for something better.
The Hanged Man reversed
Reversed, it is read as stalling, a sacrifice that is getting you nowhere, or a delay that has gone on long enough.
Yes or no?
In a yes or no question, The Hanged Man is usually read as a maybe: the answer depends on something not settled yet. Readers differ on some cards, so treat this as one common reading. You can ask a yes or no question and draw a card for it.
Draw a card yourself
More Major Arcana cards
The FoolThe MagicianThe High PriestessThe EmpressThe EmperorThe HierophantThe LoversThe ChariotStrengthThe HermitWheel of FortuneJusticeDeathTemperanceThe DevilThe TowerThe StarThe MoonThe SunJudgementThe World
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