The Hierophant Now

 The Hierophant: Who he really is

Part I

In early Tarot decks, such as the Waite deck, we see The Hierophant as a Pope figure — a spiritual leader of a religion, but the meaning of a real hierophant has roots in ancient Greece, and that is what will be referred to here. In the Eleusinian Mysteries, and the cult of Eleusis, the hierophant was a High Priest who presided over the enactment of certain rituals and magical incantations in celebration of the Earth Mother, Demeter/Ceres, goddess of agriculture, and her daughter, Persephone (Homeric Hymn to Demeter, 7^th Century BCE). 

“She made the fields once richer with abundant fruit and the whole world bright with flowers and green leaves.” 

 Edith Hamilton, Mythology (Little, Brown & Company 1942, 1969)

 

    The emphasis then, was on the seasons and the ever-changing processes of Nature. Hierophants officiated in public festivals, games and parades, bringing together the populace, while emphasizing the sacredness and reverence for Nature’s seasonal fluctuations. These early agrarian communities celebrated the “wealth of grain which the earth gives year after year.” On another level, a hierophant administered multi-layered arcane practices of the Eleusinian cult, some of which were secret and hidden, and available only to the initiate as they celebrated the “eternity of life which flows from generation to generation.” They honored the continuing rebirth of plants - occurring over and over every spring.

“…the main element is the hidden concealed content of the divine 

‘numinous’ event designated as mysterion.” - “The initiate become ‘epopt’ with secret vision carried through ritual action and words.”

Paul Schmitt, The Mysteries (Ed. by Joseph Campbell, Princeton University Press 1978)

 In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, The Hierophant card (with new expanded meaning) motivates us to become aware of the underlying forces and hidden processes of nature; from the development of a single cell to the majestic presence of living entities of flora and fauna: tree, cone, seed; chicken, egg; monkey, baby. In this context, the essence of The Hierophant is now interpreted as an instructor, a wise teacher, the guardian of Nature, one who teaches respect for the sense of aliveness and sacredness in all living things.

The Hierophant

     In an artistic revision of ancient Eleusinian practices, the painting of The Hierophant card in Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness consists of geometrical diagrams that represent nature’s creative processes. When we closely examine a slice of the shell of a Chambered Nautilus (an endangered species) we see it as an approximation of the Golden Mean Ratio (Phi1.618034). Each section is about 1:1.618 times larger than the previous one and swirls in a logarithmic spiral; a shape formed by many mollusks as they expand and grow (refer to my previous Hierophant blog, August 2010). It is interesting to see that hundreds of geometrical and mathematical aspects are manifest in the growth of most self-organizing, self-replicating marine organisms. For instance, it’s amazing to observe that most mollusk’s methods of self-structured development are repeated in the twisting, rotating motion of shell-making again and again. Some sea creatures expand their living space exponentially (see article in Scientific American, “How Seashells Take Shape,” April 2018). For comparison, in geometry, when an arc is drawn through a set of Whirling Squares, the Golden Mean Ratio appears visually as a logarithmic spiral.That spiral is similar to the swirling shell of the Nautilus.The point is, when we look at nature’s processes with a new eye and appreciation, we open a window on the remarkable organizational and structural patterns of growth. Complex biological activity is going on right under our feet. 

     Zoologist/artist, Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919) spent countless hours peering through his microscope, drawing and painting intricate structures of miniature marine life. His marvelous tiny forms of foraminifera, plankton and mixotrophs, were published for the world to see in 1904. His huge book of intricate drawings, Art Forms in Nature, became a popular textbook for oceanographers and inspired

Art Forms in Nature 

many artists of that time. Due to his work, many artists, designers, craftsmen and architects were inspired to incorporate natural patterns from Nature in their work. The artists of the Art Nouveau movement (1880-1910) were heavily influenced by Haeckel’s elegant art forms, including Tiffany, Antoni Gaudi and the founder of the Arts and Crafts movement in England, William Morris.

“Haeckel teaches us to look at life forms as elements of an organic crystallography [which] demonstrates the magic of organic symmetries”

Olaf Breidbach, commentary, in Art Forms in Nature by Ernst Haeckel (recently republished by Prestel Verlag 2004)

Antoni Gaudi apartment

     Looking beyond the onset of the “Industrial Revolution” and mechanistic thought, today, some of us have lost the feeling of the sacredness and appreciation of Nature. We have lost sight of the grandeur of Earth’s creatures, lands, forests and rivers. From a developer’s perspective, a stately redwood tree is no longer a majestic living entity or an integral part of a Biocenosis community in the forest. It is now a commodity worth $100 a board foot. When great forests are chopped down forever, it is due to the lack of respect and knowledge of the complex biological interdependence and morphogenesis of whole land habitats and soil processes, which includes all the creatures dwelling therein.

     Loren Eisley (1907-1977) advocated for a less frenzied era where one “… had time to observe, to speculate and to dream.” [A seed]: “…the seed, unlike the developing spore, is already a fully equipped embryo plant packed in a little enclosed box stuffed full of nutritious food. The well-fed, carefully cherished little embryo raised their heads everywhere.” Loren Eisley, The Immense Journey (Time, Inc. 1962)

     The present administration of the US government advocates “the deconstruction of the administrative state” which includes undermining numerous policies of land and monument preservation (Bear Ears in Utah - reduced 85%). They are deregulating certain environmental laws and government agencies. They have lost sight of the reason for the various congressional acts, rules and laws that previous administrations have set up to protect threatened lands, water, and forests, including the preservation of endangered species. These acts and laws were not only established as protection from plunderers of the earth for gold and silver and oil, they were meant to restrain those in the grip of “the love of money.” Pristine areas of land and wildlife habitat were set aside for posterity. What is most lacking now is that sense of the sacredness of earth, which was once exemplified in public celebrations of Nature’s processes conducted by the hierophant eons ago. 

“Consciousness is an integral part of nature. But we fail to understand this. We have stolen the soul from nature, or so we believe, because you can’t really take away the spirit in nature.

”Susan Griffin, “Curves Along the Road,” Reweaving the World (Ed. by Irene Diamond and Gloria Orenstein) 

Part II

Environmental conservation

 After many years of exploitation of resources, are there any plans for how the public can reclaim the land and all its inhabitants? Responsibility for a sustainable future is up to us. In the big picture, through wise stewardship of endangered areas, including protection of declining forests and animal habitats, we can set a new course. We can’t continue with this willful, ruthless destruction of the Garden of Eden, so to speak, in order to feed the “internal combustion engine.” Immense amounts of oil and gas are being sucked out of the body of the earth by oil and gas corporations - hungry for profit - to feed the “motor.” Change can’t come fast enough for the development of new kinds of motor inventions and clean energy sources. This is the key to the survivability of life on earth. 

     We need answers to the current dilemma and there are solutions the general public can take part in. By joining the action for change with others of like mind and becoming informed, we can plan together to bring about new solutions. It is the general public who must act en masse now to prevent further catastrophic events. We can solve the wholesale destruction of the earth by changing the way we think about the earth and its processes. Since this is now the information age, summaries of various scientific studies and solutions can be found in publicly available magazines and websites (see National Geographic, Earth Day 50^thAnniversary Special Issue, April 2020). Many helpful, forward-looking activist groups can be found on the web. “Climate Change” has become a catch-all term about extreme weather events we are now experiencing worldwide. We all need to recognize that we are in the midst of an earth warming crisis of apocalyptic proportions. The scientific evidence is there and has been measured: warmer air is accelerating a meltdown of glaciers everywhere; causing more hurricanes; floods in some areas; extreme drought in others, and extensive wildfires.

“It is this imaginative capacity, the ability to envision a world radically different 

from the present that has largely been missing since the cry of NO began echoing 

around the world in 2008.”

Naomi Klein, No is Not Enough (Haymarket Books, Random House, Canada 2017)

Arctic Meltdown

1.     Why are we seeing the Arctic sea ice vanishing? Atmospheric scientists tell us the melting of the Arctic Tundra and disappearance of sea ice is caused by higher carbon dioxide levels, measured now at 400 parts per million. This warming of the earth is caused mostly by burning of fossil fuels and greenhouse gasses (see National Geographic,“The Arctic is Heating Up,” September 2019).  Arctic permafrost used to be frozen all year round, but now, it is thawing out and releasing methane gas, which further adds to the problem. Melting sea ice is exposing the surrounding land and opening up the Arctic Ocean, setting the stage for exploitation of the Arctic by both USA and Russia seeking minerals and oil (see Scientific American, “Sea Change,” August 2009). 

There is some hope for change by the recent attempts to capture CO2. In Iceland, “Climeworks,” a Swiss company, may have found a unique solution for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. “Injection Wells” have been installed at the Hellisheioi geothermal power plant where carbon dioxide is pulled from the air and sent, along with brine, deep into the bedrock where it bonds with basalt and becomes a solid mineral (see Scientific American, “The Last Resort,” January 2019). This is becoming a model for a worthwhile investment in our future.

Acidic Oceans

2.    Why are the coral reefs disappearing? The South Pacific Ocean is becoming acidic and some threatened areas, such as the Australian Barrier Reef, is suffering from an overload of CO2, which has caused the disappearance of many miles of coral reefs of the Coral Sea. Scientists say 67% of the world’s coral reefs are being decimated by oceanic heat waves. “About a third of the carbon dioxide released by the burning of fossil fuels currently ends up in the ocean. Absorbed CO2  forms carbonic acid in seawater”(see Scientific American, “The Dangers of Ocean Acidification,” March 2006). This makes it harder for marine animals to build shells from calcium carbonate, and the decline in PH threatens corals, upsetting the whole marine food chain.  On another scary note, in the 1950’s, the earth was inundated by radioactive particles spread by atmospheric nuclear bomb tests in the Marshall Islands; all because of what we have done in the name of WAR. And to make matters worse, currently, radioactive water is leaking into the Pacific Ocean from the disabled Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan where they are now considering dumping huge amounts of stored radioactive water into the ocean from the cooling plants (see Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, November 11, 2019; and article by Jane Braxton Little, (“Fukushima Residents Return Despite Radiation,” (doseofviral.com). The nuclear power plant at Chernobyl, Ukraine, still remains the worst nuclear power disaster in history (with radioactive decay of Strontium-90 and Cesium-137 about 30 years; plutonium-239, 24,000 years).

 Contemporary artist, Ann T. Rosenthal and her late partner, Stephen Moore, traveled the world awhile back, documenting all the connected sites where nuclear bombs and testing have occurred, including visiting Hiroshima and Nagasaki where atomic bombs were dropped in WWII. Their pilgrimage reflects our troubled times and provides food for thought about the possible ultimate destruction of earth (see their installation, “Infinity City Redux”).  

Drought  

3.    The disappearing snowpack in the Sierra Nevada mountains above the “breadbasket valley” of California has brought on drought conditions for several years, leading to very dry terrain susceptible to wildfires (see National Geographic, “When the Snows Fall,” October 2014). And we watched parts of California burn up this past summer, while certain areas of Southern Africa are suffering the same fate. There, extreme heat and fire are causing barren cropland and creating drastic food shortages. From studying ancient tree rings, scientists can track temperature changes from more than 1000 years in the past. The current rise in temperature has been steadily increasing off the charts since 1900. In an opposite context, recently, there has been record flooding from unprecedented rainfall and more frequent hurricanes in US Southern states. With Nature raging out of control, it’s imperative we find solutions to counteract these destructive forces. 

Clean Water

4.    The Clean Water Act of 1972 (Federal Water Pollution Act) has been rewritten several times. At first, the purpose was to stop sewage from being dumped in the waterways, and therefore, many municipal sewage plants were constructed in large cities around the US. Then further restrictions were added to protect our rivers, which banned chemical dumping by industry, including lead and mercury. Consider the recent ongoing problem of lead in the water supply of Flint, Michigan. The current administration’s policy of deregulation is lessening the laws that are protecting our waterways. So, how can we be assured that we will always have access to clean drinking water?  One of the most polluted places in America is “cancer alley,” where 85 miles of polluted Mississippi River is lined with 150 petrochemical plants between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. This is a major problem of epic proportions, which is ongoing and not only affecting the river and the land, but also poisoning the people living in that area (businessinsider.com).

     In southwestern Kansas farmland, satellite images show hundreds of round green circles of cropland. Each circle has a well at the center, which is pumping groundwater through sprinklers onto the fields. Because of this, underground streams flowing to rivers have dropped 50%. Vast amounts of groundwater depletion is also occurring in California’s valleys and Arizona’s deserts using these same methods of irrigation. Pesticides, nitrates, phosphates, and nitrogen fertilizers, are also draining from the farmed fields into waterways and lakes, polluting the waters. Because of this, some farmers are experimenting and finding new ways to grow without fertilizers, relying instead on microorganisms and bacteria (see Discover Magazine,“The Fix is In,” November 2019). 

     There are several groups of concerned citizens working on water conservation seeking resolution of the problem of pollution in rivers, streams and lakes, especially those rivers flowing through cities: Artist Betsy Damon, founder of Keepers of the Waters, has been designing waterparks in several cities around the world that help clean the water. Her groups are committed to expanding clean water projects and promoting conservation education that involve community members, scientists, activists, including children The goal is to restore and improve water sources around the world. In Chengdu China, with Chinese partners, Betsy designed the award winning “Living Water Garden,” in 1998. This has become a model for change of urban infrastructure in water distribution and usage. It demonstrates a sustainable system for wetlands that treat polluted water and ways to aid in cleaning up rivers. 

    In dealing with the problems of flood control in cities, Landscape Architect, Yu Kongjian and his firm, “Turenscape,” has started a movement for managing water in several cities called “Sponge Cities.” His motive for change is based on “peasant wisdom” where rivers are widened, and water filtration systems are created with permeable sidewalks, rain catchers, and cisterns. Native plants at river edges replace cement bulkheads and dams. These works also include reclamation of derelict industrial sites. He is working on a master plan for all of China (see Scientific American, “Sponge Cities,” December 2018).  

Land Grab and Endangered Species

5.    Destruction of critical habitat is devastating wildlife populations in many states and the Endangered Species Act has purposely been weakened by the present administration. The act is in danger of being dismantled altogether. Disappearance of wetlands and estuaries has been occurring for many years with the encroachment of industry and overdevelopment in land use. Wildlife and habitats are threatened more than ever. More than 2,350 endangered species of animals, birds, plants and reptiles have been listed under the act (see Discover Magazine, “A Million Species In Danger,” January/February 2020). President Richard Nixon signed the original “Endangered Species Act” in 1973. This included identifying and protecting critical habitat use of wetlands, salt water marsh ecosystems, and preventing pollution of waterways. The ramifications of the act have now become a political football in disputes over rights to protect wildlife habitat versus attempts to develop public lands and drill for gas and oil. The Greater Sage Grouse is at the center of controversy in Wyoming over the attempt to lease public land for development of oil and gas fields and planned wind farms. The Jonah Field in Wyoming, which was once the habitat for the grouse is now gone. The previous administration under Obama arranged a compromise agreement designed to protect sage grouse, but now it is being undermined by the present administration in favor of oil and gas drilling and mining (see National Geographic, “Saving the Sage Grouse,” November 2019). In Washington State, the fate of the Pygmy Rabbit and Oregon Spotted Frog hang in the balance due to the overall destruction of their habitat in an area stretching from Washington and Oregon to Montana. Habitat destruction, pesticides, and all-consuming wildfires, have taken a toll on wildlife and many other threatened species in these areas (see National Geographic, “Countdown to Extinction” January 2009). The Keystone XL Pipeline was recently stopped by the Sierra Club and indigenous people by invoking the Endangered Species Act (Sierra Club Magazine, “Pipelines On Pause,” July/August 2020). Several Native American tribes, including the Rosebud Sioux, Lakota and Fort Benning Community, have filed lawsuits against the remaining segments of the pipeline. 

     Olas and Margaret Murie, would be appalled to see their work to help establish the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge violated illegally by companies drilling for oil as designated by the present administration.    

  

“Although Nature needs thousands or millions of years to create a species, man needs only a few years to destroy one."

           Victor Scheffer, Spires of Form: Glimpses of Evolution (University of Washington Press 1983) 

The Hierophant and Nature

When you receive The Hierophant card in a reading, it’s a signal to begin seeing Nature and your natural surroundings in a new way. Ask yourself: What is happening with plants, trees, animals and birds in your vicinity? What are you doing to improve their lot in life? Yet, it is not a time to ruminate and despair over what has gone wrong. Now is the time to take constructive action to mitigate the effects of this dystopia mankind has been creating on the earth. Instead, look to the future with a sense of the sacredness of the earth and go forward doing what you can do to facilitate change.

Here are some active organizations

Audubon Society

Climate-Action 350

Defenders of Wildlife

Friends of the Earth

Greenpeace

Jane Goodall Institute

Keepers of the Waters

Leap Manifesto Canada

Nature Conservancy

National Geographic Society

Natural Resources Defense Council

National Wildlife Federation

Wilderness Society

References: 

    Art Forms in Nature,Ernst Haeckel (1904, recently republished by Prestel Verlag 2004)

The Future of the Endangered Species Act,Charles Mann & Mark Plummer (Knopf 1995)

No is Not Enough, Naomi Klein (Haymarket Books 2017)

Gaia,James Lovelock (Oxford University Press 1979)

Grandmothers of the Light, Paula Gunn Allen(Beacon Press 1991)

The Rebirth of Nature,Rupert Sheldrake (Park Street Press 1994)

Reweaving the World, Irene Diamond & Gloria Orenstein (Sierra Club Books 1990)

A Sand County Almanac, Aldo Leopold (Oxford university Press 1966)

Two In the Far North, Margaret Murie (Knopf, 1963)