Through the Explorer archetype and the Hermit, this week we’re being called to commit to a path. Can we allow our inner Hermit’s lantern to guide us through this choice?
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The Explorer Archetype
I felt compelled to look up the etymology of this word ‘explorer’, and learned that no one is exactly sure of the origins, though two possibilities seem to be the most likely. One is that it may have come from Latin as a term that originally meant to scout out the hunting area. The other is that it may have come from the Old French meaning “to flow out”. In either case, movement is clearly inherent in this archetype. Whether it is physical or more energetic movement, the Explorer goes out from what is known.
The Explorer has a keen awareness of boundaries and horizons. This is a pattern that often awakens within us when we feel constricted by boundaries (either our own or those imposed upon us) and we are compelled to discover what is beyond that next horizon, charting what has not been charted before.
In the light, the Explorer is curious and open-minded. Whether the exploration is of the external world or the internal self, this one understands the importance of discovery and growth. Perhaps most importantly, the Explorer in the light has a clear destination. They know their underlying reason for exploration and can commit to completing a journey.
On the shadow side, the Explorer might look like the aimless wanderer, seeking out new experiences without a clear purpose. They might also be restless, never content with what they find, always searching for something more. Sometimes the Explorer in the shadows is unable to appreciate the present moment due to a constant focus on what’s next or a belief that the grass is always greener over the next horizon. They have trouble making a choice and committing to a journey, which can lead to a sense of dissatisfaction or emptiness.
I believe Caroline Myss summed it up best when she said that the Explorer in the shadow is always moving AWAY from something; and the Explorer in the light moves more deeply INTO something.
When the Explorer comes up in a reading, I believe that we are being called to get clear on whether our impulse to explore is pushing us away from something or pulling us deeper into something.
Some questions to consider this week:
Can you recall a moment when your exploration led to a profound discovery? How did it affect you?
How do you respond when your adventures don't go as planned?
How do you navigate situations where your desire to explore conflicts with your responsibilities?
What is your underlying motivation for seeking out new experiences?
The Hermit
In this card from the Mary-el tarot deck, we see what appears to be a single cloaked figure emerging from the blue waves of a churning sea. Where this person’s face should be, we see what looks like gust of wind (or perhaps a stream of water) flowing out and mixing with the waves. The figure holds a lantern, representing the shining light of wisdom.
I’ve had the image of waves on my mind a lot lately. After my recent trip to California (you can see my ocean ritual here), I noticed how the waves on the ocean are like living beings, lifting up from their ocean source to become as individuals for a time before dissolving into the sea once again. Then I began to see all living beings this way. Those of us with legs instead of fins are like land waves, lifting up from the Earth for a time before dissolving back into it, but never truly being separate from our source. And now this Hermit card is all waves once again.
In more traditional tarot decks, the Hermit card shows a figure atop a cliff, presumably having just emerged from their hermitage. During their time in seclusion—away from the distractions of the outside world—they encountered divinity and truth and wisdom. And now they are shining out that light to guide all others.
In the Mary-El card, rather than having emerged from a hermitage, the figure has emerged from totality. This particular Hermit’s lantern is lighting the way to the return, to the moment when the wave dissolves back into the ocean. They bring the experience of the individual self back into the collective to nourish totality with that wisdom.
I think this card is asking us to simultaneously hold the idea of ourselves as an individual and as the collective; the wave and the ocean. What wisdom shines out from that integration?
How does this pair work together?
I see the Explorer wandering to the edge of the Sea of Mystery on a dark, moonless night. For a moment they are still, but then they begin to feel the familiar push of the goblins of dissatisfaction, frustration and constriction behind them, urging them to turn around and move on to another landscape.
Before they take a step, though, the Hermit emerges from the sea, holding up a lantern so bright that it transforms the goblins into beacons of commitment, into the pure desire to wander deep into the mystery. Now they compel the Explorer to complete the journey.
I believe this week we’re being shown that—from some previous time in a hermitage—we already have whatever wisdom we need to keep ourselves on a particular path, to stop moving away from something so that we can go deeper into the journey we’re meant to complete at this time.
I have mixed feelings about this week’s message. I’m excited about the idea of going deeply into a particular exploration, but I’ve never been very good at choosing only one path. Can’t wait to hear how you all do with it! Let me know by replying to this email, sending me a DM, or leaving a comment below.
P.S. I just want to add a little pocket of celebration here as I realize: THIS IS WITCHCRAFT & METAPHYSICS’ 100TH POST! 🥳❤️🥳❤️ I am wholly grateful to every last one of you for making this possible and I’m sending out vibes of dancing joy. May you each be gifted with with waves of effervescent delight today!
I love love love this reading! Both archetypes resonate deeply with me, as I feel I seek to balance them both in my life. So, this all felt very personal to me. But, the idea of them working together, the hermit lighting the way for the explorer and sharing the wisdom from within… that was a whole new way of seeing the relationship between the two, even helping me to see how they meet and are meant to meld into each other, instead of me simply shifting back and forth between the two. I suppose what I am trying to say is that I felt a sense of wholeness in this reading. Oh, thank you as always, Jenna! 🫶🏻
Lots of interesting things here - the thought you sparked in me is that the Hermit can’t see outside the little circle of light cast by his lantern. Yet he keeps steadily moving forward.