The Vision
The gallows from which he is suspended forms a Tau cross, while the figure--from the position of the legs--forms a fylfot cross. There is a nimbus about the head of the seeming martyr. It should be noted (1) that the tree of sacrifice is living wood, with leaves thereon; (2) that the face expresses deep entrancement, not suffering; (3) that the figure, as a whole, suggests life in suspension, but life and not death. It is a card of profound significance, but all the significance is veiled. One of his editors suggests that Eliphas Levi did not know the meaning, which is unquestionable--nor did the editor himself. It has been falsely called a card of martyrdom, a card of prudence, a card of the Great Work, a card of duty; but we may exhaust all published interpretations and find only vanity. I will say very simply on my own part that it expresses the relation, in one of its aspects, between the Divine and the Universe.
He who can understand that the story of his higher nature is embedded in this symbolism will receive intimations concerning a great awakening that is possible, and will know that after the sacred Mystery of Death there is a glorious Mystery of Resurrection.--A.E. Waite
This man has come to a complete stop and surrender. The relaxed, peaceful expression on his face indicates the surrender was anticipated. . . . The Hanged Man has also been connected to the northern European Odin, god of magic, inspiration, war, poetry, and death. Odin, to win mastery over the magic rune stones, hung on a windy tree for nine nights as a sacrifice to himself. This act indicates submission to and acceptance of knowledge. A literal reversal of the path one was on must take place before ascending to something higher. The triangle shape also indicates an instinctual rise to the top; the ascension of all things. Shown inverted on the Hanged Man, it shows a descension into matter and then rising again, or more literally, a descent into hell and back up again.--Susan Hansson
The Hanged Man dangles all alone between earth [earth and water] and sky [air and fire]. His teacher has brought him this far; now it is time to go alone. He has temporarily renounced worldly life in favor of prayer and meditation. His face is tranquil, though he has been ravaged by terror at the death of self-driven activity, depression at the loss of earthly attachments, elation at being without the weight of daily life, as well as vertigo brought by such weightlessness, horror in the face of unending loneliness, and bliss in undisturbed solitude. He observes and accepts the flow of emotions with equilibrium; his tranquil concentration is unwavering. --Jean Huets
Le Pendu, The Hanged Man, symbolizes the universal sun myth, which has been called the basis of religion wherever a dying god is worshipped....the coming of spring...
As to the significance of the Hanged Man's being bound by the foot, it is the foot that touches earth, and hence the whole relation of spirit to matter may be seen in the form of the hanged man's bondage.
Case continues: "Water, the element represented by Mem, is the first mirror. Water reflects images upside down, and this idea is carried out by the symbolism and title of Key 12, which is a symbol of reflected life, or life in image, of life in the forms taken by the occult 'water,' quicksilver or cosmic substance."
The advent of the Prometheans to earth was the oblation, the divine sacrifice, the sacrifice "for sin." Sacrifice (Latin: sacra and facio) means "to make sacred," and has no immediate correlation with the denial to oneself of benefits.--Richard Roberts
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The Vision
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http://www.moonchild.ch/Tarot/major/Hanged/12Voice.html
