V · The High Priest

The High Priest is duty. He is good at being an institution: he knows the rules, the rituals, the ladder, and who stands on which rung. That says nothing about whether the institution deserves him. Who in your life speaks for something larger than themselves? Is it something you'd give yourself to, or something that would give you up?

The High Priest is no longer the High Priest—he's now called the Hierophant. Why? They didn't rename the Fool—the Poser (we're all posers, yes). They also didn't rename the Emperor or the Empress, but if they had you'd think they would have renamed them both, since like Bert and Ernie, Batman and Robin, Rick and Morty, Freud and Jung they are a pair, a sort of yin-yang if you will that would have no meaning if one of the two were removed. A yin without the yang would just be a black circle, which granted is a powerful symbol but just doesn't mean the same valence as when it's combined with the white symbolism of the yang. In this case, I will use the older name for this card, because I think it's useful to see him as a complement to the High Priestess, just like comparing the Emperor and Empress reveals some foundational meanings that may otherwise go unnoticed.

The High Priest, like the High Priestess, values the wisdom that comes from acquiring the knowledge of previous generations through books, rituals, and cultures. He is well read and understands the history of previous cultures and civilizations. However, unlike the reclusive and reticent High Priestess, he uses this knowledge in the public sphere. If the Emperor rules through the force of his character, the High Priest influences other people through the mechanisms of established social systems. The Emperor flouts convention, the High Priest embodies it. He is the man who's slowly risen through the ranks of power, be these academic, political, or religious. In the Marseille deck, he is called Le Pape—the pope—who can only be nominated to his rank if he was previously a cardinal, who in all likelihood was previously a priest and before that a deacon and before that an acolyte. You could just as easily call the card the Emeritus—an accomplished academic who's been the chair of her department, and was once an undergrad, graduate student, postdoc, associate professor, tenured professor, and so forth. By moving slowly through the ranks of power, he comes to understand them on a deep intuitive and rational level. The High Priestess would abhor having to deal with all these people, the High Priest revels in these social games and he knows how to win them. The trade off here is that the more time the High Priest spends on social games, the less time he has for the pursuit of knowledge, but through his interactions with so many brilliant people, he is superficially aware of all the important developments in his field. As time passes, the High Priestess gains a far deeper understanding of her art and science, while the High Priest becomes a generalist able to talk to any professional, but himself is not appraised of the detailed studies who are ultimately performed by the priestesses working silently away in their laboratories and studios.

So, the High Priest is someone whom you can count on and trust in whom you may confide; he will always know what should be done and unlike the Emperor he wants the organization to succeed. If someone else's success benefits the organization, but not him personally, if he is true to his nature, he will help that person achieve their goals. In essence, he is the unifier, a joiner of souls, a man of institution. He knows the rules of the game, and values the game above the individuals in it. This, of course, may cause him to sacrifice not only himself, but also other people. This makes him an incredibly dangerous person. If he decides you're not helping the game, the organization, the institution, he will take you down no matter how charismatic, talented, or well-meaning you might be. He respects the rules above individual people. This potentially makes him even crueler than the Emperor, who cares about himself above all else. If he turns on you, you can always console yourself that there are others who will sympathize with you and possibly help you once the dust has settled. Once the High Priest is done with you, you may find yourself entirely alone. People won't just shun you because they've been told to. They will cast you out as a pariah and consider their cruelty to be entirely justified.

Although the High Priest is not always a person of importance—a dignitary who exercises moral, intellectual, or political influence—he may be someone who plays the game by proxy and from the shadows. This is the Machiavellian puppet master who you might not have even noticed until something important happens.

When you draw this card, take the time to consider who in your life are not only intelligent but have the potential to sway the group toward some greater goal. Does this goal align with yours? Are you possibly positioning yourself to change some state of affairs that affects other people? In either case, take the time to consider the perspectives of others. Will the plan help or harm them? Is the betterhood of group worth hurting the minority? Even if only one person is harmed, is it worth it? The High Priestess may not be particularly inclined to help you, but she's just as unlikely to turn against you. She is neutral. The High Priest anything but.

Thus, the High Priest may seem philanthropic and misanthropic, sympathetic or callous, patriotic or apostate—it all depends on whether he's with you or against you. He may die as the great savior of his people, or be executed in disgrace as a great traitor of the nation. He will kill and die for whatever he believes benefits the virtuous institution of which he is merely a servant.