The Hermit

Waite calls this card prudence and circumspection, then warns of dissimulation and corruption. The figure stands alone on a snowy peak holding up a lantern that lights only the next few steps. Caution and the question of what is hidden go together here.

Before signing, trusting or resigning, take time away from other people's opinions. Check the claims you have been told, especially flattering ones. Then go one step at a time. A trusted adviser can test your conclusions afterward.

Concealment, disguise, fear and unreasoned caution fill this side. The lantern has gone under the cloak.

Ask what you are hiding from, and whom. Time alone may have turned into avoidance, or carefulness into a reason never to decide. Send the message you have been drafting for weeks. Tell one person the real situation, and see how the problem looks once it has been said aloud.