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The High Priestess, Rider-Waite-Smith
Major arcana

The High Priestess

The High Priestess keeps information in reserve and lets what is not yet sayable ripen. She holds silence as an active position.

Rider-Waite-Smith Water/Moon See in Tarot de Marseille →

What the card shows

The High Priestess sits between two columns, a veil stretched behind her. A book rests on her knees, and the crescent moon appears under one of her feet.

Its light

What you observe without saying it gains precision. Letting a question rest before you answer it gives a truer reading, and reserve becomes a position held.

Its shadow

Withdrawal can serve as shelter. Keeping what you know protects you from discussion, but lets others decide in your place, and the silence weighs on those who wait.

Keywords

intuitionreserveknowledgeobservationdepth

Notes on the symbolism

RWS. Arcana II. The Priestess displays the letters B and J carved on the pillars of Solomon’s temple, and her veiled scroll keeps a learned and closed law.

What this card invites you to do

Sit for a moment with what you already know. Note what you notice without commenting on it, let a night pass, then set a time to decide.

A card does not decide for you.
It shows you where to look.

Draw three cards and get a reading that starts from your question, not from a generic text. The card of the day is free every day.

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