Students of mysticism and the occult have found various correspondences between a given Tarot card and an astrological sign or planet. One that is particularly interesting is the Hierophant. Traditionally the Hierophant is associated with fixed earth or Taurus (Thank you, Wald Amberstone).
As an astrologer, I think of the Hierophant as a gatekeeper of the 9th House. To me, the 9th House is where I look regarding issues around higher education and knowledge, organized religion and philosophy. In the 9th House the search for higher wisdom is institutionalized and organized religion, by its very nature is institutionalized.
After all, the Hierophant's garb is definitely Pope-like--after all, he is called Il Papa in some decks.
The 9th House is associated with the sign Sagittarius and Sag, the Archer is seeking truth. Oftentimes when he finds it, or when he thinks he finds it, he regards it as THE TRUTH--no other interpretations need apply. Anyone who has run into a dogmatic Sag knows exactly what I mean.
And a weakness in the execution of many institutionalized religions is that they see their way as the only one. Of course, this may be as much a product of power seeking and politics as much as religious fervor.
If the Pope is the earthly personification of the Hierophant, then current scandals around the Pope and the Catholic Church's bureaucracy show that his earthly representative wears feet of clay.
But if you can accept the card as a representative of an archetype, unspoiled by human frailty, then the Hierophant is much more likable. He becomes the personification of the Pope in the eyes of a young, innocent child. He is the guide to an ageless collection of wisdom and teachings.
It is by looking at the Hierophant's role from the perspective of his agelessness and the permanence of the teachings that a correspondence of fixed earth makes sense.
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