Last updated: January 28, 2026
The pairing of The Devil with The Hanged Man brings a sense of alignment and flow to your reading, suggesting that different aspects of your situation are working together.
Bondage to material desires, temptation, and the illusion of being trapped. The Devil represents bondage to material desires, addictions, and limiting beliefs that keep you trapped in patterns of suffering. This card often appears when you're caught in cycles of behavior that you know aren't good for you but feel unable to break. The keywords most associated with this card—bondage, temptation, materialism, addiction—give us insight into its core energy.
Surrender, sacrifice, gaining new perspective through letting go and waiting. The Hanged Man represents a time of voluntary surrender and conscious sacrifice that leads to spiritual insight and wisdom. This card appears when you need to let go of control and allow life to unfold naturally, even if it means being uncomfortable or uncertain for a while. This card carries the themes of surrender, sacrifice, letting go, new perspective, which interact meaningfully with The Devil's energy.
The Devil brings practical, grounded earth energy while The Hanged Man contributes intuitive, emotionally-driven water energy. These complementary forces create a natural synergy, each supporting and enhancing the other's influence in your reading.
When you encounter The Devil and The Hanged Man together, consider what area of your life requires the integration of bondage with surrender. The cards don't appear together randomly—their pairing is meaningful and specific to your question or situation.
This combination often surfaces during times when you're being asked to hold multiple truths simultaneously, finding wisdom in the space where both cards' messages overlap and inform each other.
Receive spiritual insights and tarot wisdom in your inbox every week.
In love readings, The Devil with The Hanged Man suggests a relationship or romantic situation where energies flow naturally and partners complement each other well.
When these two cards appear together in a love reading, they bring a nuanced message about your romantic life.
The Devil in Love: Unhealthy relationship patterns, codependency, or sexual obsession. This card can indicate being trapped in toxic relationships, unable to leave despite knowing they're harmful
The Hanged Man in Love: Surrendering control in love, sacrificing for relationship growth, gaining new relationship perspective. This card often appears when you need to let go of expectations about how relationships should develop and trust in divine timing
Together, The Devil and The Hanged Man suggests a relationship or romantic situation where energies flow naturally and partners complement each other well. This combination speaks to the heart of your romantic situation, asking you to consider how these two energies manifest in your love life.
Trust the connection. This combination indicates that love is supported by the universe right now.
Whether you're single and seeking, newly dating, or in a long-term partnership, this card combination offers relevant insight. For singles, consider how these themes might relate to what you're attracting or need to develop before finding love. For those in relationships, reflect on how these energies play out between you and your partner.
The intersection of bondage's energy with surrender's influence creates a specific romantic signature that's meaningful for your situation.
For career and finances, The Devil with The Hanged Man indicates a professional environment where your skills, goals, and circumstances align favorably.
In professional matters, this card combination carries specific guidance for your work life and financial decisions.
The Devil at Work: Career bondage, work addiction, or compromising values for money. This card can indicate jobs that drain your soul, workplace environments that bring out your worst qualities, or careers that require you to act against your principles
The Hanged Man at Work: Career suspension, professional sacrifice leading to growth, waiting for opportunities. You may be between jobs, waiting for a promotion, or in a holding pattern that feels frustrating but is actually preparing you for something better
The combination of The Devil and The Hanged Man indicates a professional environment where your skills, goals, and circumstances align favorably. These cards together paint a picture of your current professional landscape and the opportunities or challenges ahead.
Move forward with confidence. Professional endeavors are supported right now.
Consider how the themes of bondage and surrender apply to your specific work situation. Are there projects that need this combination's energy? Relationships with colleagues that reflect these dynamics? Career decisions that these cards illuminate?
While this combination primarily speaks to career, it also influences financial matters. The harmonious energy suggests stable financial conditions.
Spiritually, The Devil and The Hanged Man together invites you into a period of spiritual alignment where inner and outer realities support each other.
On a soul level, this combination speaks to your spiritual path and inner development.
The Devil's Spiritual Wisdom: Spiritual materialism, shadow work needed, or being trapped by false beliefs. This card can indicate using spirituality for ego purposes, being controlled by religious dogma, or spiritual practices that have become compulsive rather than liberating
The Hanged Man's Spiritual Wisdom: Spiritual surrender, enlightenment through sacrifice, mystical experiences. This card indicates that you're entering a phase of deep spiritual transformation that requires letting go of old beliefs, attachments, and ways of being
The Devil meeting The Hanged Man invites you into a period of spiritual alignment where inner and outer realities support each other. This is not a random pairing—the universe is highlighting specific spiritual themes for your attention.
Given this combination's energy, consider incorporating meditation, gratitude practices, and mindful presence into your spiritual routine.
The intersection of The Devil's wisdom with The Hanged Man's teachings creates a unique spiritual lesson. Meditate on both cards together, allowing their combined imagery and symbolism to speak to your soul. What message emerges when you hold both energies simultaneously?
This combination appears when you're ready to integrate bondage with surrender of your spiritual understanding. The growth available now requires honoring both cards' teachings.
When either card appears reversed, the combination's meaning shifts toward internal work and blocked energies.
The Devil Reversed: Breaking free from bondage, overcoming addiction, or recognizing personal freedom.
The Hanged Man Reversed: Resistance to surrender, feeling stuck, or unnecessary self-sacrifice.
Both Cards Reversed: When both The Devil and The Hanged Man appear reversed together, this signals a period of significant internal processing. External action may be premature—focus instead on inner work and self-reflection.
The reversed combination asks: What needs to be unblocked or healed before these cards' upright potential can manifest?
The imagery of The Devil and The Hanged Man creates a rich visual dialogue.
A horned, winged devil-like figure sits on a throne with an inverted pentagram on its forehead. The figure holds a torch in one hand and raises the other in a gesture of false blessing. Two naked figures - a man and woman - are chained to the throne, but their chains are loose enough to remove. They have sprouted horns and tails, showing how base desires have transformed their nature. The entire scene is set against a dark background, suggesting the realm of illusion and spiritual blindness.
Key Symbols: **Horned Devil Figure**: The shadow self and lower nature given form - The aspects of self that we deny or repress, now demanding recognition
**Inverted Pentagram**: Spirit trapped in matter, materialism over spirituality - The reversal of natural spiritual order through materialistic focus
**Bat Wings**: False power and the illusion of freedom in darkness - The appearance of power that actually keeps one bound to lower vibrations
A figure hangs by one ankle from a living tree, forming a cross with arms behind the back and the free leg bent at the knee. A golden halo emanates from the head, and despite being inverted, the expression is serene and peaceful. The figure wears red pants and a blue shirt, suspended in a state of voluntary sacrifice. The tree is alive and growing, suggesting that this suspension is part of a natural cycle rather than punishment.
Key Symbols: **Upside Down Figure**: Complete reversal of normal perspective and consciousness - The radical shift in viewpoint necessary for spiritual breakthrough
**Halo Around Head**: Spiritual enlightenment achieved through surrender - The divine illumination that comes from releasing ego control
**Rope Around Ankle**: Voluntary binding and chosen limitation - The conscious decision to accept constraints for greater wisdom
Though these cards use different symbolic vocabularies, together they create a visual story greater than either tells alone. Consider how the imagery of one card might respond to or continue the narrative of the other.
The Devil (15) and The Hanged Man (12) combine to 27, reducing to 9—the number of completion, wisdom, and humanitarianism.
The Devil - Number 15: The number of temptation, materiality, and the choice between light and shadow. The energy that tests spiritual development through material challenges and shadow confrontation
The Hanged Man - Number 12: The number of completion, sacrifice, and spiritual surrender. The energy of letting go to receive, dying to be reborn, surrendering to transcend
The combined numerological vibration of 9 brings the energy of completion, wisdom, and humanitarianism. This underlying numerical influence colors how these two cards interact, adding a layer of completing and transcendent energy to their combination.
The Devil
The Shadow, The Tempter, The Illusionist
The Hanged Man
The Martyr, The Sacrifice, The Sage of Surrender
When The Shadow, The Tempter, The Illusionist meets The Martyr, The Sacrifice, The Sage of Surrender, these archetypal energies work together in natural alliance, each supporting the other's expression. Consider which archetypal patterns are active in your current situation and how their interaction might be playing out in your life.
Both Major Arcana cards, The Devil and The Hanged Man represent significant stations on the Fool's Journey.
The Devil's Place in the Journey: After Temperance's balanced integration, The Devil tests that balance by presenting temptations and illusions. This is where the soul learns to distinguish between real limitations and self-imposed bondage, between authentic power and false control.
The Hanged Man's Place in the Journey: After Justice's lessons about balance and cosmic law, The Hanged Man teaches surrender to that law. This is where the soul learns that sometimes the greatest wisdom comes through letting go completely and viewing life from spirit's perspective.
When these two Major Arcana cards appear together, you're being shown two significant chapters of the soul's journey simultaneously. This suggests a moment of profound significance where multiple life lessons or spiritual themes are active at once.
Use these questions for journaling or meditation with this combination:
Combined Affirmation
“I recognize my freedom while also embracing the wisdom to surrender to divine timing.”
Understanding the astrological and elemental energies behind each card reveals deeper layers of meaning in this combination.
Saturn (The Devil) meets Neptune (The Hanged Man) - this combination blends Saturn's energy of discipline and structure with Neptune's influence of spirituality and dreams.
About The Devil and The Hanged Man
Still have questions? We're here to help!
Contact Support →Discover different ways to gain insight and guidance through our free tarot card readings