The recent controversy surrounding Aubrey Marcus’s rebranded polyamory, sold to the public under the term radical monogamy, is happening in divine timing, in the wake of a broader collective awakening and interest in sacred union. This coincides with a resurgence of interest in Mary Magdalene and her Gospel. So I asked for a Magdalene Tarot perspective on the controversy, and the card she hands us as a mirror for the collective is The Hermit. This Tarot card is about self-containment.
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A Magdalene Tarot Spread for the Soul’s Ascent
In sacred union, The Hermit represents self-containment through relating consciously, respectfully and with boundaries, rather than projecting the wounded masculine or feminine onto our partners. It’s so easy to justify the ego-desire of the flesh by dressing it in spiritual jargon and disavowing ourselves of responsibility for the harm caused to the other person. I am grateful to Aubrey, Vylana and Alana for showing the collective its shadow, because what we judge in each other is often something we need to clear in ourselves.
So, with everybody now talking about this, it looks like we may finally be ready to confront our collective shadow around sacred union, sexuality, and spiritual embodiment. And we already have a template for what perfect sacred union looks like. No amount of modern spin can obscure the truth: the sacred union between Yeshua and Mary Magdalene was not a display of egoic desire disguised as spiritual progress. It was a union rooted in mutual transformation, divine purpose, and spiritual parity. There were no “expanded containers,” unicorns, or being pushed into “transcending” the desire to be monogamous. Two Christed souls were mirroring the divine to each other through unconditional love grounded in gnosis.
When this happens, there is no need to join a dating app to look for a third party.
The Gospel Hidden, Found, and Misrepresented
Discovered in the late 19th century in the Berlin Codex and pieced together from fragmentary manuscripts, the Gospel of Mary Magdalene offers a radically different Christian cosmology—one that foregrounds direct inner knowing over external authority.
This Gospel has been embraced by many in the modern spiritual community, but not always with discernment. Aestheticised versions of Mary Magdalene have often been co-opted into New Age goddess culture and romanticised “divine feminine” branding. The result? A seductive blend of glamour and pseudo-mysticism that distracts from her true teachings.
The Magdalene did not promise soulmate unions or luxurious priestess initiations. She taught liberation through self-knowledge and fearlessness in the face of patriarchal resistance. Her Gospel does not promise comfort; it calls the soul to wrestle with its illusions and rise.
Mary’s Radical Message: The Soul’s Journey Through the Powers
The surviving fragments of the Gospel reveal a metaphysical vision in which salvation is not obtained through the blood of the cross or conformity to law, but through interior realisation. The Divine is not “out there.” It is within.
The text presents several essential teachings:
- Sin is a misidentification of the self: It arises not from moral failure but from confusing the temporary physical self with the eternal soul—a “metaphysical adultery.”
- Salvation is inward and intellectual: The nous (divine mind), rather than rituals or rules, holds the key to awakening.
- External law is a trap: True liberation comes not through religious regulation but through gnosis—a deep, inward knowing of one’s divine origin.
- The soul must ascend past the Gatekeepers: These seven powers, also known as the powers of Wrath, seek to keep the soul bound to illusion and fear.
The Seven Powers of Wrath: What Binds the Soul
In the visionary sequence shared by Mary, the soul embarks on a journey of ascent following physical death (or symbolically, the death of ego). Along the way, it encounters a series of celestial Gatekeepers—archetypal forces that attempt to keep it tethered to illusion:
- Darkness
- Desire
- Ignorance
- Zeal for Death
- Realm of the Flesh
- Foolish Wisdom of the Flesh
- Wrathful Wisdom
The soul must overcome each of these powers not by fighting, but by recognising that their hold is illusory. It declares: “What bound me has been slain. My desire is ended. Ignorance has died.” This journey is not about achieving holiness through mortification but remembering what is real.
At the end of this ascent, the soul finds ataraxia—a state of stillness and divine repose beyond suffering and illusion. This rest in silence is not passive; it is the mark of spiritual victory.
Magdalene Tarot Spread for the Soul’s Ascent
This 12-card Tarot spread is designed as a meditative practice for those wishing to walk the Magdalene path. It mirrors the soul’s ascent through the seven powers and concludes with insight into the role of mind, the nature of inner stillness, and the next step on your path.
Magdalene Tarot Spread Positions
- What false identity am I still clinging to?
- Where does fear of my own darkness still bind me?
- How is desire distorting my spiritual path?
- What ignorance must I release to ascend?
- Where am I unconsciously glorifying suffering?
- What part of me is still entranced by the material world?
- What appears wise but keeps me spiritually stagnant?
- Where is anger or reactivity masking truth?
- What is the core truth of my eternal soul?
- How can I harness the power of the nous to awaken?
- What will bring me into true inner stillness?
- What is the next sacred step on my Magdalene path?
Use this spread as a form of contemplative inquiry. This reading is deep soul work. Keep a journal nearby. The deeper you’re willing to go, the clearer the revelation will be.
Gnosis over Glamour
Mary Magdalene’s legacy is not decorative. It is initiatory, and it challenges every external structure of authority that would have you seek salvation outside yourself. It reminds us that divine union is not a polyamorous marketing gimmick, but a radical commitment to the integration of soul and spirit, mind and body, masculine and feminine, within and without.
To walk the Magdalene path is to reclaim your soul from the grip of illusion—and to rise, silently, into the truth of who you are.
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