2025: The Year of The Hermit + 2026: The Year of The Magician
Every year carries its own energetic signature, but some transitions feel more significant than others. The shift from 2025 to 2026 is one of those rare threshold moments — a turning of the page not only on a calendar, but on an entire cycle of growth.
Through the combined lenses of numerology and Tarot, we can understand this passage more clearly. In numerological terms, 2025 resonates with the number 9, a number of completion and culmination. In Tarot, this energy mirrors The Hermit, the wise seeker who turns inward to find truth. By contrast, 2026 reduces to the number 1, the number of beginnings, leadership, and initiative — perfectly aligned with The Magician, the archetype of conscious creation and manifestation.
Together, these symbols tell a powerful story… We are moving from endings to beginnings, from inner wisdom to outward expression, from reflection to creation.
2025: The Year of 9 — The Hermit
In numerology, 9 is the final number of the single digit cycle. It represents closure, integration, compassion, and the wisdom that comes only after experience. Nine is not about starting something new — it is about finishing well. It asks us to release what no longer serves, to honor what has been learned, and to prepare ourselves for a fresh cycle ahead.
When paired with The Hermit in Tarot, this energy deepens even further.
The Hermit is not a figure of isolation for its own sake; rather, he represents intentional withdrawal. He steps away from noise, expectation, and distraction in order to hear his inner truth. Holding a lantern, he lights the path not for the crowd, but for himself — trusting that clarity comes from within.
Throughout 2025, many people experienced this energy as:
A desire to slow down or simplify
Emotional or spiritual introspection
Endings in relationships, careers, or long-standing patterns
A pull toward solitude, healing, or inner study
A sense that something was concluding, even if the “next step” was not yet visible
This is the nature of 9 and The Hermit together. They do not rush answers. They ask for patience, honesty, and discernment. They encourage us to sit with questions rather than force solutions.
Importantly, the work of 2025 was not always visible to others — and often not even fully visible to ourselves at the time. Hermit energy is subtle. Its power lies in what it integrates, not what it displays.
By the end of a 9 year, we are rarely the same people we were at the beginning. We may not be able to point to a single defining moment, but we carry a deeper sense of knowing. We understand ourselves differently. We recognize what must be left behind.
Nine does not cling. Nine completes.
The Sacred Pause Before the Beginning
One of the most misunderstood aspects of both The Hermit and the number 9 is that they can feel uncomfortable. There is often a sense of liminality — being “between” versions of oneself. The old no longer fits, but the new has not yet fully formed.
Yet this pause is sacred.
Without the integration phase of 9, new beginnings lack foundation. Without the Hermit’s inward journey, action lacks direction. What 2025 offered was not stagnation, but preparation — the quiet kind that strengthens roots before visible growth begins.
If 2025 felt slower, heavier, or more contemplative than expected, it was likely doing exactly what it was meant to do.
2026: The Year of 1 — The Magician
Where 9 closes, 1 opens.
Numerologically, 1 is the number of beginnings, leadership, individuality, and initiative. It marks the start of a new cycle — a moment where intention matters deeply, because what is planted now will influence the entire sequence that follows.
In Tarot, this energy is embodied by The Magician.
The Magician stands at the threshold between the spiritual and material worlds. One hand points upward, the other downward, signaling the principle: as above, so below. Before him lie the tools of all four suits — wand, cup, sword, and pentacle — symbolizing that he already possesses everything he needs to create.
Unlike The Hermit, who seeks wisdom through withdrawal, The Magician expresses wisdom through action. He does not wait for permission or perfect conditions. He acts with intention, focus, and confidence.
In 2026, this energy invites us to:
Begin new projects or paths
Claim personal authority and leadership
Act on insights gained during reflection
Set clear intentions and follow through
Use skills, talents, and resources consciously
If 2025 asked, “What is true for me?”
2026 asks, “What will I do with that truth?”
One initiates. One chooses. One creates.
From Hermit to Magician: Wisdom in Motion
The transition from 9 → 1, from Hermit → Magician, is one of the most powerful shifts in the symbolic cycle. It represents a sacred reset — not an erasure of the past, but a transformation of it.
What was learned in solitude now becomes fuel for creation. What was released makes space for something new. What was understood internally now seeks expression in the world.
This is not about abandoning introspection. Rather, it is about embodying it.
The Magician’s power comes precisely because he has clarity. He knows what he wants to create and why. In this way, 2026 is not disconnected from 2025 — it is built upon it.
We do not step into the Year of the Magician empty-handed. We step into it carrying every lesson, boundary, insight, and realization earned during the Year of the Hermit.
Stepping Into the New Cycle
As we move forward, the question is not whether we are “ready” — readiness is often revealed only through action. The invitation of 2026 is simply to begin.
Begin imperfectly.
Begin consciously.
Begin aligned.
Trust that the inward work has already been done. Trust that the tools are already in your hands.
2025 taught us who we are.
2026 invites us to create from that truth.
From completion to conception.
From wisdom to willpower.
From inner knowing to outer mastery.
The lantern has shown the way.
Now, the magic begins.
