The Hanged Man is one of the most passive cards inTarot. It indicates a period of time when everything stands still. The Hanged Man is also associated with sacrifice and martyrdom. The the Eight of Cups signifies dissatisfaction and we feel the desire to withdraw, to walk away from a situation, to change, as we hear the calling of a new or different future. In some cases the Eight of Cups can even indicate betrayal. The combination of the Hanged Man and the Eight of Cups is about letting go of someone or something that has been stagnant for too long.

• Withdrawing in order to do some soul searching 
• Leaving in order to break a stalemated situation
• Going on a quest of self-discovery
• Lack of action/activity pushes one to walk away
• Being/Feeling a martyr
• Freeing oneself from depression/negative emotions
• Leaving someone who's been indecisive for too long
• Letting go of a blocked/stuck situation
• Feeling completely drained of energy
• Moving on after getting too tired of waiting
• Leaving an unhealthy situation behind
• Opening up to new energies after being isolated for too long
• Breaking free
• Self-sacrifice in pursuit of a cause
• Giving up after a long period of endurance or hardships
• Removing oneself from a not healthy influence
• Making a sacrifice in order to make a clean start
• A delayed departure
    

Elemental Dignities

To understand the elemental relationships between the cards, we should always take into account their actual meaning. The elements of the cards are Water (Hanged Man) and Water (Eight of Cups). The elements are neutral and rather friendly to each other, but they can lead to excessive passivity or inertia, not being able to make a move that would bring drastic change. With a high amount of water energy, a situation may need to reach  a certain degree of emotional maturity, before it can be changed and transformed and that's exactly what the energy of the Eight of Cups will cause.