Card of the Day for September 22 - The Magician
msesheta
Attribution - Mercury (rules Gemini
and Virgo; exalts in Virgo)
The Magician is represented by the
number 1, which is the beginning of creation and the initiation of
materializing your ideas.
Rider-Waite Imagery
The magician stands behind a table. His left hand holds a white double pointed wand in the air. His right hand is pointed down to the ground.
The Pictorial Key to the Tarot by Arthur Edward Waite (1911)
Part I: The Veil and its Symbols
1.. The Magus, Magician, or juggler, the caster of the dice and mountebank, in the world of vulgar trickery. This is the colportage interpretation, and it has the same correspondence with the real symbolical meaning that the use of the Tarot in fortune-telling has with its mystic construction according to the secret science of symbolism. I should add that many independent students of the subject, following their own lights, have produced individual sequences of meaning in respect of the Trumps Major, and their lights are sometimes suggestive, but they are not the true lights. For example, Eliphas Levi says that the Magus signifies that unity which is the mother of numbers; others say that it is the Divine Unity; and one of the latest French commentators considers that in its general sense it is the will.
Part II: The Doctrine Behind the Veil
A youthful figure in the robe of a magician, having the
countenance of divine Apollo, with smile of confidence and shining
eyes. Above his head is the mysterious sign of the Holy Spirit,
the sign of life, like an endless cord, forming the figure 8 in a
horizontal position . About his waist is a serpent-cincture, the
serpent appearing to devour its own tail. This is familiar to most
as a conventional symbol of eternity, but here it indicates more
especially the eternity of attainment in the spirit. In the
Magician’s right hand is a wand raised towards heaven, while the
left hand is pointing to the earth. This dual sign is known in
very high grades of the Instituted Mysteries; it shews the descent
of grace, virtue and light, drawn from things above and derived to
things below. The suggestion throughout is therefore the
possession and communication of the Powers and Gifts of the
Spirit. On the table in front of the Magician are the symbols of
the four Tarot suits, signifying the elements of natural life,
which lie like counters before the adept, and he adapts them as he
wills. Beneath are roses and lilies, the flos campi and lilium
convallium, changed into garden flowers, to shew the culture of
aspiration. This card signifies the divine motive in man,
reflecting God, the will in the liberation of its union with that
which is above. It is also the unity of individual being on all
planes, and in a very high sense it is thought, in the fixation
thereof. With further reference to what I have called the sign of
life and its connexion with the number 8, it may be remembered
that Christian Gnosticism speaks of rebirth in Christ as a change
“unto the Ogdoad.” The mystic number is termed Jerusalem above,
the Land flowing with Milk and Honey, the Holy Spirit and the Land
of the Lord. According to Martinism, 8 is the number of Christ.
UPRIGHT
The Guide.
A wise person with deep knowledge.
The sixth sense.
A link to the spirit world.
Hermes, Wizard, The Trickster, Lord
of Misrule.
Naming, identity, titles.
A great harnessing of power.
Do not look for help elsewhere, you
will do better on your own.
New directions.
Skill, creativity, self-confidence.
Flexibility, dexterity.
Initiative.
Willpower.
Guile.
Me, myself, and I.
Control over personal destiny.
Practical use of knowledge.
To direct your strength through will.
Ask and you shall receive, you already have the power.
The elements are yours to command.
Resolve and candour are important.
Sense of wicked fun.
Communicating clearly.
You know what you want.
Owning your own thoughts.
A skillful physician or surgeon.
A promoter.
There is a way to manipulate the forces of nature to control your own destiny. It is YOUR life. Make it the life you want to live.
Thoughts (and actions) become things.
REVERSED
Be careful not to count on the wrong
person, listen to the Magician in you.
Misuse of power, talent wasted.
Shyness, poor self-image.
Misuse of power.
Weakness of the mind.
Ignoring hunches.
Trying to appear skillful without the
necessary training.
Confusion, scattered ability,
indecision.
Is this real or is it fools' gold?
Not being sure of your facts.
Hazardous destination.
Excuses, laziness.
You need more information about an important matter.
Failure of projects.
Spinning your wheels.
Unskilled, clumsy.
Being deliberately misled or deceived.
A person ill-equipped for life, full of fears and hesitation.
Don’t make choices in haste or under pressure.
Con artist.
1. Amber
2. Robin Wood
3. Fey
4. Folletti
5. Sephiroh
6. Master