Weekly Tarot: The Magician

An explanatory intro: I’m experimenting with incorporating my ongoing study of the Tarot into the stuff I’m producing for Patreon. This is the first in a series of brief weekly analytical posts I’ll be writing on individual cards. I’m clearly not getting as deep into them as someone more knowledgable in the full occult history and symbolism of the Tarot would be able to, but I think this is a useful exercise for myself and hopefully you might find it interesting. 

What I’m including in here is not authoritative, and like all Tarot interpretation, it’s highly subjective and particular to me. You may get different things out of the same card or have different understandings of what it means. That’s fine; I’m of the opinion that there’s really no wrong way to do Tarot. Or at least I’m not interested in arguing about what the right way is. 

I’m drawing the cards at random. I decided to do it that way rather than start with the beginning of the Major Arcana and proceed from there because it’s more interesting to me to not know beforehand what I’ll be writing about in any given week.

I often get asked about my deck, since I prefer to eschew the more conventional Rider-Waite deck (I just don’t vibe with the aesthetic). It’s the Ethereal Visions deck by artist Matt Hughes, and it’s available all over the place online for a pretty reasonable price.]

Sorry this vanished for a while. I think we’re all aware that everything happens so much at the moment, and in a lot of ways March was kind of a lost month for me in which a lot of stuff didn’t get done. I’m hoping April will be better.

ANYWAY. 

The Magician

The first of the Major Arcana in this series! Exciting. And while this isn’t really serving as any kind of reading for myself, I’m heartened to see the Magician turn up right now, because of what they mean and how I’m currently feeling. 

I’ve already talked a good bit about the Wands suit and what’s associated with it: power, confidence, energy, creativity, boldness, action, and vitality. The Magician is those things, taken to a much deeper and more powerful level—which is true of all the Major Arcana that have their match in one of the suits. 

Before I dig deeper into the Magician themself (I like how the Magician in this deck looks fairly gender-unspecified and I’d prefer to read them that way in any case), it’s worth talking about where they are in the context of the Major Arcana as a whole. The Magician is number one—immediately following the 0 beginning point of the Fool. They are, in other words, the first major step in the journey of universal existence the Major Arcana represents. If the Fool is innocent, hopeful possibility and exuberance at the start of this journey, the Magician is the moment at which one’s will first begins to consciously work on the world. It’s the first true, intentional action, the first recognition of cause and effect, and it’s the seizing of power that goes along with that working of the will. 

The Magician is a card of personal power and action, but it’s also a card of knowledge—of what those actions mean. The Magician doesn’t act without understanding of the effects of their actions. They don’t move at random; they have a plan. They also have tools they employ in their actions—the Magician wields a wand they vest with their power. They materially shape the world according to their own designs, and they use the material world itself in order to do that. 

As the first real step on the universal journey (aside from the very beginning), the Magician also holds within themself aspects of all the suits: note how a cup, a sword, and a pentacle appear above their head and upraised wand. The Magician understands that connection and sees how their wand crosses paths with the aspects of those suits—no symbol or element in the Tarot exists alone, but all are part of an interconnected whole that must be understood together. 

In addition to the way the figure’s gender is left open to interpretation in this art, I like how the Magician appears to be smiling just a bit—a knowing smile, and maybe a little mischievous. They don’t just intend to work their will, they intend to have some fun doing it. 

I like seeing this card right now because frankly at this point in time I feel pretty helpless. I think that’s a feeling common to many of us. It’s so easy to feel like we have no agency in the face of so many things we don’t control. But the Magician reminds me that I do have agency, that I can act to change the world around me, and if I act mindfully, that change can be positive. I’m a creative person, a person with power and vitality, and the Magician can speak to those things in a way that encourages. 

I hope maybe they encourage you too. Like I said, I think we could all use some of what they represent.

(Did you get something out of this? Please consider becoming a supporter; at the $1 tier and up you’ll get the full writeup of the Celtic Cross spread I’ll be doing once a month!)