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The meaning of The Magician tarot card is an exciting one! Whenever he shows up in a spread, it’s a challenge to break through any fear based limits we’ve placed on ourselves.
Tarot’s Magician is an original thinker and very creative with many resources at his disposal. I’ve listed a few of the keyword meanings that I connect with The Magician below - but I think if you’re patient, and read through to the end, you’ll be rewarded with some new perspectives.
The Magician is given the number one in tarot’s major arcana. We can learn a lot from this.
We can’t understand the idea of ONE without the idea of more than one being present. As soon as we say “one” it means it’s not 2, it’s not 3…but one and only one.
The number one tells us that there must be other numbers such as 2 or 3. We can call this idea of many numbers “multiplicity.”
This is really cool because the number one shows that multiplicity is connected to unity. All the other numbers are connected the number one; none of them can exist without it!
Note: I’m using the Rider-Waite-Smith deck for these tarot card meanings and thoughts. This is because it’s the template for the vast majority of tarot cards on the market.
The Magician & The Infinity Symbol
The infinity symbol - or “lemniscate” - is hovering over the head of The Magician. This shows the eternal rhythm of giving and receiving.
Look at the snake around his waist. This is also interesting because in this symbol, the snake forms a circle and eats its own tail. This symbolizes how Life is eternal by being circular (no beginning, no end) and also "feeds" on itself.
In eastern mysticism the famous symbol of Tai Chi, or yin and yang, expresses similar themes - although it's main focus is that apparent duality is in truth, a unity.
Both of these symbols point to the mystery of the creative tension that exists in our world of apparent duality; hot and cold, up and down, inhale and exhale, hard and soft…
Even though there are 2 poles, it is one symbol like 2 sides of the same coin or 2 ends of the same stick. An exhale cannot happen without an inhale.
And how would we know true joy in life without some tears? Our minds need the polarities in order to compare differences.
The universal problem with this of course, is our minds tend to forget about the ways in which everything is connected and of the same basic “stuff.”
We get stuck on the differences and make them more real than they actually are. Think about it - the differences are always changing because all things are constantly changing.
These opposites flow into each other in continuous harmony; this could be compared to the way a battery works with the “male” and “female” ends conducting the power.
This “battery” is how the unlimited potential in Life comes into form and is actualized.
We see these polarities being played out on the world stage in politics and also in people’s beliefs; as long as there is a “left” there must be a “right.”
I think we’re still learning to understand that life isn’t black and white - it’s more like “infinite shades of grey” - an alchemical synthesis.
Consider that fact that we have 2 legs and 2 arms because they work together and synthesize our movements in space and time.
Synthesize meaning (from encyclopedia brittanica): to achieve something by combining different things.
Synthesis strongly connects to the meaning of the Temperance card in tarot.
The Magician & Associated Meanings Throughout History
The Magician is associated with Hermes Trismegistus and in the RWS this is obvious with his posture of “as above, so below.”
As above, so below is a shortened and simplified phrase from the Emerald Tablet, a hermetic text dating from the 8th or 9th century:
“That which is above is like to that which is below, and that which is below is like to that which is above.”
Hermes is a fusion of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth.
Astrologically, The Magician usually corresponds with the planet Mercury which Hermes is traditionally associated with.
Steven Forrest, in his book “The Inner Sky,” says that one of the main functions of Mercury is the transmission of information along with the reception of information.
And in Robert Wang’s opus on the “Qabalistic Tarot” he shares the concept of The Magician’s posture in card as symbolizing both active AND passive energies.
Wang says the secret to understanding The Magician archetype is that it is both transmitting and receiving. It receives the life force as The One and then transforms it into “matter.”
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Quotes Related To The Magician Tarot Card Meaning
- Truly, it is in the darkness that one finds the light, so when we are in sorrow, then this light is nearest of all to us.” - Meister Eckhart
- I also see a correspondence to Jesus saying “it’s not I, but my Father in heaven who does the works.”
- “Imagination is eternity” - William Blake
- “What you think, you become. What you feel, you attract. What you imagine, you create. - Sakyamuni Buddha (the historical Buddha)
The Magician Tarot Card & Flow States
There is this idea of flow states that many high level athletes and creative people enter into when engaged with their work/play. A higher intelligence seems to take over and the doing becomes effortless with more effective results.
You’ve probably been in a flow state many times. If you didn’t already realize that, see if you can notice the next time this happens. It could be a walk in nature, being engaged in your favorite hobby, or even dealing with a crisis.
Note: the idea of flow states was first studied in depth by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
In eastern mysticism there is the teaching of “no doer.” In other words, the separate self is an illusion and life is simply happening.
This goes back to Jesus’ saying “it’s not I but my Father in heaven who does the works” and again, this is illustrated in the artwork on The Magician card.
However, in The Magician card, the image seems to be pointing to the idea of being co-creators with Divine Creativity. Not that we are the ultimate “doers”, but that we ARE co-creators who can choose between the “divine blueprint” and any other options each and every moment.
His right arm pointing up and the wand downwards suggest power being drawn down in a purposeful way. Take a look at the image of The Magician in the RWS - do you see that?
As far as the idea many have about the world being an illusion, be careful! This is extreme and actually a form of nihilism.
It’s more about the way we see things - we don’t see things the way they actually are.
A good example is a rainbow. It DOES exist - but you cannot grasp it.
It’s an effect that depends upon other effects interacting such as moisture, light, temperature, etc. But it’s not an illusion.
And the obvious flaw: if the world is an illusion, the person in the world calling it that, would also be an illusion.
The Magician As A Universal Blueprint For The Soul
The square table in The Magician card represents earthly reality. The sword, cup, pentacle and wand represent the 4 elements.
In classical Greek philosophy, these were the 4 elements used to make the entire universe - so they symbolize wholeness.
In tarot, many consider The Magician and High Priestess to be the heavenly parents in the world of ideas.
The Empress and Emperor are the earthly parents. Notice the reversed polarity of masculine/feminine in the sets of parents?
If that wasn't clear to you, in Tarot's major arcana, The Magician (masculine) is numbered 1, The High Priestess (feminine) is 2, The Empress (feminine) is 3 and the Emperor (masculine) is 4.
One of my favourite tarot teachers, Hajo Banzhaf, makes an excellent point about this theme of heavenly parents.
He says that “fairy tales often give an indication of the “other set of Divine parents” in that the heroes often grow up with stepparents.” If you want to read his insights, check out Tarot and The Journey of the Hero, pg.33, pp.1
The Magician, Qabalah & Tree Of Life
In the Qabalah (aka Tree of Life), there are 4 worlds emanating from the Infinite Perfection. From highest to lowest they are:
- the spiritual world
- the creative world
- the world of formation
- the active world (where we experience ourselves).
Tarot usually only extends into the world of formation (named “yetzirah” in Qabalah) but The Magician can extend right up to the world of the highest spiritual ideas.
Maureen Clark in her book The Fool’s Journey says that The Magician is the door where self consciousness or “I am” is realized. Where the infinite womb gives birth to the first self recognition.
The Magician is at this threshold where Consciousness first recognizes Itself. In Qabalah’s Tree of Life, it is called Kether. Kether is the first emanation of Light.
In Qabalah, there is also the realm of Limitless Light which is beyond anything we can understand with our minds.
It is the Great Unmanifest beyond the Manifest Universe; it is That from which the Manifest arises.
The Tree of Life is a model of the Manifest Universe and along with tarot, can be an interesting and lifelong meditation in its own right.
Note: there are those who disagree with any associations between tarot and qabalah. It’s true that there is no proof or evidence of this as they are different systems.
But they're also not that different, because they are both presenting mystic understandings and models of the Universe.
Regardless of how you decide, both systems have very useful pointers that can catapult our minds beyond themselves to deeper understandings of Life.
Keyword Meanings for The Magician
Manifesting, originating, initiating, co-creating, ability, confidence, pro-active, skill, strength of will to see things through, breaking down self-imposed limitations, I Am.
Questions To Contemplate With The Magician Tarot Card
Am I (I Am) confident in my abilities? Am I willing to stretch beyond my former zone of comfort? What resources are available to me that I can put in service of my goals?
Am I being proactive and taking action towards what I want to create? Am I making time everyday to connect to the Divine Flow that wants to express through me?
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