2 of 4

Write now Article Tools

The Magician of modern Tarot readings-

In many very modern Tarot decks, the first symbolic card of the Major Arcana is named the "Magician." That term comes from "magus," which was used in older decks that were designed to imply some types of occult meaning to the Tarot. Much older French decks actually name this card Le Bateleur and that meant "mountebank" or "trickster" in the sense of a performer who did card tricks or coin manipulations or other sleight of hand. The oldest and original Italian name was Il Bagatello, with nearly the same meaning as the French term.

The not-so-subtle shift in meaning from a character who could manipulate objects, generating illusions, into a magician (sorcerer, wizard, necromancer) who could manipulate people and events, creating fantastical outcomes, resulted in an even more significant shift into using the Tarot cards as some form of psychic, esoteric, prophetic method of divining future events in a person's life. The overall effect was to make it appear as if only "readers" with "powers" could interpret the hidden predictive meanings of the Tarot cards through the magical patterns of card layouts.

Changes in the illustrations for this card range from the early depictions of a performer with objects on a table to a robed wizard holding a baton to a magician pointing a wand at the sky-with various symbolic representations of the four Tarot deck suits spread out on the table. The changes in the images also give the impression that truly "magical" things may be in the works.

The Magician, then, results in an interpretation that the card is about transformation, remarkable change, containing elements of fortune or luck or supernatural occurrences. In the older decks, the meaning was more along the lines of staged illusions, entertaining diversions, the potential for us to be fooled, misled, or sent astray by manipulated events and circumstances.

The evolution in names and illustrations transferred the meaning of the card from mundane alterations in the daily actions of the person seeking a Tarot reading over to fantastic magical transformations with powerful influences on the overall life of the inquiring client. Contemporary tarot readings tend to emphasize the magical aspects of the Tarot and very much imply an esoteric or even spiritual context for the meaning of the cards. The seventeenth century readings were more a form of social entertainment in which people developed interpretations based upon much more down-to-Earth views of the ordinary and normal circumstances of their daily behaviors.

Today, the Magician in a reading can be interpreted as a somewhat super-natural influence on transformation in the person's life that is connected to the other cards in the Tarot reading. The card also implies that there is an opportunity for the person to be open and accepting toward their own intuitive or interpretive feelings-perhaps dreams or prophetic omens-as guidance in making choices or decision in the immediate future. And it may also indicate the potential for a "magician" to appear in the person's life, as an adviser, mentor, or teacher. If the Magician is drawn in a daily, single-card, or one-off interpretation, it may mean to look for "magic" in the course of the day or to seek out the opportunity for transformational actions that may become available. There may be magic afoot and fantasy in the air-good luck.

Learn more about this author, W. H. Lindgren.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about Tarot cards: The Magician?
We want to hear your view. Write now!