RW Magician: staff on table?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 18 Feb 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

tmgrl2	18 Feb 2004
I am focusing on the Magician today....all seems to have message for me ...wand, sword, cup, pentacle ...placement of hands, infinity, garden...noticed there is a staff/stick of wood? branch? on table in front of other objects. Any thoughts on this?

Thirteen	18 Feb 2004
Quote: Originally posted by tmgrl2 noticed there is a staff/stick of wood? branch? on table in front of other objects. Any thoughts on this? That is a Staff. One of the four suits: Staff, Cup, Sword, Pentacle. The Magician's wand (the one he holds in his hand) is his alone, a way of calling down the divine--as compared the the Staff/Wand on the table which is emblematic of a new spiritualism or passion that anyone can take up (i.e., that YOU can take up)--just as the Cup is emblematic of new emotion, the Sword or new ideas and the Pentacle of new works. This Staff/Wand and the Sword, masculine symbols, brace the Cup and Pentacle, feminine symbols. This is fitting as the Magician is a masculine card--also in it's suggestion that new ideas(sword)/passion(wand) channel new emotions(cup) and works(pentacle). And while you may feel the Staff is more important as it's nearest to you--it is the sword which is nearest to the Magician. This is because the Magician (in RW) is Mercury--communication, ideas (aka, swords). In the end, all the items on the table are equal and being offered by the Magician to you (but he'll keep the little wand in his hand, thank-you-very-much!). Which speaks to you? Which do you want to take up and make your own?

Theia	18 Feb 2004
Also what is he being deceptive about for he is the used car salesman. He want to show you a car with all the features but at what cost is it to you.

tmgrl2	18 Feb 2004
Thank you...I realized as I sat looking through the whole deck that it was the wand on the table....but didn't know of the one in his hand being his own special one...I think of it now like a ligtening rod carrying energy through himself into earth...The want on table looks like the ones in the Minor Arcana...As you can see, I am just learning. Appreciate your help.

Thirteen	19 Feb 2004
Quote: Originally posted by tmgrl2 As you can see, I am just learning. Appreciate your help. Hey, no problem. We were all where you were once, and we all made that same discovery about the tools on the Magician's table: Hey! They're the suits of the minors!

tmgrl2	19 Feb 2004
Thanks, Thirteen...what is really typical of me, is I have been reading books and now studying RW cards one by one and NEVER took the time to look at the Minor cards....yesterday, I realized that the wand was the object on the table and the one in the hand was different. SO, last night, thanks to your insights at AE, I sat down, opened up my new "personal" deck and went through the cards one by one...noticing things that I hadn't read and that people had posted. However, I will get there and as I justed posted to JMD, it's the progress and the learning that it so wonderful...hope I keep my beginner's mind on this one.

Centaur	19 Feb 2004
In the Universal-Waite, the wand in the magician's hand is a different colour from that on the table: the one in the magician's hand is light, whereas the wand on the table is darker. It is almost like a candle of sorts. I like to think of it as causing the white-aura which surrounds the magician. C

tmgrl2	20 Feb 2004
I agree...as I said I am learning and had read that the staff in hand was not the "wand" of suits, but just never noticed the wand on table as being the RW wand of suits..thanks! this is such a wonderful way to study and learn

The RW Magician: staff on table? thread was originally posted on 18 Feb 2004 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.