Maat Tarot Study Group The Magician

greycats

The Magician

In contrast to the dramatic, archetypal qualities of birth that we saw in The Devil, The Magician, which treats more or less the same theme seems almost ordinary. Or better to say, some ordinary things are to be seen. There’s a bed and linens; I think I see a pillow on her left. There’s a table upon which rest some interesting and fairly ordinary objects: a bowl of water, a knife to cut the umbilical cord, a pencil (I think) and a birth chart. At the end of the table is a green sprig valiantly forming new leaves in midwinter. That plant must issue from a bulb. ;)

And is that a stylized lily pattern on the bowl and on the knife? Very apt, if so. Certainly everything looks clean, bright and quiet: purity rather than passion rules. The shadows are soft, and the light, glowing opalescent and almost sourceless, looks as if it came from a shining pearl. Around the mother’s neck a golden scarab hangs like a tiny sun rising just above the infant’s newly cut cord. The infinity sign presents here as an analemma, just as we saw in the Strength card. Mother and child face each other now. The mythical moment between the demise of the old sun and the birth of the new has passed. The mother holds her perfected work—ten lunar cycles worth—in both hands and lovingly blesses it with a kiss. The infant with eyes still shut against the unaccustomed brightness touches her face.

The analemma and the scarab are clues that this birth is cyclical. The scarab is an Egyptian symbol of life, the sun and resurrection. The analemma is the annual declination pattern that the sun creates on the earth’s face throughout the year—a daily kiss, perhaps, of growth energy. Then, from out of the earth, the potential for new beings arises, but it takes a Magician to convert something from a potential state into an actual state of being. In RWS we see the Magician attempting conversion with a wand in his raised right hand and with his left hand pointing to the ground. He acts as a conductor, bringing to solid earth something that was elsewhere and invisible. In the Maat we learn that every mother is a magician (for she does the same) and that every year is a magical gift to us from earth and sun. :)

Mother and child are still very close, but they are separate, now—something for would-be magicians to think about. One’s works have a life of their own. Never carry any despicable work, let alone give it birth. Instead, form each work well and bless it. It will touch you in return.
 

annik

I agree with the purity. There is a lot of white in the picture. It is also evident that the mother and the child have a bond. And both seems to be at ease and no stress at all.
 

greycats

annik said:
It is also evident that the mother and the child have a bond. And both seems to be at ease and no stress at all.

Very well said, Annik. There's a certain formality present, but that only emphasizes the closeness and peaceful ease.
 

Startarot

I wonder what the formality is around. On the table there seems to be an instrument of some sort. What ceremony/ritual is she performing with the new born child. In some ways it reminds me of the Jewish tradition of a Brisque. There is bowl on the table is that for some sort of cleaninsg and what about the plant, could it be medicinal? And the kiss, could it be more than just a sign of affection? Part of the ritual, the kiss of life? So many questions this provokes for me. I simply love this deck!!!
 

greycats

Formal beauty

Startarot said:
I wonder what the formality is around. On the table there seems to be an instrument of some sort. What ceremony/ritual is she performing with the new born child. In some ways it reminds me of the Jewish tradition of a Brisque. There is bowl on the table is that for some sort of cleaninsg and what about the plant, could it be medicinal? And the kiss, could it be more than just a sign of affection? Part of the ritual, the kiss of life? So many questions this provokes for me.

Hi, Startarot,
Seems to me that your observations are on target. I think we are seeing a ritual, probably one of a mother welcoming and acknowledging a new person. At the same time, Mom does some ordinary, necessary things: she cuts the cord with that curved instrument, washes birth secretions off the baby and notes the astrological data about the birth.

I'm not familiar with the Jewish rite, but the ritualistic flavor that you mention probably has similar roots. For one thing, there's a sense of calmness, solemnity and purity that one associates with holy rites. Also, the pattern we see on the bowl and the knife is "formal" in the sense that it is a very organized, symmetrical design probably based upon a plant. It looks something like the lily patterns that graced ancient mosiac borders in Greece and around the Mediterranean, which for me brings to mind how universal this scene is. (It's also blue on white. Might the colors might tie in with the Jewish tradition?) And I agree about the kiss. It isn't just an affectionate peck. Whatever it means, the kiss is very deliberate and purposeful.

Startarot said:
I simply love this deck!!!

Oh, me too!! :)
 

juliecucciawatts

the Magician-MAAT Tarot

For those who don't have the card to look at...
Julie
 

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magpie9

I don't see this as representing a Briss, because a Briss is the ritual circumcision of the male Jewish child, marking and honoring the covenant between g-d and the Jewish people. It's preformed by a Moyle ( these days, more often a Doctor) and the mother is not present. However, it seems to me to be very much a ritual between the Mother and child, and I wonder just who is the magician here--or is it that they each become a magician because of and through each other? it's a wonderful card, and to me seems to represent the aspect of the magician that is physical manifestation.
 

crazy raven

The full Moon in Cancer has a feeling of home, love, gentleness and nurturing. This woman could be a goddess, Gaia, a medicine woman whose energy force has been with us since the time of our birth. She helps us to access knowledge from within ourselves.......she answers our questions

When we are in communion with her, we see with clarity, our vision of our own creativity, potential sparks our will which is the part of us that takes responsibility. It is the ground of our creative reactions. When we are grounded, balanced, we have confidence in our own creativity and that of others too.

This card speaks of intuition, joy, strength, compassion and nurturing. To meet this medicine woman we could begin with the beat of a drum which allows to be in rhythmic tune with the heartbeat of Gaia, the Great Mother, etc. Although no drums are in this picture, the heartbeat acts as one of the same, which allows mother and child to form a rhythmic pattern, sound waves which enables them to send messages to one another.......or allows you to sing your song.
 

juliecucciawatts

crazy raven said:
The full Moon in Cancer has a feeling of home, love, gentleness and nurturing. This woman could be a goddess, Gaia, a medicine woman whose energy force has been with us since the time of our birth. She helps us to access knowledge from within ourselves.......she answers our questions

When we are in communion with her, we see with clarity, our vision of our own creativity, potential sparks our will which is the part of us that takes responsibility. It is the ground of our creative reactions. When we are grounded, balanced, we have confidence in our own creativity and that of others too.

This card speaks of intuition, joy, strength, compassion and nurturing. To meet this medicine woman we could begin with the beat of a drum which allows to be in rhythmic tune with the heartbeat of Gaia, the Great Mother, etc. Although no drums are in this picture, the heartbeat acts as one of the same, which allows mother and child to form a rhythmic pattern, sound waves which enables them to send messages to one another.......or allows you to sing your song.

Wow! how did I miss this post? Thank you Crazy Raven for sharing your insights on this thread. MAAT Study Group has been very quiet and I guess I should stop by more often to hear what is being said. You are right on with this card. Once again thanks for sharing.
Julie
 

crazy raven

Had an interesting revelation as far as the pearl necklace in this card which is seen again in the Maat tarot. I see it as meaning that it takes many incarnations for us to move towards consciousness. It is a form of karma, 'we reap what we sew (sow)'. We all have incarnated several times and the spaces between the pearls could represent these incarnations as well as 'in-between existences' that have collected on the 'skein of time'. Visually we would see this as a strand of pearls with no apparent beginning and no conceivable end. It is a living link connected to our memories, thoughts and motives which always seem to be generated from the past.

Also the circle as we know it, may not be round at all but twisted creating an ongoing current of reception and expression.