Victorian Romantic - The Magician

Victorian Romantic The Magician

What do you think about the Magician here? He looks quite experienced and full of knowledge. (more like Prof Dumbledore in Harry Potter) The yellow light above him signifies his connection to the divine. There's a lot of magic around this card. What do you think of the skeleton in the side? He has the power to connect to the spiritual world. Or maybe he is a clairvoyant.

A_Shikhs I agree with you that he bears resemblence in nature to Professor Dumbledore, probably the Dubmledore from book 6 *LOL*. He looks wise. The tome in front of him seems to me that it would be an old magic book. This magician to me seems to have expiremented with both white and dark magic to some degree based on the skeleton and the animal head hanging from the mantle. He also looks like he has invented some aparatus, then round one below his right hand. The pentacle on the floor symbolizes to me that he is into ritual magic.

I get a DaVinci'sh impression of him in regards to inventions. I'm not quite sure what the blue thing is in front of the book, a timer of some sort? So I see him as progressive for his time. As for the skeleton, it also could reflect his study of human anatomy ...

Jewel,
Yeah maybe an old magic book full of ancient secrets. Sounds cool. I like your idea of him studying human anatomy. Quite interesting. I feel that he has the power to control spirits, which makes him stronger in his magical studies.

Yesterday I did a very interesting reading for a woman who is into tarot, crystals, etc and is quite psychic.. She asked about her progress in her psychic abilities and I got this card for her with the Death card. The first thing I saw was the skeleton near the man and I told her that she usually has spirits come to her for release. This was quite accurate and she was quite shocked how I caught this particular thing from the card as she had just started seeing the spirit world. Thus, a very interesting thing to catch from this card.

This Magician doesn't inspire me straight out, like many do. There is none of that crash, bang, wallop that you get from a lot of them as they conduct lightning. And maybe this is maybe why I am finding him difficult to connect to, since I find it difficult to find anything in the card that is familiar to me.

He has some kind of book - of spells, tricks or fomulas. And his hand gesture makes me think he is going to produce a white dove within that wooden cage like show magicians do.

For now, I can say little, because as well as not finding much in the card to work with, I am also finding it very difficult to think about how I might interpret this particular version in a reading. Anyone help?

LB

LittleBuddha said:

I am also finding it very difficult to think about how I might interpret this particular version in a reading. Anyone help?

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I think A_Shikhs example above of what she experienced in a reading is a perfect example LB. That is one of the most interesting things about this deck. When you get the cards in a reading relevant details start really popping up, things you would normally not think of in regards to the card, but that when put into context really seem to fit.

I agree with you that the imagery is a real departure from what I am used to as well. When I think Magician in my mids eye I see the Magician from the Robin Wood, the Fey, the Cosmic Tribe, and lets face it this one is completly different on all levels. He is wiser, has been around longer, and I would say (as you noted about the magic trick) he knows how to manipulate. But I also envision him being into potions and medicines, which for some would be considered a type of magic. I think the tome is an old magic book.

When you get this card in a reading LB, see what details in the card just pop out at you, don't look to hard into it. What is the card asking you to see. Does this make any sense?

I have a hard time detailing cards separately not in a reading because each time a card comes up in a reading I see different things. But my impressions after looking at this card now though (not in the context of a reading) is that this is the hermit AFTER he's done all his studies and learned what he was searching for. He has come back and now has control over the physical world - the globe at his right hand. He still has the lantern, but now he's in his element....his magic room. People can now come to him for help, which he can provide because of all his past studies - the book which his left hand is flipping through. And probably other books on the shelves behind him.

He does look like Dumbledore though doesn't he?

LittleBuddha said:

This Magician doesn't inspire me straight out, like many do. There is none of that crash, bang, wallop that you get from a lot of them as they conduct lightning.
LB

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I see this Magician as an older version of the "crash, bang, wallop" magicians. When you're young usually you go for show - the flash. As you get older you realize that depth and substance are more important. This to me is the "depth and substance" Magician, no longer the "crash, bang, wallop" younger Magician.

contemplating the mystery

I see this Magician as an "old soul" as well as an alchemist. A long lifetime of study and observation of the natural world ( his hand hovering over the globe) has enabled him to learn the secret of turning a base metal into gold. The shining gold lantern is representative of the secret. There is no sense of the sharpy fairground trickster here. This magician is skilled beyond that stage and has quiet,contemplative powers.
I also find it hard to seperate this image with those 16th century Holbein images of the skeleton death appearing to people of all classes and types. In those wood engravings death snatched the maiden, the rich man, the beggar, the sailor, and on and on to show the leveling of all mankind by death the great equalizer.
So I see this magician as the master of the material and actual world, but still warily awaiting the unknown qualities of the next. I am reminded of the deathbed quote of Henry Ward Beecher . "Ah, now comes the mystery...."

You all covered this one so well that I can't add anything: you even saw things I missed! Thanks!

faunabay said:

He does look like Dumbledore though doesn't he?

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Okay, I have to say that I had this in the back of my mind when we were making this card. Dumbledore is old but tremendously powerful - but he doesn't need the "flash bang" - his power is tempered by wisdom and so it tends to be quiet and in a way understated - and perhaps even stronger for that. Hopefully the whole HP phenomenon has made us see the older magician or wizard in a new way. And yes, I think it's an almost inevitable association when a modern reader sees this card

More traditionally, the figure is of course an alchemist (he has some of the apparatus of alchemy around him) and so he may have the key to transformation. This to me is very much part of his potential meaning in this deck.

Fascinating to read comments and experiences on this thread - I hadn't realised before how significant the skeleton on this card could be if when it comes up in combination with the Death card. By the way, I agree that the Victorian Romantic can spark off a lot of strong associations when the cards begin to form patterns in this way.