The Magician Tarot Card Meaning
Keywords: Mastery – Manifestation – Power
Tarot Card Description
The Magician stands confidently in front of a table with all of the symbols of the tarot suits: pentacles, cups, wands, and swords. Each object symbolizes the metaphysical four elements: earth (pentacles), water (cups), fire (wands), and air (swords). The Magician points upwards with his wand. His right-hand points downwards to the earth: “as above so below”. Above the Magician’s head is a lemniscate symbol representing infinity and balance. This symbol is also mirrored in his belt which is an ouroboros, an alchemical symbol of a snake eating its tail. The Magician is surrounded by roses symbolizing passion. The lilies represent truth and purity.
The Magician is the second card of the tarot’s Major Arcana. It represents power, skill, talent, mastery, and manifestation.
Upright Meanings for the Magician Tarot Card
The Magician is master of their craft and domain. When it shows up in your reading, understand that you have the power and skill to manifest your will. All of the tools needed to move forward are at your fingertips. Often times the catalyst to manifesting your desired outcome is willpower.
This is a card of mastery, skill, and competence. The Magician asserts that you have everything you need right now to reach your goals. If you’re feeling lost, take stock of what’s around you. What, or who, do you have access to that can help you achieve your goal? Be resourceful and examine all of your options.
This is a great card to appear in a reading for positive outcomes. It can signal that our desire will be manifested soon. The Magician is connected to alchemy and magic. It often represents spiritual desires transforming into physical reality. If you’re reading on the results of a project or vision board, this is a great outcome card.
The Magician urges you to step into your personal power with confidence. It’s a call to act. You are not lacking in anything. This is especially true if you’re addicted to finding one more class, or that one bit of additional information, to finally feel confident enough to act. Stop searching for that next magic bullet that you think will make you more prepared. You’re already ready. Do your magic!
Love and Relationships
In love, the Magician is passionate, charismatic, and capable. Generally, they’re dependable and make great friends and partners.
But a word of warning: keep an eye on whether this potential partner is really as sincere as they present themselves. Individuals represented by the Magician card can be real smooth. Basically: player alert. But, this tends to be a much more positive card for long, already established relationships.
If you’re looking for a relationship, use visualization to hone in on what you want in a partner. As the Magician, you have the power to manifest a fulfilling partnership. Because the Magician creates from the resources around them, you are likely to find a romantic partner through friends, family, or work.
Career and Work
The Magician in a work-related reading indicates a high level of competence in your field. It indicates that you are well equipped for your career. If you’re feeling doubtful, know that you already have access to the skills and materials needed to do your job. Others recognize your talents, you just need to embrace your confidence.
This is a great card to appear during a job search. It’s a positive indicator that you are on the right track. In fact, be prepared to land the job you desire.
In workplace conflicts, it can suggest that a lack of confidence or skill is at play. For example, a “problem” employee might just need extra resources or reassurance. Sometimes policies and procedures are too vague. Because of this, you or a coworker might hold back in your work performance out of a fear of looking underqualified. This is even truer if it’s a work environment where performance is heavily scrutinized. Make sure everyone is on the same page. Listen to what your team needs. In some cases, the Magician can suggest calling in an expert’s help.
The Magician is able to gather what’s already there and create magic. This makes it a great card for those who manage resources or create products. An example would be someone who facilitates community resources in the nonprofit sector. Or, an artisan or manufacturer who is producing tangible items. It can also represent someone who wields political power behind the scenes. It can be a call to focus on building your skills to become an expert in your field.
People and Personalities
This is a very charismatic and confident individual. Their personal power shouldn’t be underestimated. They are highly driven, and if given a task, often see it through to the end. Individuals represented by the Magician card are incredibly resourceful. This makes them excellent team members in projects or fields with limited resources. It’s often surprising how they’re able to achieve so much with seemingly so little. It can also allude to individuals who are magically inclined and powerful manifestors.
The Magician Reversed Tarot Card Meaning
Reversed keywords: Manipulation – Selfishness – Blocked potential
Reversed Meanings for the Magician Tarot Card
The Magician reversed represents a blockage in your personal power. Most often, it’s a mental block getting in your way. Are you giving your power away to someone or something else in this situation? If that’s the case, you must embrace your personal power in the situation. Do not let someone else’s negativity distract you from your goals. Don’t underestimate yourself either.
Be careful that you’re not letting excuses get in the way of taking action. This is very true if a perceived lack of resources is holding you back. Really dig deep and understand that you hold a lot of power to change things. Ask trusted allies for input on resources that will help you move forward. The key to resolving the issue might be hiding in plain sight.
Sometimes the Magician card in reverse may not represent internal self-sabotage. Instead, there might be outside saboteurs working against you. As sad as that is, sometimes others don’t have our best interest at heart. Keep your eyes open to signs that you’re being thwarted by another person. The Magician card has historical associations with trickery, gaming, and conmen. Don’t allow yourself to be taken for a ride.
The Magician is a very powerful card, but if taken to an extreme, can indicate selfishness. The Magician as their highest self is channeling energy from the heavens to the earth for the greater good. You can be easily corrupted if you hoard that power for yourself. Make sure you are playing fair. Resist the urge to see other’s power as a threat to your own.
Reversed Love and Relationships
The Magician reversed in a love reading signals stagnation. There can be difficulties getting a new relationship to manifest or a stalled one to progress. In the case of manifesting a new love, resist the urge to be passive. The potential for a fulfilling relationship is there, but it’s blocked. Be very cognizant of any self-limiting beliefs are at play.
Sometimes the Magician card reversed can suggest an element of deception in a relationship. A potential partner may have exaggerated their credentials a little. If they’re claiming to be an Olympic-level athlete, an undercover CIA agent, and a doctor too, then you might want to do some fact-checking. And, you know, it’s an even bigger red-flag if this Jack-or-Jill-of-All-Trades needs an emergency cash infusion from you. If something doesn’t seem quite right, trust your gut.
Because of this, be on guard regarding motives until you get to know the person better. If the Magician represents a potential partner or friend, don’t rush things. Give yourself time to rule out any hidden agendas.
Reversed Career and Work
The reversed Magician can spell sabotage and blockages at work. A lack of resources is hindering you. Sometimes this can be remedied by asking for help or more assistance. Unfortunately, sometimes the resources and staff members are just not coming through. You may have to sacrifice some of your own resources (whether that be time, money, or power) to see a project through. If you’ve already reached your limit of personal resources to contribute, then you maybe need to cut your losses.
In workplace conflict, examine whether sabotage is at play. It can suggest hidden agendas as well. Depending on the context of the reading, it can also hint at covering up a lack of credentials. All of these elements suggest gathering unbiased facts about the situation. If you’re being asked to resolve an issue, don’t take the information given to you at face value.
If these blockages are inexplicable, then be wary of sabotage from above or below your position. You may need help dealing with difficult personalities to overcome this issue. Find out where the problems are coming from and what the root of the issue is so that you can move forward.
Reversed People and Personalities
Being reversed blocks, and sometimes, subverts the Magician’s power. If the Magician reversed represents you in a reading, you may feel powerless and floundering. If this is the case, it’s very important that you examine whether you’re suffering from self-limiting beliefs. Old stories about your abilities could be holding you back from your potential.
A darker element of the Magician reversed personality is deception. Be wary of your own motives in holding yourself back. You may exaggerate situations to sway opinions in others. Keep your motivations clean. Recognize and honor the freewill of others.
Correspondences
Astrology: Mercury
Element: Air
Numerology: 1
Affirmation
I am powerful.
A Few of My Favorite Examples of the Magician Card
In the Delta Enduring Tarot, a woman prepares a stew. She utilizes whatever she has on hand to create it. Of course, she’s most likely making gumbo. And if you’ve ever attempted to make a rich, dark roux then you’ll appreciate the magic touch needed to achieve it! The cast-iron pot evokes a witch’s cauldron. It can be also be interpreted as a take on the Stone Soup fable. In the story, a clever traveler convinces reluctant villagers to share ingredients to build a communal soup. This speaks to the Magician’s ability to gather resources for the betterment of both themselves and their community. I also love the idea that this could be someone sprinkling in a little magic into their food. In traditional African American hoodoo practices, which are still alive in the Mississippi Delta, it wouldn’t be unusual to deploy a spell in food.
The surreal Wooden Tarot Magician is one of the most striking in the deck. There’s a hint of a second pair of eyes concealed under the wings. The traditional infinity symbol associated with the Magician card can be seen below the moth. The nocturnal nature of moths hints at work done at night, in secret, or from within. The small skull on the back of the moth might be just a warning to predators to back off —or perhaps it’s poisonous? Either way, Magicians are resourceful and know how to defend themselves.
The Mesquite Tarot’s Magician contains many traditional elements of the card. There’s a lemniscate symbol above the figure’s head along with the elemental suits floating beside them. What I love about this depiction of the Magician is the powerful pose the figure takes on as it channels energy from the universe to the earth. I love the gender-neutral imagery used throughout the deck as well. The Magician card is typically depicted as male. Here, the stylized image can represent anyone.
The Mystic Mondays Tarot is a colorful, minimalist deck. This Magician is cloaked in dark robes and holds two glowing forms in between her hands. This card alludes to the quieter inner strength and power of the Magician. We often look at the Magician’s power as it manifests in the physical world. But another equally important element of the Magician is the mental stamina needed to focus their power. The halo around this magician’s head suggests enlightenment. Through study, practice, and challenging herself, this sorceress has cultivated the skills she needs to master magic-making.
The Magician Tarot Card Keywords – Upright and Reversed