THE MAGICIAN
All the magic of the world resides in you -- Charisma. Dynamic personality. Working wonders. Ability to take action. Purposeful magic. Asserting one's will over the self. Supreme self-governance. The ability to realize one's full potential. Activity and intention. Clear and concise goals.
SHADOW: The maniacal need to control all things. Interfering with other people's business. Manipulation of others for a false sense of power and for personal entertainment. Showing off to inflate a sense of personal value. Purposefully pushing someone's buttons and seeking reactions and chaos.
White flowers, as pale as the moon, blossom and release puffs of sweet, sugary pollen toward the Shadow Witch. She inhales deeply and stops to consider who would cast such a powerful flower spell. The hooting of an owl directs her attention toward an old woman. A crone stands at a ceremonial table. The Shadow Witch wonders if she is looking at a vision of her future self. Everything she meets inside the wood is part of who she is. None of us are actually separate from each other. The Witch is the Magician and the Magician is the Witch, just as you are the Shadow Witch and the Shadow Witch is you.
The Magician stands inaposture of enchantment, breathing life and energy into the wood. She points her right arm to the sky, the spirit world, the place of inspiration and ideas. It represents your highest potential. With her left hand she channels acute energy through her like a lightning rod grounding the electricity to the earth. She could direct this power anywhere. She is the conduit and literal embodiment of the three worlds we live in: upper (spiritual), middle (material), and lower (subconscious). Each of us is an energetic channel.
Her flowing gray hair symbolizes the Magician's life experience and wisdom. She never blocks, disrupts, or disparages the natural flow of energy with harmful self-hate, negativity, or feelings of unworthiness. She focuses on the present and never looks to the past or the future, like a flower or bird who never stops to think about what it did yesterday or what it will do tomorrow. Her presence keeps her in step with natural magic. She is the energetic filter of the creative life force who ignites all things by the power of her attention.
True magic is not the manipulation of other people, places, or events but the ability to master the self. Real magic teaches you to control your inner experience. If you allow it to, the outer world will rearrange itself in ways you couldn't even imagine.
The Magician separates herself from her thoughts (swords), emotions (cups), desires (wands), and the trick of the material world (pentacles) by becoming a silent, active observer. She follows the path of least resistance. The Magician pays attention and stays open to signs, omens, and messages. She knows when to apply pressure and when to back off. She does not fear the unknown; she embraces it. She knows she is who creates her reality. She seeks what is seeking her.
The owl is a magical omen, a symbol of clairvoyance and astral projection. Owls are nocturnal creatures who see what others do not. Tarot cards are spread across the Magician's table because tarot is a gateway into the esoteric arts. The table is carved with the Magician's axiom "As above, so below." What is true for the world is true for us, and what is true for us is true for the world. We exist between shifting polarities, but all is actually one. The world is not outside of you; it is inside. Two triple-spiraled pre-Celtic triskelion symbols are engraved on her table, reflecting the creative principle of the universe.
A lemniscate floats above her head. It is the symbiotic flow of life energy and dynamism that makes life possible. Her dress is cinched at the waist by a snake eating its own tail. It is an alchemical symbol reminding us of life's energetic circle. Nothing ever disappears; it simply changes form.