Bohemian Gothic-The Magician

Thirteen

I just went through the list and realized we were missing a lot of Majors--including three of my favorites. The Magician, the HPS and the Moon! How can we not have touched on this given the "gothic" aspect of this deck? So I figure I'll get the ball rolling on both. Let's start with the Magician:

In an utterly fantastic and airy palace room, our Magician performs, well, magic! He is a very flamboyant figure in traditional red and white, with gold trim. Can anyone's magnifying glass make out the pattern on either side of his red coat? What is perhaps most interesting about our magician are his spidery hands. No human has hands with fingers so long and claw-like. Our Magician isn't human, or perhaps no longer human.

His colors may be traditional for the Magician, but the tools on his table are not--sword excepted. there is a skull, a candelabra, an hour-glass and...I'm not exactly sure what that is! A crystal ball, perhaps? Or maybe an incense censer? The Swords is swords, obviously, but what about the other items? The candelabra I'd say was wands, the hour-glass cups and the skull pentacles?

Whatever the last item is, he has brought something to life within it--or thanks to it. That something is sizzling and smoking and sulfurously rising out like a genie let loose from a bottle. Even our Magician looks alarmed by what he's done. But it's too late now. Which, in a way, is the traditional meaning of the card, yes? The Magician is all about that first step in transforming an idea into reality. Of summoning something into being.

I do love how we've come in right at the climax of this scary story, right at the point where imaginations can run wild. Which is another aspect of the Magician card--urging us to be creative and imagining all sorts of things. Something is about to manifest itself. But what? We can envision anything we like.
 

Surja76

UFFFFFF.... Dangerous Card. What is it? is it the Evil's Birth?

Due to classic symbols of Magician the card should point to the Jesus Christ second coming.
Sword = Orion sword, 3 candles = 3 Stars of Orion's Belt. Skull should be Orion (Sirius).
In classical drawing the sword should be aimed to the Skull Symbolising caducity of a body and immortality of spirit.

But Sword turned to the opposite side to the Smoking sphere. And skull faced back to this sphere.
If to take a look to the Smoke I see Goad face with two Horns and even 1 red eye - it is Devil's face. And I do not know (may be people say I am crazy :) ) but if you take a look above Goad Horns you will see Child's embryo.
And Vampire looks at this Child.

2 glasses on the Vampire's coat = 2 cups reversed!!! This Magician is in deal with Devil, he loves evil.
He is cruel and greedy. He needs more blood.

Time is comming (send clock is almost empty in upper glass). He is waiting long time. 3 candles = 3 of wands - Vampire is sure his efforts and skills. He is in Business contract with Devil.
He wishes to supervise over destinies of other people in order to force them and have the power over people's life. You can see the Ring on his Destiny finger of his left hand.

If more evil and sin in the world - more darkness, blood and night will be appear. So that Vampire will be more powerful.

That is all I have seen. If something wrong with my view please tell me.
 

Thirteen

Surja76 said:
That is all I have seen. If something wrong with my view please tell me.
Nothing is wrong with your view...but it is rather alarmist and so apocalyptically bleak that it makes me wonder why you like this deck :D

I guess what I'm saying is, the power of these cards is that we see stories in them. In fact, I've never had a deck where the cards present such clear stories. We all want to discuss these stories that we see, and we should. But is that all we're using them for? To tell scary tales? And should those stories be so very "black" with not a hint of white or neutral? That's great for scary stories, but that doesn't sound real good for readings.

I'd like to use my cards to read tarot as well as tell stories. So, I'd like to know more than just the story you see. What of the Magician do you see? The REAL magician, not his evil twin?

Because there's no point in using this deck for readings if the only thing you can say when the Magician comes up is: "You're going to summon the devil to do cruel and evil things." Is that really the answer you'll give when someone asks, "There are two men I'm interested in. Which should I date?" ;)
 

Surja76

Thirteen said:
I'd like to use my cards to read tarot as well as tell stories. So, I'd like to know more than just the story you see. What of the Magician do you see? The REAL magician, not his evil twin?

Because there's no point in using this deck for readings if the only thing you can say when the Magician comes up is: "You're going to summon the devil to do cruel and evil things." Is that really the answer you'll give when someone asks, "There are two men I'm interested in. Which should I date?" ;)

Do not be afraid. May be it is not modestly from my side but believe me I am very kind person :) :)
I do not know why this deck. I like Victorian Romantic Tarot. It is a pity it was forbidden as Study group here. If you reanimate it you will see my better side in its explanation :) Actually I act the same with any Deck, I try to get its inner world and it is not matter for me it is bad or good world.

It is really dark story coded in this Deck. In order to be interesting for buyers Deck artists try to find something new to be differ from others but they have to keep their story from the beginning to the Deck's end.
So when I started to exam this Deck I even did not suppose it would be SO Dark. :)

You are right we should describe not only the story but be close to the meanings they will appear in our readings.
 

Surja76

What can I say about this Magician.
He is a good businessman who does not shun good or bad things. Even if he decide to do something bad he will win. he has a power and special skills. He has cold heart and head, he is out of feelings (we see 2 reserved cups on his coat), he keeps an eye over his own interests, in order to get more money. He is good manipulator, he knows how to force other people to do what he wants (ring on the left destiny finger).
But he should be very careful because one time we can clash to the forces he will not be able to overcome. He can go along the wrong way and stay alone. He can be the hostage to its own forces from which it will be difficult to get rid of. He may pipe up.

Thirteen said:
Because there's no point in using this deck for readings if the only thing you can say when the Magician comes up is: "You're going to summon the devil to do cruel and evil things." Is that really the answer you'll give when someone asks, "There are two men I'm interested in. Which should I date?" ;)

Magician gives emotional attraction to someone but not physical.
I think you should choose that one you feel the most comfortable being near by, who can take care of you and you feel protected by him, the person you can trust to.
I think you should not choose the man you feel physical attraction or passion. You may not be fallen in love with person you are going to choose but you should be forehanded.
 

Thirteen

Surja76 said:
He has cold heart and head, he is out of feelings (we see 2 reserved cups on his coat), He is good manipulator, he knows how to force other people to do what he wants (ring on the left destiny finger).
Thank you for this response and elaboration, Surja. It really helps to see the connection you make between the card image and the Magician. I'm in total agreement on these two points in particular. I love the idea of the inverted cup emblems indicating the Magician's cool and distant attitude. It's not something we often remember with the traditional magician card--that he is an intellectual rather than emotional magician.

And the Magician is most certainly a manipulator.

His tools echo a lot of what you say. It take a cool, analytical person to have a skull on their table, and the hour-glass indicates someone who manages his time. Who, perhaps, is very carefully to keep track of it.

Wonderful points.
 

swimming in tarot

Just quickly popping in; I won't have LOTS of time until tomorrow and onward, but I thought I'd write what I see.

The Magician has unusually thick hair, worn loose and collar length. He has black lipstick on. Gold thread embroidery on his red satin gown shows, to me, a pair of birds with their wings spread, beaks open, and some sort of crest on the head; swallow-tailed, long-legged, individual toes not shown. The Magician has long, but not abnormally long, slender fingers with ghastly long white nails (personal peeve about excessively long nails). A ring with a large black stone is on the middle finger of his left hand; a smaller ring is on the ring finger of the left hand. The table is draped in what looks like an oriental rug. The sand in the hourglass has only just started to pour; lots of time left, relatively speaking. That thing making coloured smoke...??? Maybe we're not supposed to recognize it as any particular "thing". Anyhow, I don't have one in my living room, or if I do, it doesn't do THAT! It seems to sit on a base like a crystal ball does, for example, but it also seems to have a matching base-shape serving as a lid, visible over and to the left of the glowing mass, which may have opened this lid by expanding its glowing self, and perhaps is about to shuck it off. Not sure.
 

Surja76

swimming in tarot said:
Just quickly popping in; I won't have LOTS of time until tomorrow and onward, but I thought I'd write what I see.

The Magician has unusually thick hair, worn loose and collar length. He has black lipstick on. Gold thread embroidery on his red satin gown shows, to me, a pair of birds with their wings spread, beaks open, and some sort of crest on the head; swallow-tailed, long-legged, individual toes not shown. The Magician has long, but not abnormally long, slender fingers with ghastly long white nails (personal peeve about excessively long nails). A ring with a large black stone is on the middle finger of his left hand; a smaller ring is on the ring finger of the left hand. The table is draped in what looks like an oriental rug. The sand in the hourglass has only just started to pour; lots of time left, relatively speaking. That thing making coloured smoke...??? Maybe we're not supposed to recognize it as any particular "thing". Anyhow, I don't have one in my living room, or if I do, it doesn't do THAT! It seems to sit on a base like a crystal ball does, for example, but it also seems to have a matching base-shape serving as a lid, visible over and to the left of the glowing mass, which may have opened this lid by expanding its glowing self, and perhaps is about to shuck it off. Not sure.


Interesting views. is it something look like Raven?
I think you are right.
As to sphere i have compared it with a helmet with a visor, medieval knights put on the same. :)
 

Thirteen

Surja76 said:
As to sphere i have compared it with a helmet with a visor, medieval knights put on the same.
Oh! That makes much more sense. I was wondering if it was some sort of spherical chafing dish. Maybe he's burning his dinner? :D
 

swimming in tarot

Surja, the birds looks to me like the heraldic ones that you see on the shields of old families, particularly of Eastern Europe. Not exactly, but similar. I don't have any ideas for Deep Important Meanings for this card, myself. Not yet.