World Spirit study group - The Magician (I)

Satori

Erzulie:
The Voodoo love goddess and goddess of elemental forces, as well as of beauty, dancing, flowers, jewels, and pretty clothes. She lives in fabulous luxury and appears powdered and perfumed. She is as lavish with her love as with her gifts. On her fingers she wears three wedding rings, her three husbands being Damballa, the serpent god, Agwe, god of the sea and Ogoun the warrior hero. As Erzulie Ge-Rouge, she huddles together with her knees drawn up and her fists clenched, tears streaming from her eyes as she laments the shortness of life and the limitation of love. She is personified as a water snake. She is also called Ezili.

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/e/erzulie.html
 

Inana

The Magician

I enjoy a lot this magician. He is very active performing his ritual and full of energy.
Is he with his power who is using and moving all the elements of the suits. He is in control while enjoying at the same time, seems something natural for him. I only can ask myself, what comes next? What is he summoning? Looks magical.

elf said:
It is interesting to me that the cup and pentacle are levitating. the sword and wand are in hand while the other objects fly about.
Can it be he is holding and using the active energies (wands, swords) to move the passive elements (cups, coins)?
 

Seed Crystal

1 Magician

Infinite tools including the 4 elements, produce bread and drink, candles, flowers, drums, amulet, diagrams and maybe math, and last but not least his own body and focus and action. But in all his doing, in his collection of tools, he has withdrawn from the natural world even as he uses some of it... He dances in a carefully constructed circle, not on the earth, and his diagrams may be walls as well as tools. Everything else about him - his tan, his obvious physical condition, say he IS connected to the natural world but he is working metaphysics at this moment. He uses essences and metaphors and shifts of perception - the craft of ceremonial magic.

He holds fire and air, he's more in touch with them than water and earth. I much prefer that and the energy of this card to that of the R-W, which always seemed oddly static and tidy and passive. This Magician is definitely a do-er, not just a static conduit.

I am not a Voodoo practitioner but I understand through estatic dance and trance, the gods or spirits of the dead "ride" the participants... Will he be ridden? Or are we in that hut too? spoonbender and elf, thanks for your research. The male/female polarity thing, gatekeeps and elements are all principles big with ceremonial magic and various systems derived from or influenced by it (for example, Wicca, in SOME interpretations).
 

Satori

So think about it, if Erzulie is a goddess of dance, and he is dancing he must be summoning her, or paying homage to her, hence the vevers....! This just hit me. Sulis, did you know that he was summoning Erzulie? No wonder his hut is so cleaned up!

And he is being lavish with his gifts for her-the flowers, not in a vase yet, lying beside the food, the candels etc.!!! I'm so excited by this revelation! He is showing us his devotion for Erzulie, we are in fact (thank you Seed Crystal) witnessing a real ritual, not some staged pose.

This is so obvious to me now, and I just never really clued into all of this, even after my own post about Erzulie! Cool.
 

Seed Crystal

Real ritual yes, and at the pivotal moment; will She come to him or grant his request? and all that prep work, and staging not false but tribute and necessary as a bath before the date on which you ask her to marry you. And you know this guy's not cocky but is confident, there's no hesitation in his steps... He knows and feels his own power.
 

Sulis

Wow, this has got interesting. I didn't know about the Voodoo Goddess of dance. I don't really know that much about Voodoo at all.
Thankyou Seed Crystal for you input.

I drew this card in a reading I did for my husband a little while ago just before he was due to play a big gig (he's a DJ) - The black circle really reminded me of a record - I took it as a good sign and yes, the night went well - knowing that the Goddess of Dance may have been involved makes it an even more appropriate card, can't wait to tell Fran :)

Love

Sulis xx
 

EminemsAngelBaby

Wow, so much to learn here in this thread. I too really like this Magician. The moment of ritual....he's doing his thing. The enviornment has been created....space made, objects assembled, senses triggered(smoke rises from a bowl, candles blaze on the ground, the sweet scent of flowers, fresh fruit and other delights fill the room where the ritual is taking place).

He is in the moment. At home with what is taking place.....a divine act of movement with purpose and focus. He's done this before, knows what he's doing, is skilled and graceful, blended with the act itself. He has become the ritual.

Sulis I can totally see this card showing up for a DJ! Bringing all the elements together, providing the right mix, orchestrating the bigger picture. The DJ brings it all together....makes it happen......makes the magic!