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I. The Magician—Le Bateleur

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Listen to the words of Solomon which he spake to his son Rehoboam: “The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, but the end of wisdom is the knowledge and love of Him who is the Source of all good, and the supreme Reason, whence all things do proceed.” Adonai had passed an eternity in heaven, and then created Man; so a time on earth is given to man to comprehend Adonai. In other words, the knowledge which man attains concerning the Supreme Being springs from the faculties which have been bestowed upon him at his creation, in order that he might in his turn formulate an image of the Being who has sent him into this world.

By Intelligence man conceives the ideal of God, and by Will he should turn to good works. But human will when without works is dead, or at any rate is only a vague desire: the same is true of a thought not expressed in language; it is not a word, but only a dream of the intelligence. An imagination is not a realised thing, it is only a promised something, while an act is a reality. For the same reason there is no piety without prayer, and no religion without worship. Words are the formal and social reality of ideals, and ceremonies are religion put into practice; there is no real faith unless it shows itself by actions prompted by faith. A formulated expression in words, confirmed by actions, demonstrates the two powers of a human soul. To work it is necessary to will, and to will it is necessary to formulate the desire. Actions imply ideas even if the ideals are not themselves translated into acts.

Thought is the life of intelligence, words show the creative force of thought, while actions are the last effort of words, and the desirable complement of words. Words have been spoken, thought has been translated into action; by the act of creating, speech has taken place.

A word is the requisite formula of a thought, an act is an exhibition of will. This is why prayer is a necessity, and may obtain all that it asks. A prayer is a perfected act of the will, it is a link connecting human words with the divine Will. All ceremonies consecrations, ablutions, and sacrifices are prayers in action, and are symbolic formulas; and they are the most potent prayers because they are translations of word into action, showing will power and persistence, seeing that they require more constrained attention than silent prayer, or prayer expressed in words; and so they constitute real work, and such work demands a man’s whole energy.

Notes.

The First Tarot Trump is named Le Bateleur, and in English is spoken of as the Magician. Levi remarks in one of his works that the arms and body of the figure bear a resemblance to the first letter, Aleph, of the Hebrew alphabet, in some packs of the oldest designs; but the student will do wisely to consult his intuition, if he have no adept instructor, as to the true attribution of this or either of the other trumps of the Tarot.

The Magician stands by a table holding a magical wand in his left hand; before him on the table are lying other implements suitable to his task, such as a dagger, cup, and pantacle. His face expresses assurance, and intelligence beams from his eyes.

Levi elsewhere defines its occult meaning to be God, spirit, unity; and man as a reflection of God. P. Christian, in his Histoire de la Magie, says that this card represents, in the Divine world, the Absolute One; in the Intellectual world, Unity; and in the Physical world, Man; and that man should, like God, work without ceasing, for a state of willing nothing and doing nothing is hardly less fatal than evil doing.