Lesson 3: The Magicians’s Robes

The Magician wears a red outer robe, representing desire, passion and activity. He may remove it at will to abstain from physical action, or to put his personal desires aside. This leaves his white inner robe, indicating the purity of spirit and abstract inner states of mind which are worn closer to his skin.

A serpent of transformation, is wound around his waist biting its own tail.  It is an Ouroboros: a symbol of eternal life and wholeness. The serpent reminds us that the power of transformation is endless. Wherever we are in the cycle we are complete and perfect. This living girdle (belt) is the circle of sacred space within which the magician works. 

Above his head is the sign of infinity. This “cosmic lemniscate” comprised of a clockwise circle and a counterclockwise circle exchanging and feeding energy back and forth in an endless cycle. All of the opposites flow into each other allowing equality of the feminine and masculine powers. This leads to intimate knowledge of the infinite: the perfect mode of transactional communication.

The Magician’s creativity comes from an active masculine impulse to manifest his desires, which is balanced by receptive feminine flow. Both must be present for his magic to be complete and effective.