⋅ Author : Mael Duin ⋅ 2022-08-17
At the time of writing, I’m watching the geopolitical friction between the United States and China dramatically heat up, bringing the two strongest nations on earth close to war over Taiwan. This has been provoking strong feelings of angst within me because a couple of years ago, I spent some time studying the situation of which I came to the conclusion we likely won’t be escaping the Thucydides Trap. This is the name given to periods in history which have resulted in war when a new superpower has emerged to challenge the position of an established hegemon.
The prospect of nuclear war, however slight, is enough to make any man anxious. And so it is agonising to watch as a belief about a negative outcome moves closer towards reality and catastrophe. I may well be holding a false belief, and hopefully that is the case. But the point I am trying to illustrate is that such thinking is directed by Magician archetype within us, and whether he is right or wrong, of the male archetypes it is our Magician that shapes our outlook on the world and has a great influence over how we experience life.
As well as interpreting events in the outer world, our Magician also provides us with access to deep inner truths and resources which colour how we perceive ourselves. It’s possible that during childhood, situations may have occurred that led to you developing negative self-beliefs. A developing Magician in an unhealthy environment may have led you to believe that you’re bad or evil – which may be the result of a false belief forged during a difficult situation during childhood that you had to deal with.
The traits often associated with people carrying a wound within their Magician include:
- Feeling numb
- Trouble connecting with people
- Feeling high levels of anxiety
- Experiencing unstable emotional states
- Overthinking
- Putting on a front
- Being a perfectionist
For instance, a common dynamic that will result in an unhealthy wiring of Magician energy would be when a boy has been raised by an extremely demanding, impossible-to-please parent. The criticisms and harsh judgements may drive a boy into a life of passivity or a life of perfectionism. Neither of which are wholesome states of being and will inevitably block men from experiencing the free flow of life. They’ll appear as the awkward misfit at the party, struggling to truly connect.
Elon Musk: a manipulative Magician?
It’s said that the Magician comes online in times of crisis, as it helps us find solutions to our problems. As a child, this may be learning to keep quiet when an abusive father comes home drunk. As an adult, this may be inventing a weapon to win a war, and becoming father to the atomic bomb.
“It is magician energy that drives our own modern civilization. Shamans, medicine men, wizards, witch doctors, brujos, inventors, scientists, doctors, lawyers, technicians – all these are accessing the same masculine energy pattern, no matter what age or culture they live in.”
– Gillette and Moore, King Warrior Magician Lover
It could be argued that Elon Musk is a clear example of a man driven by inflated Magician energy and therefore living with unbalanced male archetypes. He’s been described as a ‘master of disruptive technology companies’, and many signs can be observed that the multi-billionaire is channeling a form of Magician energy which is known as The Detached Manipulator.
As Rod Boothroyd describes, “the role of the Magician is, as the name suggests, to bring about transformation in our lives.” (From Warrior Magician, Lover, King) The company mission of Musk’s Tesla is to transition the world to electric cars, which he pursues simultaneously alongside his other ambitious aspirations to put humans on Mars, and computer chips in our brains. He’s certainly trying to bring about transformation in our lives – but he’s not without his critics.
Musk has been accused of manipulating cryptocurrency markets for personal gain; leveraging his wealth and enormous social media following to himself first buy into cryptos such as Bitcoin and Dogecoin, and then influence people to also buy in which raises their value, before he then cashes in on his share for a quick and easy profit – at one point helping Musk make more from Bitcoin than he did from selling electric cars.
“What we have seen with Bitcoin and its volatility is manipulation by one very powerful and influential individual”, claimed Magda Wierzycka, the richest woman in South Africa and anti-corruption activist. Other commentators have viewed him as “equal parts huckster and visionary” and “the world’s biggest troll.”
When the Tesla Cybertruck was unveiled, it created a lot of attention with a live demo that “went wrong” helping to generate even more media exposure. Musk said the truck would be on sale in late 2021, yet almost three years later and there is still no sign of the truck on the roads – leading some to speculate that the actual goal was not to sell the truck at all but to just generate brand hype.
That’s Elon the magnate, now let’s take a closer look at Elon the man. The following is a list of characteristics associated with a Manipulator, all of which have links to Musk displaying these:
- Being highly perfectionist or OCD
- Being very controlling or coming across as a “control freak”
- Being sarcastic
- Body movement and posture that’s uncoordinated or rigid
- Being deceptive
And what did we say earlier about negative self-beliefs?
It’s funny – because it rings with truth.
As we’re all products of our childhood, we should expect to see the roots of Musk’s Shadow Magician in his relationship with his parents. The emotional wound in the Magician archetype “begins to grow in a child when people around him directly or indirectly convey the message “There is something wrong with you…” As the child grows into a man he carries such harsh criticisms with him, feeding his shadow.” (Boothroyd, Warrior, Magician, Lover, King)
In a recent interview, Elon Musk’s dad revealed the kind of father he was when asked if he felt proud of his son, coldly replying: “No. You know, we are a family that have been doing a lot of things for a long time, it’s not as if we suddenly started doing something.” In the same interview he took a swipe at Elon’s physical appearance, suggesting he should take diet pills after seeing shirtless pictures of the 50-year-old on a boat in Greece.
Need we say anymore?
Seeking the Holy Grail
Robert Oppenheimer sought self-glory when he helped the United States develop the first-ever atomic bomb, but it led to self-agony. His rationalisation for unleashing such a monstrous creation on humanity was a hope that it would spell an end to wars of the kind the world witnessed in the first half of the 21st century. It may have – or it may be too soon to say – but he lived to become a remorseful scientist, a man enthused with cosmic spirituality whose soul was torn apart by what he had created, who later spoke with inconsolable regret, in an address to the American Philosophical Society, saying: “We have made a thing, a most terrible weapon, that has altered abruptly and profoundly the nature of the world … a thing that by all the standards of the world we grew up in is an evil thing. And by so doing … we have raised again the question of whether science is good for man.”
The Magician in his fullness acts as a wise advisor and counsellor for the King within you. Like Merlin to King Arthur, the Magician can set you on a quest towards the Holy Grail. “Clear, careful thinking based on inner wisdom and technical proficiency – this is a hallmark of a man accessing the Magician in his fullness.” (Gillette and Moore, King Warrior Magician Lover)
The Magician has been most clearly embodied in earlier cultures as the shaman. He was the one who restored wholeness and fullness of being to both individuals and communities. Otherwise known as the [w]holy man.
Where do we see the Magician in his fullness attempting to heal states of corruption today? We see it in the whistle-blower, Edward Snowden, who revealed the illegal and immoral application of his government’s surveillance technology against its own people. His revelations required great personal sacrifice, strength, and sharpness of mind – all for the benefit of our privacy and yet this violation of of our rights persists today.
We see it in Jordan Hall, the successful tech entrepreneur and philosopher, who pursues a brighter future for civilization, collaborating with dissident scientists, philosophers, technologists, story tellers, and entrepreneurs to encourage the growth of a new way of living for humanity, labelled Game B (we’re currently living in Game A which all involved believe is on the verge of collapse).
Our age is dominated by technology and therefore the energy of the Magician. To bring out the fullness of your male archetypes and Magician energy, you’ll need to commit to continuous learning, expanding your knowledge of both the inner and outer worlds, and consuming less and creating more. You should also create a sacred space, where you can quietly commune with the wholeness of your being and gain perspective on all your life’s challenges and questions.
The next generation will need your guidance, will need you to be the elder who facilitates positive transformation, and who shares true wisdom for the betterment of everybody.
If you can achieve that, you’ll have grasped the Holy Grail.
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