All great magicians, tradition says, are born with a planet on a “Magus degree”

Papus had Jupiter on the 21st degree of Sagittarius, which the old degree calendar shows as “A Magus, the tiara on his brow and the sceptre in his hand.” Take the test, then get the report.

Where the idea comes from

“Magus est persona ex utero matris ad hoc genus operis prædestinata.”
A magician is a person predestined to this work from his mother’s womb. Arbatel. De magia veterum, aphorism 42 — printed in Basel, 1575.

According to a former head of a French Golden Dawn order, the order examined the birth chart of its postulants. The rule he reports fits in one sentence: of the 360 degrees of the zodiac, two carry the image of a Magus, and great magicians have a planet on one of them. We tested that claim.

Degree	Image in the “Theban calendar” (1863)	Meaning given
the 21st degree of Sagittarius	“A Magus, the tiara on his brow and the sceptre in his hand.”	Aptitude for the high sciences.
the 2nd degree of Libra	“A Magus burning incense on an altar.”	Contemplative character, religious leanings.

Four more degrees touch on the occult in a wider sense: the 18th degree of Sagittarius (the aptitude for the occult sciences), the 8th degree of Leo (the eye in the triangle of flame), the 27th degree of Taurus (the alchemist in his laboratory), the 21st degree of Capricorn (the hieroglyphic manuscript and the retort).

What we checked

We recomputed the planetary positions of 136 occultists, astrologers and alchemists, including the four magicians the tradition names.

Gérard Encausse (born 13 July 1865): Mars on the 8th degree of Leo (sidereal); Saturn on the 2nd degree of Libra (sidereal); Jupiter on the 21st degree of Sagittarius (tropical).
Eliphas Levi (born 8 February 1810): no planet on any of the six degrees, in either zodiac.
Aleister Crowley (born 12 October 1875): no planet on any of the six degrees, in either zodiac.
Giuliano Kremmerz (born 8 April 1861): no planet on any of the six degrees, in either zodiac.

Of the 136 charts, 7 have a planet on a Magus degree in the sidereal zodiac: 5.1%. Across 10,436 dates between 1800 and 1999 the share is 5.6%. The rule reads as a symbol, not as a criterion. The full test.

Would you have been admitted? Eight more tests

The degrees look at your birth. Eight old texts look at your conduct: Cagliostro’s Egyptian Rite, the Golden Dawn Neophyte obligation, the Egyptian Order of Naples, the Rosicrucians of 1614, the lodge of 1723, the Arbatel, Saint Benedict and Pythagoras. All the tests · our readings of these texts.

The Order of the Magus Degree

A planet on a Magus degree? You can apply to the Order of the Magus Degree: a register founded in 2026, free, with no lineage and no ritual.

The directory

136 occultists, theosophists, astrologers and alchemists, all deceased, each with the ten planets placed on the degrees of the calendar.

The whole directory · The 360 degrees and their images

The report — US$19

Ten planets and the Ascendant, in both zodiacs. For every degree: the image and meaning from the old text, the Magus degrees you touch by conjunction or opposition, and the occultists who share your degrees. Sent within 24 hours; you pay after you have received it.

See the report