THE SAINT
The Forty Servants in Theory & Practice
Hello, good people of the internet, and welcome to The Forty Servants in Theory and Practice, a series where I take a deeper look into the philosophy, use, and evolution of The Forty Servants system, drawing on nearly a decade of hands-on experience and magical experimentation.
Each entry in this free section of the series will focus on one Servant at a time, offering background insight, design history, divination reflections, shadow aspects, magical applications, and how my personal understanding of each has shifted or deepened over the years.
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So, let's go…
THE SAINT
The Saint shows us how to ask for help. He encourages us to seek out experts who are more equipped than us for the task at hand, or who can intercede on our behalf.
ARTWORK
The artwork for the Saint originally began as another of the altar cards series I spoke about earlier—devotional-style prints I created to sell online and locally. He was initially intended to represent Saint Cyprian, the sorcerer-turned-saint, who has become a sort of patron for magicians – Chaos Magicians in particular. I spent a long time trying to connect to Saint Cyprian. I even made a pilgrimage to see his relics in Romania, but I was never able to get his attention in the way I wanted. It just never fully clicked.1
So, when it came to putting The Forty Servants together I decided to take a different approach to him and go my own way.
Rather than trying to borrow energy from an existing figure, I reworked the Servant into something new—a more general “Saint” or “Holy Man” whose energy could carry the archetype of sacred service, spiritual intercession, and devotional power, but in a more open and universal package.
The colours of his image are meant to make it feel a bit Middle Eastern, or at least somewhere away from the green fields of Ireland that surround me. I wanted him to have a more worldly feel and be a bit more exotic than the Saints I grew up with in the various churches I visited. The sun beats down on high mountains with the faint outline of buildings suggesting maybe a town or a city.
His halo and the sun encapsulate each other and are in fact, the same thing. His headpiece has a glowing light which shines a different colour than the rest of the image to show that he is part of a greater living tradition. His Crozier lets us know that he has some sort of high-ranking governing position in this tradition.
His left hand is raised, blessing the viewer. In religious painting, this is usually the right hand, but he uses his left hand to show that, Just like Saint Cyprian, he threads both paths.
If the overtly Christian iconography and style of this Servant puts you off, I suggest seeing him more as a general spiritual intercessory being such as a shaman, wise man, priest, or as mentioned above a “Holy Man”, rather than someone locked into the Christian tradition.
THE SIGIL
The sigil is obviously a stylised version of his crozier. But it also reminds us of a hook and as such represents “support” and that he can help carry and support us.
It also has some similarities to a question mark meaning that we can place this sigil onto items or areas that are unknown to get information or details about it.
I often use the Sigil as a quick blessing sign over items, people, or my surroundings in replace of the standard cross movement. If you draw it from the bottom, you can make the gesture feel like you are placing the blessing at a very specific point. Drawing it the opposite has a more “releasing” or “unlocking” feel to it.
This is a sigil that can be used in both devotional and diplomatic magick. It's effective in softening resistance, opening hearts, or creating spiritual goodwill. Ever walk into a room, and you can cut the tension with a knife? Use this sigil to help dispel that energy. Draw it like you are blessing the room.
When you feel in danger or unsafe draw the sigil in front of you to ask for help and assistance.
Sigil Quick Uses: For assistance in petitioning higher powers, softening conflict, strengthening prayers, general blessings, and asking for support
DIVINATION
When The Saint appears in a reading, the message is often simple: you don’t have to do this alone.
This is a Servant that often arrives when you’ve been trying to do all the heavy lifting by yourself, and it’s time to ask for assistance—whether from people, experts, professionals, spirits, teachers, or the divine. It could be as simple as reaching out to a friend. It could be as structured as hiring an expert. It could be as spiritual as lighting a candle and asking for help.
The Saint reminds you that you don’t have to work this all out yourself. You can ask someone to intercede on your behalf or put in a good word for you. If you are unable to solve a conflict with someone then the suggestion is that you should ask a meditator to help sort it out.
The Saint tells you that you don’t have to be an expert at everything and that asking for help is not a sign of weakness or inadequacy. Sometimes the best way to fix a dripping tap is to hire a plumber.
He also invites you to reflect on how you serve. Are you someone who can act as an intercessor for others? Could you pass along a recommendation, connect someone in need, or act as a quiet blessing in someone’s life?
SHADOW REVERSAL
Reversals in The Forty Servants don’t signify the opposite of the normal energy of the Servant but more a dysfunctional version of it, or a detrimental misuse or misunderstanding of the qualities.
In shadow, The Saint can become overly reliant on others to fix what you could do yourself, constantly asking for help when the time has come to act, or believing that power always lies with “experts” and never with you.
It can look like seeing everything as a hierarchy, always believing you’re at the bottom, and others must grant permission for you to rise.
There may also be a refusal to share your own influence, withholding connections, hoarding spiritual knowledge, or gatekeeping access to help. The Saint reminds us that intercession goes both ways.
In extreme reversal, it can represent “playing the victim” or living out the martyr role. Martyrdom can become a way of avoiding actual participation.
At its core, this reversal is about power dislocation. Are you seeing your own voice as too small to matter? Do you feel your own actions as being impotent? Do you always need the approval of others?
MAGICK
The Saint, along with The Witch, is seen as a patron of magick. This isn’t because he casts spells for you, but because he helps bridge the gap when something feels beyond your current reach. If you’re working on something that feels a bit out of your league, beyond your skill level, or outside your experience, The Saint can support you and help you out.
I often suggest that he should be the first Servant people work with—not because he has to be, but because he’s particularly good at making introductions. If the whole system feels a bit overwhelming or mysterious, The Saint can help open the door. But you don’t need to start with him—that’s entirely up to you. There is an introduction or Initiation ritual in the Grimoire where you work with The Saint to get to know the other Servants, and while this can be very helpful, it's not mandatory in any way.
While it’s easy to see The Saint as someone who solves problems, his real role is to mediate—to open the way for solutions to arise, not to deliver them ready-made. Rather than fixing things outright, The Saint acts as a go-between. He helps clear the way, eases resistance, and helps the right answers find their path to you.
Think of The Saint as a spiritual diplomat, someone who can help get the message through when other beings, forces, or even people aren’t responding. If you’ve been calling out to a spirit, or deity, or even just sending a signal out into the universe and hearing nothing back, The Saint can act as a go-between. Ask him to put in a good word or help get the channels open. Or at the very least to help you understand if there is a problem and what the solution might be.
You can also work with The Saint when dealing with real-world people. If there’s someone you need to talk to, such as a boss, a friend, or a potential client, and you want to make sure they’re receptive before you make contact, you can ask The Saint to help them see you in a positive light.
And if it feels like your prayers or spells aren’t landing, or something’s just not clicking, then a quiet chat out loud in front of The Saint’s image can help. Just tell him what your situation is and what you need help with.
You can also call on The Saint when you’re in over your head—whether magically, emotionally, or practically. If something has gone wrong and the situation feels out of control, ask him to step in and help sort it all out.
And again, just to reiterate, if you are feeling the Christianess of the name and the visuals, try to look at him as a more general “Holy Man” than strictly a Christian Saint. Think of him as being a “saint” more in the way advanced Eastern spiritual masters are considered “saints”. Feel very free to give him a different image to help with this.
That said, If traditional religious imagery feels like a barrier, consider this an invitation to reclaim it in a way that empowers you.
SERVANT COMBINATIONS
The Saint pairs beautifully with The Messenger when you need to communicate something from the heart or soften a difficult conversation.
With The Healer, he brings strength to prayerful healing and emotional restoration. With The Eye, he strengthens your connection to divine or spiritual insight.
He also works well with The Witch, adding grace and grounding to spell work, or helping you access deeper guidance through mystical paths.
THE FORTY SERVANTS IN THEORY & PRACTICE SERIES SO FAR
ARTICLES:
THE WITCH
THE GATE KEEPER
THE MOTHER
THE FATHER
THE PROTECTOR
PATREON VIDEOS:
001 — Introduction
002 — Beg, Borrow, Be.
003 — Art History
004 — The Book Of Pacts
And that's it for this time, I hope you got something good from it. If you'd like to chat about it, you can leave a comment below, or come find me on Bluesky!
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So, until next time,
MAY YOUR BEST DAYS BE AHEAD!
Tommie
Recently I have come to understand that the reason I never was able to connect properly with him is because I was trying to connect to his Magician side rather than his Christain side. If I aim to connect to him as a convert then the connection will be much easier.