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To: alt.magick.tyagi,alt.magick,alt.paranormal.spells.hexes.magic,alt.pagan.magick From: nagasivaSubject: Magic Definition Analysis (was Magick, ...) Date: Sat, 23 Mar 2002 19:39:58 GMT 50020323 VI kaos day! just woke up with these ideas.... nagasiva quotes Silver RavenWolf: > "Magick is the art and science of changing thought into form through > the use of your belief combined with divinity...." > "Silver's Spells for Love", Silver RavenWolf, > Llewellyn, 2001; pp. 3-4. > ============================================= theurgical wish-fulfillment. sounds good. the problem with definitions such as these is that they exclude natural magic (formulaic, object-based, not really founded on conceptuality or belief for effectuality) and can be mistaken by the newcomer for the entirety of what is associated with the term 'magic'. this would be unfortunate outside certain religiopolitical objectives. I've noticed that most theurges and mystics who, knowingly or not, co-opt the terminology in favour of their religious or spiritual enterprise, pay great DISrespect to those they see as 'competing magicians' -- those engaged in magical matters which run contrary to their preferred objectives or methods. we might also consider other quotations being compiled within the alt.magick DEFREF at: http://www.luckymojo.com/altmagickfaq/defref such as from Polaris93@aol.com: # Magick is the study and practice of the # training of one's True Will, what the Hindus # call _dharma_, the followers of Muhammed call # _kismet_ (the path in life which Allah has # given you for your destiny; deviation from # it is, then, sin), libertarians call Liberty # and the Bill of Rights, the ninja call the # Way of the Kami, the Eleveners call the Way # of Life [the Eleveners: followers of the 11th # Commandment: Thou shalt not devastate Mother # Earth, nor any part of Her Life]. True Will # has ten thousand thousand names in as many # cultures and on as many worlds, but always it # comes down to this: The Way of Life, the Way # of Life's Wisdom. The Torah of the Jews is # like the containment vessel of a rocket, # constraining the enormous, explosive force of # human spirit in such a way that it can reach # the very Stars; the Way of Islam is another # way of doing the same thing, in the # environments preferred by its followers; the # Way of the Gods of the Hindus, the Way of the # Tao, Magick, the Way of Life, Torah, Islam, # the Bill of Rights, all are ways which Life's # children have worked out to optimize their # well-being and endurance as whole peoples # (and therefore as the individual souls who # are truly one with those peoples). Magick is # a sort of trans-cultural study of all such # ways, and extraction by the Magickian over # many years of a way of life for him- or # herself that ultimately makes him or her into # a citizen of the whole living world.... universalist mysticism. keen. the problem with those following after many mystics in positing that magic is "The Path" is that more often than not what is included in this "The Path" varies, and typically any skewed approach to the subject of combining or massaging cultural knowledge sets into a Grand Picture of Unity omits through ignorance far more than what it excludes through dogmatism. its primarily mind-based activities are far afield from folk magic or the cantrips of some hedge-witch, for example. the rough equivalent of this error would be if someone called magic "The Arte" and described how, despite the language use, what is used to effect symbolic change in the world through spells and rites in very many cultures amounts to the same thing, and that all we need to do is see how "The Arte" appears in each cultural knowledge set. how it is that each culture goes about conjuring treasure, getting someone to love them, makes them sick, etc., is less important than that the means to do so (magic) is a fluid generator of willed change, the goals merely variables in the function of magic. in fact, mysticism and magic both vary across cultures, both in method and in goals, which is why I'm going about collecting definitions of magic, for the purpose of comparing and contrasting them, seeing the limitations of the expressions of those who write on the subject. 'The Path' should usually be extended to 'The Hermetic Path' or 'The Mystical Path' or perhaps 'The Esoteric Path' in order to be more respectful to the varieties of magic and magician not intent on the same goals, states, and events. nagasiva -- blessed beast! ========================================================================= nagasiva -- nagasiva@luckymojo.com; http://www.luckymojo.com/nagasiva.html Path: typhoon.sonic.net!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.magick.tyagi,alt.magick,alt.paranormal.spells.hexes.magic,alt.pagan.magick,alt.lucky.w Followup-To: alt.magick.tyagi,alt.magick,alt.paranormal.spells.hexes.magic,alt.pagan.magick,alt.lucky.w,alt.religion.wicca Subject: Re: Magic Definition Analysis (was Magick, ...) References: <20020308155818.09347.00000263@mb-ml.aol.com> <20020312184438.07720.00000592@mb-mb.aol.com> <1Y7n8.6867$44.53520@typhoon.sonic.net> From: nagasiva Reply-To: spam@yronwode.com User-Agent: nn/6.6.0 Lines: 238 Message-ID: Date: Sun, 24 Mar 2002 03:03:03 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 208.201.242.18 X-Complaints-To: abuse@sonic.net X-Trace: typhoon.sonic.net 1016938983 208.201.242.18 (Sat, 23 Mar 2002 19:03:03 PST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Sat, 23 Mar 2002 19:03:03 PST Xref: typhoon.sonic.net alt.magick.tyagi:32005 alt.magick:294106 alt.paranormal.spells.hexes.magic:33754 alt.pagan.magick:32461 alt.lucky.w:11228 50020323 VI kaos day! continuing .... (quoting the Farrars) It is our experience, as practising witches for twenty years, that provided they are properly performed, with an understanding of the principles involved -- yes, spells do work; if not always, then at least far more often than either coincidence or alternative explanations would allow. ... In recent years... serious scientists are investigating psychic phenomena on the assumption that there is something to investigate. And witches, and many others (including Christian faith-healers), are actively putting psychic powers to practical use. Much of this activity can be classified as 'spells', even though some of the activists would shun the word -- and there is overwhelming evidence that, properly done, spells do work. ... ...a spell is merely a deliberate process for achieving a desired aim; what differentiates it from other such processes is that it uses levels and laws which mechanical materialism disowned. ... what is prayer but a form of spell, an attempt to achieve what you want by putting yourself in tune with the non-material levels of reality?... ... ...in our experience, and countless other people's, spells are not superstition. They are an effective method of achieving legitimate aims. ------------------------------------------------------------ "Spells and How They Work," Janet and Stewart Farrar, Phoenix Publishing, 1990; pgs. 11, ========================================================== the Farrars thereafter go on to describe these "levels" as: SPIRITUAL: Upper (Solar) and Lower (Jovian) MENTAL: Upper (Mercurial) and Lower (Saturnine) ASTRAL: Upper (Venusian) and Lower (Martian) ETHERIC (Lunar) and PHYSICAL (Terran) which seem to come out of traditional European occult sources (Medieval? confirmations?). here's what I found in Cooper on the subject: Taken together, the major planets symbolize the mixture and interaction of all the essential forces of the universe and nature. The sun is the centre of the sphere of the universe, and Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are in the upper region, with Venus, Mercury and the Moon in the lower half. The planets, with the exception of the Sun, are higher in rank the further they are from the earth. In Islam each of the planets governs a climate. ---------------------------------------------------------- "An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Traditional Symbols," J.C. Cooper, Thames and Hudson, 1990; p. 132. =========================================================== the Farrars explain further: ...one does not even have to accept the effect of Venus and Mercury in trine, or the promies of the Nine of Pentacles, or the baleful warnings of the Basilisk[!], or the existence of Ishtar, to realize that they are useful symbols for relationship, categories, attitudes and qualities. And the more we learn of their traditional meanings, the subtler and more complex a communication- system we can build up between the levels. ... Spell-working depends on understanding, and deliberately using, the laws of interaction between the levels. So if that involves building up such vocabularies of 'irrational' symbols, is not that a rational step to take? We may even find, in the process, that some of these symbols are not quite so 'irrational' as we once thought. ----------------------------------------------------------- "Spells and How They Work," Ibid., p. 17. ============================================ they then explicate the ethics of spellcrafting, explaining that ethical spellcasting is beneficial, and that an understanding of what Starhawk calls the distinction between 'power-over' and 'power-from-within', is not just morally praiseworthy. It is also one hell of a lot safer. ---------------------- Ibid., p. 21. ==================== and later say more about the necessitites of spellcasting: A spell can be as simple or as complicated as the occasion demands. But be it simple or complex, three factors are essential: precise visualization of intent, concentration and will-power. ... Will-power includes confidence -- and that depends largely on an understanding of the various levels of reality and their interaction, and the sure knowledge that they exist. Given that understanding and knowledge, it is much easier to have confidence that, if you have done it properly, your spell will work. And that in turn makes it easier to apply your will-power. Both concentration and will-power contribute to the building- up of magical power -- the psychic charge, whether of an individual or of a group, which must be brought to the maximum possible intensity and then discharged to achieve the intended purpose.... The aim itself should be expressed in words before you start -- and in words as exact as a solicitor's document designed to leave no room for possible misunderstanding or loopholes. Very little experience with spell-working will teach you that sloppy or metaphorical wording leads time and again to unexpected, and somtimes unwanted, results.... ... Discharging the psychic energy raised is important in all magical working, and particularly in spell-working.... Susa [Morgan Black] stresses the importance of a literally childlike frame of mind during spell-working. 'In their minds, children can make anything happen; and sometimes, what the children play at, actually manifests itself in their life.... ...magic is a return to that wondrous state of "anything can happen", and that frame of mind is the one we seek to create magic. The closer we can come to that mindset, the more effective our rituals and spells become.' A spell must never become routine, or genuine concentration will be impossible -- even for children. A prayer is a spell too, of course, since it involves clear visualization of a desired aim, plus the conscious effort to tap the ubiquitous source of power, however one names it.... ... For the concentrated building-up of power required in spell- working, strongly-rhythmic music can be effective -- particularly if the music itself builds up as it develops.... And once you know the music you may be able to time your working so that the power is released at a moment of musical climax; this can be dramatically (and therefore practically) effective. ------------------------------------------------------------- Ibid., pp. 31-5. ======================= and amusingly: Sex magic without love is black magic. Sex magic should be used only by a couple to whom sex is a normal part of their loving relationship -- in other words, by husband and wife or established lovers -- and always in private. It should be used within a Magic Circle, even if it has 'only' been cast mentally round the bed. These rules are not mere conventional morality. They are based on the fact that magic and spell-working involve multi-level reality. Sexual intercourse between a couple who genuinely love each other activates all the levels simultaneously, from physical to spiritual. Therefore, when such a couple use sex magic, their mating powers the intent of the spell on all these levels, leaving no loose ends or vulnerable areas -- which is both more effective and safer. Also, their deep mutual attunement means that their understanding of the intent, and their visualization, will be more completely harmonized. ------------------------------------------------------- Ibid., pp. 48-9. ================== they go on to discern between "gender magic" (symbolic sex-polar ritual ceremony, such as the communal and more conventional "symbolic Great Rite") and "sex magic", which is the "actual Great Rite" with physical intercourse, whose purpose is the harnessing of the great multi-level power of harmonious intercourse for a given magical aim. ------------------------------------------------- Ibid., p. 51. ================ this is a reasonable interpretation of the phrase, and falls within the taxonomy which I've described elsewhere and sri catyananda has wonderfully adapted): http://www.luckymojo.com/avidyana/dallun/sexmagicktax.tn later they claim that every amulet and talisman should be ritually blessed or consecrated before it is put into use. They claim that aggressive, attack-spells are unethical and dangerous to the spellcaster. they provide materials for the construction of a symbolic association scheme in the appendices, but note regarding 'Planetary Hours' that "the traditional sources differ on the subject or are unclear, so the only thing to do is to settle on the method which feels right to you, and stick to it." this indicates that it is not, to the Farrars, method that is important so much as mentality and a concretization of mental language and symbols for the effect to be commanded (psychically) with clarity and precision. nice bibliography and index. nagasiva sri sri: -- hey, where's the adapted/changed version of the sex magic taxonomy? any idea?
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