Rebirth of Magick -
August- 2004 Article 8-1

The "Comeback, the Rebirth of Magick"? It has never gone…I'm a firm believer that because we exist there is NOTHING impossible! In fact the very simple nature of a small flower contains magick in itself! Evolution involves many facets of change. The theory of evolution formalized by Charles Darwin still does not explain our mental capabilities, or intuition. Scientifically it's proven that our minds have evolved from the beginning of our recorded time. To bring this all to date I invite you to explore the possibilities of the Will and Power over that which you have domain over.It would be safe to say that all living beings have a survival factor that either is always with them. IF you are smothered, you reach to grasp for breath, if you are frightened you react on defense. and so on.

As our government and church fail to protect us many have searched for one of the most instinctive modes of survival…going within for strength. It's all over Hollywood with movies of the supernatural, it's in the bookstores - "How to do it spells", It's has recently taken a form of ethics in passing certain laws that through out the conservative methods that have been in place for centuries! Is this all a form of mental and spiritual evolution for us to go within to reach beyond the realms that we see out of our need to survival? How does one differentiate magick from an upcoming movie like Exorcist the Beginning, Tomb Raider, or Harry Potter fictional concepts. For one many of the sources that go into the fictional books and movies have real life basis but of course due to our financial need to survive the story must be entertaining. I make a statement that magick, miracles, sorcery and that of the supernatural is a matter of perceptive from whom it originates from.

I challenge you to do an experiement of a million years by placing an organism in water and see if it evolves to man and having your opponent place his or her WILL to have man appear out of no where…if your reasoning deducts that neither is possible then both your intuition and logic should conclude that nothing is IMPOSSIBLE just because you are unaware of HOW. Magick is here to evolve…..

Supernatural?

Magick is the supposed use of unnatural or superhuman power by a person to try to control human actions or natural events. Magick often seems to achieve ones desired manifestations , but the results actually have other causes. For example, a person might cast a magick spell to make an enemy sick. The enemy may learn about the spell, become frightened, and actually feel ill. Increased scientific knowledge has reduced people's dependence on magick. But many people in non-industrial societies still believe in magick. Even in industrial societies, many people still trust in such forms of magick as astrology and other forms of divinations.

Elements of Magick

The practice of magick includes special words, actions, and objects. Most magick involves a person called a magickian, who claims to have supernatural powers. Magick words. To work most magick, the magickian sings or speaks special words in a certain order. These words are called incantations or spells. Some spells form prayers to demons, spirits, or other supernatural forces.

Many societies believe the magick will not work unless the magickian recites the spells perfectly. Other magick words have no meaning, though they supposedly possess power when spoken by a magickian. Magick actions accompany the words spoken in performing much magick. Many of these movements act out the desired effect of the magick. For example, a magickian trying to make rain fall may sprinkle water on the ground. The magickian's combined words and actions form a ceremony called a rite or ritual. Magick objects include certain plants, stones, and other things with supposed supernatural powers. Any such object may be called a fetish (see FETISH). But this term often refers to an object--for example, a carving or a dried snake--honored by a tribe for its magick powers. Many tribes believe fetishes have magick power because spirits live in these objects. Many people carry magick objects called amulets, charms, or talismans to protect themselves from harm (see AMULET). Many amulets and talismans are stones or rings engraved with magick symbols.

The magickian. In some societies, nearly everyone knows how to work some magick. In other societies, only experts practice magick. Magickians may be called medicine men, medicine women, shamans, sorcerers, or witch doctors. In many societies, magickians must inherit their powers. In others, any person may become a magickian by studying the magickal arts. Many societies believe magickians must observe certain rules and taboos (forbidden actions) for their spells to work. For example, they may be required not to eat various foods or to avoid sexual activity for a certain period before the ceremony.

Types of Magick

Many people divide magick into black magick and white magick. Black magick harms people, but white magick helps them. Witches usually practice black magick. But a saint may cure a sick person using white magick. Homeopathic magick is based on the belief that like produces like. In this type of magick, also called imitative magick, magickians act out or imitate what they want to happen. They often use a model or miniature of whatever they want to influence. For example, a fisherman may make a model of a fish and pretend he is netting it. He believes this ritual will assure him a good catch. In some European folk dances, the dancers leap high into the air to make their crops grow tall. People once believed that yellow flowers would cure jaundice, a yellowish discoloration of the body.

Many taboos come from homeopathic magick. People avoid certain harmless things because they resemble various harmful things. Among the Inuit (Eskimos), for example, parents have traditionally warned their sons against playing a string game, such as cat's cradle, in which children loop string around their fingers. They feared that playing such games might cause the children's fingers to become tangled in the harpoon lines they will use as adults. Contagious magick comes from the belief that after a person has had contact with certain things, they will continue to influence that person.

The most common examples of contagious magick involve parts of the body that have been removed, such as fingernails, hair, and teeth. A person's nails and hair supposedly can affect the rest of that person's body long after they have been cut off. A person can injure an enemy by damaging a lock of hair or a piece of clothing from the victim. A magickian can even cripple an enemy by placing a sharp object in that person's footprint. People who believe in contagious magick fear that an enemy can gain power over them by obtaining parts of their body. Therefore, they carefully dispose of their nails, hair, teeth, and even their body wastes.

Witches and voodoo magickians often practice a type of homeopathic magick called envoutement. The magickian makes a doll or some other likeness of an enemy. The magickian influences the effect of the enemy by sticking pins into the doll or injuring it in some other way. In some societies, the doll includes a lock of hair or a piece of clothing from the enemy. This is a combination of homeopathic and contagious magick.

So Why Eeople Believe in Magick?

People turn to magick chiefly as a form of insurance and survival--that is, they use it along with actions that actually bring results. For example, hunters may use a hunting charm. But they also use their hunting skills and knowledge of animals. The charm may give hunters the extra confidence they need to hunt even more successfully than they would without it. If they shoot a lot of game, they credit the charm for their success.

Many events occur naturally without magick. Crops grow without it, and sick people get well without it. But if people use magick to bring a good harvest or to cure a patient, they may believe the magick was responsible. People also tend to forget magick's failures and to be impressed by its apparent successes. They may consider magick successful if it appears to work only 10 per cent of the time. Even when magick fails, people often explain the failure without doubting the power of the magick. They may say that the magickian made a mistake in reciting the spell or that another magickian cast a more powerful spell against the magickian.

Many believe that people have faith in magick because they feel a need to believe in it. People may turn to magick to reduce their fear and uncertainty if they feel they have no control over the outcome of a situation. For example, farmers use knowledge and skill when they plant their fields. But they know that weather, insects, or diseases might ruin the crops. So farmers in some societies may also plant a charm or perform a magick rite to ensure a good harvest.

The History of Magick

The use of magick goes back at least as far as 50,000 B.C. About that time, prehistoric people buried cave bears, probably as a magick rite. Magick was important to the ancient Egyptians, who used amulets, magick figures, and rites. The ancient Greeks and Romans tried to tell the future from dreams. They also consulted priests called oracles, who interpreted advice from the gods or by that of an " ORACLE". According to one legend, the Three Wise Men who visited the baby Jesus were astrologers who located Him by magick use of the stars .

The Bible has many references to magick, sorcery, and witchcraft. During the Middle Ages, nearly all Europeans believed in magick. The clergy considered magick sinful but believed in its power. The so-called science of alchemy included much magick. Alchemists hoped to discover the philosopher's stone, a magick substance that could change iron, lead, and other metals into gold. They also sought the elixir of life, a miraculous substance that could cure disease and lengthen life. Many men joined a secret brotherhood called the Rosicrucians, an early version of the present-day Rosicrucian Order. The Rosicrucians studied magick lore and devoted themselves to curing the sick and helping people in other ways. The Masons, another secret group, also had elements of magick in their rituals. From the 1500's to the 1700's, belief in magick continued widespread. Even highly educated people believed in its power.

The Swiss physician Philippus Paracelsus, for example, experimented with alchemy and believed in the power of talismans. Sir Isaac Newton, the famous English astronomer and mathematician, studied alchemy. Thousands of persons were tried and executed as witches during this period. Many forms of magick tried to predict the future. People believed a person's character could be described or the future foretold in various ways. These methods included studying the palm of a person's hand, facial features, or even the moles on a person's skin. Some people used tarot cards, a set of playing cards with special pictures, for fortunetelling or as I prefer to use in most of my context "divinations"..

After about 1600, advances in science gradually weakened people's belief in magick. But as late as the 1700's, the Italian magickian Count Allesandro di Cagliostro won fame for his powers. Cagliostro traveled through Europe selling love potions and elixirs of life. Magick today still plays an important role in the life of many ethnic groups. Even among modern peoples, magick has many followers with an interest in such subjects as astrology, divinations, and witchcraft. For example, many people who have faith in astrology read their daily horoscope in a newspaper. Countless people believe in superstitions that involve forms of magick. Some persons carry a fetish, such as a rabbit's foot or a lucky penny. They believe these articles have magick power to bring good luck. Homeopathic magick appears in the superstition that a newborn baby must be carried upstairs before it is carried down. This act supposedly guarantees that the child will rise in the world and have a successful life.

No matter what your belief is...if you look around you "Magick" is growing, evolving and here to stay!