7 types of magic

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 11 Sep 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Kirali	11 Sep 2002
I didn't write this, Someone on the list I'm on did and I found it very enlightening. I don't agree with all of it but most of it I do. I printed it out anyway for my BoS. Just wanted to share! PM me if you want to contact the person who compiled it! **************************************************** MAGIC Magic is not divided into types or kinds with regard to good or evil, moral or immoral, black and white. Magic is impersonal, open-ended and it is exactly the same no matter where it is practised throughout the world. What makes it good or evil, is not the kind of Magic that you use, but the use to which you put it. For example, one can use a prayer, and invoke the power of the SB in that prayer. Your prayer might be that someone is to be cursed. This means that you have used the power of God for the purposes of practising black magic. It is also possible to invoke a demon, straight out of the abyss, and to get that demon to heal someone. That would, however, be an example of white magic, despite the fact that you are using a demon to assist you. These are obviously two extremes, but it shows us that the essence of magic is not white or black, good or evil but totally and utterly neutral, detached and impersonal. It is a force that one can use for doing good or evil. The way that we use this force will determine whether it is black or white, not the actual magic itself. Therefore, magic as it stands, is not divided. It's use, motives, applications, intent and objectives make Magic black, grey or white. This is because between the two extremes of black and white, are thousands of shades of grey. It is impossible to judge the shades of grey, because if we look at a person from a primitive society, then that which they do, which would be perfectly legitimate for them in a tribal society, would be black magic for a more cultured people. It would probably be in line for them however, and they would call it "good, sensible living." But a word of warning: The easiest way to incur bad karma for oneself is to use Black Magic!! It is very easy to interfere with other people's free will. It is the easiest way with which to fall into the depths of Satanism from which you will not recover. Regrettably not even after thousands of years. There are seven kinds of magic: 1. The first one is natural magic, the magic of nature. 2. Talismanic magic. 3. Ceremonial magic 4. Invocative magic 5. Sympathetic magic 6. Illusionary magic 7. Divinatory magic 1. Natural Magic: can be divided into two categories: (a) using the secrets of nature (b) using the powers of nature. (a) If you observe nature itself you will see that it uses an enormous amount of magic. Baboons are naturally immune to scorpion stings. They actually eat scorpions as part of their staple diet. If you were to cut off a baboon's finger and dry it, you could use it as a talisman. Then, if a scorpion were to sting you, one rub of the talisman across the sting and the sting would be healed. The vibrations of immunity are present in the finger. It will work like magic because it is magic. There are hundreds of examples, and if we knew all about the intricacies of nature, we would be able to use these characteristics to great effect. (b) Magic needs a lot of power and energy, and magicians can use the power of nature. There are magicians who are known to have power over lightning. They can use that energy for magic. Just before the discharge of a large bolt, the magician arrests the power, and uses the energy. This energy can be used for healing, making and breaking spells, illusions, or any other magical purpose. That would be using the power of nature. The tides, the sun, the wind, volcanoes, tropical cyclones are all enormous sources of energy that can be utilised for magic. In ancient times the people sunk monoliths one third of their length into the ground, huge big rocks, in order to tap the Leyline energies in the earth. These would correspond to the acupuncture meridians in Man, and this type of energy was then used by the magicians in Atlantis Many of our so-called technological devices actually work on the magical principles of nature. Magic is not confined only to that which is unknown. Magic works by the laws of nature, whether they are known or unknown. Laws that are esoteric, then became exoteric when they become known. So knowledge of the petrochemical industry, electronics, behaviour of electricity, etc, were once upon a time Occult, and have become known. It has moved across into common knowledge, but it does not make it less magical. If one studies nature in great detail and depth, and one understands the sympathy and antipathy between life forms, then one has knowledge. Let us take a bottle of strong, red, sweet wine, and bury it in an ant hill for an entire year. When you remove it the wine will have fortified to such an extent that it will have tremendous energy. It will have the element of earth in it, and that can be used to save lives and to heal. This would be called an elixir. (N.B. This must be done when the moon is at a particular phase, a particular time of the zodiac calendar, time of day etc. ) There are tides, the Tattvic Tides, which indicate when the element of earth or water etc rule, and the magician should be aware of these. People who suffer from breathing problems will always suffer most, early in the morning. But towards midday they begin to breathe more freely. This is because the tide has changed and the element of air now rules. Knowledge of the tides will give you an enormous advantage as a healer, and as a magician. 2. Talismanic magic: All forms of magic in practice overlap. One can take an object, charge and load it for magical purposes. The object could be a piece of leather, ivory, a tooth which are all animalic substances, or it could be a piece of wood or bark, or a flower or resin. That would then be a plant substance. It could also be a semi-precious stone or a metal, which is from the mineral kingdom. It could be an object that belongs to two kingdoms, and these are considered the most powerful of talismans. An example of dual kingdoms, is Amber. It is originally derived from the plant kingdom, but after lying in the ground for millions of years, has now become a mineral. Another example is fossilised ivory, which is animal and mineral. The information of natural magic will assist you in the choice of the mineral or material that you choose. The talisman will then have to be ritualistically cleaned, and that brings us to ceremonial magic. After it has been cleansed of foreign vibrations, it will have to be charged. You can charge it with your hands, wear it on your person until it has absorbed your own subtle forces, or you can place it in a pyramid, in order to charge it first. The final procedure in this process is to load it, to give it its instructions. This is done with the imagination, or with a wand, or by holding it, and imparting to it, its final instruction. You will then have a talisman, which will serve you in many ways. Talismans are also divided into two. There are talismans and amulets. An amulet is one that works passively to protect, whilst a talisman reaches out in order effect things remotely. It is more active. The word retaliate also contains the letters TAL, and we could say that a talisman retaliates. An amulet is amiable, and a talisman retaliates. An amulet or talisman can be made for every possible purpose. You can even make a talisman that will assist you in natural magic, and will protect you whilst you do rituals. If you are doing illusions you can create a talisman to assist you in this task. There is a considerable amount of overlap in all types of magic. Talismans can be minute, or they can be huge, even the size of a building. You can charge an entire motor vehicle or your room. Talismans, once charged, will work for hundreds of thousands of years. This is, in itself, a problem, for unless you cancel them before passing on, you leave behind a talisman, which works for you, and curses everyone else except you. You can cancel a talisman after you have passed on if you were a magician, for you can astrally travel, in order to do the ritual. Talismans are like dogs, for they are loyal to only one master. Therefore a talisman is a dangerous object, when its maker has passed on. Never wear a talisman made for someone else!! Cont'd in next post!! *************************************************** Again I just wanted to pass this along incase anyone finds it informational. I know I did. I'm definitely not going to handle anyone's taliman now! hehehe Thanks for taking the time to read it! :) ~Kirali I'm going to have to break this down into 2 posts! ack. sorry!

Kirali	11 Sep 2002
cont'd!************************** 3. Ceremonial Magic: Any form of ceremony, ritual or rite is included in this form of magic. Therefore strictly speaking, when you put your hands together for a prayer, you are performing a simple ceremony. Ceremonies vary from the informal to the very formal, in a magical temple, where people wear robes, use magical instruments, an altar, a magic mirror to communicate with various entities, and involves lanterns, incense, candles and lamps. No electricity is used, for it impedes magic, and therefore a temple will always be in darkness. Magic is an electrical process. The gross part of magic is electricity. The common household supply interrupts the flow of electricity or magic. We have heard about bell, book and candle. These are the tools used in ceremonial magic. If you have a particular spirit entity that assists you in your work, then you can tune the bell in such a way, that when you ring the bell, that spirit entity is summoned. Candles are always used because they are symbolic of magic, and sometimes they even form part of the magic. There are hundreds of books available on candle burning, which are all ceremonies. Magic works because man is made in the image of God. Therefore as long as it makes magical sense, it will work. Any kind of ceremony, ritual or rite can be placed under the heading of ceremonial magic. The only topic, which cannot be placed here is Invocation and Evocation. Nothing in ceremonial magic is dangerous; it is safe. You do not have to protect yourself against those who could kill or harm you. Sometimes you protect yourself only against those who would pry. These are the spirits who come to watch and to learn. 4. Invocative Magic: The word Invocation is the generic word for both Invocation and Evocation. Invocation is when you deal with entities, spirits, beings and intelligences that are higher than you are and Evocation deals with all of the above who are lower than you. So you evoke those beneath you, and you invoke those above you. Those beneath you are forced by you. Those above you, are entreated by you. This means that you ask them nicely. There is no way that you can force them. You cannot entreat those below you either, for they will not come. Invocative magic is a dangerous magic, for it entails controlling the beings with whom you are dealing, and you need to protect yourself, even against the higher ones. This is not because they are likely to do you any harm, but because their vibrations are often so high, that those vibrations will do you harm. Therefore it always involves the drawing of a magic circle. The place should be scrupulously clean, and the circle should be drawn with absolute accuracy. In practice it is drawn on a carpet and rolled up. These are in various size circles, so that a suitable size is always available. With all the adequate protection and use of holy names, the ceremony is opened with a prayer, and closed with a benediction. There is danger involved because entities are being called, but it is actually ceremonial magic. If the being is called once, then the practitioner must be clairvoyant on the mental plane and they are called into the mental plane where they manifest. If they are called twice, then the practitioner needs to be astrally clairvoyant. If they are called three times, then one does not need to be clairvoyant at all, and the entity will physically materialise. Besides the magic circle there should also be a triangle, the triangle of Invocation, in which the entity will appear. For example: The earth is divided into sectors, and every sector has been allocated to a gnome. This gnome together with his helpers, who are not gnomes, will be available to you, and if you know his name and sigil, then you will be able to evoke him. However it takes a lot of energy, because the gnome has to be constantly supplied with earth vibrations and energy in order to sustain him. This is why the correct amount and type of incense must be burnt, e.g. seeds of the cabbage or parsnip, which have a large amount of earth vibrations in them. The parsnip has a bad smell to us but the gnome likes it. QUESTION: How do you go about finding the name of your local gnome? You have to go astrally into the realm of the gnomes, deep down within the earth. You have to follow certain structured protocols, and you are not allowed to speak. If you speak but one word, they will kill you. You will remain captured as a slave, until your natural death occurs. If you remain silent, then eventually their curiosity will get the better of them, and they will address you. The moment that they speak, then you are free to speak, whenever you deal with the gnomes of the earth. When they approach you in order to speak, you insist on knowing their name and sigil, before you give away any information. The simplest creature that you can evoke is a gnome, and there is a proper sequence that one should follow. If you wish to evoke a gnome then you have to ask him questions. Eventually after so many sessions, you stump the gnome, and then they are forced, by their own protocol, to fetch their king. Now you have access to their king. You ask him for his name, and you ask him so many questions, so that when you stump him, he has to fetch his emperor. Ultimately they will bring to you an angel, for the angels are their rulers, and created them. Therefore you can pursue it to the point of meeting the angel, and securing the names and sigils. This process can, of course take many years. After you have mastered the gnomes, you turn to the undines, the mermaids. Then after that the sylphs and finally the salamanders. Besides those, which are called the Elemental Spirits, we can also evoke the group spirits of the animals, plants and minerals. One can evoke the spirits of mountains, streams, currents, monsoons, storms, volcanoes etc. Everything in nature is governed by spirits. One can also evoke planetary spirits, the spirit of Venus, Mars etc. You can invoke the anthropomorphic gods, and speak to Pan or Venus, Thor etc. You can call upon Horus, or any other god who has become part of a religion. One can also call upon the spirit of Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa and the World One can then also invoke the genii of the spheres. They are not beings, but intelligences. They are pure intelligences without bodies, and do not appear in any shape or form. They are usually light of a certain colour, and are the memory banks of the Supreme Being. All the knowledge that has been discovered so far, they are the custodians of. Every possible branch of human endeavour, from confectionery to naval guns to horticulture, biscuit making and weaving, is included. Nothing that you can think of will be unknown to them. They will give you as much knowledge as you can handle. They also have certain protocols, and if you ask them a question, the answer to which is in the encyclopaedia, they will not come the next time for you will then be wasting their energies. Do not ask the same question a second time. It is possible if you become a master of invocation, to invoke all the celestial beings, angels, archangels, seraphim, cherubim and the Elohim. There have been a few individuals in the universe who have invoked the SB. Even that is possible. I have been told of only one case, and the man concerned had evoked every other kind of being, and even spent a large numbers of years, preparing for the occasion. When he eventually invoked the SB, it came and he went blind. From that moment onwards he was permanently changed, and had an aura that was massive. He was able to levitate, and wore a perpetual smile. **************************

Kirali	11 Sep 2002
cont'd************************* 5. Sympathetic Magic: This occurs when one thing is used in lieu of another. If you make a wax doll, and you apply medication to it in order to heal someone, or stick pins in it in order to hurt someone, then this is sympathetic magic. It can also be used to transfer an illness to an animal, a fellow human being or to a tree. One could use "mumia" which is that which comes from a human body, E.g. nails, hair, sperm, blood, saliva, skin. One can also use cigarette butts, tissues, paper on which their handwriting appears, even a photograph. Mumia can be used in lieu of the person themselves, in order to hurt or heal them. Sympathetic magic involves the use of sympathetic salts. There are certain chemical substances which when you dissolve them in water, and place just one drop of blood in the water, the wound from where the blood came from, immediately stops bleeding. There are other chemicals which can be used for healing animals, female discharge, bladder infections etc. One uses sympathetic magic if you deal with any kind of substitute. You could take a person's name and use the name instead of the person. You must charge up the name, and whatever you do to the name, the person will be affected by it as well. It is very powerful and limited only by the imagination of the person. African religions are very closely linked with sympathetic magic. Once again I must warn you of the dangers of very bad karma if you play with this. 6. Illusionary Magic: This is the magician's standby. If you look at a candle flame and exercise your imagination on that candle flame, then in the third year, if you do it every day, and you are patient, then the flame colour will change as you imagine it to be. You alone will see the change. Once you have become proficient at it, you will be able to take another person into the room, and ask them to look at the candle, they will also see the same colour. This is because you have imagined it so strongly that even they can see the changed colour. In this way, you can develop your imagination to such a point that you can take an empty pot and tell the people that you are going to grow a mango in it, and they will be able to see it, but not feel it. In Illusionary Magic you can create the illusion of anything whatsoever, it does not matter what. Normally magicians who are capable of producing the actual result, will still use illusionary magic to begin with. For example: If a man comes to you and asks for a plate of haggis, it would be quite difficult to do. You would have to astrally leave the location, travel to Scotland, find a plate of haggis, dematerialise it there, then rematerialise it here. What do you do in the meantime? You produce the illusion of a plate of haggis. He will be able to eat it and taste it. When he is busy, you perform what we call a lock, and you lock it in. When you have found real haggis, you replace the illusion with the real. It is the magician's standby, and the instantaneous production of whatever is asked for. It usually starts off as an illusion, and if it is outside of his skill, then it will remain illusion. 7. Divinatory magic: Divination means to find things out in an unusual or uncanny way, to look into the future, the Akashic Records, to know what you have in your pocket, to find out how things are going to proceed. It is sometimes very useful to have this information. These are therefore the seven forms of magic. Each one overlaps into the other, and collectively we can look at them as magic itself. How and why does magic work? Simply because man is made in the image of God, and God is a magician. When God said, "Let there be light", and there was light. Let us analyse that for a moment. Did God really speak the words? Did he have vocal chords? Did he take a deep breath first? How much oxygen was there in that breath? Remember that there was nothing as yet. There was no air, no matter, no sound. What does it really mean in our language? It means that God imagined that there was light, and there was light, for it was impossible for him to speak. Speech can only come from words, pronunciation of words, and air moving against the vocal chords. We often say that truth is stranger than fiction. This is true, for the Truth is far stranger, greater, more magnificent than fiction. Why? Fiction is the imagination of Man. Truth is the imagination of God. When an author writes a novel, that novel is the product of the imagination of Man. What is the fiction of God? The universe. That is why we speak of it as the "Maya", the illusion. That was the first illusion ever, to make something out of nothing. That is Divine magic. Man cannot create universes but he does what is within his power. E.g. illusions, builds and makes things. Knowledge is power. Specialised knowledge and teachings in particular, are what one needs to become a magician. Imagination and will are both used in magic. Imagination is that which is used and occurs without force. It is subtle. When you vividly imagine something, you are not tired afterwards. It does not involve power, it is easy to do, it is not exhausting. But you do have to exercise your imagination until you can see things vividly. On the other hand, Will takes power. It is more difficult to do, but you can force things to happen. To imagine something will happen, means that it will be, but to will something to be, will take a lifetime. The most powerful of magicians will combine the imagination and the will. Any method, system, practice, principle or technique will work as long as it makes magical sense. For example: Let us say I want to learn to shoot, and every time that I shoot, I want it to it go straight to the middle of the target. Now if I want to use magical help in order to assist me to achieve this, as long as it makes magical sense, it does not have to obey any laws, for you make your own. If you walk through the veld, and step in blackjacks, it does not matter how careful you are, they still adhere to you. Use that principle. Therefore we collect a large number of plants, and squeeze the oil out of the blackjack seeds. We then paint it on the arrows or bullets, and charge them up. They will now go straight to the centre of the target. You have used magic. It is not logical, but it makes magical sense. You could use a porcupine quill as well. The more often you use it, the more powerful it will become, for spiritual things don't wear out but become stronger. The more ancient the ritual, the more powerfully it will work. We want to pick a material, and we have a choice of every substance in the world. What do we want to do? We want to protect this building against burglars. What substance should we use? We settle for iron, simply because iron is available and is common. Iron is also the metal of Mars, and Mars is the God of War. Let this piece of metal then fight, just like the God of War, against the burglars. What would happen if we decided upon a piece of skin? Which skin type should we use? A piece of dog skin. Dogs fight, and it is this characteristic in dogs, that we are going to appeal to. This piece of dog skin will then fight against the burglars when they enter the premises. Other examples you could use: A cactus to fight drought. A spear, spider's web. Psychic powers or gifts can be enhanced by magic, magic can be enhanced by psychic gifts. Magic is simply extending the powers that everyone has on the astral, on to the physical plane. Magic increases the free will. All human beings have free will, but they only have free will, where it applies. They cannot wake up in the morning, and wish for a pink sky, because they find it more attractive. They did not make the sky, and therefore it is not their free choice to make. But if you practice regularly, and are sincere, then you can alter winds, clouds, rainfall patterns, etc, and your free will becomes extended. LIST OF MAGICAL FEATS: 1. Illusion - the magician's standby. 2. Materialisation and dematerialisation of existing things. 3. Element control. 4. Elemental control. 5. Hypnosis, telepathy, remote-control. 6. Animation of objects. 7. Animal control. 8. Group spirit control. 9. Control of humans. 10. Materialisation of new things - creation. 11. Weather control. 12. Divination. 13. Dream control. 14. The two keys of Isis and Nepthys 15. Complete mastery over physical, astral and mental planes EXERCISES AND DISCIPLINES: 1. Imagination and visualisation 2. Will and power 3. Breathing exercises 4. Activating and use of the astral body 5. Reactivating the primitive brain of the sub-conscious 6. Detailed study of nature and matte 7. Combining all into one system ********************************** Thanks for reading! Again these aren't my views but I found some of this info useful! ~Kirali

Kiama	12 Sep 2002
Thankyou, Kirali for posting that! It certainly was very interesting, esp. for those of us who are seeking a little towards to hermetic side of magick. I would also like to add another type of magick however: Spontaneous Magick. Tis is the mgic you can do anywhere at any time, and usally comes from feelings within. Thw best example I can think of to describe this kind f magick (It is very difficult for me to descrbe it!) is when you see a person who is suffering or in pain, and you send your love and warmth out to them, in a burst of light and energy. his can be done in the street as you pass them, or at home whilst they are sleeping. The other kind I guess would be sending out a feelingof overall positivity when you feel you need to give thanks for the great day you've had. For me, this happens anywhere, and all you need to do is be where you are at that time, andfeel the positive energy surging upwads through your body, and outwards into your suroundings, out to everywhere it can reach. Oh, just thought of another type of 'magick'. Not many people may agree that it is actually magick, but with my views of what magick is (The focus of the will and energy to achieve your desired goal) I think that it can be classed as magick all the same: Mundane Magick. This is the kind of magick that you do in everyday life, which doesn't really have any ceremony or visualisation or direction of inner energy that you are awre of as Spntaneous or other magicks do. It usually takes the form of you going about your everyday life, but putting all yor will and energy into achieving something, eg- Winning a race, geting a promotion. As with other magicks, if you put loads and loads of energy into tryng to get what you want, you probably will get it, but if you just don't bother trying, you won't get it. This is true in the mundane world aswell as the magickal world. For me, every single action in the mundane world then, is also kind of magickal action, which has it's consequences and repurcussions. This is the magick I tend t practice most. What does everybody else think? I'd love to hear what you think about the mundane magick part. Kiama

Major Tom	12 Sep 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Kiama For me, every single action in the mundane world then, is also kind of magickal action, which has it's consequences and repurcussions. I'd also like to thank Kirali for an interesting post. :) I absolutely agree with Kiama - we are all magickal creatures. For futher interest Donald Michael Kraig has some theorems of Magick: 1. All actions have magical reactions. 2. Magick is not something you do - it is something you are. 3. Magick requires the creation, manipulation, and direction of magickal energy. 4. Creation on the spiritual plane leads to creation on the physical plan. 5. A ritual's success is inversely proportional to time. 6. Let go and let the magick work. 7. Magick is magick - neither good or bad. 8. Magick is a science and an art. 9. Magick is synergistic. He does have more theorems but these seem enough to be getting on with. })

Strega	12 Sep 2002
Interesting. Thank you for posting, Kirali. :)

Kirali	12 Sep 2002
Thanks for adding Kiama and Major Tom! Yes, now I see that there are many more types of magic! I like the mundane magic. I definitely would like to think that I'm a magical creature. hehe Thanks again for reading! :)

Laurel	12 Sep 2002
Interesting article. A couple of lines in there got a knee-jerk reaction from me that nevertheless don't discount the value of the whole. I use a slightly different definition of White and Black magic-- white being 100% altruistic, done for the good of others and black being 100% selfish, done for the good of self and most acts of magic being along the line between the two, often close to one pole or another. Black magic isn't "bad", but anyone who lives 100% selfishly is going to begin to self-destruct. The same can be said for anyone who lives 100% altruistically... neither Fascism or Martyrdom are healthy and happy ways to live. Laurel

HudsonGray	12 Sep 2002
I agree that there's a bunch of stuff in this to disagree with. For instance...funny how their list of magical feats nearly all involve control of others without their consent............ And the psychic abilities are grouped together under the 'magic' lable. Some of the info is very true, some I take issue with.

The 7 types of magic thread was originally posted on 11 Sep 2002 in the Spirituality board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Spirituality, or read more archived threads.