First Basics of Magick Witchcraft, or The Craft, is both a religion and a system of magic. As a religion its purpose is to put the individual in harmony with the divine creative principle of the universe. As a system of magic its purpose is to achieve practical ends by the use of mind power. Aleister Crowley once said that magic is the science and art of causing Change to occur in conformity with the Will. Magic (sometimes written as "magick" in occult texts) is one of the most misunderstood subjects on Earth. People either think that it is all illusion like stage tricks or they think of horror films and Dennis Weatley novels. On one level you can argue that, yes it is all illusion because all of life is just an illusion and at death we wake up. However at this stage of your studies it might be more useful to consider magic as a particularly dynamic form of positive thinking. Every part of life is like a journey. Before we set off we plan our route carefully. As we go we may discover an easier or more scenic route. If we are flexible enough we can change course and take advantage of the better route. In this way we can control our lives. Sometimes we need the hard knocks, the difficult lessons, but as we grow in wisdom and knowledge we learn to plot less painful routes and seek out the beauty instead. Occult knowledge enables us to take control of our lives. In this way we become winners! Magic is rooted in the deepest levels of the mind. In Monograph One we discussed the primitive Old Brain, possibly the cerebellum. Wherever it resides it is clear that it is more poetic than scientific. Magic is very logical in itself although it is a type of logic understood by the Old Brain rather than by our modern educated consciousness. Interest in magic goes back to the dawn of humankind. The most powerful occultists are often primitive, uneducated people because nobody has inhibited their powers by telling them it is all impossible mumbo jumbo. Yet magic remains deeply rooted in the mentality of modern people. Witchcraft in the sense that we use the term here is largely a European phenomenon. The "witch doctor" or shaman of tribal societies represent a rather different, though very powerful, kind of magic. Also in Europe there is a strong tradition of Ritual Magic of the kind practiced by Aleister Crowley and his contemporaries. Although very different in nature, there has been an inevitable amount of crossover between the different traditions. A lot of nonsense has been written about the differences of black and white magic, and indeed black and white Witches. Basically if you work black you are harming other people. If you work white you are helping others and yourself. In theory there can be no such thing as a black witch because the first law of Wicca, "an it harm none", would prevent a witch from treading what is often called the "left hand path". In practice we are all human and sometimes we seek revenge. Most witches, if pressed, would admit to being rather gray. Remember however that we live in a world of abundance, even if we are sometimes blind to its possibilities. There is no need for a skilled occultist to take from another. You can always create what you want for yourself. THE HERMETIC PRINCIPLES A corner stone of magic lore since the earliest times has been the seven Hermetic Principles. These were recorded in the Emerald Table attributed to the sage Hermes Trismegistus. (His mane is interesting. Hermes is the Greek god of wisdom and magic. Trismegistus means thrice great.) Legend has it that the Emerald Table was a tablet of genuine emerald engraved with Phoenician writing. It is said to have been found in a cave tomb, still clutched in the skeleton hand of the sage. Another legend attributes the building of the pyramids to Hermes Trismegistus. By 1200 A.D. Arabic and Latin translations of the Emerald Table where in circulation. Some of the translations differ in important details but the generally excepted principles are as follows. Hermetic Principle #1: The Universe is a mental creation of God. Another way to say the same thing is that The Universe is a creation of the mind of God - the Universal Mind. Form this one can postulate that the universe IS the physical manifestation of God And if this is true then God is the immortal soul of the universe. Hermetic Principle #2:That which is above is like that which is below and that which is below is like that which is above, to achieve the wonders of the one thing. From this has arisen the ideas of "as above, so below" and that the universe is "Man writ big". In magic the universe is considered as a macrocosm of the microcosmic human body and the human mind as a microcosmic version of the universal mind. Looking at this from the viewpoint of Principle #1, the mind of God is the part that does the creating, therefore it follows that the human mind is the part of us with the creative capabilities. When you cast a spell, say a prayer or make a petition or whatever you chose to call it, you are imprinting the Universal Mind with your own thoughts. In this course you will be taught the most effective ways of doing this. Occultists believe that the universe is a grand whole, a perfect working machine with all its component parts connected in a meaningful way, even if from the human perspective, the unity and meaning are hard to see. The principle of macrocosm and microcosm tell us that all things are aspects of the one thing. There are great forces operating in the universe, each doing its own thing. The light aspects create and the dark aspects destroy. Yet they should not be considered as good or evil. All things move in a cycle of life and death, and the old worn out things must be cleared away to make room for the new. By attuning ourselves to these forces we can learn to manipulate some of their effects for our own good. The forces that move the universe are basically the same as those that move us. The forces within ourselves, although often neglected, are powerful indeed. To discover these forces and to attune to them is an essential part of all occult training. Know Thyself was the advice given by the oracle at Delphi. These great universal forces are often given god or goddess names. Some are named after angles, archangels and demons. Still others are equated with the planets. This should not be taken too literally, it is more like an ancient filing system. More details of this will be given as the course unfolds. Laura said: Hermetic Principle #3: All things are in a perpetual state of motion. A change in the vibration rate causes a change in the manifestation. Heat causes molecules to vibrate faster. Water vibrating fast (hot) manifests as steam. Water vibrating slowly (cold) manifests as ice. Quantum physics is exploring the possibilities of changing the vibration of atoms by changing their sub atomic particles. This was also the dream of the alchemists although their methods were somewhat different. All things have their characteristic vibrations, and not just material things either. Health, sickness, wealth, poverty, happiness, sadness; they all have vibrations which can be altered. Change the vibration, by the application of Mind, and you change the manifestation. Hermetic Principle #4: All things are arranged according to polarity. Everything has its pair of opposites. These opposites are identical in nature, differing only in degree. Tall & short, Fear & Faith, Love & hate, Sickness & health, Rich & poor; Creation & destruction; all are opposite ends of the same scales. All universal forces have both a negative and a positive aspect. Hermetic Principle #5: All things have their tides and rhythms, waxing and waning. There are rhythmic cycles of growth and deterioration, life and death. Even ordinary daily events have regular cycles. The sun comes up every morning and sets at night. The phases of the Moon repeat endlessly every 29 days. Every aspect of your life, your biorhythms, can be plotted. This is why all good occultists use diaries. For instance, if you can identify a luck cycle you will know when to gamble and when to keep away from the race track. The same thing goes for all aspects of your life. Hermetic Principle #6: Every cause has its effect, and every effect has a causes. Apparent accidents and coincidences are just the result of unrecognised causes. The law of cause and effect is universal. Magic is an attempt to identify and control this principle. Hermetic Principle #7: All things have their masculine and feminine aspects. This is similar to Principle #4 but of all the pairs of opposites the gender polarity is probably the most important. This is not just about men and women, the principle goes much deeper. In fact all men have both masculine and feminine aspects, as do women. Carl Jung called this the anima and animus. Everywhere in nature we see a positive, outgoing, masculine aspect; as well as a negative, receptive, feminine one.
Posted on: Sat, 28 Sep 2013 16:39:23 +0000
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