Contemporary adepts should be able to explain themselves and their methods and ideas without charlatanry or mystification. Magic does not work by magic, if you see what I mean; it requires hard work and dedication and a lot of practice. I believe that releasing effective magical ideas will actually lead to less of the sort of satanic nonsense that leads some idiots to try sacrificing the neighbor’s cat.
- Peter J. Carroll, interview in Abracademia
I once had someone tell me that their boyfriend’s old gypsy grandmother(1) taught him that he could just whistle a special tune and produce any magical effect he wanted. When pressed she admitted that he had been practicing this technique since birth and that’s why it was so effective. To me it still smells like a steaming pile. It reminds me too much of Bewitched where Samantha just twitches her nose and makes anything happen, or of the book by Francis Breakspear – If It Was Easy, Everyone Would Be Doing It! You cannot trivialize testing your will against reality.
A lot of people criticize ceremonial magick for all its myriad trappings and artifacts. They say it’s just not necessary. They say you can do magick on a whim and prayer. I’m not saying they can’t. I’m saying, why would you? In a practice where the potential rewards are so great why half-ass it? Why wouldn’t you bring everything you could to bear? That’s why I spend so much time on choosing symbols.
I’m going to part from the master(2) here on two points. One, I’m not convinced that concentrating on a symbol and then forgetting it is the best way to plant a symbol in the collective unconscious. Maybe this works for some people. I offer as my case in point dreams. I believe, as many do, that dreams show us the contents of our unconscious minds. How many times have you fallen asleep in front of a TV only to have the plot of the show bleed through into your dreams? If you spend a large amount of your time concentrating on an event, do you not sometimes dream of it at night? This seems to go contrary to the fire-and-forget school of magick.
Also, I am not convinced by chaotes who claim to use sigils for everything(2). Yes, I do believe that self-created symbols have power, but not necessarily more than using something established. Sure, the symbol is very personal, but how can you say the symbol you created five minutes ago holds more weight than a symbol you’ve been exposed to since your youth?
The only argument that holds water for me against ceremonial tools is that it does advocate a certain amount of materialism. You run the risk of continually acquiring new tools under the presumption that the more you have the better chances for success. Following some established rules helps prevent this from happening. Magical tools should be crafted by the magus themselves, barring this, something given as a gift. A magus should consider outright purchase of a magical tool as a last resort(4). Even then, putting extra effort into cleansing and bonding the tool is in order.
In the end, don’t be reluctant (or too lazy) to bring everything you can into a ritual, provided you personalize it as much as possible.
(1) You know a story is B.S. when an old gypsy appears.
(2) Peter J. Carroll
(3) To be fair, if his blog is any indication, Mr. Carroll participates in some rather elaborate ceremonial magick. I don’t think he would advocate sigils for everything.
(4) I admit I recently purchased a bronze ankh for use in ritual. As this point in the game I’m not ready for metallurgy. Maybe someday. I’m letting it lie buried for a moon cycle to cleanse it.
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