The Spell That Worked
Does magick really work? You graduated from UCLA. How can you believe in that stuff?
These are questions I hear all the time. Modern society indoctrinates people to disbelieve in the possibility of magick. But the simple truth is, as many of you reading this already know, “Yes, magick does work.” The challenge, however, is that there are numerous variables in magick, ranging from your emotions to the time, and unless you know them and deal with them you may not achieve your intended results. That’s why it often appears that magick may not be successful.
It’s like getting into a car, making sure the gears are in neutral, turning the key, and having nothing happen. Why? Maybe the battery is dead. Maybe you have no gas or the fuel filter is clogged. Maybe someone removed all of the spark plugs. This doesn’t mean that cars don’t work, only that you’ve dealt with some, but not all of the variables. The same is true with magick.
Ahhh, but when you have a clean gas line, the battery is charged and your spark plugs are firing on all cylinders, your car can take you almost anywhere. And when you deal with all the variables in magick, the results can be astounding.
I’d like to share just one of those instances. It took place over twenty years ago. At the time I was sharing an apartment with the late Scott Cunningham in San Diego, California.
The events started simply enough. The lower left side of my stomach started to ache. Just a little, but it was bothersome. It lasted all day. I didn’t get better, but I didn’t get worse. I had no appetite. I figured I’d sleep on it and see what happened in the morning.
You’ve probable had the experience of having some pain or ailment, going to sleep, and when you awoke, the pain was gone. That didn’t happen to me. In the morning my pain was worse. A lot worse. When I pressed in there was no soreness, so I didn’t think is was appendicitis, but the pain was becoming intense. I took a couple of aspirin. A few hours later I took four more.
By the late afternoon, the pain was even worse. I was sweating, not from a fever, but from the pain. I tried to nap, but it was no use. I knocked on my roommate’s door. “Scott,” I said, “I’m feeling really bad and I think something is seriously wrong. I may need you to drive me to the emergency room. I’ve tried everything I can think of but I have an intense pain that won’t go away.”
Scott looked at me with concern and said, “Okay. But have you tried any magick?”
Click! The light went on over my head. It’s usually a good idea to try non-magickal means to solve a problem first. But when all else fails, try magick. The pain had sapped me of energy, so I couldn’t do a full ritual. I went to my room and took out a single black candle from my collection of candles. I did a brief cleansing of the area and lit the candle, stating my magickal intention:
As this candle burns down it takes away all of my pain and illness.
Black candles are excellent for removing negativity. I repeated my intention for as long as I could. I passed out from the pain.
I awoke around midnight. The black candle had burned out, far faster than it should have, leaving an odd mess of wax on the table. I looked around and noticed something strange. I felt cool, tired, and…pain free! I got up and moved around. I was fine. I suddenly realized that I hadn’t eaten in a couple of days and was starving. Scott was still up and I took him out for a midnight snack. I thanked him for reminding me what I could do.
I am not suggesting magick should replace any type of medical care. But when you do know magick, you can work what appears to be miracles.
“Crowley… says that “every intentional act is a Magickal Act.” Yes, it is indeed, even if the person isn’t aware at the time it IS Magick! Against all odds, while I was trapped in a far off city, I *KNEW* with every ounce of my being that I would one day return home. It took me 25 YEARS of imaging home, memories, friends… and although I was broke, I managed to find a way to return!
This is where I learned of my *true* heritage when I began studying the Craft. Had I stayed in that far-off city, I never would have had the opportunity to learn because I couldn’t speak their language. It is obvious to me that I was brought back home for that very purpose.
An addition to my previous statement: in my studies, I have developed a deep love and respect for candles. They are through-out my apartment and their flames rise and fall, dancing to my spells, cleansings, meditations or simply relaxing.
But I never thought of using magick for my health-problem either! Thank you for your article, Donald!
One of my favorite quotes of yours is, “magick is not something you do but rather magick is something you are.” I think it’s important for us to remember this and remind ourselves of this daily. I have been guilty of this myself (and I unfortunately still do this), but often, too many of us just do our daily routines and put our things away and call it a day. Magick should be something we feel when the wind blows on our skin, when we feel the pressure of the pavement under the soles of our feet, when water falls on us in the shower. These should be daily reminders that we can generate, or rather, be aware of the magickal energy around us at all times.
This was a short, but heartwarming anecdote that has reminded me that so much energy really does lie within us and that we are capable of tapping into it whenever we need/want to, if we just remember that it is “something we are.”
Thank you for this reminder, Kyle. I am presently living in a city where the only coven has monthly coffee-gatherings, period. My sole contact with magickal reality appears to be online so I’ve been seeking somewhere viable to learn/share. Then the opportunity to subscribe to Llewellyn appeared filled with the help/association I’ve been asking L&L for!
Yes indeed, Magick is in the air, in every step and every sound!