Ten Magickal Theorems

Well, if I’ve figured out WordPress properly, this post is appearing on June 10. Right now, if all goes right, I’m in French Lick, Indiana, at the Babalon Rising festival. Besides being one of my favorite festivals, how can you not like an event going on at a place called “French Lick?”

Well, in one of the workshops I’m giving, I’ll be talking about some of the basic concepts of modern magick. I thought I’d briefly share some of these ideas with you.

Theorem One: All actions have magickal reactions
Note: Magick is everywhere. Everything you do has a magickal reaction. Even when you don’t think you’re doing anything magickal, you will get a magickal reaction to your actions.

Corollary: Only a willed action is a magical action
Note: The difference between a magician and a non-magician is that a magician is aware of the first theorem and can consciously work with it rather than be a victim to fate, chance, luck, etc.

Theorem Two: Magick isn’t something you do, it is something you are
Note: Magick is taking place all the time. A magician is aware of this. Magicians establish magickal mentalities and understand that what they do will have a magickal result (Theorem One). A person isn’t a magician because he or she does magick, but because the understanding of the nature of magick flows within them and colors everything they think and do both consciously and unconsciously.

Theorem Three: Magick requires the creation, manipulation, and direction of magical energy
Note: If your magickal ritual, rite, spell, etc. didn’t work, it’s because you either didn’t do one of these three things or didn’t fully control them.

Corollary: The nature of the magical energy is tripartite—mental, spiritual, physiological.
Note: The more you use the trio of mind, body, and spirit in your magick, the more successful you will be. You can succeed leaving out or limiting one or more aspects, but you can have greater effectiveness using all three.

Theorem Four: Creation on the spiritual plane leads to manifestation on the physical plane
Note: When you do ritual you are actually creating something on the spiritual or astral plane. There are numerous ways to create on that plane, and whatever you create there, when empowered by body/mind/spirit, must eventually manifest. Unfortunately, because of theorem one, something you do later may counter what you do now. Otherwise, even untrained people would constantly be succeeding with magick, and we know by observation that this doesn’t happen.

Theorem Five: A ritual’s success is inversely proportional to time
Note: The farther off in time you schedule the goal of your magick to occur, the less likely it is to fully manifest. This is not necessarily because of a lack in your magick, but simply because other things will naturally come up that will redirect the flow of magickal energy. Solution: work toward intermediary goals while planning long range.

Theorem Six: Let go and let the magick work
Note: If you focus on “Did I perform the ritual right?” or “Did I use the right sigil?” or “Did I generate enough energy?” etc., your unconscious mind will redirect your energy (including magickal energy) toward answering your questions rather than reaching your magickal goals. After completing a ritual, spell, rite, etc., record your experience in your magickal journal or diary and then forget about it. Just let the magick work.

Theorem Seven: Magick is magick
Note: People talk about different colors of magick. White, black grey, green, yellow, red, mauve, etc. While good for communication (I certainly use them in Modern Magick), they have no intrinsic meaning. If I perform magick to help army X win, members of army X might think I did positive or “white” magick. Their enemy, army Y, might believe I worked negative or “black” magick against them. In most cases, accusations of “black” magick are simply to harm someone’s reputation and basically mean “he’s doing something I wouldn’t do.” Magick is like electricity in that it can power lights and computers or destroy with an electric chair. Nothing is evil save that we make it so.

Corollary: An effective magician may choose to be “stupid”
Note: Black magick is generally considered to be something that harms another (some people have other definitions). Most magicians aren’t going to do black magick because it will result in negative karma (called tee-koon in the Kabalah) that will in some way harm them. It would be stupid for them to do that and most magicians simply aren’t stupid. However, if I see someone harming a child or raping a woman, I’m going to step in and stop him, using any means necessary, including violence or magick. I consciously choose to be “stupid” and bring negative karma onto myself to save a child or victim of abuse. It’s my decision and I will willingly pay for it.

Theorem Eight: Magick is a science and an art
Note: Some people are naturally good at the art of magick. But if they don’t keep up with it via study and practice, they’re not going to improve. Similarly, if a person isn’t naturally a magician, if he or she studies and practices the science of magick, that person can equal or surpass the natural magician. The bottom line here is that you shouldn’t compare your magickal progress against that of anyone else. Do the work. Your only competition is yourself.

Theorem Nine: Magick is synergistic
Note: Generally speaking, the more people involved in a ritual, the more powerful it will be. But that’s not always true. One practiced, experienced, competent magician may produce a much more powerful and effective spell or ritual than ten posers poorly reading out of a book! However, ten practiced, experienced, competent magicians working together can produce far more magickal energy than a lone practitioner. This is one reason sex magick can be so effective.

Theorem Ten: Invoke the Higher. Evoke the Lower
When doing invocations (bringing conscious energies into you), work with angels, archangels, deities, etc. When doing evocations (bringing conscious energies in front of you) work with lower spirits, ghosts, elementals, etc.

Well, that’s my list. What do you think? What would you add?

I’m going to be focusing on theorems of sex magick in my next blog.