Magick: What It Is and How It Works.

The Essential Golden Dawn.
An Introduction to High Magic.

by Chic Cicero and Sandra Tabatha Cicero.


'What is Magick?

def. Magick is the art and science of causing change to occur in conformity with will. This change can ocur:

1. in the outer, manifest world;
2. in the magician's consciousness;
and
3. most often in both, for changing one often changes the other.

Magickal change occurs in a way that is not currently understood by modern science because it works through the Unmanifest - through subtle manipulations of the invisible, spiritual realms.

However, the workings of magick are subject to natural law. The effects of magick are sometimes clearly visible in the physical world and other times they are only apparent on a personal, spiritual level.

The workings of magick are not limited by the constraints of time and space.

-- Quoted & Paraphrased from 'The Essential Golden Dawn. An Introduction to High Magic'
    by Chic Cicero and Sandra Tabatha Cicero.


Laws of Magick.

1. The law of importance of human willpower.

Human willpower is not some abstract idea, but a real force that is capable of being trained. A trained human will is capable of causing change and producing physical effect.


2. The law of the astral light.

The astral light is an invisible spiritual substance that penetrates everything in the universe. The astral light can be used by magicians to cause change at any distance in space.


3. The law of correspondence.

This law, based on older medieval theories concerning the 'magical virtues' of different substances, states that everything in the Greater Universe has corresponding part in the Lesser Universe.

Man, the Microcosm, is smaller reflection and extension of the Greater Universe, the Macrocosm.

To effect a change in one is to effect a change in other.

According to Levi's view, it was man's soul, more so than his body, which was believed to be the 'magical mirror of the universe.'

The universe we live in is not a mixture of chance factors and events, but ordered system of correspondences. The idea that there is a clear connection and relationship between greater (macro) universe and the lesser (micro) human universe is one of the basic principles of magic.

The Law of Correspondence includes the idea that certain objects, symbols, or substances are connected to different energies - through vibration, color, or character. These associations are usually planetary, zodiacal, or elemental, but they can also include the characteristics of plants, stones, metals, deities, etc.

By using certain substances, such as metals, gemstones, colors, herbs, and incenses, the magician is choosing things that will help him concentrate and focus his willpower. By understanding the pattern of these correspondences as they relate to the soul, 'the magical mirror of the universe,' the magician is able to use them to affect change, for good or for ill. This is possible because the forces that the magician seeks to affect are inside him as well as outside him. They are the magician's own essential impulses magnified out into the cosmos.

The conduit that exists between the magician's internal impulses and the cosmic forces that exist out in the greater universe is the faculty of imagination, which can be considered the most powerful tool of magic.


4. Law that human willpower must be combined with human imagination.


How It Works?

The steps of magickal process can be more easily understood if we order them as follows:

1. Intent. The magician must have a clear goal in mind.
2. Correspondence. The magician must choose which symbols, tools, and correspondences will best suit his or her needs.
3. Image. An image of the goal of the working is created and visualized in the astral light and built up through the faculty of imagination.
4. Willpower. The magician directs and focuses the force of will, like a laser, upon the desired end. This energizes the astral image so that its effects are felt on a personal, psychic or physical level.

This is the method used in all magickal workings.'

-- Quoted & Paraphrased from 'The Essential Golden Dawn. An Introduction to High Magic'
    by Chic Cicero and Sandra Tabatha Cicero.


Other Definitions.

def. Astral: from the greek word astrum, or 'star.' That which belongs to the incorporeal level of being, which is beyond the material or physical.

def. Astral Light: An omnipresent and all permeating fluid or medium of extremely subtle matter, this Light is diffused through all space, interpenetrating and pervading every visible form or object.

def. Astral Plane: An intermediate and invisible level of reality between the physical plane and the higher, more divine realms. It is the common boundary between the individual and noumenal reality. A nonphysical level of existence that is the basis of the physical plane.

-- Quoted from 'The Essential Golden Dawn. An Introduction to High Magic'
    by Chic Cicero and Sandra Tabatha Cicero.


Links.

* Creative Visualization, Reality Changing Tool.