Subj : [ 6/15] Newsgroups: alt.pagan.magick
To   : All
From : Rachel L. Akers
Date : Fri Feb 16 2001 09:02 pm

>... (cont)
Subject: nagasiva's alt.magick FAQ
Summary: This is a file of biased responses to frequently
         asked questions in the alt.magick newsgroup.
Keywords: FAQ, magic, magick, occult, occultism
Replaces: 500009
Url: http://www.luckymojo.com/namfaq.html
X-Newsreader: NN version 6.5.4 (NOV)
Date: Fri, 19 Jan 2001 02:34:31 GMT

     ____________________________________________________________

   02.00 TERMINOLOGY

   02.01 what is "magick"? is it different than "magic"?

     "magick" is a very particular and peculiar subject of study
     amongst the social groups clustered around Edward Alexander
     "Aleister" Crowley. most of the rest of the world teaches
     about magic as some system of symbolic manipulation of the
     physical world.

     the typical assertion is that 'magick' separates stage magic
     from occult magick (usually ascribed to Crowley, who made it
     very clear he used it to differentiate his mystical magic from
     that of his competition, who used different means to achieve
     the same Hermetic goals). Crowley's usage was rather unique
     for his time period, and now many who use it after him only
     know about or practice ceremonial magic.

     basically magick (and Hermetic magic as a whole) includes
     ritual ceremonies to achieve mystical objectives. its
     co-option of the term 'magic' toward this end should be
     considered a religious antagonism toward folk magic from the
     standpoint of a privileged European literati, who describe
     folk magic as 'Low' and present the subject in biased and
     skewed ways to serve their religious interests (their
     'elevated' bias indicating their allegiance to the sky-gods of
     Western religious cults and the transcendental 'heavens'
     located beyond the terran gravitational sink from which they
     typically seek to escape -- comparable to some Eastern
     mystics, whose traditions they will also attempt to co-opt
     toward their ends).

     for those interested in magick of this type, there are many of
     Aleister Crowley's writings available online, and one of the
     best introductions is "Magick in Theory and Practice":

             http://www.luckymojo.com/crowley/004mitap.txt

     those who want to read what Crowley had to write on occultism
     (alchemy, divination, and magic), stripped of his religious
     and mystical verbiage may find the following file valuable:

     http://www.luckymojo.com/esoteric/occultism/crowleymitap.html

     MAGIC, on the other hand, transcends these Hermetic goals and
     methods, and forms a part of occult study, along with systems
     of divination and alchemy. the predominant focus of magical
     lore is the association of spell elements with the desired
     results of the crafted spell. beyond this, traditional methods
     of spell-casting and spell-resolution, how nonordinary
     entities may relate to this process, and what conditions
     ensure the security of the mage and the reliability of the
     spell, form the major subject categories.

     in general, magic is the activity of trying to cause or assist
     the cause of change toward a desired end through symbolic
     means. its objectives and the elements of its practice vary
     from culture to culture.
           ________________________________________________

>... (cont)

--- Msged/2 4.00
 * Origin: Elfwhere - The POINTy eared POINT (3:640/531.2379)

.