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HI!

To: alt.magick,alt.magick.tyagi
From: catherine yronwode 
Subject: Re: HI!
Date: Thu, 15 Jul 2004 08:07:54 GMT

stg-delfuego wrote:
> 
> "Dicky"  wrote 

> > HI, i am now interested in magic. but 
> > i know nothing about it. Could anyone
> > explain to me briefly about that?
 
> Why do you feel the need to use magic in your 
> life?  Or why do you wish to?

You're making a leap here. The querent didn't say he "feels a need to
use magic." He said, "I am now interested in magic." 

He's asking very basic questions. 

For the record, my answers are: You can learn about magic from teachers
and from books. Try to start with books that are not published by a
company called "Llewelyn" -- their books are not always good or
reliable. (Some of them are fine but it is better to avoid the whole lot
at first, until you have some basis for comparison.) There are book
lists about magic and a whole lot of FAQs (answers to frequently asked
questions) here:
     http://www.luckymojo.com/faqs.html

These FAQs and book lists present magic and religio-magical beliefs and
practices from various traditions (Wicca, Hermetic magick, Alchemy,
Hoodoo, Sex Magick, etc.) and from various perspectives (academic,
participant, dogmatic, etc.). They do not all agree with one another,
because discussing magic is like discussing cars or politics -- not
everyone agrees on what is the best. 

> > Besides, is the magic similar to those
> > magics in Harry Potter & The Lord of
> > The Ring ? Thank You.

> I'm not a practitioner (know very little about
> magic), but let me ask you this - what types of 
> magic are out there, and how long have they
> been around?  How did they come to be?  
> Were they here before Sumeria's rise and fall?  
> Was magic here on day one of the planets
> creation?  Is magic inside of you or outside 
> of you?  Is it just about normal things in life, 
> or as fantastic as making a dragon appear in
> front of you?

The magic described in Harry Potter is a child's idea of magic -- a
great deal of fun, some super-powers, and a few dangers. Yet the author,
J. K. Rowling, has studied traditional European folk magic and Medieval
Christian magic in order to draw upon it for many of her ideas,
especially with respect to mythical creatures, magical herbology, and
the use of Latin invocations. An excellent book that explains some of
her indebtedness to authentic European magical sources is "The
Sorcerer's Companion: A Guide to the Magical World of Harry Potter" by
Allan Zola Kronzek and Elizabeth Kronzek, published by Broadway Books,
2001. ISBN 0-7679-0847-3. Available from amazon.com. 

The magic described in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit is less
active -- including less spell-casting and invocation, for example --
and more religio-mystical or mythic in scope. The author, J. R. R.
Tolkien, draws upon early, pre-Christian Norse religion and myth for
many of his ideas, and upon British folklore for some of the creatures
and classes of sentient beings he presents. There is little in Tolkien's
books that you can learn to do by way of magic, for in the stories,
magic is pretty much the provenance of non-human species, each of which
has its own endemic powers and gifts. 

The kind of magic that people practice nowadays varies quite a bit from
that seem in The Lord of the Rings. It is more closely allied to that
found in Harry Potter, albeit without all of the fabulous broom-flying
and wand-waving that goes on there. However, to give but one example,
the Patronus spell is one that is workable, useful, and usable by many
magicians. Under other names it is found in many cultures, as the
invocation of a Guardian Angel, Spirit Animal, Tutelary Deity, and so
forth, for the purposes of protection. Likewise, the recommendation to
eat chocolate in order to quickly recover from a magical attack that
involves the creation of an unnatural sadness or depression is also very
sound advice. 

Good luck to you in your studies, 

Cordially,

cat yronwode 

Lucky W Amulet Archive -------- http://www.luckymojo.com/luckyw.html

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