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To: seekers@tardis.ed.ac.uk
From: tyagi@houseofkaos.abyss.com (nagasiva)
Subject: (O) Magick, Religion and Beginnings (was Magic vs. Religion)
Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1998 13:40:35 -0700 (PDT)

49980413 aa2 Hail Satan!  originating within seekers elist

of religion, magick, and beginnings

re the difference between my experience of magical workings both
 inside and outside of religion:
most of my magical rites have been within the context of religion
as summonings, invocations, empowerings of magical tools (for some
odd reason I feel these are religious, hmmm), and the occasional
pilgrimmage and/or pact.

the one which comes to mind which was not was a healing that I
did for a friend a long time ago.  I danced up some energy to a
tape I made for the occasion, and sent it her way to see to her
recovery from some illness.  there was something missing from
the rite, I felt, it was like trying to sail without wind, or
pushing a bike from behind instead of riding it.


re Wicca and my personal history:
I've studied Wicca (Gardnerian) and been exposed to a variety
of rites inclusive of Feri, Thelemic and Asatru things.  my
own style is far less organized and more intuitive, urban
shamanic, and I'm extremely eclectic, incorporating symbols and
ideas from a number of religious and magical sources to which
I've been exposed (from Western Hermetic and conventional
religious to Eastern paths like Buddhism and Taoism).  

for several years I was focussed largely on my own development,
though this gradually shifted as I took guidance from my
goddess to a more ecological and political intent, extending
beyond the sphere of my life.  as I've broadened by nonritual
activities I've done ritual less and less often, more like
punctuations or sealings on material-world projects and
turning points in life.


re the recommendation of Kraig's _Modern Magick_ for beginners:
I can see why people recommend this book, especially if one
is predisposed to this type of rite.  I am not, and when I
came across the text I felt it was a kind of inadequate
substitute for Golden Dawn or Crowleyan materials.  perhaps
it does function as a kind of stepped-down Hermetic source,
though I feel it lacks the depth of those above whose works
I found inspirational to my ritual and life in a way I can
not easily describe, broader of vision and application.

for *certain* beginners this book would be great.  for others
I think that books like Ashcroft-Nowicki's _First Steps in
Ritual_ or even Barton's _Church of Satan_ accompanied with
_The Satanic Rituals_ would be better.  Weinstein's _Positive
Magic_ would be the other end of the spectrum, I suppose,
and some of Regardie's books _The Middle Pillar_ or _A Garden
of Pomegranates_ strike me as more approachable first praxis
for the dedicated Hermetic.

then again, most of these can be considered the 'no religion
necessary or included' books.  Neopagans might find Llewellyn
a better beginning publisher and writers like Cunningham's
_A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner_ or even a batch of
compiled spells as a good intro.  Mountainwater, Valiente and
of course _Spiral Dance_ of Starhawk have successfully been
used as beginning magical workbooks.

I don't think that we're just talking about learning a very
specific, rote, impersonal activity, and that is part of the
reason that a number of sources (geared toward the tastes
of the reader/worker) may be valuable from which to choose.

my impression is that people sometimes take what is given in
these beginning books and *craft their own style of material*.
for this reason even books like the _Necronomicon_, however
facetiously intended, can become important basics from which 
to branch and grow our own.


re how well written Kraig's text was as a reference source:
I didn't find it so well written, but I probably have unusual
tastes.  I felt the author was somewhat overgeneralized, at
times pompous, and too stuck in his way of doing things.  I'd
also heard his tapes on 'proper pronunciation of the magical
words' (or whatever he called it).  it was great to hear what
*he* thought they should sound like.  as I like variety I have
a difficult time taking his instructions as 'gospel', however. ;>
plus I prefer to work in my own vernacular or that of my own
("elven") glossolalia than Hebrew or some other Judeochristian
remnant.
 

re Kraig's intentionally included errors to trip up the unwary:
I don't personally find such 'tests' valuable, and think it is
somewhat irresponsible (or deceptive if the errors were discovered
after the fact :>) for him to do that.  I suppose it could be
treated like a puzzle or something, or even a test for those who
like this kind of thing, but for those of my taste I think we'd
find his whole approach to be too didactic, restricting, and
over-hyped.  some beginners may need that but I have never liked
such approaches.

when I first began reading books on magick I wasn't all that
interested in ritual, finding the esoteric philosophy and the
arcane notion of having 'books of power' around intriguing.  I
started in this way with Crowley (one of his silly QBListic
exploits about which I still have little understanding: titled
_Konx Om Pax_ -- I put it in my magic box next to the magic
candles and a variety of other power objects).

later I really started to read the texts with an eye to gleaning
their depth and did this with _Magic in Theory and Practice_ by
Crowley and published by Dover (there are entire copies of Book
Four, or _Liber ABA_ as it is now called, available from my Order).
Crowley's writing was similar to the philosophy I was reading in
association to this (Buddhism, Western and Eastern philosophers
of consciousness).  many of the ideas I found in Crowley's text
(and later in Bonewits' _Real Magic_) broadened my perspective
on what magic *could* be about, how I might find application
for it in my life, and what subtle and concrete actualities it
might have (through astral/imaginal and later material workings)
in the course I had set myself upon (becoming a wizard in a
world where such things where considered fanciful or insane).
  
blessed beast!
__________________________________________________________________________
nagasiva -- tyagi@houseofkaos.abyss.com; http://www.hollyfeld.org/~tyagi/
 caution: I don't read all posts, filtering out those of < a # of bytes.  
 I select text by key authors.  cc me if you'd like a response.
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