How Does Magick Work?

[Ravenstar]

I know God listens to your prayers etc. But what about who listens to the spells? What is the purpose of ritual or spells? You still have to do the work in the mundane so if you didn't do anything and it will just happen. What is the purpose of anything if it will all just work out in the end? I guess I need to learn about magical theory? Any ideas? Thank and blessings.

[Siona]

There are a lot of different ideas of how magic works, what forces are behind it, and so on. Personally speaking, I view spellwork as raising and focusing energy to a specific goal. I don't really see anyone as 'listening' to it like a god might listen to a prayer, but it is more a part of just the way humans and the universe work. To me it's sort of like diverting water from a river to irrigate a field - there's no other force there beside the person (or people) who've done the work, utilizing a natural occurrence (the river) to their benefit.

I do believe that you still have to put in the mundane work in a lot of cases, but spellwork can sometimes make these processes go quicker, smoother, or simply keep us focused on achieving our goals. To go back to the previous metaphor, you can irrigate a field, but unless you plant and tend to your crops, there won't be much of a harvest. On the other hand, depending on your circumstances, unless you irrigate your field your harvest might still fail. Sometimes spellwork is also used as a 'last resort' sort of thing, when you've exhausted all your mundane options but are still facing some particular issue.

You also mentioned ritual, which I personally see as something a bit different than spells. For me rituals tend to be more about honoring or celebrating something (a deity, a holiday, etc), although sometimes a ritual can also be about petitioning a deity or spirit guide for help. Those styles of rituals could sort of be seen as a more elaborate prayer, or a joint effort in some cases, to work on achieving some goal.

Again though, it's something there are a lot of different views on.

[Xiao Rong]

Hmm, I have a couple of different opinions on how "magic" works.

There's one variety of spells that are designed primarily to influence the self (e.g. spells or rituals to boost confidence, to move past grief, to release anger, etc.). The only one "listening" is yourself -- sometimes, when you can't "think" your way out of a problem or an emotional issue, you can use ritual to enact those changes within yourself, to access your inner wisdom, etc.

Then there's the variety of spells that are meant to influence the external world. I don't know exactly how it works, but in my experience, magic tends not to work in overt ways. It's not a superpower, and it can't bend the laws of physics (which is why I don't think people are capable of telekinesis, for instance). It is a subtle force that by definition is not fully knowable, that operates best through serendipity and little chain reactions; it's the sort of thing that tips the scales in your favor just a bit, maybe gives you a few lucky breaks.

As Siona mentioned, it works with the flow of the universe and is most effective with things that are already in motion (sort of a "path of least resistance" thing). So if you do a spell to get a job, you absolutely have to do all the work of writing a resume and cover letters, applying for jobs, going to interviews. If you don't actually apply to a job, your spell alone won't mind control your top choice employer to pick up the phone and offer you your dream job out of the blue. But if you do the work of applying, it might be the factor that gets the employer to maybe take a second look at your resume, which might lead to an interview. So magic really functions best as a supplement to your mundane actions, not as a substitute. And it won't make something happen that was never in the cards to begin with.

So because it's never clear to me exactly how a spell will work or if it will work, I always try to ensure that I never spend more effort on the spell than the mundane actions, and such that the spell is of benefit to me even if it doesn't "work" in the external sense. For instance, I recently made myself a prosperity charm -- even if it doesn't wind up having an external effect, I created it with the intent to boost my confidence and help me think more positively, which can only help me.

Anyways, that's just my opinion.

[SpiritTalker]

We as humans did not create the Universe but some teachings say we co-create our experience of it. Thoughts are things. Our thoughts create our experience and reality. Our brains are hard-wired to do this naturally. Magic is doing so with awareness. Thought is light. Energy follows thought. Energy is all around us in varying concentrations (call it, Prana, chi or orgone), and is created by the interaction of all that exists. Matter is created from energy. Thought begins as light that stirs the ethers as wave --> string --> particle --> atoms, etc., & when sufficient mass is attained on the ethereal plane then physical manifesting occurs in space/time. We use corresponding symbols as thought-triggers to focus our intention which then stirs the ethers in wave-string-particle-atoms until sufficient mass is attained to alter space/time. Magic imitates creation & the creation-stories of a culture tell us about their magic. The pattern has been observed & recorded throughout history. That's as far as I've broken it down for myself. Opinions vary.

Useful reading: Basic Physics for Dummies, Idiots Guide to Alchemy, The Science of the Dogon.

In short: you’ve gotta believe it’s already yours; that’s the secret to manifestation