Magick is More than Spells

At first appearances, it may seem that the art of magick can be summed up, in total, as the use of spells. However, this definition barely scrapes the surface of what it truly means to work magick and in no way implies the true breadth of living a magickal existence. While spells may be one way in which to make magick, they are not the only way and certainly not always the most effective or efficient way in which one may harness the energies of the Universe to bring about change in accordance with will. In other words: magick is more than spells.

At the most basic level, magick is the manipulation of energy, and all the physical world is made of energy. This isn’t just witchy-wishful thinking or New Age-nonsense, this is scientific fact: everything is made of energy at the most fundamental level. And by shifting our awareness so that this energetic state becomes more prominent, we bring ourselves into harmony with the world around us. With this comes the awareness that as energetic beings, we are not separate from the world around us nor are we separate from the people we interact with everyday: we are connected to every living thing upon this planet and with the planet itself*–and that connection never goes away. That is the beginning of where rather than “doing” magick you begin to “live” magick.

Let’s consider this connection a bit more. As we are always connected to It All, it is impossible for this connection to become weakened or to need to be strengthened (if it could become weakened, that would mean that one could become disconnected, and that is impossible.) The connection is just there. It’s not something that can be changed, it just is; a consequence to being a part of the Universe is that you can never be apart from the Universe.

Once this awareness is established, that the basic state of our world is an energetic one, then we begin to notice the patterns: evidence that the energy is constantly moving, changing, constantly affecting us and being affected by us. From there we begin to ride these energy currents, manipulating their course to make manifest the change we will to be. This is done with more than candles and incense, more than athame and wand: this is done with our entire being. And this is where we truly begin to live a magickal life.

Working from this place of harmony with the world about us, magick can be effortless at times. Where once, perhaps, the only way we could affect change through energetic means was through the lighting of candles, the drawing of sigils, and the recitation of poetic verse, now that awareness of our place in the Universe, of the ebb and flow that takes place both about us and within us, magick can be accomplished by thought alone. It won’t be instant, though, of course, this ability to perform magick with naught but solid will and intention. But once it happens the first time, like anything else, it becomes easier for it to happen again, and again, and again. At one point, you may find yourself planning out a spell, thinking of the materials needed, the exact organization, only to feel the energy raise during this process and then release at just the right time –with effective consequence and manifestation. Or perhaps it will be subtler, a passing thought, but backed with true desire, unexpectedly coming to pass. This is the magickal life. And it is possible to all who would have eyes to see.

*In truth, the web of connection reaches much further than that. We are one with the Sun, the Moon, the Stars: we are connected to every aspect of the Universe. Each and every physical object, the very forces that control the “how’s” and “why’s,” these are our kin.