Blocking of Power

We have already spoken more than once that a characteristic feature of the myth of Magic is its tendency to explain events and phenomena by seeking volitional agents who cause those events.

The ideological basis for this view is the magical observation that Power always manifests only through its conduits — that is, for any manifestation of Power there must be a carrier of that manifestation.

That is why, from the perspective of Magic, to speak of “powers” is to speak of “spirits,” “gods,” “angels,” and “demons.”

Thus Magic describes the world in terms of “servant” and “free” spirits not because the Magi “do not understand” the impersonal nature of Power, but precisely because they see that for its actualization the impersonal Power must acquire individual, personal characteristics.

And when the Magi attribute this or that event to the actions of “demons,” “predators,” or “mental parasites” — this is not due to paranoia or a persecution complex, but is justified by the observation mentioned above.

In other words, the Magi believe that when there is a need for the action of some Power, it “finds” a suitable conductor and acts through it. For example, when a Magus’s imperfect actions should lead to his loss of Power, a Demon will be nearby, absorbing Power; and when a Magus accumulates enough Power to move to a new level of awareness, a Hierophant will be nearby, bestowing Initiation.

Therefore a Magus’s struggle is not simply a struggle for Power, for freedom and the expansion of awareness; it is also a struggle against predators who channel the world-order’s resistance to the acceleration of the Magus’s movement. Put differently, when a Magus begins to expand his mind he is thrown out of the steady Flow, and therefore the environment’s resistance increases. This resistance can be considered both as the world’s force of inertia and as attacks by various predators, and the second way of describing it allows a more effective strategy of struggle and thus leaves a better chance of success.

One manifestation of the universe’s resistance to the Magus’s flow of Power is the blocking of his Power.

Since mind is a living flow that passes from level to level through interaction with other flows, a very effective way of hindering its expansion is to limit such interactions.

Many Magi consider the desocialization that occurs during their development a favorable phenomenon, removing the limiting influence of society on their mind. And indeed, to a large extent this is true. But, as is usually the case, this notion conceals a destructor as well, since the striving for freedom from “foreign” influences often turns into a striving for isolation from the Flow of Power, and many Magi, without noticing it, drop out of the Flow, limiting the possibilities of their development.

Therefore the screen by which predators shut the Magus off from the surrounding environment often remains unnoticed.

The first time a Magus encounters this blocking action is when he decides to find a Master. He discovers that this is incredibly difficult, and although much of that difficulty is connected to the very exclusivity of Magic and Power, no less of it is “imposed” from outside and is induced by predators striving to prevent the emergence of a new Magus. Very often this first encounter with the barrier leads to defeat, and the student is “disappointed” and falls off the Way of Power.

But even if he musters enough activity to break the blockade and enter the Flow, he will constantly encounter an impassable wall that relentless enemies raise around him.

A Magus must be prepared for the fact that the wall will never disappear; behind one barrier, another will rise, and that only by overcoming them is mastery honed that is necessary for their effective surmounting.

At the same time it is crucial to look for a loophole even when one seems driven into a corner, when exhaustion feels endless and the enemies invincible. Because even if this is indeed so, even if the war is lost — the Magus should choose to die in battle rather than surrender or retreat. Until that has happened, one must seek the weak spot in the wall standing in his way, and perhaps that wall can be overcome — as many walls before it and many walls after it.