The Rationality of Magic

The idea that a Magus lives by Magic is as obvious as it is difficult to grasp.

And no matter how often the Magi repeat that there is nothing in the world but Magic, in ordinary minds, Magic continues to be associated with quirky and unusual actions, rituals, and spells.

A simple example: a man sits at a table and wants to pull a plate toward himself. He can do this in different ways: 1) reach out and pull it closer; 2) ask his neighbor to pass the plate; 3) summon a spirit and compel it to force the neighbor to pass the plate; 4) tip the table so the plate slides toward him; 5) create a larva that will instill in the neighbor the desire to hand him the plate.

And however often the Magi insist that Magic is the way to realize one’s desires most effectively, people will traditionally consider only options 3 and 5 to be «magical». It seems that Magic is a strange way of making simple things complicated.

And it is for precisely this reason that people who are afraid to openly assert their will turn to Magic, preferring to secretly curse those they should really punch in the face.

There is nothing more harmful to Magic than such a notion. It turns Magic from a regal art into mere unhealthy acts by unhealthy people.

Magic does not distort nature, it does not violate it; on the contrary, it liberates forces bound by ineptitude, ignorance, and sometimes — malicious intent.

The “irrationality” of Magic is not its anti-rationality; it is its freedom from stereotypical conditioning.

Therefore, in our example the most “magical” method will be the one that requires the least effort and is least dependent on extra conditions — most likely, simply reaching out and taking the plate. But how “unmagical” that looks!

Nevertheless, the general law of the flow of Power is well known: Power flows along deep channels. This means that Power is most easily realized in actions that are logical in the given situation. On the physical level this is manifested, for example, in Ohm’s law: current flows where there is less resistance.

In other words, when choosing an action intended to bring about a desire, it is always most rational to choose one that will draw the fewest resources from areas other than the one where the result lies: physical effort is better suited to affecting dense matter, effort of will suits acting on the level of causes, the Power of intelligence to form thought-forms, and the Power of desire to alter the Passive Environment.

And the condition of effective realization always requires effective intention — the art of choosing appropriate means to solve each of the tasks that arise on the Way.

It follows that a Magus is not one who knows many spells and walks around in a long robe, but one who is capable of effectively realizing his will — one who finds solutions that make him a victor — regardless of whether he won or lost a given battle. Once again: Magic is not the art of winning, but the art of being a victor.

And from this point of view another way of resolving the situation outlined above emerges — being a Magus means that when one desires the plate to be near, circumstances somehow arrange themselves so that it is near. It turns out that the world plays on the Magus’s side, and even when someone or something stands in his way, someone or something realizes that it is in the wrong and unlawfully blocks the Magus’s Way — so it is already defeated even when, formally, it wins.