What is Magick, Really?

April 1, 2021Magic + Crystals

Magick. A complex word. Not only does the word Magick seem to carry a definition that you can’t really nail down but it also carries a lot of historical significance too.

My system of Magick, Archetypology blends together the ideas of Magick and Positive psychology with the intention of creating a more modern, grounded take on Witchery sans cultural appropriation and with a little bit more of a focus on using Magick to manage day to day mental wellness.

In order to explain Archetypology, I also need to explain Magick.

MAGICK
Not to be confused with stage “magic.” Magick is art of utilizing natural forces around us to bring about change. Magick is neutral, neither good, nor evil. The practitioner decides how they would like to focus this natural energy.
Yeah, I 10/10 took this definition from Urban Dictionary – https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Magick

What is the Difference Between Magic, Magick and Magik

Honestly, not a whole lot

Magick with a K was originally used by Alister Crowley to differentiate stage magic from Magick the energy. This was then continued on by Gerald Gardner, the founder of Wicca which is why you will so often see it being used in books on Wicca specifically.

The problem is both Alister Crowley and Gerald Gardner were sorta super sexist and abused their followers. Not a cute look. In an effort to differentiate themselves from these two men you will also see folks use the word Magik. And sometimes folks just use the normal old word Magic when talking about the energy Magick.

Confusing right? All of these spellings are correct. It’s up to the individuals personal preference. And frankly the history as to why people use all of these spellings is complicated and we could go into a whole other blog post on that alone.

So What IS Magick Exactly?

Magick itself is tricky to define. In the simplest way I can explain it, Magick is an energy that you can connect with in order to actively make changes in your life. It is essentially tapping into that lifeforce energy that connects us all.

There are many many MANY different theories as to how Magick itself actually works but personally I can make sense of two different theories:

Tapping Into Universal Energies
The Psychological Theory

Lets chat about these…

Universal Energies Theory

This theory states that everything in the world has a “vibration” or an “energy” to it. All objects have this vibration. All creatures have a vibration, including people. Objects such as crystals, herbs and other natural elements have a particularly strong vibrational energy which is why we use these items most often in spell work.

Each vibration then has different properties that we experience on a metaphysical level which we experience on a subtle, unconscious level. We can then tap into these vibrations to create a change of some kind in our lives. This is what a spell or a ritual would be.

The actions we take also can change the vibration of something. This is why setting an intention is so essential in spell work because it makes the vibration as specific as possible to create the necessary change.

The Psychological Theory

The Psychological Theory of Magick stems mostly around the concept of Goal Priming, which is a tool that lots of positive psychology work uses today.

Goal Priming states that when we set a specific intention and focus our minds on it, we will automatically see more opportunities to get that thing. Items such as herbs, crystals and other spell work tools are symbols that hold a specific feeling to us as humans and therefore are simply used to strengthen the psychological power of our intentions.

Understanding Magick Through This Lense

These two theories of Magick seem to go hand in hand in my opinion. They work together and both really vibe with my own theories on how the world works.

Of course there are many more theories as to how Magick works which you can pretty easily find with a quick google seach. If you are looking for a good read I really recommend taking a look at Chaos Magick Theory. It’s wild!