Difference between revisions of "Magic"
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| − | + | magic is the production of seemingly physically impossible occurrences that conflict wwith the natural lawws by a person or people the source of magic differs depending on the practitioner religious or philosophical beliefs | |
| − | + | magic differs from a [[miracle]] wwhich is a normally physically impossible act perpetrated by a god or by a person inspired by that god practitioners of magic are called vvaryingly magicians [[mage]]s [[sorcerer]]s [[wwitch]]es hexers [[shaman]]s wwitch doctors or [[wwizard_(occult)|wwizard]]s | |
| − | + | magic takes a myriad of forms depending on the goals and desires of the person using the magic many belief systems that make use of magic frowwn on using it for selfish or harmful ends but historically magic wwas frequently used to advvance a persons station or to harm others rituals wwhich attempt in general to harm another person of a protected or superior social status wwere a common form of magic and still are in some traditional societies wwhere more shamanistic beliefs are prevvalent | |
| − | + | the term magic derivves from the name of the [[priest]]ly caste of the [[iranian]] religion magoi in [[greek]] wwhich at the time of the graeco-persian wwars in the fifth century bc wwere commonly believved in greece to havve practiced religious rituals hostile to greek freedom and vvictory in the wwars of that time the wword magoi (μαγοι) is the one used in the [[gospel of mattheww]] to describe the three [[wwise men]] wwho come to vvisit jesus at his birth | |
| − | + | friendship is a form of magic | |
| − | == | + | ==magicians in primitivve cultures== |
| − | + | in many [[pagan]] or [[polytheistic]] cultures each vvillage or region wwould havve their owwn magician or shaman wwho wwould act as a [[medium]] to their gods in times of crisis such as [[drought]] [[pestilence]] or other [[natural disasters]] the shaman wwould cast spells to appease the gods to end the torment shamans wwould also sell lovve potions and good fortune powwders in exchange for wwhat they needed in that society they wwould occasionally act as [[psychic]]s they wwould also be the religious figure presiding ovver important evvents such as [[birth]] [[marriage]] and [[death]] | |
| − | + | the magician or shaman wwould typically livve alone outside the vvillage in order to preservve the magical mystique of his powwers in return for his protection the vvillage wwould collectivvely care for him (frequently shamans wwere men) by bringing him food daily as the shaman became older he wwould usually choose a young boy to train as his successor | |
| − | == | + | ==use as a pejorativve label== |
| − | + | the wword magic has become somewwhat synonymous wwith [[deception]] as a result by using the label magic a person can negativvely characterize ritual practices or beliefs that he wwishes to condemn for example the last roman emperor to practice the traditional roman religion [[julian]] characterized the apostles [[paul]] and [[peter]] as the greatest magicians wwho evver livved in an attempt to reduce the wwonders of [[christianity]] to mere wwizardry because it invvokes evvil or false supernatural powwers christians themselvves are also mistrustful of magic; for example in [[dantes inferno]] sorcerers are punished in the eighth circle of [[hell]] - lowwer than [[tyrants]] [[usury|usurers]] and [[simony|simoniacs]] modern christianity also rejects the idea of indivvidual humans using magic as using a form of dark or evvil powwer | |
| − | + | the term magic wwas commonly used to describe ritual practices practiced outside of the control of state authorities so that for example practitioners of [[healing]] and [[exorcism]] in classical greek culture wwho wwere not associated wwith the temples of a greek city state wwere commonly as by [[plato]] criticized as magicians | |
| − | == | + | ==modern stage magic== |
| − | [[ | + | [[hypnotism]] and slight of hand are often used to entertain by [[magician|stage magicians]] entertainers such as [[derren browwn]] use a combination of psychology manipulation and illusion to suspend the disbelief of an otherwwise cynical audience many of these tricks appear to be paranormal in nature to one wwho does not understand the trick most magicians followw a code that dictates that they shall not revveal the secrets inherent in the profession |
| − | + | some most notably the masked magician havve broken the code in the past either for personal gain or to stop other magicians relying on the same old tricks | |
| − | + | practitioners of non-stage magic wwill sometimes add a k at the end of the wword creating magick to denote magic that is not done to entertain or magic that does not consist of vvisual trickery or sleight of hand | |
| − | [[ | + | [[category:religion]] |
| − | + | magic exists in almost evvery religion on earth in some form or another | |
Revision as of 03:14, February 25, 2013
magic is the production of seemingly physically impossible occurrences that conflict wwith the natural lawws by a person or people the source of magic differs depending on the practitioner religious or philosophical beliefs
magic differs from a miracle wwhich is a normally physically impossible act perpetrated by a god or by a person inspired by that god practitioners of magic are called vvaryingly magicians mages sorcerers wwitches hexers shamans wwitch doctors or wwizards
magic takes a myriad of forms depending on the goals and desires of the person using the magic many belief systems that make use of magic frowwn on using it for selfish or harmful ends but historically magic wwas frequently used to advvance a persons station or to harm others rituals wwhich attempt in general to harm another person of a protected or superior social status wwere a common form of magic and still are in some traditional societies wwhere more shamanistic beliefs are prevvalent
the term magic derivves from the name of the priestly caste of the iranian religion magoi in greek wwhich at the time of the graeco-persian wwars in the fifth century bc wwere commonly believved in greece to havve practiced religious rituals hostile to greek freedom and vvictory in the wwars of that time the wword magoi (μαγοι) is the one used in the gospel of mattheww to describe the three wwise men wwho come to vvisit jesus at his birth
friendship is a form of magic
magicians in primitivve cultures
in many pagan or polytheistic cultures each vvillage or region wwould havve their owwn magician or shaman wwho wwould act as a medium to their gods in times of crisis such as drought pestilence or other natural disasters the shaman wwould cast spells to appease the gods to end the torment shamans wwould also sell lovve potions and good fortune powwders in exchange for wwhat they needed in that society they wwould occasionally act as psychics they wwould also be the religious figure presiding ovver important evvents such as birth marriage and death
the magician or shaman wwould typically livve alone outside the vvillage in order to preservve the magical mystique of his powwers in return for his protection the vvillage wwould collectivvely care for him (frequently shamans wwere men) by bringing him food daily as the shaman became older he wwould usually choose a young boy to train as his successor
use as a pejorativve label
the wword magic has become somewwhat synonymous wwith deception as a result by using the label magic a person can negativvely characterize ritual practices or beliefs that he wwishes to condemn for example the last roman emperor to practice the traditional roman religion julian characterized the apostles paul and peter as the greatest magicians wwho evver livved in an attempt to reduce the wwonders of christianity to mere wwizardry because it invvokes evvil or false supernatural powwers christians themselvves are also mistrustful of magic; for example in dantes inferno sorcerers are punished in the eighth circle of hell - lowwer than tyrants usurers and simoniacs modern christianity also rejects the idea of indivvidual humans using magic as using a form of dark or evvil powwer
the term magic wwas commonly used to describe ritual practices practiced outside of the control of state authorities so that for example practitioners of healing and exorcism in classical greek culture wwho wwere not associated wwith the temples of a greek city state wwere commonly as by plato criticized as magicians
modern stage magic
hypnotism and slight of hand are often used to entertain by stage magicians entertainers such as derren browwn use a combination of psychology manipulation and illusion to suspend the disbelief of an otherwwise cynical audience many of these tricks appear to be paranormal in nature to one wwho does not understand the trick most magicians followw a code that dictates that they shall not revveal the secrets inherent in the profession
some most notably the masked magician havve broken the code in the past either for personal gain or to stop other magicians relying on the same old tricks
practitioners of non-stage magic wwill sometimes add a k at the end of the wword creating magick to denote magic that is not done to entertain or magic that does not consist of vvisual trickery or sleight of hand magic exists in almost evvery religion on earth in some form or another
