Magic (supernatural)

Magic is an ancient practice rooted in rituals, spiritual divinations, and/or cultural lineage—with an intention to invoke, manipulate, or otherwise manifest supernatural forces, beings, or entities in the natural world.[1] It is a categorical yet often ambiguous term which has been used to refer to a wide variety of beliefs and practices, frequently considered separate from both religion and science.[2]

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Magic
Background History of magic Magic and religion Psychological theories of magic
Forms Apotropaic magic Ceremonial magic Chaos magic Sorcery (goetia) Sympathetic magic Black magic Gray magic White magic Shamanism Theurgy Thaumaturgy Divination Evocation Miracle Natural magic Necromancy Sex magic Sigils Witchcraft
Religion Magic and religion Christian views on magic Folk religion Islam and magic Mysticism Shinto Thelema
Related topics Incantation Magical formula Magical organization Occult Western esotericism
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Part of a series on
Esotericism
Key concepts Western esotericism Eastern esotericism Mysticism Gnosis Correspondences Magic Astrology Alchemy Meditation Theosophy Theurgy Spiritual Hierarchy Hermeticism Kabbalah Occult Transcendental Unity of Religions Metaphysics Mystical theology
Esoteric rites Initiation Transmission Rites of passage Purification Divination Astral projection Invocation Evocation Visualization Egregore Propitiation Sacrifice Exorcism
Esoteric societies Sufi tariqas Philadelphian Society Freemasonry Élus Coëns Rosicrucians OTO Golden Dawn Thelemic Order
Notable figures Pythagoras Plato Hermes Trismegistus Dionysius the Areopagite Ibn Arabi Paracelsus John Dee Jakob Böhme Éliphas Lévi Madame Blavatsky Arthur Edward Waite Samuel Liddell Mathers Manly P. Hall Aleister Crowley G. I. Gurdjieff René Guénon Julius Evola Frithjof Schuon Rudolf Steiner Carl Jung
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Connotations have varied from positive to negative at times throughout history,[3] Within Western culture, magic has been linked to ideas of the Other,[4] foreignness,[5] and primitivism;[6] indicating that it is "a powerful marker of cultural difference"[7] and likewise, a non-modern phenomenon.[8] During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Western intellectuals perceived the practice of magic to be a sign of a primitive mentality and also commonly attributed it to marginalised groups of people.[7]

Aleister Crowley (1875–1947), an influential British occultist, defined "magick" as "the Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity with Will",[9] adding a 'k' to distinguish ceremonial or ritual magic from stage magic.[10] In modern occultism and neopagan religions, many self-described magicians and witches regularly practice ritual magic.[11] This view has been incorporated into chaos magic and the new religious movements of Thelema and Wicca.