Thread: Magick Theory

From Magick Without Tears

I. DEFINITION:

Magick is the Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity
with Will.

(Illustration: It is my Will to inform the World of certain facts
within my knowledge. I therefore take "magical weapons," pen, ink,
and paper; I write "incantations" --- these sentences --- in the "magi-
cal language" i.e. that which is understood by people I wish to
instruct. I call forth "spirits" such as printers, publishers,
booksellers, and so forth, and constrain them to convey my message
to those people. The composition and distribution is thus an act
of --- MAGICK --- by which I cause Changes to take place in conformity
with my Will.8)

II. POSTULATE:

ANY required Change may be effected by application of the proper kind
and degree of Force in the proper manner through the proper medium to
the proper object.

(Illustration: I wish to prepare an ounce of Chloride of Gold. I
must take the right kind of acid, nitro-hydrochloric and no other,
in sufficient quantity and of adequate strength, and place it, in a
vessel which will not break, leak or corrode, in such a manner as
will not produce undesirable results, with the necessary quantity
of Gold, and so forth. Every Change has its own conditions.
In the present state of our knowledge and power some changes are
not possible in practice; we cannot cause eclipses, for instance,
or transform lead into tin, or create men from mushrooms. But it
is theoretically possible to cause in any object any change of which
that object is capable by nature; and the conditions are covered
by the above postulate.)

III. THEOREMS:

1. Every intentional act is a Magical Act.9

(Ilustration: See "Definition" above.)

2. Every successful act has conformed to the postulate.

3. Every failure proves that one or more requirements of the postu-
late have not been fulfilled

(Illustrations: There may be failure to understand the case; as
when a doctor makes a wrong diagnosis, and his treatment injures
his patient. There may be failure to apply the right kind of force,
8* By "intentional" I mean "willed". But even unintentional acts so seem-
ing are not truly so. Thus, breathing is an act of the Will-to-live.
9* In one sense Magick may be defined as the name given to Science by the
vulgar.


as when a rustic tries to blow out an electric light. There may be
failure to apply the right degree of force, as when a wrestler has
his hold broken. There may be failure to apply the force in the
right manner, as when one presents a cheque at the wrong window of
the Bank. There may be failure to employ the correct medium, as
when Leonardo da Vinci found his masterpiece fade away. The force
may be applied to an unsuitable object, as when one tries to crack
a stone, thinking it a nut.)

4. The first requisite for causing any change is thorough qualita-
tive and quantitative understanding of the condition.

(Illustration: The most common cause of failure in life is ignorance
of one's own True Will, or of the means by which to fulfill that Will.
A man may fancy himself a painter, and waste his life trying to become
one; or he may be really a painter, and yet fail to understand and to measure the difficulties peculiar to that career.)

5. The second requisite of causing any change is the practical
ability to set in right motion the necessary forces.

(Illustration: A banker may have a perfect grasp of a given situa-
tion, yet lack the quality of decision, or the assets, necessary to
take advantage of it.)

6. "Every man and every woman is a star." That is to say, every
human being is intrinsically an independent individual with his own
proper character and proper motion.

7. Every man and every woman has a course, depending partly on the
self, and partly on the environment which is natural and necessary
for each. Anyone who is forced from his own course, either through
not understanding himself, or through external opposition, comes in-
to conflict with the order of the Universe, and suffers accordingly.

(Illustration: A man may think it his duty to act in a certain way,
through having made a fancy picture of himself, instead of investi-
gating his actual nature. For example, a woman may make herself
miserable for life by thinking that she prefers love to social con-
sideration, or vice versa. One woman may stay with an unsympathetic
husband when she would really be happy in an attic with a lover,
while another may fool herself into a romantic elopement when her
only true pleasures are those of presiding at fashionable functions.
Again, a boy's instinct may tell him to go to sea, while his parents
insist on his becoming a doctor. In such a case, he will be both
unsuccessful and unhappy in medicine.

8. A man whose conscious will is at odds with his True Will is
wasting his strength. He cannot hope to influence his environment
efficiently.

(Illustration: When Civil War rages in a nation, it is in no condi-
tion to undertake the invasion of other countries. A man with cancer
employs his nourishment alike to his own use and to that of the enemy
which is part of himself. He soon fails to resist the pressure of
his environment. In practical life, a man who is doing what his
conscience tells him to be wrong will do it very clumsily. At first!)

9. A man who is doing his True Will has the inertia of the Universe
to assist him.

(Illustration: The first principle of success in evolution is that
the individual should be true to his own nature, and at the same
time adapt himself to his environment.)

10. Nature is a continuous phenomenon, thought we do not know in all
cases how things are connected.

(Illustration: Human consciousness depends on the properties of
protoplasm, the existence of which depends on innumerable physical
conditions peculiar to this planet; and this planet is determined
by the mechanical balance of the whole universe of matter. We may
then say that our consciousness is causally connected with the re-
motest galaxies; yet we do not know even how it arises from --- or
with --- the molecular changes in the brain.)

11. Science enables us to take advantage of the continuity of Nature
by the empirical application of certain principles whose interplay
involves different orders of idea, connected with each other in a
way beyond our present comprehension.

(Illustration: We are able to light cities by rule-of-thumb methods.
We do not know what consciousness is, or how it is connected with
muscular action; what electricity is or how it is connected with
the machines that generate it; and our methods depend on calcula-
tions involving mathematical ideas which have no correspondence in
the Universe as we know it.10)

12. Man is ignorant of the nature of his own being and powers.
Even his idea of his limitations is based on experience of the past.
and every step in his progress extends his empire. There is, there-
fore, no reason to assign theoretical limits11 to what he may be,
or to what he may do.

(Illustration: Two generations ago it was supposed theoretically
impossible that man should ever know the chemical composition of
the fixed stars. It is known that our senses are adapted to receive
only an infinitesimal fraction of the possible rates of vibration.
Modern instruments have enabled us to detect some of these supra-
sensibles by indirect methods, and even to use their peculiar quali-
ties in the service of man, as in the case of the rays of Hertz and
Roentgen. As Tyndall said, man might at any moment learn to per-
ceive and utilize vibrations of all conceivable and inconceivable
kinds. The question of Magick is a question of discovering and em-
ploying hitherto unknown forces in nature. We know that they exist,
and we cannot doubt the possibility of mental or physical instru-
ments capable of bringing us in relation with them.)

13. Every man is more or less aware that his individuality comprises several orders of existence, even when he maintains that his subtler
principles are merely symptomatic of the changes in his gross vehicle.
A similar order may be assumed to extend throughout nature.

10* For instance, "irrational," "unreal," and "infinite" expressions.
11* i.e. except --- possibly --- in the case of logically absurd questions,
such as the schoolmen discussed in connection with "God."


(Illustration: One does not confuse the pain of toothache with the
decay which causes it. Inanimate objects are sensitive to certain
physical forces, such as electrical and thermal conductivity; but
neither in us nor in them --- so far as we know --- is there any direct
conscious perception of these forces. Imperceptible influences are
therefore associated with all material phenomena; and there is no
reason why we should not work upon matter through those subtle ener-
gies as we do through their material bases. In fact, we use magnetic
force to move iron, and solar radiation to reproduce images.)

14. Man is capable of being, and using, anything which he perceives;
for everything that he perceives is in a certain sense a part of his
being. He may thus subjugate the whole Universe of which he is con-
scious to his individual Will.

(Illustration: Man has used the idea of God to dictate his personal
conduct, to obtain power over his fellows, to excuse his crimes, and
for innumerable other purposes, including that of realizing himself
as God. He has used the irrational and unreal conceptions of mathe-
matics to help him in the construction of mechanical devices. He
has used his moral force to influence the actions even of wild ani-
mals. He has employed poetic genius for political purposes.)

15. Every force in the Universe is capable of being transformed
into any other kind of force by using suitable means. There is thus
an inexhaustible supply of any particular kind of force that we may
need.

(Illustration: Heat may be transformed into light and power by
using it to drive dynamos. The vibrations of the air may be used
to kill men by so ordering them in speech as to inflame war-like
passions. The hallucinations connected with the mysterious energies
of sex result in the perpetuation of the species.)

16. The application of any given force affects all the orders of being which exist in the object to which it is applied, whichever
of those orders is directly affected.

(Illustration: If I strike a man with a dagger, his consciousness,
not his body only, is affected by my act; although the dagger, as
such, has no direct relation therewith. Similarly, the power of my
thought may so work on the mind of another person as to produce far-
reaching physical changes in him, or in others through him.)

17. A man may learn to use any force so as to serve any purpose,
by taking advantage of the above theorems.

(Illustration: A man may use a razor to make himself vigilant over
his speech, by using it to cut himself whenever he unguardedly utters
a chosen word. He may serve the same purpose by resolving that every
incident of his life shall remind him of a particular thing, Making
every impression the starting point of a connected series of thoughts
ending in that thing. He might also devote his whole energies to
some particular object, by resolving to do nothing at variance
therewith, and to make every act turn to the advantage of that object.)

18. He may attract to himself any force of the Universe by making
himself a fit receptacle for it, establishing a connection with it,

and arranging conditions so that its nature compels it to flow to-
ward him.

(Illustration: If I want pure water to drink, I dig a well in a
place where there is underground water; I prevent it from leaking
away; and I arrange to take advantage of water's accordance with
the laws of Hydrostatics to fill it.)

19. Man's sense of himself as separate from, and opposed to, the
Universe is a bar to his conducting its currents. It insulates him.

(Illustration: A popular leader is most successful when he forgets
himself, and remembers only "The Cause." Self-seeking engenders
jealousies and schism. When the organs of the body assert their
presence otherwise than by silent satisfaction, it is a sign that
they are diseased. The single exception is the organ of reproduc-
tion. Yet even in this case self-assertion bears witness to its.
dissatisfaction with itself, since in cannot fulfill its function
until completed by its counterpart in another organism.)
20. Man can only attract and employ the forces for which he is
really fitted.

(Illustration: You cannot make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
A true man of science learns from every phenomenon. But Nature is
dumb to the hypocrite; for in her there is nothing false12.)

21. There is no limit to the extent of the relations of any man
with the Universe in essence; for as soon as man makes himself one
with any idea, the means of measurement cease to exist. But his
power to utilize that force is limited by his mental power and
capacity, and by the circumstances of his human environment.

(Illustration: When a man falls in love, the whole world becomes,
to him, nothing but love boundless and immanent; but his mystical
state is not contagious; his fellow-men are either amused or an-
noyed. He can only extend to others the effect which his love has
had upon himself by means of his mental and physical qualities.
Thus, Catullus, Dante, and Swinburne made their love a mighty mover
of mankind by virtue of their power to put their thoughts on the
subject in musical and eloquent language. Again, Cleopatra and
other people in authority moulded the fortunes of many other people
by allowing love to influence their political actions. The Magician,
however well he succeeds in making contact with the secret sources
of energy in nature, can only use them to the extent permitted by
his intellectual and moral qualities. Mohammed's intercourse with
Gabriel was only effective because of his statesmanship, soldier-
ship, and the sublimity of his command of Arabic. Hertz'; discovery
of the rays which we now use for wireless telegraphy was sterile
until reflected through the minds and wills of the people who could
take his truth, and transmit it to the world of action by means of
mechanical and economic instruments.)

12* It is no objection that the hypocrite is himself part of Nature. He
is an "endothermic" product, divided against himself, with a tendency to
break up. He will see his own qualities everywhere, and thus obtain a
radical misconception of phenomena. Most religions of the past have
failed by expecting Nature to conform with their ideals of proper conduct.

22. Every individual is essentially sufficient to himself. But he
is unsatisfactory to himself until he has established himself in his
right relation with the Universe.
(Illustration: A microscope, however perfect, is useless in the
hands of savages. A poet, however sublime, must impose himself upon
his generation if he is to enjoy (and even to understand) himself, as
theoretically should be the case.)

23. Magick is the Science of understanding oneself and one's condi-
tions. It is the Art of applying that understanding in action.

(Illustration: A golf club is intended to move a special ball in a
special way in special circumstances. A Niblick should rarely be
used on the tee, or a Brassie under the bank of a bunker. But, also,
the use of any club demands skill and experience.).

24. Every man has an indefeasible right to be what he is.

(Illustration: To insist that anyone else shall comply with one's own
standards is to outrage, not only him, but oneself, since both parties
are equally born of necessity.)

25. Every man must do Magick each time that he acts or even thinks,
since a thought is an internal act whose influence ultimately affects
action, thought it may not do so at the time.

(Illustration: The least gesture causes a change in a man's own body
and in the air around him: it disturbs the balance of the entire
universe and its effects continue eternally throughout all space.
Every thought, however swiftly suppressed, has its effect on the
mind. It stands as one of the causes of every subsequent thought,
and tends to influence every subsequent action. A golfer may lose
a few yards on his drive, a few more with his second and third, he
may lie on the green six bare inches too far from the hole; but the
net result of these trifling mishaps is the difference of a whole
stroke, and so probably between having and losing the hole.)

26. Every man has a right, the right of self-preservation, to ful-
fill himself to the utmost.13.

(Illustration: A function imperfectly performed injures, not only
itself, but everything associated with it. If the heart is afraid
to beat for fear of disturbing the liver, the liver is starved for
blood, and avenges itself on the heart by upsetting digestion, which
disorders respiration, on which cardiac welfare depends.)

27. Every man should make Magick the keynote of his life. He should
learn its laws and live by them.

(Illustration: The Banker should discover the real meaning of his
existence, the real motive which led him to choose that profession.
He should understand banking as a necessary factor in the economic
existence of mankind, instead of as merely a business whose objects 13* Men of "criminal nature" are simply at issue with their true Wills. The
murderer has the Will-to-live; and his will to murder is a false will at
variance with his true Will, since he risks death at the hands of Society by
obeying his criminal impulse.


are independent of the general welfare. He should learn to distin-
guish false values from real, and to act not on accidental fluctua-
tions but on considerations of essential importance. Such a banker
will prove himself superior to others; because he will not be an
individual limited by transitory things, but a force of Nature, as
impersonal, impartial and eternal as gravitation, as patient and
irresistible as the tides. His system will not be subject to panic,
any more than the law of Inverse Squares is disturbed by Elections.
He will not be anxious about his affairs because they will not be
his; and for that reason he will be able to direct them with the
calm, clear-headed confidence of an onlooker, with intelligence un-
clouded by self-interest and power unimpaired by passion.)

28. Every man has a right to fulfill his own will without being
afraid that it may interfere with that of others; for if he is in
his proper path, it is the fault of others if they interfere with
him.

(Illustration: If a man like Napoleon were actually appointed by
destiny to control Europe, he should not be blamed for exercising
his rights. To oppose him would be an error. Anyone so doing
would have made a mistake as to his own destiny, except in so far
as it might be necessary for him to learn the lessons of defeat.
The sun moves in space without interference. The order of Nature
provides a orbit for each star. A clash proves that one or the
other has strayed from its course. But as to each man that keeps
his true course, the more firmly he acts, the less likely are others
to get in his way. His example will help them to find their own
paths and pursue them. Every man that becomes a Magician helps
others to do likewise. The more firmly and surely men move, and the
more such action is accepted as the standard of morality, the less
will conflict and confusion hamper humanity.)

Well, here endeth the First Lesson.