Magic…

Magic lies in the littlest things. Sometimes, when people think of magic, they think of great feats and tricks; tricks such as sawing a woman in half, making an elephant disappear, or even something tricky like guessing which card you pulled from a deck. However, for me, this isn’t what magic really is.

Maybe, some of you have heard my lecture regarding what magic is. For clarification, I’ve gotten what I know regarding magic from different sources, mainly comics and literature. Comics, such as Books of Magic, which stars Tim Hunter (please see previous post), and other great occultists in the past such as Aleister Crowley. As I have said before, magic can be seen as language. Language is very complex. Usually, when one talks about language, one thinks of words, grammar, etc. however, there is a mystical side to it. Take for example, a person from another country. You can’t really understand what he/she is telling you, however you get the gist of what they’re telling you by the tone, facial expressions and even hand gestures. You get the feel of what they’re saying just by hearing and seeing them. This can be related to magic because of the fact that meaning goes beyond language and words itself; try watching a foreign film without any subtitles and you’d be surprised that you’d more or less catch the story.

Another way how language could be seen as magic is through words. Words are very powerful things. A single word could brighten your darkest night, or darken your brightest day. With a single word, civilizations may flourish, or empires could fall. With a single word, you may give life or even, take it away. People underestimate the strength a single word may carry. Some examples of strong/powerful words could be God, Life, Death and even Love. However, these are pretty obvious choices. Some less obvious words could be Hi, Goodbye, Thanks, Please and so on and so forth. Every single word has in itself strength, proportional to its use and context, whether directly or indirectly proportional depends on the situation I believe.

Another way which words can be seen as magic is through one’s name. One rule of magic, as learned in my readings is that one should never reveal one’s name unless one absolutely trusts who he/she is giving their name to. The reason for this is because your name could be used against you…they say…if your enemy finds out what your name is…he or she could undo and even destroy you. In a more practical point of view, this could be seen as when your enemy could spread terrible rumors about you, thus destroying who you are as an individual (the loss of identity/the corruption of your self). If a bad rumor about you spreads, certain biases and prejudices may rise against you…thus in a symbolic kind of way…destroy you.

Names have another aspect in which they could be powerful. Imagine that your whole being, your whole self…relied on your name. Imagine…if you were given a different name, would you be the exact same person you are now? Who you are could be traced back to your name. If a man named Michel Dominique was named Michael Dominic instead…would he have had the same number of friends? Would he have had hung out with the same number of people? Would he even look the same? Would he be the same person you know and probably love? Would he still be Michel Dominique…or someone entirely different…a man named Michael Dominic?

The reason for my whole argument regarding Language and Magic was something I had to do. And that something was to prove that magic does exist. In the first part of this article, I have shown you a more practical view of magic, however…in this next part, I shall be showing a more mystical side to it, however by still explaining it through practical terms.

As the first paragraph said, people usually think of magic as something major…parting a sea, coming back from the dead, staying in a block of ice for over a month…however this isn’t what magic really is.

Magic is in the little things.

You’ve probably experienced sitting on a bench amidst the blistering heat of summer…whistling loud to get a breeze…and out of nowhere, a cold gust of wind blows refreshing you. People don’t understand why a wind comes if you whistle…one possible explanation for this is magic.

You see, magic addresses specific needs…however these needs aren’t or...shouldn’t be anything too big for it to work. It shouldn’t be something like making it snow, during the summer to keep cool, rather focusing on yourself and making yourself cool…which could be seen or refuted as mind over matter.

If I told you that I was thirsty, would you conjure up a river for me? Or just come up with a simple glass of water? In this argument, the latter would be most ideal and easiest to do. That is how magic works…magic shouldn’t be complex and difficult…but rather simple and easy. With regards to magic…simple is better.

You’ve been doing magic for the longest time; however you may not be aware of it. I bet that there was one time where you saw a friend of yours distraught and depressed over something you’re unaware of…however by placing you hand on his back…you’ve made him/her feel better, just like that *snap*. You could say you were comforting that friend…but wouldn’t it be impossible to say that, that was magic? That by your placing your hand of your friend’s back…you took away his fear, his sadness and replaced it with calm and joy?

You see...magic is very simple when you think about it. It doesn't necesarilly have anything to do with incantations, or magic spells. No sacrifices or pentagrams or summoning up demons. Magic answers a specific need. The greater the need...the more magic you'd have to use. Such as the examples I gave above, the simpler the need is, the easier it is to do magic. However, as said in my previous post...magic has a price. And to be able to do magic...you have to be aware that there is a price to pay...much like everything in this world.

You see, this whole post, and your reading it...you could say is magic. A form of magic that I just did. However, nothing special. No using of magic words or subliminal messages that I've imbeded into the text. But something simple and divine.

Magic is all around you…magic is in the little things. Probably, due to our living in a highly scientific based society, people don’t believe in magic anymore. But, believe me…magic is real. All you have to do is open your eyes. *Abracadabra* and the world would look a tad different now…because wonder has returned to your life. Open your eyes…and see the world of magic which is around you.

What did I do with the magic spell in this text? Well...if you haven't realized it by now...I just opened your eyes to a new world...where anything and everything is possible. I planted the seed of wonder which was lost to you. But what of the price? Well...you could say, I am...or will be paying for it...sooner or later.

*Poof* It's done.

For every action...

Every great magic trick consists of three acts. The first act is called "The Pledge"; the magician shows you something ordinary, but of course... it probably isn't. The second act is called "The Turn"; the magician makes his ordinary some thing do something extraordinary. Now if you're looking for the secret... you won't find it, that's why there's a third act called, "The Prestige"; this is the part with the twists and turns, where lives hang in the balance, and you see something shocking you've never seen before.

As some of you may tell, I just watched the movie "The Prestige". It was a pretty cool movie, at that...but what caught my attention....wasn't the twists and turns, nor the different magic tricks that the two magicians did...however, what caught my attention was the term sacrifice.

Both magicians, Rupert Angier and Alfred Borden both lost almost everything in their quest for the best illusion. *SPOILER WARNING* They both lost loved ones, friends, family...and even themselves. They lived lives of obsession, of deceit, and of treachery, for the sake of coming out on top.

I've done a lot of reading...I've read books, comics, and for some reason...people who dwell in magic, both real and not always loose something in the process. Take for example, Merlin...teacher of King Arthur who in turn lost his life because of Magic. However, that may be obscure in a sense. Two more...closer to heart characters come to mind. First of is John Constantine, who most of you know was played by Keanu Reeves in the movie "Constantine" or to those, bigger fans...the main character in the Vertigo Comics Series "Hellblazer". John Constantine has also lost a lot due to magic. girlfriends, family, friends, co-workers all died. John blames himself for their deaths...because he knows that with Magic, comes a price...a price that he believes he pays for over and over and over again. Take for example in the movie. John Constantine looses the only 2 friends he has in the world Chas and Beeman (no...I’m not that big of a fan of the movie..I checked it at IMDB here) because of Magic. In the comics version, he looses his whole gang of friends, a lot of girlfriends (ex or not) and even his remaining family (his sister). And this is one lesson he learned the hard way; magic always comes at a price. This lesson was then in turn what he taught a young Timothy Hunter.

Timothy Hunter is another character in the Vertigo Comics Universe. He's the main character of another series entitled "The Books of Magic" initially created by Neil Gaiman. Here's a bit of back story. Tim was a young boy…who was approached by 4 men, all dressed in Trench coats. He was told that he was the most promising magician of his generation, and probably the greatest magician ever...basically Merlin reborn. For him to better understand the world of Magic, these 4 (The Phantom Stranger, Dr. Occult, John Constantine and Mister E) toured young Tim Hunter through the world of Magic. The Phantom Stranger toured Tim through Magic's past; Dr. Occult toured Tim of the different worlds of Magic; John Constantine toured Tim through Magic's present and finally; Mister E toured Tim through Magic's future and inevitably Magic's end. One thing, highly emphasized by John Constantine was that Magic always has a price. And to be able to do magic, one should be willing to pay the cost. Again, being a stubborn young man, Tim did not heed John's words and still played around with magic. And thus, learned that magic has a terrible price.

Tim lost his father (mother, died prior to the series) because of magic. He lost his first love, due to the fact that the girl kept on getting in over her head with regards to the different trials that Tim had to face. He also lost his friends, who were killed by his enemies, he practically lost everything. To escape the feeling of loosing anyone else, he then enters seclusion...and makes a world for himself to stay in (he's the greatest magician ever...he can do whatever he wants) and makes sure that his loved ones never die...but this was all a false utopia. In the end, he also lost that world...and realized that there was nothing else he could do, but live with the burden that he has...which is magic.

Okay, I bet you're lost now. You're probably thinking to yourself..."What the hell has this have to do with anything?!" Trust me, have I ever lead you a stray from whatever it is I'm talking about? I don't think so. But then again, you ask "But I don't do magic...what does this have to do with me?" My answer to that question: "Everything".

People seldom realize the consequences of their actions. Everything you do...has a consequence, an end result; either good or bad, you know about it or you don't. Not all results appear to us immediately. Some reveal themselves to us after days, weeks, months, even years. One thing you may have done during grade school, may probably affect something that's happening to you now. Everything we do, has a consequence. Everything we do is a result of something that happened prior, and will result in another thing happening in the future. There is a saying that says: "Men are defined by events that happened in their lives…” which in some cases may be true. Think back to one of your most vivid memories. Try imagining what would happen if that never occured. Maybe, you wouldn't meet your current loved one, maybe you wouldn't be who you are today. Who we are, can be defined by what happened to us in the past...which is logically sound because if there was no past, then there could be no present...and in turn bear no future.

We all pay the prices of our sins. We all pay the price for things that we've done in the past...both good and bad. Another term that comes to mind is Karma or the saying "What goes around, comes around." Or...for those of you who are religious...the afterlife Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso...where you end up, depends on your actions when you were alive.

Magic isn't the only thing that has a price. Everything has a price. From the internet you're using to read this entry...to the cellphone you use to check the time...or what you have up here (points to head). Everything has a price...depending on the object of discussion.

We all pay the price of living...both material, and not. We all have undergone trials...lost quite a number of things. We've all made sacrifices...

And as the title of this entry says...

"For every action...there is an equal and opposite reaction." - Newton's Third Law of Motion