There is much debate amongst the Magickal community as to whether or not theology and religious practice is essential to Magick. While I am not a qualified theologian or advanced Magickal practitioner, I have engaged in Magick and Rituals which have been overtly religious, and others which were decidedly secular, and I have found value in both forms of Magick for different reasons. Debate also continues as to whether Magick is best performed alone or as part of a collective, and again, I have engaged in both, finding value in both which I will now outline.
I will begin with the question of religion. I went through a phase of questioning absolutely everything, not believing in anything remotely spiritual, let alone religious, but then the spirit world broke through the iron curtain of my mind and slapped me in the face, forcing me to accept not only the possibility but also the likelihood of the existence of a Universal creator, Gods and Goddesses, angels, demons, spirits and ghosts. I then journeyed briefly through the mire of religious sectarianism, attempting to reconcile the differences between the Abrahamic faiths and the older pagan traditions with some degree of success which led me to the understanding that all religions are speaking parts of the Universal truth and are therefore equally valid for different reasons. Because of this, I feel that it is not necessary to confine oneself to a single doctrine when attempting to conduct Magick through a religious lens, and have found that my Magickal practice holds more tangible power when I incorporate elements from a variety of traditions. The notion is directly contrary to the belief held by some, that Magick only works when deities are invoked and honoured in the correct way, for the power comes directly from them as a gift in exchange for our devotion and is channeled/focused via us as a conduit through which the deities act in this world. My experience has led me to think that the Magick being performed is not necessarily governed by the Gods and Goddesses that are invoked to perform it, for if it were then surely a ceremony conducted in a Norse fashion would be powerless if the Gods and Goddesses invoked were from the Hellenic tradition? Why would Zeus grant me power when I am not honouring him in the traditional Hellenic way? It is thus my belief, from experience, that Magick is not the product of invoking deities, or rather, if it is gifted to us by the Gods, then they have no preference as to how we honour them. Another side to the "religious vs secular Magick" debacle involves the matter of constant devotion, and whether or not it is necessary for one's Magickal practice. My close friend and fellow Magician followed a similar pattern to me, being a staunch atheist for many years until a rude awakening to the reality of Spirit. He has since become heavily focused on the idea of forming a coherent religious code of practice by which to live, while I have become more lax in my devotional work (for better or worse, I have not yet decided). Although he is not sticking to one religious tradition, but rather draws primarily on Catholic Mysticism, Anglo-Saxon Paganism and Jewish Qabbalah, as well as elements of Zoroastrianism and Taoism, he does spend an excessive proportion of his time and energy comparing each of the traditions and studying their tenets, reading commentaries and watching lectures in an effort to understand the essence of their mystic elements. He holds the belief that the religious aspects are intrinsic to Magick, and that a closer connection to God is necessary to gain a mastery over the Universal energies at the heart of Magick. In recent months I have observed that his fixation on knowledge of God has helped to focus his intentions towards self improvement for the overall purpose of growing closer to the divine, which has allowed him to overcome certain vices which prevented him from living a productive life, as well as broadening his psychic perception and stimulating analysis of dreams and waking visions in search of higher meaning; this is clearly of great benefit to him, and has proven to benefit countless religious practitioners throughout the ages, but I have also observed that his practical application of Magick is limited and he has not yet reached the depth of understanding of fundamental Universal concepts necessary to manifest his Will in the physical world. Furthermore, his adherence to the religious doctrines have only served to consolidate self-defeating ideas revolving around "the moral good", which in his mind is the highest good to be observed in the Universe, and consequently he is unable to tap into certain aspects of practical Magick such as Chaos Magick for the supposedly "demonic" nature of the energies involved, or tantra, for the sexual nature of the practice which is in opposition to his preconceived notions of superior morality which must be observed in order to elevate the soul to a state of Godliness. Despite a number of debates on this subject, he is unwavering in his convictions, which to some extent is a quality to be admired. Despite my inclination to occasionally work with the higher powers with a secular mindset, I too have my devotional practices based on Abrahamic and Scandinavian Pagan traditions, for they help me feel a more personal connection to the forces of the Universe, and thus amplify my spell work to yield greater results; I feel that the ability to work with humanised, personified Gods, as well as impersonal transcendent energies depending on the desired outcome, is what has enabled me to gain such a strong grasp of practical Magick in so short a time.
An example of the opposite to the above model is found in my stepfather, an extremely adept Magician who operates with a more secular outlook, seeing the Gods and Goddesses as facets of the self in line with the Jungian philosophy. In his Magickal practice, the Self is the supreme being from which all things emanate and from which all Magick is derived. As a student of Jewish Qabbalah and the teachings of Aleister Crowley, he sees the individual as the centre of one's own Universe, to the exclusion of all others, and believes that the Will of the individual is superior to any law laid down by any other in an act to interfere with the individual's sovereignty as ruler of one's own Universe. He operates on the assumption that, in Qabbalah, rather than the individual starting their journey from Malkuth and striving to reach Kether, one in fact starts in a state of Godliness and has to strive to avoid being reduced to the lesser states by outside interference or distraction. His use of Solomonic Magick to enact his Will in the Universe also has a secular angle, as he sees the angelic and demonic names and sigils as representations of the myriad sub-personalities which make up the frontal and subconscious minds, there to be focused on and brought forward in order to organise one's mind in such a way as to direct one's consciousness into the outside world with greatest effect. He has no devotional practice and reveres no Gods or Goddesses, but the faith that he places in his own ability and the strength of his own Will grant him power over the minds of those around him, and allow him to directly influence the physical world to his advantage, all of this with no religious inclination whatsoever. There are many advantages and disadvantages to both religious and secular practice, an example being the use of prayer; religious practices use prayers extensively as a means of focusing the Will and connecting directly to the chosen deities, and can be either spoken aloud or internally through thought. The religious Magician will feel connected through this practice, even when the prayer is internal, but what the religious Magician may forget is that the spoken word amplifies the power of the thought or intention behind it, and therefore, a secular practitioner might not require prayer to have the exact same effect. Many secular practitioners simply use mantra or an individual word with numerous symbolic associations, which when spoken aloud, amplifies their Will to the same degree as a spoken prayer, though it is much more simplistic in practice and therefore may have a more basic outcome.
Another pitfall in the religious/secular dichotomy is that of good and evil. The religious practitioner has the notion that good and bad deeds are answered by a higher power, for example "God's wrath" upon those who commit evil, whereas the secularist would view good and bad through the lens of Karma, an unconscious system of cause and effect intrinsic to nature and cyclical systems, "what goes around comes around", but with the added kick of all energy, both good and bad, being amplified and returned to its point of origin through the toroidal motion of the Universe. While the religious model is an effective means by which the individual can regulate one's behaviour and thoughts while establishing a personal relationship with their God or Gods, it operates as a system based on fear of judgement and punishment, and can easily be manipulated into system of control of one person over another. Conversely, the secular system, if interpreted by an undignified individual, permits the idea of action without consequence, until toroidal Karma is applied, at which point it becomes the choice of the individual to continue with negative actions in the full knowledge that they are ultimately harming themselves as well as others, regulating the person's thoughts and behaviour whilst keeping their sovereignty intact. In some cases, the secular practitioner chooses to continue acting irresponsibly in the assumption that certain action can be taken to minimise the Karmic backlash, resulting in dark magicians. The only true plus of the secular model is that it avoids the issues of God's benevolence vs God's omnipotence, as well as the issue of extent evil and the struggle between good and evil which many view as a false construct. This does not, by any means, devalue the work of those with religious overtones in their practice, for each individual has their own set of beliefs and rituals which serve them better or worse than the next person, but this does suggest that Magick is not directly received from the Gods, for if it were, then secular Magick would be far less effective that that of religious works. Instead, the two most likely explanations are either: a) Magick is born from the self as a bi-product of consciousness and its effectiveness depends entirely on the individual's strength of mind/Will; or b) Magick is a force of nature, a product of existence, either born from it or preceding it, and can be interacted with and directed by those who are attuned, mentally and spiritually, to the vibratory frequencies of these forces either through natural ability or acquired aptitude. My preference is towards the latter, for this ties into my research into the Unified Field and the subtle energy forces of the Universe, though the other explanation has much merit also; perhaps both are true in part, for the individual's Will to either accept or dismiss the existence of Spirit often dictates the degree to which they become attuned to the subtle energy frequencies, meaning that though Magick is a force of nature, it is brought forward and manifested through the individual in accordance with their Will. I'll leave that for you to decide.
Next, the question of group practice vs solitary Magick. The arguments for one or the other are centered on very much the same concepts as mentioned above, and can even be explored though observation of physical energetic systems such as electricity. In many ways, my personal view on the matter is that both group and solitary Magick have benefits for different types of ceremony or spell depending on the intention behind it. The solitary witch or shaman may find that practicing Magick alone prevents their intentions from being confused or disrupted, and that their spells are more effective with clear intent and direct application, whereas a coven will find that if they can synchronise their intention through extreme discipline, then their combined energetic output would yield greater rewards or manifest more quickly. I like to compare Magick to electricity, for it is in and of itself a form of energy and would thus behave in a similar way. The solitary witch's Magick can be compared to a bolt of lightning. It is fast acting and direct, but it is short lived and branches off on tangents before dissipating; in contrast, a coven's Magick is more like a circuit, each member contributing their energy to the collective, and when a coven join hands or cross staffs, the energy passes between them, maintaining a continuous flow without dissipating whilst being infused with the collective intention. The only downside to this is that if one member of the coven has any reservation or equivocation, or their intention's or desires differ slightly from that of the other members, then the circuit is either broken or the energy encounters resistance, which is not experienced by the solitary witch. Whether this is because the coven are each partaking of an external energy which is acting in alignment with their Will, or whether the energy is generated by each member individually and thus acts either in tandem or opposition to the energy created by each other member, is unclear; both explanations hold equal merit depending on which outlook is preferable to the individual.
Overall, the group practice, when done properly is more likely to yield long term results, but can take a long time to manifest, especially if the intentions are disrupted, whilst solitary Magick will likely manifest quickly and as intended, but may not last or may have unexpected consequences. When it comes to solitary and group Magick, it is not a question of which is more effective than the other, for both are equally powerful; it is more a matter of how each should be applied. If the aim of the Magick is to bring healing or good fortune or protection to a person or group (separate from those casting the Magick) then group practice is likely to be more effective for the well being of others is often something which all members of a coven can agree on without difference in specifics, and so the slow acting, long term effects are better suited to manifest those intentions. For Magick centered around bringing abundance or protection into one's own life or creating opportunities for growth, the solitary Magician may have better results, for more often than not, the solitary witch will perform spells for good luck in a job interview, or for a windfall of money in hard times, or for protection against negativity from family or neighbours, all of which are required to manifest quickly and last only for a short duration, plus the specifics of the Magician's desires can be tailored to the individual without being diluted or directly opposed by the Will of another. These are of course general examples to demonstrate the point that Magick is a wholly organic power, an energy which can either help or hinder the caster, which operates with its own Will whilst working in accordance with that of the witch or coven, and an energy which operates equally with religious practitioners or secular Magicians. While there is no doubt in my mind that the arcane arts were bestowed upon the human race by beings of a higher consciousness or from higher dimensions (be they the Watchers or the Gods etc.) I do feel that it was merely the knowledge of how to work with something already imminent in the world, rather than something which is handed out to us dirctly from those higher powers. I feel that it would be disingenuous and arrogant to proclaim that the Self is the ultimate supreme being, but I would also argue that the Self is truly the instrument of divine Will, and that Magick is derived directly from neither God nor man, but rather is part of the Universe itself, there to be worshiped, communed with, handled with care, channeled and eventually understood through cautious analysis and experience, just as one comes to understand a majestic but wild animal. I may elaborate on my perceptions of Magick in a later post, but for now I will sign off and wish you all a good day or night wherever you are in the world. May the Gods be with you.
Enki Endymion. O(
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