magic – The Concordian

A little faith in magic, maybe spirituality, is a great way to connect with yourself, and explore the mysteries of this universe.

Are science and faith at odds?

Some would say that science and faith are polar opposites, others say that science is a form of faith.

This idea stumped me. Is magic (anything in the realm of mystical, religious, or faith-based that we can’t verify with evidence) at odds with what we know about the natural world (scientific discovery)? While magic and faith share characteristics, they’re not quite the same.

Faith is an ingredient in magic. Faith is also an ingredient in science.

Magic and science, in these terms, are not directly connected, but share a relationship through continuity. Faith touches both magic and science, which got me thinking, do they share any other traits in common?

Let’s examine.

Curiosity of the unknown has driven many great minds to the craft of theorizing, experimenting, and documenting. This is, loosely, the world of science. The scientific method, in all its practicality, is a honed ritual.

Curiosities that can’t be captured and examined in our experiments, but persist in theory, have found their place in spiritual and religious methods, namely, the documenting and ritualizing of magic moments and experiences.

Evidence is the basis of all scientific purpose and discovery. Experiments must be unbiased and uninfluenced, and scientists go through great pains to accomplish this task. Scientists look for empirical evidence, that is, whatever they can observe with their five senses, to answer questions and confirm theories. Within the scientific world, there are some who rely on logic alone, skeptical of anything perceived through the senses. The principle is, if you can verify that 1 + 1 = 2 with basic deductive reasoning, not firsthand experience, then maybe you can verify other things without having to experience them too.

Meanwhile, in magic, evidence is understood in anecdote and intuition, rather than objective data collection. You cannot control, predict, or measure the setting wherein someone encounters God, or feels déjà-vu. This can lead to skepticism. But if we choose to limit ourselves only to that which we can verify with our senses, or with our logic, we’re left wholly unequipped to examine the mysteries that reach outside of the short net we cast into the abyss.

There are so many animals that enjoy a completely different experience of living in the world that we share, just because they have different senses to experience the world, and different brains that process those experiences. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to experience echolocation like bats, or send and receive empathic social messages like sperm whales.

When I think about it, our experiences are gathered from our five measly senses, and processed by our wee little three-pound brain — that’s pittens!

Take this example. I have seen swear-on-my-life, unexplainable, consistent magic with my own eyes. Truly. I experience it on a near-daily basis. It all comes from a book I own, “The Tao of Leadership,” which interprets the spiritual teachings of Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu, and marries them with modern psychology, thanks to the author, John Heider.

The 95-page book compiles the philosophies of the eastern religion Taoism that’s centered on the principle that Tao is a way of being. When you move in tandem with this principle, you move in harmony and are at one with the universe. “The Tao of Leadership” takes the principles of Tao and applies them to practical situations that a leader faces in group dynamics, the self, and the world at large.

When I look to the book for direction, I take it and ask a question that is plaguing me, like one does when reading tarot cards. I sit with the question for a moment. In the mindfulness practice, they call this a mindful pause. I open the book, and advice pours out. The words on the page are like the advice of a wise grandmother or a consoling friend — the kind of direction I’m in need of at that moment. It has yet to confuse or disappoint me.

Discovering this book has deepened my faith, curiosity, and calmed my skepticism of anything that doesn’t produce concrete evidence.

A point of reflection: have you ever had an experience, thought or feeling that deepened your appreciation for anecdotal evidence, and the experiences of other people, or even the experiences of animals, who perceive the world through different senses and different brains? Was this catalyst something you can explain or study through science?

It’s delicious to stoke a boundless curiosity usually reserved for children, and it’s been good for my health. The box has four walls. On the other side of the wall, there’s conversations with books, conversations with plants and animals, who knows what else?

Sharing this western culture that celebrates evidence, it’s likely that you, like me, believe in science. But my question to you is, do you believe in magic?

Feature graphic by Taylor Reddam

Modern-day witchcraft is alive and practiced more than we might think. Across Montreal, there are stores, schools, workshops, and more, that are dedicated to witchcraft and all its branches. Nowadays, the practice has been somewhat glorified with the popularity of shows like Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Charmed, and The Good Witch. Twentieth century witchcraft is far different than what it was back in the 1300s, but for those practicing witchy-religions like Wicca, it is no joke, nor purely aesthetic.

Witchcraft has a deep-rooted history, widely known because of the dark and devastating events of the past. Take the Salem Witch Trials, for example. According to an article on smithsonianmag.com, they occurred in Massachusetts between 1692 and 1693. Over 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft, thought of as “the Devil’s magic,” and 20 people were executed.

According to historians on History4everyone’s website, the witchcraft craze extended from the 1300s to the late 1600s. Fearful and paranoid Christians believed the Devil gave people known as witches the power to harm others and cast evil spells. Historians estimate that, between the 16th and 17th centuries, over 100,000 people were prosecuted and over 40,000 were executed.

According to the same source, in the Middle Ages, the Christian Church was anxious about rebellion; new heresies (branches of Christianity) and printing information among the elites increased this paranoia. Over 80 per cent of victims were women and the suspicion of witchcraft often aligned with characteristics of being older, widowed or single, and poor. During the witch trials, the accused that were “tempted by the devil” would go through a list of elements that would “prove” to the judge that they were, in fact, a witch. Some of the elements would include an unnatural way of travel, odd behaviour, etc. The accused were subject to torture to elicit information/confessions. This would result in the victim inventing stories just to stop the pain.

Charme & Sortilège is a witchcraft store that has been catering to Montreal witches and the curious for over 20 years. Kim, who didn’t want to give her last name, is a witch and the director of communications at the store. She said it took a few years before their products were of a quality standard to sell to White Magic practitioners.

“After multiple tests in dowsing, we were able to establish that the majority of these products did not undergo any energetic manipulation and had not received the “charge” a practitioner would expect,” she said. This created an issue that can still be seen today in various stores, where fake items are sold with the idea that they will help you practice witchcraft.

“[The items] were all just ordinary items, often sloppy, and adorned with esoteric names designed for quick resale to customers more superstitious than the “connaisseur” with knowledge and needs,” said Kim. Their 600 products are “dedicated, lustrated, invested, consecrated, sanctified, energized, and prepared according to methods of High Hermetic Magic mostly with certain Druidic, Shamanic, and Alchemical additions for some.”

Most common witchcraft practitioners are Wiccan, a religion that focuses on the Spirit that exists in everything. According to the Wicca website, Wiccans celebrate the cycles of the moon, sun and seasons, and try to find harmony within nature and universal energy.

There are different paths and traditions a witch can choose from, like Druidism, Shamanism, and so on. For Kim, being a witch is a way of life.

“It’s a way of being, feeling and reacting to everything that surrounds us,” she said. Some witches start their days with meditations, others light candles and incense, some choose to do Tarot or Oracle readings, and so on. “A Witch’s spirituality is beautiful in that way — we are free to practice the way we feel is right for us, as long as nobody gets hurt along the way.”

According to Kim, Charme & Sortilège has seen an increase in popularity and/or interest in witchcraft. “Maybe it’s because of the movies, TV series, books,” said Kim. “But also, I find that more and more people are searching for spiritual answers outside of the ‘normal institutionalized spiritualities/religions.’”

There’s also an important distinction between the francophone and anglophone communities.

“A lot of practitioners in the french community are solitary practitioners and more practitioners in the english community are forming circles and groups,” said Kim. “We’re working very hard to unite the community and unite the practitioners.” Charme & Sortilège offers workshops, monthly full moon celebrations, and more.

Despite the increased popularity, the witch community is still working to combat untrue claims about their practice. According to the Wicca website, witchcraft is not a cult, Wiccans do not worship Satan or consort with Demons, they do not sacrifice animals or humans, witches do not “steal or control the life force of another to achieve mystical or supernatural powers” and they do not use forces of nature to “hex or cast spells on others.” These false claims are a direct result of fears from the past and those who practice black magic, which Wiccans do not associate with.

According to Wicca, “witches have a very strict belief in the Law of Three, which states that whatever we send out into our world shall return to us three fold, either good or bane.”

Graphic by @sundaeghost