THAT’S A STRANGE TAKE FOR A MAGICIAN!
“Are you sure you are a Magician?”
“A Magician should know better”
“That’s a strange take for a Magician!”
People say this to me all the time. Whether it’s magic or politics or money, invariably one of my fellow “magical people” raises and eyebrow and tells me that my approach is somehow strange for someone that practices magic.
Why?
Because I also believe in reality. I believe magic is part of reality, and just like anything real you need to be skillful about how you use it. Same with ideas about politics or money. Just yelling about what you want is not, and has never been, enough. You have to look at the obstacles and judge whether to avoid them, overcome them, or choose a different course entirely. You have to be realistic about what you don’t know – and not simply make shit up or believe conspiracies to fill the gaps.
There are a lot of people in our “magical community” that seem to feel that because they believe in something that mainstream society doesn’t believe in, that means they should be open to anything and everything. They hold that because magic or sorcery produces change in ways that science doesn’t understand or acknowledge yet, that they should not concern themselves with how their own dreams and ambitions actually come to pass.
I think the opposite.
I think that because we believe something is real that mainstream society doesn’t, that means we have to take even more care and exercise more discernment in our thinking. We have seen that the influence of magic is real, so we need to make sure what we aim it as is worthy of that influence.
I remember once being part of a group where someone started talking about how Ancient Lizard People were running the world. When I suggested this was not true and really shouldn’t be discussed seriously, I was told “we believe magic is real, so who are we to say this isn’t?” Obviously, I left the group because if anything my belief in magic makes it even more important that I not lose my grip on what is real.
So yeah. If I am less magical because I don’t believe in secret cabals running the world, or that utopia is going to emerge from a revolution, or that demons are going to shit gold coins on your altar: so be it.
I will go right on believing that is you want to achieve something you need to work for it, and fight for it strategically.
One last tip: if your magic “manifested” a mysterious check in the mail or a bank error in your favor – don’t spend that money. It’s a scam.