We've Got Magic To Do, Just For You

I'm sad to say this, but often the writing on Witchvox, as opposed to the news reporting and the community announcements, is somewhat disappointing. But this week Witchvox has an excellent article by Colleen Deatsman that ties in nicely with some of the points I tried to make in my Dark Moon Magic posting. Deatsman talls about the roll that intent, focus, and energy play in working magic.

As Deatsman explains, "The tricky part of intent is that we first need to know what we want. We need to fully understand what we are really after before we can make anything happen. In my private counseling practice, I get people all the time who have no idea what they want, or why they want it. It'’s common for people to say they want more money. I always ask them why. Invariably, their answer, their actual goal, is something completely different. That'’s why understanding and addressing one'’s intent is so very important. How can anyone expect any degree of productive outcome from magickal practice with inaccurate, conflicted, or undirected intent about what is desired?"

Further, "The second element is focus. Focus is the means, the discipline, and the pointed action we take to set our intent in motion. During ritual, energy is gathered, built, and concentrated through the action of focus."

Deatsman also notes that, "When participating in the magickal manipulation of energy, it is important to remember that the universe is sentient. All matter is densified high-vibration universal energy, and all high-vibration universal energy is intelligent. No matter what you might think of our current President, even he is comprised entirely of intelligent universal energy. For this reason, we must always exercise responsibility when employing the triumvirate of intent, focus, and energy. We must keep in mind that every component of the universe is interrelated. When we co-create reality, we are changing the shape of the universe by redirecting and reforming the currents of intelligent energy within the web."

Her statement is, I think, a nice explanation of what thealogians actually mean when the use the short-hand term, "Rule of Three." The Rule of Three states: "Ever mind the Rule of Three/Three times what thou givest returns to thee/This lesson well, thou must learn/Thee only gets what thou dost earn!" But no intelligent witch actually believes that if she binds a rapist, she'll suffer three times as much "bad lucK" as the rapist. What the rule of three really means is what Deatsman says: that when "we co-create reality, we are changing the shape of the universe by redirecting and reforming the currents of intelligent energy within the web." And, since we ourselves live in/on the web, anything that we do will affect us, as well. You can't change the system that you inhabit without affecting yourself. And there are times when the Law of Unintended Consequenses comes into play. Would that we as a species understood this on an ecological, much less a magical, basis.

So, do you perform a hex to cause John Ashcroft to get gallstones or do you cast a spell to ensure that he won't be able to violate the privacy rights of women by subpoening their medical records? Do you ask the ghost of Thomas Jefferson to haunt Bush's prayers at night or do you invoke the spirit of Dorothy Day and ask her to turn America's evangelicals into a positive force in American politics? My answer is: Yes. You do the magic that you feel called to do. And you accept when you do it that you may be changing reality in ways that will impact you in a manner that you have not completely imagined. If it makes you feel better, add a phrase such as, "For the good of all, may this or something better manifest itself/ Thiis my will, so mote it be." Or not. Either way, the Rule of Three comes down to this: A witch takes responsibility.