Magick Matters

29.11.2020

“From Satan’s Crown to the Holy Grail: Emeralds in Myth, Magic, and History” by Diane Morgan

Magick Matters

"Morgan discusses the origin of the emerald, its peculiar structure, and its strange allure. The story weaves across several continents and thousands of years. It is a tale of conquistadors, treachery, shipwrecks, and alchemy. Along the way, we meet scientists and kings and bear witness as the great emeralds are born, mined, smuggled, cut, and sold. The book also discusses the modern art of making synthetic emeralds. From the fastnesses of Afghanistan to the steamy jungles of Colombia and Zimbabwe, from the sands of Egypt to the bitter Urals, this is the story of a stone whose strange journey reflects the yearnings, greed, passions, and longing for beauty of the human race."...>>

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29.11.2020

“Magic and Impotence in the Middle Ages” by Catherine Rider

Magick Matters

"Magic and Impotence in the Middle Ages investigates the common medieval belief that magic could cause impotence, focusing particularly on the period 1150-1450. The subject has never been studied in detail before, but there is a surprisingly large amount of information about it in four kinds of source: confessors' manuals; medical compendia that discussed many illnesses; commentaries on canon law; and theological commentaries on the Sentences of Peter Lombard. Although most historians of medieval culture focus on only one or two of these kinds of source, a broader comparison reveals that medieval writers held surprisingly diverse opinions about what magic was, how it worked, and whether it was ever legitimate to use it. Medieval discussions...>>

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29.11.2020

“Magic and Ritual in Tibet: The Cult of Tara” by Stephan Beyer

Magick Matters

"The real history of man is the history of religion. The truth of the famous dictum of Max Muller, the father of the History of Religions, is nowhere so obvious as in Tibet. Western students have observed that religion and magic pervade not only the forms of Tibetan art, politics, and society, but also every detail of ordinary human existence. And what is the all-pervading religion of Tibet? The Buddhism of that country has been described to us, of course, but that does not mean the question has been answered. The unique importance of Stephan Beyerís work is that it presents the vital material ignored or slighted by others: the living ritual of Tibetan...>>

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29.11.2020

“Magic: The Basics” by Michael D. Bailey

Magick Matters

"Magic: The Basics is a concise and engaging introduction to magic in world history and contemporary societies. Presenting magic as a global phenomenon which has manifested in all human cultures, this book takes a thematic approach which explores the historical, social, and cultural aspects of magic. Key features include: * attempts to define magic either in universal or more particular terms, and to contrast it with other broad and potentially fluid categories such as religion and science; * an examination of different forms of magical practice and the purposes for which magic has been used; * debates about magic’s effectiveness, its reality, and its morality; * an...>>

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29.11.2020

“Not In Kansas Anymore: A Curious Tale of How Magic Is Transforming America” by Christine Wicker

Magick Matters

"Magic has stepped out of the movies, morphed from the pages of fairy tales, and taken root in the modern mind. Soccer moms are getting voodoo head washings in their backyards, young U.S. soldiers send chants toward pagan gods of war, and a seem-ingly normal family has determined that they are in fact elves. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are turning toward the supernatural in new ways, blending the ancient and the modern for a hyper-charged spirituality. They are reaching back in time to powers that have sustained the human imagina-tion for thousands of years. For many of us, magic is taking hold in less obvious ways. Almost unconsciously we find ourselves noting mysterious synchronicities...>>

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