“Magic” is a big topic. It seems like it goes without saying, considering every culture on Earth has practiced magic in some way, shape, or form. That’s perhaps “broad” in too literal a sense of the word, and it’s a poor indicator of the topic’s size, even within the microcosm of a single culture. It’s a topic that reaches from the nadir of human pettiness to the apex of the cosmological hierarchy.
The scope isn’t the only problem: the subject itself is also highly plastic, employed by people in complete defiance of any attempt to systematize it. There is no singular unifying logic. The full range of human intelligence, ignorance, creativity, and unthinking repetition has been employed to coerce the universe to manifest the human will.
For a writer seeking inspiration, this can be absolutely overwhelming. Looking for a unifying logic for magic systems by reading ancient texts is like developing architectural plans from garden weeding: you might be able to relate them at some point, but the path from A to B is tenuous and opaque.
On the other hand, this can be incredibly liberating. For those interested in “soft magic,” it’s a boon, providing a near-endless resource of associations, methodologies, and intentions, free from an overriding demand for rationality.
For this compiler, we've found value in both the frustration and the irrationality. More importantly, we realized early on that we weren't studying secrets, means of action, or forbidden knowledge; we were studying people.
Whether an author is writing fantasy fiction with “hard magic,” “soft magic,” or a story where characters simply believe the magic is real, the value of studying real-world magical practice is hard to overstate. The grimoires, talismans, temples, and rites are all imprinted with the texture of the people who devised them, wrote them, made them, resided in them, and practiced them. Magic is embedded with its practitioners' beliefs, values, perspectives, and customs. It’s even infused with their speech patterns, frankness, and euphemism. Historical magic is full of character.
This resource will tackle subjects low and high, abstract and concrete. This compiler will endeavor to demystify magical practices and beliefs so writers can navigate this labyrinthine topic.
No comments:
Post a Comment