Magic

Magic (supernatural)

Magic, sometimes spelled magick, is the application of beliefs, rituals or actions employed with the intent to manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces. It is a category into which various beliefs and practices have been placed, sometimes considered separate from both religion and science. This separation of the terms 'religion' and 'magic' in a functional sense is disputed. It is a postulate of modern anthropology, at least since early 1930s, that there is complete continuity between magic and religion.

Ceremonial magic

Ceremonial magic encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic. The works included are characterized by ceremony and numerous requisite accessories to aid the practitioner. It can be seen as an extension of ritual magic, and in most cases synonymous with it. Popularized by the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, it draws on such schools of philosophical and occult thought as Hermetic Qabalah, Enochian magic, Thelema, and the magic of various grimoires. Ceremonial magic is part of Hermeticism and Western esotericism.

Magic

Proper noun

1. An Allied cryptanalysis project, during and prior to World War II, that decrypted Japanese messages.