Categories of Magick

There a variety of ways to work Magick in this world, and despite what some might say, none are any lesser or greater than the others. It just depends on what you put into it. To break Magick down into each individual strain would take a lifetime, but to provide you with some very broad categories, I have put together a little list.

High vs. Low

High Magick is more often than not entirely temple based, or at the very least, entirely dependent upon ritual and ceremony. This might be a very complex, scripted rite similar to a screenplay, or it might be very free form, having a few basic elements but largely open to spur of the moment changes. In this category, we find things such as spiritual evocations, rituals of the pentagram and hexagram, and sabbat rituals.

On the other side of the spectrum, we find low Magick. Low Magick is the staple of practices like Hoodoo, which is ritualistic in its precision, while not being directly ritualized. Low Magick relies on things like powders, oils, talismans, and other very physical workings. Candle Magick, poppet work, spell jars, and the like all fall into this category because they are based on the idea of inherent sympathy in ingredients creating an effect when used a certain way.

Sympathetic vs Contagious

These two dichotomies are generally a part of low Magick, but can also be found in ritual work. Sympathetic Magick operates on the principle that like attracts like, and so creating an image of your target and performing works with it will in turn affect the target. The most obvious instance of this is the poppet, but using pictures and figure candles in spell work fall under the same category.

Conversely, we have contagious Magick, which works on the idea of bringing the spell into contact with the target so that it directly affects them. This is where things like carrying Gris Gris, laying tricks, and such come into play.

Spirit vs Energy

These two models are most often used as ways to explain how Magick works. On one side of the aisle, we have the spirit models, which suggest that work is carried out by spirits. This is a large facet of practices such as animism and shamanism.

On the other side is the energy model, which states that all Magick comes from energy, whether it is yours or from somewhere else, and that spirits are simply collected energy with a specific purpose.

Left Hand vs Right Hand

Left hand Path Magick is often mistakenly referred to as the 'darker' of these two, when in fact it is more accurate to say that it is the path of self sovereignty. Left hand Path work does not worship deities, though it can work with them. It treats gods more like any other spirits than as supreme intelligences. Shamanic paths, low Magick, and so on are more in line with the left hand.

Right hand Path, on the other hand, are those that worship their deities and essentially do not do Magick themselves. Instead, they bring things to their gods and put them in their hands, and their gods handle things for them. More deity centric practices such as Wicca, gnosticism, and such fall into this category.

Psychosomatic vs Mystical

This final category isn't necessarily defined as such in many places, but it always exists. The psychosomatic model states that Magick has no effect, and instead, that we either create or perceive changes through our own mind. This category states that the reason a love spell works is that you are confident that the spell worked, and because you are confident, you exude an aura of confidence, and you are more sure of yourself, and because of this, you attract your target.

On the other side is the mystical category, which states that Magick is Magick. In this model, the spell works because Magick is inherently Magickal, and you change the mindset world by changing the subtle world.

Whatever your model, however you choose to work Magick, the main thing is that you work within the arena that you are most comfortable. If you prefer spell jars, then make your jars. If you like spirits, conjure them. All that matters in the end is that you can fully invest in the work at hand.