Gypsy Ways and Magic

I found this on a forum at SpellsOfMagic.com and thought it would be fun and appropriate to share:

Let me start off by saying my name is Tinka and I'm a gypsy born and raised. Shandi has asked me to give an overview of the ways of my people and going from there into our magic since it seems there are so many of you interested. I will do my best to explain it tho im not promising anything.


The Gypsy tradition goes back to the darkest reaches of time. It uses simple spells and rituals to harness the power of nature and of the elemental spirits that are all around us.


The Gypsy people are as independent in thought as they are in other areas of life, and they don't believe that a clergyman is really necessary to intercede between a person and the 'powers that be'. Although most Romanies would profess a belief in the official religion of the country in which they reside, and indeed many are now born-again Christians, there is still a deep respect for the old ways. And why not, when everyday experience proves the efficacy of those ways?


Everyone has the right and the ability to use the natural power of nature for themselves, though of course, as with everything else in life, some people are more talented than others. The more experienced a person is in the ways of the paranormal, the more confident and thus the more successful he will be come. The power should never be abused on trivialities, such as trying to impress others with your knowledge and ability, as this shows a complete lack of wisdom.


The Gypsy way is a way that springs from the heart, and the deepest, most primitive instincts of man. It respects nature and man's place in nature. It teaches us to take joy in the moment.

By: Tinka

Why Magick?

The ability to think seems to set us apart from other creatures. And although we are concerned with living in the physical world, we are mental beings. The fact is we are thinking all the time. We plan, we brood, we get depressed or elated -- all of it is thought. But the universe is mental too, and if we could control our thinking we would see magnificent results in the everyday world.

Many systems have been developed over the ages to help us control our thoughts. A great amount of dogma too has been kicked around in an attempt to make us into better people. Magick (the occult kind, spelled with a 'k') is one of the oldest and most general of these systems. Magick is the study and application of psychic forces. It uses mental training, concentration, and a system of symbols to program the mind. The purpose of magick is to alter the self and the environment according to the will.

Most of the magick we see today comes to us from ancient Egypt and Chaldea. The Chinese, Hindus, and Tibetans developed their own unique types of magick. Western magick was locked up by the Egyptian priests for thousands of years and then supressed by the rise of Christianity. It was not until medieval Europe that magical knowledge was rediscovered by the alchemists and Cabalists. Only during the past hundred years or so has western culture been open minded enough to permit widespread investigation of the subject. Only since the start of the twentieth century has science shown much interest in it at all.

WHY DO MAGICK?

Magick encompasses many things - science and art, philosophy and metaphysics, psychology and comparative religion. Magick is an adventure at the borderlands of the unknown. It can fit the pieces of the puzzle of life into a meaningful whole.

Magick is fun and interesting. Use magick to help raise consciousness without drugs. Gain new experiences. Fantasy can come alive through magick. Psychic phenomena can be controlled and be fun and helpful.

Magick is beneficial. It can help you to have excellent health, and bring you good luck. With magick, life runs smoothly; life is good. Magick can also be used for personality improvement, to control bad habits and to develop new motivations.

Magick is powerful. Never underestimate the tremendous power of magick. Use magick to alter events and to achieve your goals. Exert an influence over people and phenomena. But remember, power for its own sake is self defeating. The power which magick can give you should not be your primary reason for studying it.

Author: Phil Hansford

On Practical Magick

To some people, the idea that "Magick" is practical comes as a surprise.

It shouldn't. The entire basis for Magick is to exercise influence over one's environment. while Magick is also, and properly so, concerned with spiritual growth and psychological transformation, even the spiritual life must rest firmly on material foundations.

The material world and the psychic are intertwined, and it is this very fact that establishes the magickal Link: that the psychic can as easily influence the material as vice versa.

Magick can, and should, be used in one's daily life for better living! Each of us has been given Mind and Body, and surely we are under Spiritual obligation to make full usage of these wonderful gifts. Mind and Body work together, and Magick is simply the extension of this interaction into dimensions beyond the limits normally conceived. That's why we commonly talk of the "super-normal" in connection with domain of Magick.

The body is alive, and all Life is an expression of the Divine. There is God-power in the Body and in the Earth, just as there is in Mind and Spirit. With Love and Will, we use Mind to link these aspects of Divinity together to bring about change.

With Magick we increase the flow of Divinity in our lives and in the world around us. We add to the beauty of it all - for to work Magick we must work in harmony with the Laws of Nature and of the Psyche. Magick is the flowering of the Human Potential.

Practical Magick is concerned with the Craft of Living well and in harmony with Nature, and with the Magick of the Earth, in the things of the Earth, in the seasons and cycles and in the things we make with hand and Mind.

Found in: Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner