I don’t pretend to be some sort of All Wise or All Knowing magic-user. I don’t even pretend to be more than a rank amateur, especially compared to my more experienced friends and peers. Also, I appreciate a certain sense of Aesthetic Mysteriousness as much as the next person. But, there are just some things that no one talks about within the occult community. Or, if they are talked about, only one or two people actually bring it out into the open. Everyone else just lets these things stay unvoiced. 

And that’s fine. 

In the same way that Discord seems to freak out when too many witches get on the same call, or people tend to forget things they aren’t meant to know (even when friends of mine have them recorded online) I imagine that the ~Mysteries~ will keep themselves even if I blog about them. 

~Visualization~ is Just Fancy Talk for Imagining

This was the biggest stumbling block in my practice. As far as I can tell, only Witchcraft for Everyone by and Psychic Witch by actually go anywhere near this fact. There have been plenty of people I’ve encountered who claim they can ~visualize~ something just as well as they can see it in real life. And, personally, I call bullshit on that. Maybe if they were trained in the visual arts I could believe it. But, most of them were too busy trying to impress the circle’s Queen Bitches. 

At the same time, you can imaging heat, or other senses when you imagine / visualize for spellwork. 

The Universe Never Stops Testing You

Some call it ‘Quest’ and some call it ‘Ordeal’. But, my understanding is that it’s generally the same thing. The world at large, and the Mysteries, test you and give you an opportunity to grow in a painful way before you can gain new insight, power, or understanding. And that shit never stops. There is never a place or time when a Magician is no longer tested and we get to sit peacefully with all the power and deep wisdom we have learned. It’s never peaceful. Some Fresh New Bullshit is always around the corner. 

Much like handling trauma, there is never a time when you are ‘over it’ and your past never comes back to haunt you. Sometimes it just lures you into a false sense of security before it shows up again. 

So, no. Getting Tested over and over again doesn’t mean you’re on the wrong track or you have ‘failed’ or ‘slipped.’ It’s very normal. People just don’t talk about that—and some will pretend only ~real~ Magicians don’t need to be tested more than once. So it ends up becoming fuel for Gatekeepers. 

There are Just as Many Assholes in Magic as There are Anywhere Else

This is related to the Visualization point. But, just because some religions are full of manipulative assholes doesn’t mean there aren’t a fair share involved in the occult as well. My biggest critique of Wicca? I don’t vibe with what I see as child bird defining a woman’s life, nor do I fuck with the Great Heteronormative Couple in the Sky. 

There are also legitimately dangerous people involved in the occult—but not for magical reasons. Plenty of people are looking for people to take advantage of, and there are predators in every sphere of life.