Editing Magic and religion

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{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2022}}
{{globalize|date=September 2023}}
{{Magic sidebar|Background}}
{{Anthropology of religion}}

People who believe in [[magic (supernatural)|magic]] can be found in all societies, regardless of whether they have organized [[religion|religious]] hierarchies, including formal [[clergy]], or more informal systems. Such concepts tend to appear more frequently in cultures based in [[polytheism]], [[animism]], or [[shamanism]]. Religion and magic became conceptually separated in the [[Western world|West]] where the distinction arose between supernatural events sanctioned by approved religious doctrine versus magic rooted in other religious sources. With the rise of [[Christianity]] this became characterised with the contrast between [[divine]] [[miracle]]s versus [[folk religion]], [[superstition]], or [[occult]] speculation.

==Distinction==
Early sociological interpretations of magic by [[Marcel Mauss]] and [[Henri Hubert]] emphasized the social conditions in which the phenomenon of magic develops.<ref name="Pasi">Pasi, M. 2006. "Magic". in [[Kocku von Stuckrad|Stuckrad, Kocku von]] (ed.) ''The Brill Dictionary of Ancient Religion. Volume III. M-R.'' Leiden and Boston, Brill. 1134-1140.</ref> According to them, religion is the expression of a social structure and serves to maintain the cohesion of a community (religion is therefore public) and magic is an individualistic action (and therefore private).<ref name="Pasi" />

[[Ralph Merrifield]], the [[British people|British]] archaeologist credited as producing the first full-length volume dedicated to a [[Material culture|material]] approach to magic,<ref>Houlbrook, C. and Armitage, N. 'Introduction: The materiality of the materiality of magic', in Houlbrook, C. and Armitage, N. (eds.) ''The Materiality of Magic: An artefactual investigation into ritual practices and popular beliefs''.Oxford and Philadelphia, Oxbow Books. 1-13.</ref> defined the differences between religion and magic:
"'Religion' is used to indicate the belief in supernatural or spiritual beings; 'magic', the use of practices intended to bring occult forces under control and so to influence events; 'ritual', prescribed or customary behaviour that may be religious, if it is intended to placate or win favour of supernatural beings, magical if it is intended to operate through impersonal forces of sympathy or by controlling supernatural beings, or social if its purpose is to reinforce a social organisation or facilitate social intercourse".<ref name="Merrifield">Merrifield, R. 1987. ''The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic''. London, Guild Publishing.</ref>

In 1991 Henk Versnel argued that magic and religion function in different ways and that these can be broadly defined in four areas: Intention – magic is employed to achieve clear and immediate goals for an individual, whereas religion is less purpose-motivated and has its sights set on longer-term goals; Attitude – magic is manipulative as the process is in the hands of the user, "instrumental coercive manipulation", opposed to the religious attitude of "personal and supplicative negotiation"; Action – magic is a technical exercise that often requires professional skills to fulfil an action, whereas religion is not dependent upon these factors but the will and sentiment of the gods; Social – the goals of magic run counter to the interests of a society (in that personal gain for an individual gives them an unfair advantage over peers), whereas religion has more benevolent and positive social functions.<ref name="Versnel">Versnel, H. S. 1991. “Some Reflections on the Relationship Magic-Religion.” Numen 38 (2). 177-195.</ref>

==Connection==
This separation of the terms 'religion' and 'magic' in a functional sense is disputed. It has been argued that abandoning the term magic in favour of discussing "belief in spiritual beings" will help to create a more meaningful understanding of all associated ritual practices.<ref>Otto, B-C. 2013. "Towards Historicizing 'Magic' in Antiquity", ''Numen'' 60. 308-347.</ref> However using the word 'magic' alongside 'religion' is one method of trying to understand the supernatural world, even if some other term can eventually take its place.<ref name="Versnel" />

It is a postulate of modern [[anthropology]], at least since early 1930s, that there is complete continuity between magic and religion.

[[Robert Ranulph Marett]] (1932) said:

{{blockquote|Many leading anthropologists, including the author of The Golden Bough, would wholly or in the main refuse the title of religion to these almost inarticulate ceremonies of very humble folk. I am afraid, however, that I cannot follow them. [...] They are mysteries, and are therefore at least generically akin to religion. Moreover, they are held in the highest public esteem as of infinite worth whether in themselves or for their effects. To label them, then, with the opprobrious name of magic as if they were on a par with the mummeries that enable certain knaves to batten on the nerves of fools is quite unscientific; for it mixes up two things which the student of human culture must keep rigidly apart, namely, a normal development of the social life and one of its morbid by-products. Hence for me they belong to religion, but of course to rudimentary religion—to an early phase of the same world-wide institution that we know by that name among ourselves. I am bound to postulate the strictest continuity between these stages of what I have here undertaken to interpret as a natural growth.<ref>[[Robert Ranulph Marett]] (1932) [http://www.giffordlectures.org/Browse.asp?PubID=TPFHCR&Volume=0&Issue=0&TOC=True ''Faith, Hope and Charity in Primitive Religion''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111119025854/http://www.giffordlectures.org/Browse.asp?PubID=TPFHCR&Volume=0&Issue=0&TOC=True |date=2011-11-19}}, in [[Gifford Lectures]]. Lecture II [https://archive.today/20120731050138/http://www.giffordlectures.org/Browse.asp?PubID=TPFHCR&Volume=0&Issue=0&ArticleID=3 ''Hope''].</ref>}}

[[Ernst Cassirer]] (1944) wrote:

{{blockquote|It seems to be one of the postulates of modern anthropology that there is complete continuity between magic and religion. [note 35: See, for instance, RR Marett, Faith, Hope, and Charity in Primitive Religion, the Gifford Lectures (Macmillan, 1932), Lecture II, pp. 21 ff.] ... We have no empirical evidence at all that there ever was an age of magic that has been followed and superseded by an age of religion.<ref>[[Ernst Cassirer|Cassirer, Ernst]] (1944) [https://books.google.com/books?id=pe9fWSv-iLsC&pg=PA102 ''An Essay On Man''], pt.II, ch.7 ''Myth and Religion'', pp.122-3.</ref>}}

In ancient Egypt, the religion held that the gods' actions maintained ''maat'' and created and sustained all living things.{{sfn|Tobin|1989|pp=197–200}} They did this work using a force the Egyptians called ''[[heku|heka]]'', a term usually translated as "magic". ''Heka'' was a fundamental power that the creator god used to form the world and the gods themselves.{{sfn|Hornung|1982|pp= 207–209}} Magic (personified as the god [[Heka (god)|''heka'']]) was an integral part of religion and culture which is known to us through a substantial corpus of texts which are products of the Egyptian tradition.<ref>Bell, H.I., Nock, A.D., Thompson, H., Magical Texts From A Bilingual Papyrus In The British Museum, Proceedings of The British Academy, Vol, XVII, London, p 24.</ref> While the category magic has been contentious for modern Egyptology, there is clear support for its applicability from ancient terminology.<ref name="Ritner, R.K. 2001, p 321">Ritner, R.K., Magic: An Overview in Redford, D.B., Oxford Encyclopedia Of Ancient Egypt, Oxford University Press, 2001, p 321</ref> The Coptic term ''hik'' is the descendant of the pharaonic term ''heka'', which, unlike its Coptic counterpart, had no connotation of impiety or illegality, and is attested from the Old Kingdom through to the Roman era.<ref name="Ritner, R.K. 2001, p 321"/> ''Heka'' was considered morally neutral and was applied to the practices and beliefs of both foreigners and Egyptians alike.<ref>Ritner, R.K., Magic: An Overview in Redford, D.B., Oxford Encyclopedia Of Ancient Egypt, Oxford University Press, 2001, pp. 321–322</ref> The Instructions for Merikare informs us that ''heka'' was a beneficence gifted by the creator to humanity "... in order to be weapons to ward off the blow of events".<ref>Ritner, R.K., Magic: An Overview in Redford, D.B., Oxford Encyclopedia Of Ancient Egypt, Oxford University Press, 2001, p. 322</ref> Magic was practiced by both the literate priestly hierarchy and by illiterate farmers and herdsmen, and the principle of ''heka'' underlay all ritual activity, both in the temples and in private settings.<ref>Ritner, R.K., Magic: An Overview in Redford, D.B., Oxford Encyclopedia Of Ancient Egypt, Oxford University Press, 2001, p. 323</ref>

The English word magic has its origins in [[ancient Greece]].{{sfn|Bremmer|2002|p=1}}
During the late sixth and early fifth centuries BCE, the Persian ''maguš'' was Graecicized and introduced into the ancient Greek language as ''μάγος'' and ''μαγεία''.{{sfn|Otto|Stausberg|2013|p=16}}  In doing so it transformed meaning, gaining negative connotations, with the ''magos'' being regarded as a charlatan whose ritual practices were fraudulent, strange, unconventional, and dangerous.{{sfn|Otto|Stausberg|2013|p=16}} As noted by Davies, for the ancient Greeks—and subsequently for the ancient Romans—"magic was not distinct from religion but rather an unwelcome, improper expression of it—the religion of the other".{{sfn|Davies|2012|p=41}} The historian Richard Gordon suggested that for the ancient Greeks, being accused of practicing magic was "a form of insult".{{sfn|Gordon|1999|p=163}} [[Pliny the Elder]] seems to acknowledge that [[Magi]] are priests of a foreign religion, along the lines of the [[druid]]s of the [[Celts]] in Britain and Gaul.<ref>{{cite book|author= Pliny, the Elder|translator= H. Rackham|translator2= D. E. Eichholz|translator3= W. H. S. Jones|title=Natural History|location=London|publisher=Heinemann|date=1963}}</ref>

Connotations of magic have varied from positive to negative at times throughout history,{{sfn|Bailey|2018|pp=1-5}} Within [[Western culture]], magic has been linked to ideas of the [[Other (philosophy)|Other]],{{sfnm|1a1=Bogdan|1y=2012|1p=2|2a1=Graham|2y=2018|2p=255}} foreignness,{{sfn|Bailey|2018|p=89}} and primitivism;{{sfn|Davies|2012|p=1}} indicating that it is "a powerful marker of cultural difference"{{sfn|Styers|2004|p=14}} and likewise, a non-modern phenomenon.{{sfn|Styers|2004|p=8}} During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Western intellectuals perceived the practice of magic to be a sign of a primitive mentality and also commonly attributed it to marginalised groups of people.{{sfn|Styers|2004|p=14}}

==Intersections==
Even in places and times where magic and religion are considered distinct, separate concepts there have been numerous historical intersections where aspects from one would be [[syncretized]] with or borrowed from the other.{{cn|date=October 2023}}<!-- [[renaissance magic]] is likely to have solid citations on this subject -->
=== Rituals ===
{{main|Ritual}}
{{See also|Ritual magic|Magic (supernatural)|Ritual purification}}
Both magic and religion contain [[ritual]]s.<ref name="Merrifield" /> Most cultures have or have had in their past some form of magical tradition that recognizes a [[shamanistic]] interconnectedness of spirit. This may have been long ago, as a folk tradition that died out with the establishment of a major world religion, such as [[Judaism]], [[Christianity]], [[Islam]] or [[Buddhism]], or it may still co-exist with that world religion.<ref>[http://whitemagicwitch.com/magic-and-religion/ Magic and Religion] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714235043/http://whitemagicwitch.com/magic-and-religion/ |date=14 July 2014}}</ref> [[Coptic Christians]] were writing magical spells from the 1st to 12th centuries.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Meyer |first1=Marvin W. |title=Ancient Christian Magic Coptic Texts of Ritual Power |date=1999 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=9780691004587 |url=https://archive.org/details/ancientchristian00marv |url-access=registration}}</ref>

=== Names of the gods as true names ===
{{main|Names of God|Magical formula}}
There is a long-standing belief in the power of [[true name]]s, this often descends from the magical belief that knowing a being's true name grants  power over it.<ref>{{cite book | title=The Necessity of Art: A Marxist Approach | last = Fischer | first = Ernst | author-link = Ernst Fischer (writer) | year = 1981 | publisher = Penguin Books | location = New York, NY | page = 31}}</ref>

If names have power, then knowing the name of a god regarded as supreme in a religion should grant the greatest power of all.  This belief is reflected in traditional [[Wicca]], where the names of the Goddess and the Horned God – the two supreme deities in Wicca – are usually held as a secret to be revealed only to initiates. This belief is also reflected in ancient Judaism, which used the [[Tetragrammaton]] (YHWH, usually translated as "<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>" in small caps) to refer to God in the [[Tanakh]]. The same belief is seen in [[Hinduism]], but with different conclusions; rather, attaining transcendence and the power of God is seen as a ''good'' thing.  Thus, some Hindus chant the name of their favorite deities as often as possible, the most common being [[Krishna]].<ref>{{cite book | last = Gonick | first = Larry | author-link = Larry Gonick | title = [[The Cartoon History of the Universe]] | publisher = Doubleday}}</ref><!-- Don't laugh, it's a scholarly, well-researched source.-->

===Magic and Abrahamic religions===
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{{main|Jewish magical papyri|Christian views on magic|Islam and magic|Practical Kabbalah}}
Magic and [[Abrahamic religions]] have had a somewhat checkered past. The [[King James Version]] of the Bible included the famous translation "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live" (Exodus 22:18),<ref>{{cite book | title = [[King James Version of the Bible]] | year = 1611}}</ref> and [[Saul]] is rebuked by God for seeking advice from a [[Witch of Endor|diviner who could contact spirits]]. On the other hand, seemingly magical signs are documented in the Bible: For example, both the staff of Pharaoh's sorcerers as well as the [[staff of Moses]] and [[Aaron's rod|Aaron]] could be turned into snakes (Exodus 7:8-13). However, as Scott Noegel points out, the critical difference between the magic of Pharaoh's magicians and the non-magic of Moses is in the means by which the staff becomes a snake. For the Pharaoh's magicians, they employed "their secret arts" whereas Moses merely throws down his staff to turn it into a snake. To an ancient Egyptian, the startling difference would have been that Moses neither employed secret arts nor magical words. In the Torah, Noegel points out that YHWH does not need magical rituals to act.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Noegel |first=Scott B. |year=1996 |title=Moses and Magic: Notes on the Book of Exodus |journal=Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society |volume=24 |pages=45–59 |url=http://faculty.washington.edu/snoegel/PDFs/articles/Noegel%2019%20-%20JANES%201996.pdf |access-date=13 March 2022}}</ref>

The words 'witch' and '[[witchcraft]]' appear in some English versions of the Bible. Exodus 22:18 in the King James Version reads: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." The precise meaning of the Hebrew word ''mechshepha'' (root ''kashaph'') here translated as 'witch' and in some other modern versions, 'sorceress', is uncertain. In the [[Septuagint]] it was translated as ''pharmakeia'', meaning 'pharmacy', and on this basis, [[Reginald Scot]] claimed in the 16th century that 'witch' was an incorrect translation and poisoners were intended.<ref>[[Reginald Scot|Scot, Reginald]] (c. 1580) ''The Discoverie of Witchcraft'' Booke VI Ch. 1.</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Religion}}
* {{anli|Anthropology of religion}}
* {{anli|Exorcism}}
* {{anli|Goetia}}
* {{anli|History of magic}}
* {{anli|Mysticism}}
* {{anli|Myth and ritual}}
* [[Relationship between religion and science]]
* {{anli|Religio}}
* {{anli|Religion and mythology}}
* {{anli|Theories about religion}}
* {{anli|Worship of heavenly bodies}}

== References ==
{{citation style|date=December 2023}}
{{reflist}}

=== Works cited ===
{{Refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}
* {{cite journal |last=Bailey |first=Michael D. |title=The Meanings of Magic |journal=Magic, Ritual, and Witchcraft |volume=1 |number=1 |year=2006 |pages=1–23 |doi=10.1353/mrw.0.0052 |doi-access=free}}
* {{cite book |last=Bailey |first=Michael D. |title=Magic: The Basics |location=[[Abingdon-on-Thames|Abingdon]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-138-80961-1}}
* {{cite journal |last=Bogdan |first=Henrik |title=Introduction: Modern Western Magic |journal=[[Aries (journal)|Aries]] |volume=12 |number=1 |year=2012 |pages=1–16 |doi=10.1163/147783512X614812}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Bremmer |first=Jan N. |contribution=The Birth of the Term Magic |title=The Metamorphosis of Magic from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern Period |editor1=Jan N. Bremmer |editor2=Jan R. Veenstra |location=Leuven |publisher=Peeters |year=2002 |pages=1–2 |isbn=9789042912274}}
* {{cite book |last=Davies |first=Owen |title=Magic: A Very Short Introduction |location=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2012 |isbn=9780199588022 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ntYUDAAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book |last=Gordon |first=Richard |year=1999 |chapter=Imagining Greek and Roman Magic |title=The Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe |volume=2: Ancient Greece and Rome |location=London |publisher=Athlone Press |editor1=Bengt Ankarloo |editor2=Stuart Clark |pages=159–275 |isbn=978-0485890020}}
* {{cite journal |last=Graham |first=Elizabeth |year=2018 |title=Do You Believe in Magic? |journal=Material Religion: The Journal of Objects, Art and Belief |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=255–257 |doi=10.1080/17432200.2018.1443843 |s2cid=195037024}}
* {{cite book |last=Hornung |first=Erik |author-link=Erik Hornung |others=Translated by John Baines |title=Conceptions of God in Egypt: The One and the Many |publisher=Cornell University Press |year=1982 |orig-year=German edition 1971 |isbn=978-0-8014-1223-3}}
* {{cite book |last1=Otto |first1=Berndt-Christian |last2=Stausberg |first2=Michael |year=2013 |title=Defining Magic: A Reader |publisher=Equinox |location=Durham |isbn=9781908049803 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B2R_BAAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book |last=Styers |first=Randall |year=2004 |title=Making Magic: Religion, Magic, and Science in the Modern World |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=London |isbn=9780195169416}}
* {{cite book |last=Tobin |first=Vincent Arieh |title=Theological Principles of Egyptian Religion |publisher=P. Lang |year=1989 |isbn=978-0-8204-1082-1}}
{{Refend}}

==Further reading==
* Versluis, Arthur (1986). ''The Philosophy of Magic''. Routledge & Megan Paul.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Magic And Religion}}
[[Category:Anthropology of religion]]
[[Category:History of magic|Religion, Magic and]]
[[Category:Magic (supernatural)|Religion, Magic and]]
[[Category:Magical thinking|Religion, Magic and]]
[[Category:Religious controversies]]
[[Category:Witchcraft]]