A rchive Date
[ 01-08-2004 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ Mass Media ]
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[Twist off: Chaos magic brings order to some lives
By Sean Twist - For the London Free Press
May 21, 2000
Usually when I think of synchronicity, I think of The Police' s last album. Recently, though, events have transpired that have led me think of synchronicity in a way that wouldn't have Carl Jung rolling his eyes and wondering if he shouldn't have taken up lawn bowling instead of psychology.
Three events have occurred in my life which, while coincidental, seem to be mysteriously connected.
No. 1: One of my favourite comic books, The Invisibles, a story about counter-culture terrorists battling the evil forces of conformity, ended after six years. Its writer, Grant Morrison, declared the entire run a "spell," and challenged his readers to learn more about magic.
No. 2: I'm asked to join a mailing list - Angry Brigade. Upon joining, I discover it's filled with chaos magicians talking about worldwide revolution.
No. 3: I meet an old friend after a eight-year separation. He informs me that he used to run an occult bookshop and regales me with tales of chaos magic and pagan festivals.
You have two choices when life becomes this strange: You can decide its time to make new friends who think lawn care is a high point of discussion, or you can go with the flow life is channelling toward you. I chose the latter, since I thought it would probably make a better column.
But as a nonconformist Christian, the idea of magic - especially chaos magic - makes me uneasy. Call it the triumph of Catholic church dogma ingrained in my ancestral DNA, but I am afraid of Dabbling With Things Which We Do Not Understand. That, or I've read too much H. P. Lovecraft.
So I turned to Jody Travail, the proprietor of the Mystic Bookshop. I asked her one Sunday afternoon to explain to me what all of this might mean. Just what is chaos magic, I asked, and why is it so popular?
Travail is a true London gem. In her quiet, gentle way, she answered my questions without making me feel like a stumbling clod.
She first explained her idea of magic: "Magic is the doorway into our larger self," she said. "It's about change. It's about taking responsibility for your life, of having a desire to make change in your life."
Travail sees magic in the beauty of nature, in the ever-shifting world around her. Fair enough. But what of chaos magic?
Travail metaphorically took my hand as we entered the forest of this question. She explained that while there are several established magic systems, chaos magic is really the do-it-yourself magical belief. With it, a chaos magician (who could be anyone, from a black-clad Goth to your hockey coach) picks what he or she likes, building a system out of their own personal needs and beliefs. By its very nature, it can't be established or homogenous. Thus, it's chaotic in the most wonderful, individual way.
It makes sense. In a world where people can modify everything from their cable service to their baby's genetics, why not make your own belief system? You make the dogma. You set the canon. Then change it if it no longer works.
But what of the unease around magic?
"It's just a word," Travail says "It becomes a problem to put people at ease."
After talking with her, I feel more relaxed with the concept.
Now that's. . .well, you know.
Sean Twist is a London freelance writer. His column appears every other Saturday Copyright (c) 2000 The London Free Press, a division of Sun Media Corporation
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