Most of the difficulties that face the people of our world are caused by their insistence on looking for the differences in people and culture rather than seeking to find the similarities in them. Remove the cultural influences and the spiritual moralities and most people become just people, each seeking to have as good a life as possible while raising their children the same. During World War II, Winston Churchill made the statement that England and America were two countries divided by a common language. This dilemma also has it's parallels in the Magical community.

This common human trait effects us as well. One group feels that ritual is the only 'proper' way to do magic, others seek the aid of 'gods' and 'goddesses' for their power. The list of differences in the beliefs of even those of us who have enlightened themselves to a greater reality can still cause hard feelings and misunderstanding. This even between a group that has more in common with each other than the rest of the species that goes its way oblivious to the spiritual nature of reality.

As one undertakes the living of a magical lifestyle there are many new lessons to be learned. Finding the right information to incorporate not only the right look but the correct mindset as well can be exhaustive. But it doesn't always have to be so. Life is also a lot about enjoyment. There are many ways to divine knowledge from just about any experience that you have. Having the ability to comprehend what you are seeing is a very important talent to develop.

One of the nice things about living life with this knowledge to observe and learn from everything is that wisdom can be found in unusual places. Many entertainers in both books and the movies have littered fanciful and sometimes quite dangerous ideas about Witchcraft, magic and the Spiritual realm. But to balance that somewhat is the discovery of a fiction that relates the truth of a thing better than mere mundane fact.

After several thousand years of patriarchal domination and rule in both the secular and religious institutions of the world it is small wonder that belief systems are reemerging that seek to balance the duel nature of humanity. Especially in the realm of religious beliefs, the role given to women has for too long been one of servitude and unimportance. The rise of modern Witchcraft and the Wiccan movement can be seen as an attempt at regaining a natural equality between the genders.

Our modern culture, especially in Europe and North America, puts a high value on freedom of choice and equality for everyone. It is a natural extension of this philosophy that comes into conflict with the majority of the mainstream religions that have held sway across much of our history. As the idea of masculine monotheism spread its way across the planet, usually at sword's point, the cultures that accepted the divinity of the feminine aspect were destroyed and demonized.

As with any science there is the inevitable mathematical formula which is used to define certain facts and principles. The science of magic also contains a defining formula which is as important in its workings as the physicist's E=MC[2]. It is an equation which, when calculated correctly, will insure the full and proper conclusion to any magical effort. M=ICV[d] is at the root of all magic.

M=Magic. In order to calculate for that answer you begin with the first element 'I' which is Imagination. Without the ability to form an idea in your mind of what can be achieved through your use of magic you cannot even begin to hope for success in your efforts. Imagination pulls the ideas of what you can do from the depths of your mind. Imagination is the mental spark that allows one to dream and strive to rise above the mundane existence of the material world.

There are many ways to practice magic and not all of them travel the road of spiritual improvement that is prevalent in the Wiccan way. Sorcery is a much more materialistic form of magic that is involved more with realizing ambitions on the earthly plain.

While the sorcerer may accept and adopt a pantheon of godlike spiritual entities for their personal philosophy, they tend to consider themselves as already advanced spiritual beings themselves. These magic workers are generally more concerned with the 'self' than the 'all'. Their work tends more toward ceremonial and ritual techniques than the average witchcraft practitioner who can improvise their spells to a greater degree.

Sorcery is not particularly 'evil', although they are often misunderstood. The practices undertaken in Sorcery can be sometimes a bit disturbing to the Witch who seeks harmony. There is occasionally a bit of bloodletting in sorceress rituals and the focus on the self entirely is viewed negatively by the Wiccan community. However, Sorcery is primarily involved in getting the most of what one wants out of life. That in itself does not make it wrong.

Superstition as defined by the mainstream cultural dictionaries, is a belief that objects or occurrences hold a specific meaning even though there is no logical seeming cause for such belief. Superstition is often considered to be beliefs only held and practiced by those ignorant of the workings of the scientific world.

But what are some of these so-called illogical superstitions? Simple ones like bad luck to walk under a ladder are not so illogical if viewed as an old warning that something may drop on your head. Coming out of a building culture which often used stone to create their architecture should serve as enlightenment for the seed of this belief.

Trees are some of the most important and magnificent life forms on our planet. Their roots break up stone and help hold the soil in place. Their leaves revert the carbon dioxide gasses we animal life forms exhale as toxins and absorb the carbon from it to release life-giving oxygen back to us. They product healthy and beneficial food for our consumption and the wood of their bodies can be put to more uses than can be easily measured. All this is just on the mundane material level.

On the etheric spirit level, the trees are a manifestation of the strongest of the Earth's magical energies. The auras of the trees can radiate on a vibrational frequency that can sooth the human spirit and bring it back into harmony. A portion of the spiritual energy of a tree can be retained in its wood or leaves for a very long time. This makes tree wood a very effective material for creating magical tools with. The wand is an obvious choice although a wooden handled athame will couple two forms of Earth energy into your tool.

The Wiccan Rede as it is called seems to be the one predominantly common rule of thumb that most all the various paths and denominations of the Wiccan religion agree on and include in their bylaws. It is a simple and elegant statement that no action or thought is taboo so long as it does no harm. It has become so popular that even the majority of Witchcraft practitioners have also adopted it to their belief system. Yet this simple statement needs to be investigated to see if it really is the best philosophy to follow.

'If it harms none, do what you will' is a relative newcomer to the Craft. It was not an ancient witch secret. The first appearance of the phrase occurred in the publication 'Green Egg' in a 1975 article by Gwen Thompson. It seems to be modified from the only slightly older 'Great Law' of Aliester Crowley's which states 'Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law, Love is the Law, Love under Will.'

While a newcomer to the Craft may be under the mistaken belief that magical work involves strange and supernatural powers, further study and understanding will eventually show them that the processes used, while meeting public skepticism, are in fact quite normal and an inherent part of the human experience. One of the most well studied aspects of the psychic abilities the Witch or magician can utilize in seeking knowledge is the ability to send their consciousness out from their bodies to witness objects and events at great distances.

The traditional lore calls this separation of the spirit part of a human being from their living body to travel across the etheric level of reality astral projection. Closely aligned with this process is the moving of the pure consciousness to another location and is called astral projection. In the late twentieth century this process acquired the label of 'remote viewing'. Surprisingly this intense study of the ability to travel along the astral level was instigated by the Central Intelligence Agency.