Contested Boundaries of Magic and Religion - Essay Example

Magic and Ritual Power This essay examines some aspect of modern magic and compares it to ancient magic from an academic,scholarly point of view. Magical power has had a significant role in motivating scientific progress, in comparison of modern and ancient magic. Those who seek power even in the modern world have been attracted to magical pursuit, seeking monetary excellence, glory earning or life-giving ends. From the ancient and modern magic, the lures of wealth, eternal life and health have charmed several an alchemist to madness, poorhouse or to ultimate deaths. Both modern and ancient have embraced these developments in a similar fervor. Although there are several similarities between these two, there are rifts that exist between the modern and the ancient magic leaving historians puzzled. Besides being clear among the historians that stagnation in the ancient times of magic has developed in the modern life since the 17th century, it has not been clarified what initially led to this revolution. Further, this article will delve into the differences around the motives that drove modern and ancient magic, with the argument the alteration of power structures in the 17th century led to the division that exist between these two eras and the subsequent eruption of the modern magic or science. These differences were explored from an academic perspective of accessibility, ideologies and prevailing philosophies. Ancient magic vs. modern logic can be taken from a philosophical approach. The rationalism dawn contributed to these aspects involved in the rift between the modern and ancient magic. Compared to life, alchemists were larger. An aura of mystery, wizardly, and magic clung around and still does around most activities. Ancient magicians’ inability to offer explanation of the chemical phenomena had their professions tagged as to possess magical power yet mysterious. Until the time when man had the ability to describe what the actual content of the process was and proceed to understand their magic, they were entirely unable to describe their failures but instead related these bottlenecks to the recalcitrant forces involved in the individual matter in themselves, heavens and in the environment. These unexplainable events in the ancient science instilled fear to both the performer and the onlooker and therefore rendered power to the experimenter, the alchemists dazzled themselves from their powers to make transformations of matter into new shapes, forms, colors or smells (Byrne, 2012). Interestingly with on the onset of the modern magi, science, or the age of reason magic acquire influence temporarily as a result of the intended potential materialistic gain that was generated from experimentation of magical practices. There was that duration that magical practices responded to new intellectual environments that emerged in Western Europe during the late middle ages. There was a growing emphasis toward the ideas that knowledge would be exploited to acquire practical gains. Despite that, philosophers such as Bacon Francis argued about the application of a scientific method and methodological science as societal interests in this form of science was on the rise. As the European thought arose from the middle ages, it shook off the belief in magic while the intellect authority in the church reasserted the potentialities and power of human reason and initiative. This focus shift marked a crucial change in magic attitudes over a shorter period. The 17th century science can be looked at as a mechanical and mathematical manifestation within the same impulses that were expressed in animist and magical philosophers regarding the nature held in the century that preceded it (Byrne, 2012). Interestingly, it was the same scientific or rather the methodical approach that lead to the institutional success of this ancient art to the modern formats. We have presently developed net technologies from what was known in the ancient days and from this the modern version can ascertain what the exact content of this practice entails. The improvement must have occurred from the 17th century of humanitarianism when materialistic gain and wealth was at its peak of interest among the people that lead to the popularization of this practice. The present magical practices claim that usefulness and ‘objectivity’ in the science truths leads to authority. These basic truths that argue of impartiality, truth of science, objectivity, combined with the scientific services directed to practical ends, lead to the overwhelming support from the society in pursuit of science that has been carried forward to the present. Those who practiced and still do, have legitimate knowledge levels since the century turned. In the modern century, the basic route to raise the knowledge status and increase power has been to modernize magic. Above all, magic in the modern world is not accorded as much attention as it was in the ancient ages (Byrne, 2012). Magical approaches, ancient and modern, can be taken from an ideological perspective in terms of belief in progress. The rift regarding the society’s popular perception in the ancient days assisted in increasing the differences between the ancient and modern formats. Ancient intellectualism and ancient science generally looked to the past to seek answers for the present situations. We earn that the alchemy history is similar to the other mythic constructions in the ancient culture known as the golden age in, religion, knowledge, music, poetry, science; knowledge was more pristine, at least fuller and always perfect during the distant past. It was therefore, the responsibility of magicians to delve down to ancient accounts and books while searching for mysterious answers in the world of magic. These scholars did not carry out the knowledge’s experimental determination, in the real sense, only the unschooled wizards undertook lab experiments unlike the modern times in magic. This implies that the day’s scholarly scientific knowhow was not attained through experimental observation but through theoretical reasoning. The ancient days saw scholars spending most of their time comparing and trying to interpret texts from the ancient books. In this case these sources included the natural sciences whilst attempting to offer a reconciliation of what they comprehended about the ancient authorities such ad Galen or Aristotle. The practices in the modern world involve both accounts of the past whilst in the futuristic research to predictable outcome. Unlike in the modern magic world, humanity was convinced that the world had bypassed its peak and that the entire knowledge of value could only be attained from the past happenings. Pursuit of magical knowledge was not to a great deal a bold venture toward the unknown as searched in the libraries for specific that was already documented or known of in the past. Power to antiquity was achieved from this view of knowledge (Snyder, 2006). The onset of the modern magic, age of reason, had the society emphasize the move from the past to the current practices while supporting the ideas of progress, which assumed the role to assert the notion that science was on the move in an upward trend in accumulating knowledge. it was realized that knowledge could be increased over a time span backed by hard work and research. This is how the ancient magic lost to the modern form where the defenders to the ancient superiority lost its plausibility in the glare of the 18th century’s optimism regarding the civilization advancement. The void that existed, historiographic, was sealed by the ideas of progress relating to faith in the application or development in human reasoning. Within the modern practices, the society no longer holds the belief that humanity has surpassed its golden age in knowledge but rather has attained more developed and new perspective that has seen the modern society as more fortunate compared to their predecessors as the sole heirs of the entire knowledge previously discovered. Therefore, the society is right to view the modern practices as the key holder to futuristic solutions and assertions that will contribute to the scientific and religious influence and understanding (Snyder, 2006). The ancient magic is known to retain its connection with humanity while the modern magic emphasizes the differences between these pursuits and other disciplines regarding power gains. In the ancient days, there was unity of knowledge that was interconnected with a variety of disciplines. That specifically related to religion (Knutson, 2005). In conclusion, the modern and ancient practices parted ways during the dawn of the 17th century’ renaissance and rationalism. Significant alterations in power entities in the prevailing society resulted to an upheaval under the medieval status quo that resultantly lead to a revolutionary reform, not only in the science of magic but also in the general scholarly works, religion, politics and social organizations. Since this revolution of the defining aspects between these science separated by age, the authority was overturned in sciences and not only within the middle ages but the ancient practices as well. This outshines all entities since Christianity arose to lower the reformation and renaissance among the ranks of mere displacements, episodes in the medieval Christiandom system. However, it can be termed as a culmination in the renaissance and the 17th century ideals that contributed to the evolution of pursuits in science to later the power motives of philosophical, ideological tends, knowledge accessibility, and the relationship of religion with science, magic. Reference Byrne, R. (2012). The magic. New York: Atria Books. Fraser, K. A. The Contested Boundaries of "Magic" and "Religion" in Late Pagan Monotheism. Magic, Ritual, and Witchcraft , 131-151. Knutson, A. C., & Crosman, C. (2005). Andrew Wyeth: memory & magic. Atlanta: High Museum of Art ;. Polansky, R. Ancient Philosophy, Mystery, and Magic. Ancient Philosophy, 455-462. Snyder, M. V. (2006). Magic study. New York: LUNA. Read More