Magic like anything else in this world operates according to certain laws.

Below is listed several

laws which are a synthesis of two seperate documents. Like the models of magic posted elsewhere
I have found these laws to be very handy to reference when speaking with others as well as handy
to reference when creating my own rituals, or studying someone else's. Some of these laws can be
used to help design a ritual such as the Law of True Names, and the Laws of Association. Some of
these are helpful to create logical ways to look at an issue when it comes to a person's
understanding of magic such as the law of synthesis.

Some of the following laws have been coined by the anthropological community and are accepted
terms in college. The most notable of these is the Law of Contagion, and the Law of Similairity.
Other laws seem to be an adaptation of modern scientific or psychological theory such as the law of
infinite universes. I personally don't necessarily support all of these laws but I have chosen not to
pick and choose which laws to include so I have included all of them. Personally I have some
issues with the Law of Pragmatism and tend to rely more on the law of synthesis for example. Also
I tend to dislike this law of balance which states not to go to extremes. While I dislike going to
extremes most of the time I tend to go to either extreme and then come to rest in the middle. The
whole spectrum is valid for study and temporary practice but only the middle path tends to be my
continued practice.

Law of Cause and Effect

"The same actions under the same conditions produce the same results."

Anything done under EXACTLY the same conditions will always be associated with exactly
the same result. This law is taken for granted in the sciences and in everyday life. The whole
concept of causation is now on shaky ground, thanks to developments in the field of quantum
physics. But for practical purposes, in magick as well as in our everyday lives, we ignore causality
to our own peril. We must assume, at least in dealing with things the size of human beings, that
effects follow causes. Even in the constantly flowing, changing astral realm we find the law of
cause and effect in full operation.

Unfortunately the law of cause and effect is extremely difficult to test within the realm of magic.
There are so many influences upon spells that it is very difficult to perform the same spell twice
under the same conditions as a number of things are consistently different. Among some of these
things which easily change include the hour of day, day of week, time of years, astrological
correspondences, and perhaps the most difficult thing to reproduce the state of mind of the caster.

Despite the difficulty of this particular application of the law many general ideas can be reproduced.
The ritual for example is produced with the exact words at the same rythm etc. So that the law of
cause and effect becomes a guideline especially in keeping a record of effectiveness of spells.

A secondary application of the Law of Cause and Effect is in considereing the effects that are a
result of the spell that were not intended. Any change in the natural flow of reality results in
ripples. Overall in the giant scheme of things these ripples are virtually unnoticeable, however they
may cause some unpleasant side effects. Its kind of like the classic story of a boy who wishes for a
lot of money and the next day his favorite uncle dies and leaves money to the boy. The boy would
rather have his uncle than the money.

Law of Returns
"What one sends out comes back"
This is a corollary to the law of cause and effect which states that what one sends out comes back.
In other words, "what goes around comes around." The three fold law is an example of the law of
returns but not all magicians agree on the exact nature of the law or the quantifying factor stated in
the three fold law.

For example some magicians say the universe balances itself therefore when "good" is done in one
aspect, "evil" must be done else where to keep the universe in balance. As such doing good with
one's spells is likely to attract evil. Other's say that kindness creates kindness and hate begats hate
therefore this is more in keeping with the rule of three but in many cases its a 1-1 ration wrather
than the 1-3 ratio of the rule of three.

Law of Knowledge
"Greater understanding produces greater influence through greater affinity."

The Law of Knowledge states that, "With understanding comes control and power." This can be
applied in a few different ways. The initial understanding of this which I take from it is that the
more I know about magic itself the more powerful and effective I can make a spell. Understanding
the right herbs, runes, and stones to use for example to balance them out in a specific manner to
attain the correct result.

There is a second application of this however with others may come to first. Understanding the
current reality and the desired effect of the spell also brings greater control. Altering a person's
behavior for example is generally difficult to do for any extended period of time for any method
(psychologically or metaphysically). But by understanding why a person behaves the way they do,
and understanding what may cause the person to start behaving differently or in a desired manner
helps to better custom fit a spell towards that goal, therefore it will take less energy to accomplish
the task. Combine the two aspects and the law of knowledge becomes quite important.

Law of Self Knowledge

"Greater Understanding of self produces greater influence through greater affinity"

The Law of Self Knowledge is a sub-law of the law of knowledge. Basically it advises the
magician to "Know thyself." This law is particularly important in ancient forms of clerical magic
where often times the priest or magician would become a deity in order to perform an act the law of
self knowledge so to speak is one thing which allowed him to return to his normal state.

I think we can all agree that magic must be controlled and since magic is in a large part a mental
action then control of the mental faculties become important. Awareness of self (self knowledge)
becomes extremely important especially in understanding whether or not one is in such an
emotional state as to allow self control.

Law of Names
"Having greater knowledge of a manifestation's true and complete name leads to
greater affinity and influence."

This law is related to the Law of Knowledge and to the Law of Association. It states if one knows
the whole and complete name of a phenomenon or entity, one has complete control over it. This is
one of the reasons the Mystery Religions (including Christianity) conferred a new name on the
neophyte. His new name was then his true name, but it was known only to his fellow members of
the mystery. The Law of Names also relates to the Law of Personification which will be explained
later. Two premises behind the present law are: (1) Names are definitions. This is more obvious in
simpler languages, but it is as true of English as of any other. Sometimes the definition is hidden in
the origin of the word, as is often the case with those derived from Latin or Greek, but it is there. (2)
Names are mnemonic (memory) devices which trigger a range of associations. (See the
Law of Association).
There are two categories of thought on the idea of true names one follows from the idea that at all
things have a true name which is secret and once discovered that name can be used to control that
object, animal, plant, person or whatever else you would like.

In today's society the idea of threatening or commanding a god is almost incomprehensible to many
of us. This is an affect of christianity because its well documented that in many cultures such as
greece, egypt, and babylon that the priests not only asked gods for assistance, but oftentimes
demanded it and even threatened the gods with pain and suffering if they did not perform as asked.
The act was often performed through using the secret or forbidden name of the god.

The second category of true names is referred to as descriptive naming. Which is to say using a
rather long and detailed description of an object as a single name. This desciption may include a
persons given name, appearance, present location, geneological history etc. The idea is to isolate the
name so that it can ONLY apply to one object (the intended one) and apply the Law of Knowledge
to the spell. The True Name methodology is suppose to do this as a short cut but true names are
difficult to come by.

Law of Words of Power

"Having greater knowledge of words of power leads to greater affinity and influence."

This is a sublaw of the Law of Names. It states that certain words trigger changes in the inner and
outer realities of the person saying them. Many of these words are corruptions of the names of
ancient Gods. Words like "Abraxas," Osorronnophris," "Abracadabra" are examples. They have no
meaning to us today, but their power lies in the sounds of the words today.
.
Laws of Association
"Greater common characteristics between two manifestations with greater knowledge
of the commonalities produces greater affinity and influence."

If two things have something in common (anything!), that thing can be used to control both. This
law is the most commonly and frequently used of all the laws of magic. This law falls with the
principle of sympathetic magic. Simply this means things react upon each other under certain
imposed or imaginary conditions. Bell's theorem in quantum mechanics indicates that every
particle in the Universe affects every other. The following two sublaws, which anthropologists think
are the basis of "primitive" magick, are more useful in practice. These are the Laws of Similarity
and Contagion.
Law of Contagion
"Two manifestations which have been in contact remain in contact"

In other words once two things have been in contact with one another one can be used to control
both. Often times the degree of control is directly proportional to time and importance of contact.
For example a necklace which a person has worn but not often and that the person does not value
can be used for some degree of influence. A necklace which the person values greatly (a gift from a
lover for example) and wears all the time can be used to a much greater degree. The idea of using a
person's blood or hair comes primarily from this law however the law of similarity does apply.

Law of Similarity
"Effects resemble causes"
To make something fly, put feathers on it and make chirping noises. Wave it in the air. The example
is not entirely absurd and serves to illustrate the principle. Much of the magick of "primitive"
people is of this nature. For example, rain is made by (among other actions) sprinkling water on the
ground (or by washing your car -- a modern example of the same principle!). Another example of
this is using a person or things photograph to influence it.

Law of Identification
"Complete knowledge equals absolute affinity which equals identity."
This law relates to those of Knowledge, Association and Personification. It states that by complete
association between your metapattern and that of another entity, you can BECOME that entity. You
can then examine your own metapattern from the point of view of that entity. At full identification,
one "becomes" the entity. All idea of distinctness vanishes and you are empowered with all the
attributes of that entity because you ARE that entity. The danger here is that many people become
lost in the new identity as the stronger metapattern submerges the weaker. Proper training, practice
and guidance will lessen the danger.

The Law of Identification or imitation is where one entity assumes the characteristics of another.
The more the first entity knows about the second the better the imitation. If this produces a strong
association between both entities it might almost involve becoming the other entity itself. A
temporary identification can be considered a divine or spirit possession. This law is used by witches
when invoking the spirit of the Mother Goddess to enter the high priestess and Cernunnous to enter
the high priest.
Law of Synthesis
"Two opposing views of reality, or two realities, engenders a third which is more real
than either of the originals"

This principle allows you to hold two seemingly contradictory ideas (such as, "Electrons are
particles," and "Electrons are waves.") at the same time. Reality is as it is, not as we conceive it (or
even as we perceive it, for that matter). The wave-particle duality in physics is an example.
Physicists were nonplussed to observe in their experiments that light behaved (depending on the
experiment) sometimes like a wave and sometimes like a particle. Light striking a surface of copper,
say, releases electrons from the surface.
This phenomenon, when examined closely, demonstrates that light is made up of particles (now
called photons) which impart energy to the electrons, allowing them to escape. However, another
experiment, in which we direct a beam of light at some pinholes, "proves" that light is of the nature
of waves. If we direct a beam of light at an arrangement of pinholes:
---------------------------------------
I I I
I I I
I I screen--> I
I I I
I <--pinhole I
I I I
I I I
I I
LIGHT I I
I I
I I I
I I I
I <--pinhole I
I I I
I I I
I I I
I I I
---------------------------------------
assuming that we have a beam of "parallel" light (a plane wavefront), we see the light projected
onto the screen. If we cover one of the pinholes, we see a single illuminated spot on the screen. If
we uncover the first and cover the second pinhole, we again see a single spot projected onto the
screen. Now, if we uncover both pinholes, what do we see? Two spots of light? No! We see a
pattern of alternating light and dark bands on the screen. This phenomenon is due to
INTERFERENCE between the crests and troughs of the WAVES of light as they strike the screen.
When two crests occur together, or two troughs, the amplitude is doubled, and we get a bright area.
But when a crest and trough coincide, they cancel each other, and the result is a dark spot of zero
amplitude (no brightness). The point of all this is that interference is necessarily a WAVE
phenomenon. The experiment demonstrates the wave nature of light. How do we resolve the
dilemma? By realizing that we are dealing with something that is neither a wave nor a particle, but
SOMETHING ELSE.

Law of Polarity
"Any manifestation is divisible into two antithetical sets of attributes, each of which
contained in the other."
Anything can be separated into two opposite parts with each part having its own essence. This law
is essential to many mystical statements and arguments. Also, it is essential in denoting
characteristics of objects. Examples of these are: white and black, up and down, right and left.
As such this law is important when attempting to create a descriptive true name (See the Law of
True Names).
Law of Balance
"Greater balance is required for greater affinity and influence."
The Law of Balance is simply a statement for conserving personal energy and achieving the greatest
proficiency. One's energy or power level must be kept on an even keel, too much or too little will
kill oneself. This energy level is best maintained by avoiding extremes in thinking and action. One
must be open minded, able to consider all alternatives, but strong enough to determine one's
personal course in life. This requires the right amount of flexibility to be able to examine new ideas
or concepts in order to keep the ones which would improve one's life and reject those that would
not. In short, one never goes off on deep ends.

Law of Infinite Data

"The number of manifestations within the web(of reality) is infinite"
The Law of Infinite Data states that there always new information for one to learn. The sources of
knowledge are limitless if one wishes to tap them. This law can stimulate one to improve his
capacities. In other words we'll never run out of things to experience or learn.

Law of Pragmatism
"If it works its right"
This is a very useful law because it avoids moral arguments with oneself and others. In this case,
therefore, truth has a functional value since it works properly for the person. Such a law allows
different responses to the same or similar situations which is the interplay of the Law of Synthesis.
Law of Infinite Universes
"As there are infinite manifestations within the web possessed of infinite views of the
universe so there are infinite universes."
The Law of Infinite Universes states that each person sees his universe or world a different way;
therefore, no two people have identical views of the world. All people do not receive the same
information or data; if they do, they view it differently, thus making for an endless number of
universes.
Law of Finite Senses
"A manifestations ability to percieve limits its ability to know"
In other words we can't see everything so we can't know everything.

Law of True Falsehoods

"Data exists which contradict your knowledge but which never-the-less are true"

In other words if its a paradox its probably true. This law will hold until a better answer or solution
can be found. See also the law of synthesis.

Law of Personification
"All Manifestations live and have personality"

Law of Invocation
"All manifestations can summon real entities from within"

Law of Evocation
"All manifestations can summon real entities from without"

Law of Belief
"Greater belief is required for greater affinity and influence."

In other words, "Believe ye the mountain shall be moved and the moutain shall be moved." To use
magical power one has to feel it. This applies to everyone whether one is calling down a deity in a
magic circle or praying for a miracle in a church. Doubt leads to failure, belief leads to success,
perhaps not always physically, but always spiritually.