Issues within the Magical Paths

by Josephine McCarthy
Dont step in the dogshit
A wide variety of issues can surface within the early stages of magical training with
depressing regularity. As humans we are imperfect and the paths that we create within
magic are therefore also imperfect. Some of the imperfections can actually be helpful
as we learn to spot them both in the path and within ourselves. Others can limit and
some can damage. In this chapter we will loo! at some of the more common issues
that "uic!ly become apparent in some magical training schools courses and paths.
#nowing these issues and recognising them when you see them is fifty percent of the
solution. Acting upon them from within yourself is the other fifty percent.
$ruth and conse"uence
%hen one first starts magical training with a group school or teacher the sense of
euphoria &oy and sense of 'going home( can be very powerful as one finally feels they
have found finally a way forward.
It often does not ta!e long though to find oneself confronted with aspects of
the training that ma!es a person feel uncomfortable or inade"uate. Most students react
to this by either feeling isolated and useless or by becoming very evangelist about the
path as if to bloc! out the aspects that do not sit well with them.
$he evangelism is a common stage that can hit for a variety of reasons not
&ust from a place of inade"uateness) when a student finds a home they will defend it
vigorously and conveniently ignore the failings of the group. %e see this play out on
a regular basis in social networ! forums with students from various schools bashing it
out in ever increasingly aggressive tones. Such a display of misguided loyalty reflects
the immaturity of not only the student but also the school.
$o be fair though there are some societal manners that will dictate we defend
those we love and are connected to even when they are wrong. A student will blindly
defend a stance person or philosophy not because they understand it but because of
loyalty. Add to that the very common attitude that many grow up with) an adult must
never admit to a student or child that they are wrong) it is perceived as a wea!ness.
$his way of operating flies in the face of magical development) the first ma*im of
magic is 'to !now thyself( which is about honesty. $hat honesty is first about ones
self and then about everything else around you.
$his translates for a magical student as the first lesson to be learned)
everything and everyone has limitations wea!nesses and strengths. +very magical
path has its blind spots its dead ends and its degeneracy. %hy, -ecause it is a
structure created by humans and as such has all the inherent issues that every human
has. $o flower as a magician you first need to !now that wisdom and then it must be
enacted through your life your magical training and your own personal development.
If the path a student is on begins to display its wea!nesses it is important to
recognise those wea!nesses and decide if the path still holds enough learning for the
student to develop. Most do a few don(t. .rom that understanding the student learns
to be respectful of the path and teacher without clothing them in the glittering aura of
power) never ever put your path or teacher on a pedestal. /nderstand the wor!ings of
human nature and understand that while everything has its wea!nesses and down
sides it also has its strengths and gifts.
If the teacher or course demands unbridled loyalty then that is not a good
teacher. 0ou can be loyal to a group or person without glossing over the bad bits. It is
all about seeing the balance. If the group or teacher has good that balances the
wea!ness and that the teacher or path is open and upfront about the wea!nesses then
you have a path or teacher that can help you along the steps of magic that you need to
ta!e.
If you find that you feel the path you are wal!ing is all wonderful is the best
the only true path then you are not learning and understanding you are simply
following. $o simply follow is to not learn magic1 it is merely to be a member of a
magical club. $here is a difference.
On the other side of this is the issue whereby a student does not understand the
deeper aspects of a magical action or path and does not understanding why a
particular stance is being ta!en) they will argue with the teacher or with other
magicians but that argument comes from a place of ignorance. 2ever argue magic
from an opinion or theory 3 it is better to stay silent until you have direct e*perience
and then you have a valid voice.
Overall if you see a magical school that you are considering studying with
and that school has many factional spats with other opposing schools and lots of the
students are busy verbally launching personal attac!s upon the opposing side thin!
very carefully about handing over your magical training to that school. 0ou would
e*pect some of that behaviour from the early beginners are they defend their 'family(
but if any magician who is beyond the very basics is also behaving that way it is a
sign that the school is either badly unbalanced or is not actually operating with any
depth of magic. Such behaviour falls away "uic!ly from a person as they step into real
magic) it challenges your own truth and holds a very clear mirror to your face.
$his in turn helps you to reflect more deeply upon the behaviours of those
upon the path. 4isagreements are normal and are a part of everyday life) we all see
things in a slightly different way. -ut any magical path that holds a dogmatic stance
and encourages such dogmatic behaviour from its students is a path worth steering
clear of.
Se*ism
$he monster of se*ism rears its ugly head with depressing fre"uency in magical
groups and training and not &ust towards women it can also target men. $he root of
the problem is yet again another e*pression of inade"uacy on the part of the school
or teacher. -ecause it is such a comple* problem and can have such far reaching
affects in the lives of magicians I want to loo! at this closely and in detail. And
before you decide to s!ip over this section let me warn you that the issues
surrounding this problem are deep and can be very destructive for the development of
magician not &ust for the 'victim( but also for everyone else involved in the training.
It is something that is very important to be aware of why it happens what it does and
to also be aware that the magical implications go far beyond the simple social and
psychological ones.
Se*ism can appear in magical paths in a number of guises from the simple
usual act of demeaning bullying or sidelining one particular gender to the effective
binding of magical development through unbalanced magic and the bloc!ing of
streams of power flowing into a lodge or group.
$he basic first rule of good magical training is that gender at that level of
training is totally irrelevant. $here should be no specific roles for men and women as
the early and mid stages of training are all about techni"ues and patterns. If you find a
training group that has specific gender roles 5goddess stand in scryer etc6 then such a
group will most li!ely be a waste of time in terms of magical training. At later stages
of magical development there are times when gender roles do crop up simply by
nature of how the human body processes power but they are minor aspects of most
magical acts and should never be a ma&or part of a magical life.
Agendas
$his is the most common and most surface nasty that lur!s behind se*ism within
magic. Often when a man or woman enters a group for magical training they will be
unaware of the underlying agenda simply because it is not spo!en about. -ut sadly
there are still magical groups that feel that one gender or the other is superior and the
whole magical training and the magical wor! of the group is geared towards that
specific agenda.
$his appears within a lodge or group in a variety of ways. $here will be little
if any female adepts leaders or teachers. $he structure of the ritual the clothing
scripts tools etc will all be geared towards a male power. Many lodges that operate
this way often wor! with a religious pattern usually Christian but not e*clusively.
$he religion will have a specific dogma regarding women who are often perceived
has having an ancillary role within the spirituality and magic. Or the women are
simply stand in for 'the goddess( or is considered to be the vessel for power i.e. 'the
cup() its all about tits and wombs and little boys still loo!ing for their mother while
wanting to assert their manly strength.
$he other classic that cements this ine"uality and is prevalent within Pagan
groups is the concept of 'virgin mother crone( categories for women and goddesses.
$his was a concept developed by 7obert 8raves and the constant mista!e of trying to
pigeon hole everything. 0es these are aspects of women and goddesses but only a
percentage not by any means the whole picture. People parrot this concept without
realising the e*treme limitations it puts on women operating magically. $his triple
goddess mentality 5there were some but less than people thin!6 e"uates the "ualities
of women and goddesses to their direct relation to the se*ual act with men) 9as not
has se* is breeding from se* cannot breed from se*. 4o women and deities only
function in relation to men(s penises, 2o of course not. %arrior goddesses storm
goddesses planetary goddesses and then of course women who have se* but choose
to not have children women who never have se* with men) the permutations are
many as are the misguided attributes.
Any magical or mystical path that uses these categories is inherently flawed
when it comes to the female functioning in magic. $hose flaws will serve to limit a
female magician in her magical understanding scope of action and in turn ability to
learn their full potential as magicians. It is always a mista!e to try and categorise a
gender by specific roles in respect to magical training and learning. $here will be
times when someone steps into that role in magic but it will be for a specific magical
reason and will simply be a method of operation for a particular wor!ing not a
mantle of identity nor a definition of training.
Similarly there are magical groups that consider the women to be the power
and the men have side roles that are often subservient. All of these e*press personal
social cultural and religious issues that we still have not resolved in the world at
large. $he path of magical training is not the place for such issues to resolved or for
them to even appear. :oo! upon magical training in the same way you would loo!
upon a foreign language school or a computer training school) the students are &ust
students1 having balls or tits has nothing to do with what you are taught or what you
do.
$he most damage that such schools inflict is not upon the gender that is
sidelined but upon the gender that upholds such ignorant actions. A magician in a
lodge;school that has such gender agendas is much more li!ely to plateau early and
get stuc! at a lower level of training. %hy, -ecause the training and magical actions
of such a group is inherently unbalanced in its thin!ing and therefore will be bloc!ed
from more powerful magic. It is a simple power dynamic) where there is dogmatic or
degenerative thin!ing walls appear that protect the deeper mysteries. It is a protective
dynamic within magic and through immature behaviour or the upholding of immature
behaviour the pattern of power is undeveloped.
If you find yourself in such a school or group wal! away. It is almost
impossible to change dumb ass from the inside out and battling with it only creates
anger and frustration. If the issue is only mild which is very common in groups wor!
hard to flourish despite the ine"uality learn what you can and once it no longer serves
your purpose then wal! away. $here is a lot of strength that can be developed within
a magician by not fighting a system but flourishing despite it which in turn brings it
to redundancy. 0ou "uic!ly grow beyond the school but in the process you learn a
great many lessons about your own strength your own capabilities and also &ust how
dumb humans can be.
Se*ual manipulation
$his is a particularly nasty aspect of the seedier side of magic. %omen and young
men are usually the victims of this form of abuse and it is far too common within the
magical community for my li!ing.
$he se*ual manipulation usually presents itself by the teacher as!ing a
potential student candidate to send nude pictures of themselves as a part of the
selection process. $he teacher cherry pic!s potential se*ual targets through this
method and it also serves to disempower the student) they are intimately e*posed and
therefore made vulnerable. $his in turn ma!es it easier for the 'teacher( to manipulate
the student in any way they so wish.
Once the disempowered student is accepted then the grooming process
begins. $he student is told they are 'special( and that there is a specific magical role
for them to play in ritual. $hey are groomed for group se* or for voyeuristic se* with
the teacher while the other students watch.
Another version is where the student is told that having se* with the teacher is
the only way they can achieve 'initiation() they must be involved in a re<enactment of
creation se* between god and goddess in order to advance their magical career. All of
these things are presented with a dressing of 'magical history( and can sound very
credible to the uninitiated. -ut it is not about magic it is about se*ual abuse and
power games. Anytime any teacher coerces a student or convinces a student that se* is
a part of their magical education is a teacher who is a se*ual offender.
Se* does have a place within certain forms of magic but it is between two
consenting adults who are of e"ual magical status and power who !now what it is
they are doing. It is not magic when there is one partner who is considerably less
e*perienced magically and where one depends upon the other for their status and
education.
$o some young students it can appear to be 'edgy( and e*citing) that is what
the predator relies upon. $he end result is usually the same though a satisfied teacher
and a cast aside confused and re&ected student. Once the predator has had their fill
they will move onto the ne*t victim.
7acism
$his is another form of nasty that rears its head in some magical schools. -esides the
obvious forms of racism and sectarianism that appears in such schools there are
forms that are less obvious but &ust as ignorant culturally spiritually and magically.
.or e*ample there is a ma&or magical training school that states it(s members and
students must be part of the '%estern -ritish 9eritage( as they operate within the
'8roup Mind of our race and national community(.
$here are a few things wrong with this. I can understand that they state this as
they wish to wor! within a limited magical field of mythos i.e. the grail mysteries.
-ut such thin!ing is magically limited and badly thought out. .or instance the
magical system used to underpin the school is #abbalah) a near eastern magical
system that uses 9ebrew. 2ot very -ritish at all. It also overlays the Arthurian
tradition which is essentially .rench;2orman and %elsh faery patterns with
Christianity 5a near eastern religion6.
$hen we move on to issue of the nationality of the magician in relation to the
mysteries being wor!ed by the school. -y '-ritish( and 'race( and 'national
community( I presume they refer to Celtic;Sa*on;2orman;=i!ing 3 also !nown as
'white(. It ignores the other races that have mi*ed in to the -ritish community over
centuries who have contributed to our language iconography culture and society.
-ritain has been a melting pot from the very earliest times and it has a vast
wealth of magical and fol! traditions of which the Arthurian thread is but one. And it
is a very tenuous 'one( at that) it is a .rench import. At least this group is very upfront
about its re"uirements which is basically white Christian and that is wor!s in a very
narrow confine of magic with some bleached out Jewish origin patterns thrown in. If
as a budding magician you are happy to wor! in such restrictions then all is well.
-ut if you wish to develop fully as a magician not only will you find yourself
severely limited in magical scope you will also at some point either be on the sharp
receiving end of inherent magical racism or you will be complicit to such. $his has
many deep and far reaching implications from a magical spiritual and ethical
standpoint. So if you come across a magical school or training ground and it has such
a stance thin! very carefully about what you are getting involved in why and what
the long term implications would be for you. 7acism and its accompanying dynamics
are not always obvious and are often not perceived as such.
Money
Money and magic;spirituality is a very difficult issue that has lots of twists and turns.
Many feel it all should be free while others thin! that people should pay for what
they get. It is not a blac! and white issue and hopefully the following advice will help
a beginner to put this perspective and ma!e sensible choices.
Most magical training has some form of payment involved and this can be for
a variety of reasons. :et us first get the most obvious and potentially problematic one
out of the way. Some teachers or schools demand "uite large amounts of money for
their training or boo!s. $hese are most often teachers who run their teaching as a
business. More often than not the training that can be obtained from such a teacher or
school is substandard not because they are greedy but because of a much more subtle
dynamic.
If a person teaches or writes to ma!e a living they are driven by mar!et
forces. Often what a student needs to learn in magic if they truly wish to wal! a
profound magical path is not glamorous not fashionable and therefore is not popular.
So the teacher has to tailor the course or boo!s to suit a wider mar!et. $his in turn
wea!ens the teaching and it "uic!ly devolves down in to a mush of sensationalist
gimmic!s that pulls in the immature student who wishes to become a master of magic
in si* months.
I have yet to come across a teacher who has managed to ma!e their living
from teaching without compromising their wor! drastically. $hat does not mean there
are not teachers out there who can and do wor! successfully for profit while also
maintaining standards) it &ust means I have not come across them. :oo! and find out
for yourself.
.or us in a consumer world the lure of being able to simply pay the fee and
get the 'goods( is strong indeed. $he other dynamic is that the student feels they must
get their moneys worth and often we find situations whereby the student pressurises
the teacher to give 'value for money(. In turn the teacher !eeps on students who are
unsuitable for the training simply because they need to stream of money to continue
from the student.
2one of this has anything to do with the ethics of money and magic and
everything to do with how our relationship with money can dictate how magic flows.
$he need for income stops the teacher from re&ecting unsuitable students and from
giving students a hard time which is often unpleasant but necessary during the course
of magical training. %e all need to be challenged and put bac! upon ourselves in
many ways during our magical development and that is something that is brushed to
one side in the pursuit of profit.
So should magical training be for free, 2o for many reasons. $he first is
practical. $eaching ta!es time and a lot of effort. 2ecessary materials must be
obtained and if the teacher is conducting face to face teaching then travel must be
paid for. Many magical teachers also have &obs to support themselves and the teaching
is conducted in their spare time. -ut even then websites must be paid for along with
boo!s;materials travel etc.
Many of the larger magical schools approach this by charging a single
payment once a year for student who are underta!ing distance study. Often the
payment is relatively small) usually fifty to a hundred pounds or dollars a year and
the students are guided by volunteer supporters. $his wor!s when the school is large
and has many volunteer magicians who are willing to donate their time and energy.
$he positive side of this is that the student becomes a part of a si>able magical
community and can meet other students who are following the same path.
$he down side is that the training is often formulaic wor!ing from a set
course that is dispensed by volunteers. And the development of the student within that
formula is only as good as the volunteer that is guiding them. $he development is
often slow and it leaves no room for real magical spiritual progress that really cannot
be shoehorned into a set pattern in such a way. $hese types of courses can be very
good as a starting point and some people flourish well for many years in such a
school and many do not. It is an option to thin! about but it is important to
understand that more often than not the student outgrows such a school. $he other
issue with such a school is it can often be riddled with politics as the students vie with
each other for status within the hierarchy.
$he last problem that can happen with such a school if they are not managed
carefully is that the school can become too big. Some of these distance learning
schools have thousands of student members and essentially it degenerates in to a
'club(. Again such a situation is not all bad and can be a wonderful support networ!
and community for students. If a beginner decides to &oin one of these schools then it
would be wise once the basics have been learned to also underta!e their own study
and magical practice to compliment the course. As with all things there is never a
simple 'this is good and that is bad(1 learning to navigate your way through these
issues is all part and parcel of individual development.
Some teachers do not charge do not advertise and only wor! with a very small
number of apprentices over the years. $o teach under such conditions is truly a labour
of love and it can often be abused by thoughtless students. Our society is so used to
consuming that we always 'want more() if you are luc!y enough to find yourself with
such a teacher then ensure that you do not demand teaching or try to use the teacher
as a parent that you run to every time something is not "uite what you wish it to be.
Most magicians who teach this way often also have &obs so realise that every time
they teach you they are giving up their down time rela*ation or family time in order
to attend to you.
$here is a lot of responsibility upon the magical student in such circumstances
to ensure that the teacher is not ta!en advantage of and that what is given freely to the
student is passed on in later years. If you are offered free teaching by a teacher realise
there is no such thing as a free ride. Once you are capable you will be e*pected to
give bac! to the magical community by in turn teaching a student or helping people
when they are in need.
Another form of magical teaching that has developed over the last thirty years
or so is the wor!shop method of teaching. A student attends a wee!end wor!shop
three or four times a year where they are e*posed to two days of intensive teaching.
$he rest of the time the student is e*pected to follow their own studies so that the ne*t
time they attend a wee!end they have practiced learned developed and are ready for
the ne*t step. $his can be an effective way to be trained if you are willing to wor!
hard in between the sessions and not simply become a hobby tourist magician who
'plays out( for a couple of wee!ends a year.
.inancially this method can wor! in a variety of ways. If it is the main source
of a teacher(s income then the usual issue rears its head) the teaching becomes
tailored to what will draw people in and what they are willing to pay for. In turn the
wee!end sessions become more and more geared towards what is currently in
'magical fashion(. $hey can still serve a purpose but it is not an ideal situation.
Some teachers conduct wee!end wor!shops and charge fees but it is not their
main source of income) they most often have other &obs and you are paying for their
time and e*pertise. $his usually wor!s "uite well for both student and teacher. If you
feel that they should teach for free then as! yourself why you thin! that should be so.
Many teachers who hold wee!end sessions do it on their wee!ends off. Sometimes
they have to ta!e the .riday and Monday off wor! to travel to and from the venue
and they have often spent many hours organising boo!ing venues dealing with
people(s boo!ings and so forth. Organising a wee!end session usually ta!es about
forty hours all told. If someone is doing this in their spare time it is not unreasonable
for them to as! for money in return. 4o not fall into the trap of thin!ing that a teacher
'should( or 'should not( do something) it is not for the student or anyone else to dictate
how a teacher decides to teach. +ither you agree with it and decide to &oin in or you
do not and therefore you wal! away it is a simple as that.
.inancially these wee!ends can cost anything from to!en payments to
hundreds of dollars. $he variables in the pricing depend upon whether the teacher
needs to ma!e an income if the venue is e*pensive if flight costs 5and therefore
accommodation6 are involved. It is unrealistic and also simply bad manners to e*pect
a teacher to dedicate a whole wee!end to teaching a small group of people and the
students e*pecting to pay nothing for it) for e*ample teachers have to get to the venue
which most of the time involves cost which at times can be considerable.
Another way for such wee!ends to happen 5and is the way I wor! these days if
I do teach6 is for everyone to pay a share of the costs 5venue travel6. It should never
cost a teacher anything to turn up and teach for a wee!end. $he costs are covered
e"ually by everyone and the teaching is free. If a teacher offers such a thing do not
&ust ta!e) this is a really important magical dynamic. %hen a teacher does such a
thing they are opening many doors for you often a great energetic e*pense to
themselves. In turn you must give.
9ow you give is up to you) it may mean doing the same in the future i.e.
teaching magic in the same way or it may mean passing on the gift by helping a
neighbour or a fellow student in some way. $he energy e*change does not necessarily
have to go bac! to the teacher1 it &ust needs to move from you into something else.
$his engages a deeper magical process by which nothing can be truly given away as it
always comes bac! to you in some way and it is something which many communities
have forgotten. If you are taught for free thin! about what s!ills or resources you
have and do the same) pass it on.
+very teacher has to wor! to the way that they feel most comfortable with. So
that can range form e*pensive profitable courses right the way through to a teacher
ta!ing on an apprentice or two for free. As a beginner choose what wor!s for you
and do not fall into the traps of moralising) everyone has to wor! the best way for
them. $he !ey is to loo! closely as the various forms that are out there decide if they
wor! from a magical aspect for you and go with what wor!s best for you.
Status ;hierarchy
$his is an issue with magical schools that can be good or bad depending upon your
personality. %e loo!ed at this a bit in an early chapter but we can loo! at bit more in
depth to gain a better understanding of the issues that surrounds such a structure.
Many %estern Mystery schools have hierarchies that e*press as grades titles
and so forth. Some have a few numbered grades and some have three categories)
neophyte initiate and adept for e*ample. $he good side of such steps is that in enables
the teaching to be focussed at an appropriate level for the student. $he bad side is that
it can limit a student and it can also create a rather degenerate 'pec!ing order(. It also
encourages bullying and demeaning behaviour between students as they vie for a
platform to e*press their sense of ego and achievement. Some schools wor! very hard
to stop such behaviour and will often e*pel a student who behaves in such a way.
Other schools "uietly encourage it by seeming to publicly denounce such behaviour
while setting the students against each other in a battle for favours and recognition. A
teacher who encourages such behaviour is playing power games for their own
satisfaction and is a teacher best avoided. Any teacher who behaves this way has
serious emotional mental and spiritual issues that are li!ely to affect the magical
development of the students themselves.
It is a difficult problem in that it is important to ensure that the teaching is
appropriate for the level of student but if you have a lot of students the only way to
achieve that is to segregate the students in to groups according to levels of !nowledge
and s!ill. -ut by doing so you create an environment whereby immature students use
their status to e*ert 'authority( over the newer students in an attempt to gain a sense of
power and control.
$his can be avoided by only teaching a very small number of students at any
time which is how magic was always taught until its rapid commercialisation during
the twentieth century. -ut times change and magic must evolve in order to survive.
One way for a potential student to ascertain whether there are indeed
hierarchical issues with a magical school is to watch the student(s behaviour in social
media and discussion forums. $he old and very wise ma*im still holds strength) by
their fruits shall you know them. If the students by and large conduct themselves with
integrity in public and the ones who have been in the school for a while behave with
maturity and wisdom are patient with beginners and do not attempt to e*ert any sense
of superiority or grandstand with their titles then that is a probable sign of a good
school.
Personally I have never been one for li!ing titles and status and I tend to !ic!
heavily when I come across well developed hierarchies. -ut there is need with a race
of social beings to have some form of hierarchy in order to function out of chaos. I
have always encouraged students to be patient with beginners respectful with elders
avoid idiots confront degenerates and challenge ones peers. I classify people within
magic as beginners magical trainees wor!ers and teachers;elders. I have found the
line is rarely clear cut and in reality we often move bac! and forth between these
roles.
-ut that is &ust my own personal way of operating and we are all very
different. Structure and hierarchy can provide a fertile learning ground for those who
are happy with such a structure. -ut it can also be a world of frustration ego &ostling
and bullying when it is not conducted properly. If you are considering &oining a
magical school ta!e some time to observe its students its volunteer wor!ers and its
teachers to see if there are constant disputes &ostling for favour or grandstanding 3
these are all warning signs.
Arrested development 5teacher !eeping the students bac!6
$his is something that happens with too much regularity in the magical community
and it happens for a variety of reasons. :et us have a loo! at some of those reasons
and possible solutions for beginners to be able to spot this problem.
$he most common reason for this to happen is when a person sets themselves up on a
pedestal as a teacher when they do not have enough real !nowledge and long term
e*perience to truly be a teacher but enough to impress the beginners. Once the
students get to a threshold beyond which the shortfall in the teacher will become
apparent the students are held bac!. $his is presented in the form of 'you are not at an
advanced enough stage to be able to learn this( or 'that information is only for higher
initiates(. $he teachers manage to get away with this simply because it can be a valid
stance) there are certain things within magical education that are not appropriate for
beginners simply because they will not understand the comple*ity of the sub&ect
matter until they have more direct e*perience. $here are also some things within
magic that are dangerous in uns!illed hands. $his is used as an e*cuse by
unscrupulous teachers in order to hold students down to a level below the teacher in
order for the teacher to maintain status.
Another version of holding students bac! is not because the teacher does not
!now more advanced wor! but because the teacher wishes to maintain a status of
'!nowledge( far above the students. $his is a ma&or trap in magic) the trap of the
ego;messiah comple*. $he teacher will protect their !nowledge and !eep it to
themselves while feeding the students peripheral !nowledge in order to !eep them.
$his in turn produces a glut of magical initiates who feel that they are !nowledgeable
but in fact they are seriously lac!ing in true magical !nowledge.
A true magical teacher should always be surpassed by their students over time.
+ach generation once they have the foundation of !nowledge should be trained in a
way that enables them to underta!e true magical e*ploration and development. +ach
generation moulds magic to fit their generation and in doing so discovers new and
e*citing ways to move magic forward. $he !ey is for the teacher to educate the
students enough that they do not lose the vital !eys of the previous generation but
that they do not repeat the same mista!es and dead ends. $here is no such thing as a
teacher who !nows everything) magic is a vast art form with many different avenues
that can ta!e lifetimes to master. +ach generation has magicians within it that add to
the s!ill set while discarding that which is irrelevant unproductive or &ust plain
wrong.
.or a beginner to spot such a teacher is hard but not impossible. $a!ing the
time to research the teacher and their previous students should e*pose what !ind of
teacher they are. If the teacher has 'eternal students( who do not seem to have
developed enough to write or teach for themselves then there may be a problem with
that teacher. If they constantly have a new crop of beginners but do not seem to teach
beyond that level then there is most definitely a problem unless it is apparent that
they then hand off the students to other teachers. Some teachers choose to specialise
in beginners for a variety of reasons but a good teacher who chooses only to teach
beginners will without fail have a set trac! where by the students are then passed
onto a different teacher who will ta!e them to the ne*t step.
Mania and bullshit
.or a beginner seeing the difference between a confident teacher who !nows their
sub&ect matter and a teacher who is mentally ill can be difficult. $here are some
people within the magical community who have mental health issues and this often
e*presses as borderline personality disorders) a person who is narcissistic manic
spea!s with authority and presents themselves with a great deal of confidence. $his
can be hard to spot from a distance as many e*perienced good teachers tend to be
confident and spea! with authority.
$he difference is in what they present and spea! about) if a charismatic teacher
presents wor! that is seemingly unbelievable with no precedent particularly if there
are promises of 'great power( or 'godli!e power( then chances are you are dealing
with a mentally ill person. Some aspects of magic can indeed sound e*traordinary to
beginner but usually what is presented has roots deep into history and if you research
it properly you will find that it is infact part and parcel of magic.
9owever if you come across a teacher particularly a young teacher who
ma!es promises of great power and that they are the only ones who possess the
'!nowledge( to access this power and it can be obtained "uic!ly and easily by
following them or studying with them 5usually at great cost6 then you are dealing
with a person who has serious mental health issues or they are straight forward con
artists 5often they are both6. -asic rule of thumb) if it sounds too good to be true then
it usually is.
loyalty
A student always feels loyal to the teacher who is helping them. %ith beginners this
can become twisted and result in the student refusing to see the negative side of a
teacher) they will defend the teacher in the face of e*posure to bad behaviour and will
often go to great lengths to fool themselves and everyone else as to the nature of the
teacher.
2o teacher is perfect no teacher should be placed upon a pedestal and no
teacher should be denied the right to be a normal human being. $eachers ma!e
mista!es teachers have negative sides to their personality and teachers often lose
their tempers. $his is because they are normal human beings with all the usual
failings. A good teacher will be aware of their failings and will be open about their
mista!es lapses in &udgement temper outbursts and gaps in their !nowledge. $hey
will often try hard to improve but li!e any other normal person sometimes they will
achieve it and sometimes they will not. A good teacher will never as! a student to
defend their bad behaviour and will discourage such actions.
A not so good teacher will not ac!nowledge their failings will present
themselves as 'enlightened or better beings( and will openly encourage their students
to defend them at all costs. If you come across such a teacher in your "uest for
magical training turn around and wal! away. $hey may have !nowledge that you
wish to gain but the price you will pay in terms of imbalanced teaching will be a high
price indeed.
And when you do find a teacher that is a good match for you do not be
tempted to offer them undying and unconditional loyalty) you offer respect where
respect is due and you give patience in the face of normal human failings.
Summary
$rying to find the right school group or teacher in order to progress as a magician is
as daunting as the training itself. Once you !now your own learning style and
understand the best potential magical path for training the actual practicalities of
finding and being accepted by a teacher or school can be a strenuous tas!. And that is
only the beginning.
Once within the badly sought after group it can be a grave disappointment to
see all the things that potentially go wrong within a school and if you find yourself in
such a situation I would advise this) be aware of the frailty of humans and be aware
that a s!illed magician can still be an ass. If you e*pect superhuman things from a
magical teacher you will be sadly disappointed. Some are better than others but all
teachers have their Achilles heels and all teachers have failings of one sort or another.
$he !ey is to find the teacher that has ordinary everyday failings and not
spectacular or destructive ones. If the teacher is a normal imperfect human being it
can be very helpful to the student to observe how the teacher deals with their
imperfections and for the student to reflect upon their own failings. Much can be
learned from observing how a teacher deals with their mista!es and wea!nesses.
If however the teacher has "uite spectacular failings or is abusive aggressive
or &ust plain nuts then do not feel that as a magical student one must continue to
support and study under such conditions. $o do so would be a great folly and would
most li!ely result in the student being suc!ed into the dramas and abuses of the
teacher only to become normalised or &ustified towards such behaviour. In turn the
student then unconsciously copies the same behaviour when they finally reach a stage
where they feel they are ready to teach.
$he cycles of abuse and unhealthy teaching are passed from generation to
generation of teachers simply because people are unwilling to wal! away. A student
feels trapped within the glamour of the teacher or they feel that if they leave they
will lose the chance of !nowledge. $here is also a dynamic which develops under
these conditions whereby the student who is being abused conned or used becomes
dependant and the attached to the dangerous teacher) they become victim to a
syndrome similar to the capture<bonding psychological mechanism 5Stoc!holm
Syndrome for e*ample6. Once the student has succumbed to such a syndrome it is
e*tremely hard for them to step bac! and recognise the abuse for what it is.
$his is why it is so very important for a student who spots the early signs of
bad destructive behaviour in a teacher to wal! swiftly away without ta!ing the idea of
'waiting it out to see what happens(. 4elaying the e*it only serves to suc! the student
deeper into the web of such abusive relationships and often when students finally
manage to get away and have dealt with the issue when they loo! bac! they often
repost having a 'first contact instinct( about the teacher) something felt really wrong
and they did not act upon that first impression. If you do get a strong sense of
something 'not being "uite right( act upon it and wal! away. It is better to err on the
safe side than to find yourself embedded in a deeply abusive dangerous or destructive
situation that can be very hard to get away from.