Magic: A Treatise on Natural Occultism (1929) is a short work by author, mystic, and lecturer Manly P. Hall. By exploring the differences between black and white magic, this book seeks to guide fellow occultists away from those practices which damage the spirit and lead to the loss of the soul.
Born in Canada, Manly P. Hall (b. 1901, d. 1990) was drawn into the world of mysticism when he moved to Los Angeles at age 18. He quickly began to preach and lecture at the Church of the People. Soon, he was leading the evangelical congregation as its minister. This began a long career that spanned thousands of lectures, often well-attended affairs that received local coverage in the Los Angeles Times.
His growing notoriety caught the attention of a wealthy woman named Carolyn Lloyd, who became Hall’s patron. Through her support, he was able to travel the world, seeking education and wisdom from diverse cultures and acquiring rare books of philosophy and mysticism.
As the author of over 150 books, pamphlets, essays, and countless articles, Hall shared what he had learned in his readings and extensive travels. Through his lectures and writings-particularly 1928’s The Secret Teaching of All Ages, Hall became a well-known philosopher and expert on mysticism and occultism. He channeled some of this fame and wealth into the creation of the Philosophical Research Society, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit learning center and book collection centered on metaphysics, religion, and the occult. Founded in 1934, the PRS is still in operation today.
Magic: A Treatise on Natural Occultism explores the differences between black magic and white magic-how they are practiced, the justifications behind both, and the inevitable results of each. ‘Motive is the key to the problem of Magic, ‘ he explains. ‘Even the greatest of White Magicians can become a degenerate in an instant if his motive becomes unworthy. The White Magician serves humanity; the Black Magician seeks to serve himself.’ This ulterior motive leads the Black Magician into selfish and destructive behaviors, rather than the wise and learned actions of the White Magician who seeks only to do good.
Through his description of black and white magic, Hall explores the very nature of good and evil. He argues against the personification of ‘natural principles.’ In his view, the Devil is not a person at all, but a natural occurrence, comprised of all manner of sins. He is ‘…the spirit of perversion or negation, the created principle of misuse.’
As an abuser of magic, the Black Magician can indeed be said to serve ’the two great demons of creation’-Satan (Saturn) and Lucifer (Mars). But the White Magician, free of selfish desire, ‘consecrates his life to study, meditation, and service….He molds himself into the Plan, becoming part of the divine rhythm by sacrificing himself and his wishes to the will of the Infinite, asking only to know wherein his duty lies and how he may be of the greatest service to the greatest number.’
In Part Three of the work, titled The Mechanics of Magic, Hall explains the creation of the universe from the occult perspective. He breaks down the concepts of reincarnation, human consciousness, and the laws of nature, drawing on theology and philosophy from Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, ancient Tibet, Greece, Rome, Egypt, and more.
Through the writings of Manly P. Hall, students of mysticism and the occult find both a guide to the natural world and instruction in how to navigate it.
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