I thought being a witch was a nature based practice and was different from what magicians practice
Totally depends on the magician, imo.
It’s not like there’s a hard line where the tools of one system can’t be used by another. Conversely, I wouldn’t suggest it was a good idea to make a label into a box you can’t step out of should you want to try other forms of magic.
If I leave out milk for the fey to thank them for helping me, does it matter if that’s done in my mind from the perspective of Witchcraft or Norse paths or as an Occultist or Magician? It’s still going to be appreciated, probably. Wasn’t the title of Merlin for a person that could easily be called a witch as well as a magician?
These are broad definitions used by many of all walks and philosophies that can be subjectively applied according to how each individual feels. For other cultures and books in non-English languages it can come down to the whim of the translator.
Magic, as it is the only term that can aptly describe or encompass the things that I do. A lot of the times, even that is not enough.
Personal power is one of the most important companions we can have in life. That said, it is always advised to make friends, especially a few steps above.
In my opinion, the psychology paradigm is the true bane of sorcerous progress.
LaVey had his merit as a philosopher, but his “religion” had little to no magical merit. Ultimately, he was giving himself the wrong labels.
Not necessarily, but whatever works.
Not unless you make one. Most things in this world tend to shift back and forth between yin and yang in their quest for balance, anyway. Not in a moral sense, but as energetic homeostasis.
Most of us here are too practical to reject an aspect of sorcery, though different people mesh differently with energy, and as such may be more, or less compatible towards some things.
I’m interested in a lot of paths but, concerning magick, I follow mainly the magical one i.e. it’s the “general version” that I choose as a basis.
Power may come from the operator or from Spirits etc. In the classical grimoires (Heptameron, Lemegeton…) we see a theist magic which may be already considered High Magic; but the latter may also be of a modern and scientific kind where, in order to call an entity, the magician doesn’t need to invoke a god: he may simply vibrate the Spirit’s name (for example).
So this isn’t necessarily connected to Satanism although some elements may be the same because sometimes in Satanism there is magic.
Magic may be black (negative which is a matter of polarity, not always to consider “evil”), positive or neuter. The witches (Wiccans or “traditional”) make use of spells, or rituals featuring a naturalistic and Pagan style.