High Magick contrasted to Black Magick?

What are the big differences between High Magick and Black Magick? They both involve the manipulation of energy and include evocation and invocation?

Nothing really. They’re just terms that one can define in many different ways.

Both these terms are ambiguous, with definitions varying depending on who you ask. Hence, no solid answer is possible to your question.

However, I would offer the following, more as a suggestion for further thought on the subject than an answer: High Magic refers to a body of techniques that can be applied to many different currents and entities, i.e., one can use the same techniques for dealing with angels to interact with elementals. Black magic, on the other hand, is magic of any type connected with chthonic forces or the currents associated with Darkness and Chaos. Given this, the relationship is that some Black Magic rituals are also High Magic, from a technical standpoint, but not all Black Magic workings are High Magic. Conversely, some High Magic workings, such as those involving demons, qualify as Black Magic, but others do not, such as those involving Planetary Spirits.

If we take golden dawn style, then evocation of daemons are not done until one reach the inner order, and needs to face the dark to breakthrough and continue. Well that is my current understanding of it.
High magic in golden dawn in the outer order, is meant to prepare the magician for knowledge and conversation with his Divine Genius. In the outer order invocation is used to familiarize oneself with different energies.
In my opinion the higest goal of high magick is immortality and godhood.

Just to confuse things further, as I’ve always understood it, High Magick doesn’t break down into White vs. Black. Low magic is simple, basic magick. It’s kind of the “everyman’s magick”. Candle magick, sigil magick, etc. It works based simply on the belief that it works. High Magick, otoh, involves ritual, theoretical understanding, and the ability to manipulate energies, communicate and work with entities, etc. High Magick is far more involved, and requires greater knowledge and understanding. JMO.

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