Unifying themes and other questions

Hey everyone,
Just wanted to ask a few questions as I am super new and very recently came to the revelation that I wanted to study/practice Magick.

There seem to be a wide variety of kinds of magick ranging from Satanism to stuff rooted in Norse gods, Sumerian gods, gnostic beliefs, et cetera, and I was just wondering how people chose (or were shown) their path?

Are there any unifying themes between all these different parts of magic like specific rituals or practices that transcend the groups?

This ones more practical, but why is there a “k” at the end of magic? (Just interested)?

I joined this forum as I have recently been having some sort of dreams or visions not entirely sure which, and wanted to explore the origins and backgrounds of it so I’m like starting on square one (literally just got a text to begin studying/practicing) so any insight or advice would be awesome.
Looking forward to talking to you all,
JD

Okay, here we go lol

This usually comes from personal experimentation and preferences. Some find a path that they feel “at home” with (sometimes after years of searching, while others not) while others, such as myself, study particular systems for a length of time and move on, carrying the wisdom and experience with us.

Absolutely, rites of initiation being a very big one if the particular path is focused on deities or spirits in general. Looking at the concept of the shaman’s or hero’s journey is a great tool for understanding the different elements that come into play within ritual geared

Away from the more spiritual aspect and into the more practical, Magic has also been sought out to help bring solutions to come problems, so you can find many different forms of spell work geared to satisfying those needs that reflects the cultures they came from.

Some feel the need to separate the more spiritual form of magic from what illusionists perform on stage, hence the “k”. Personally, I find it a small concern that is not worth the effort, but that is me.

Trying to explore the origins of magic would be quite a feat, as there has been much lost to history. If you want to get some experience in one of the oldest forms of spirituality, I would recommend checking out shamanism. Shamans used their relationships with spirits to promote change and that could open the door to teachers to help build your own system of magic. There is some really good material out there on the subject, ranging from occult books to a more anthropological approach. I recommend the Norse Shaman personally, as it balances both practice and academics while having an exercise system that builds onto of itself as opposed to be isolated ones. This way you have a clearer path to really build a skill as opposed to hoping random ones will do the same.

Some were “chosen” due to a plethora of reasons be it past life stuff, to connections with certain entities, and so forth. Others chose based on their ancestry, or just a simple decision to dedicate themselves to a path that would get them to where they want to go, other mix and match paths because they can all give them a different aspect to what they need.

The K is I believe from aleister crowley, but over time people just use whichever they feel like using, I prefer magick because it just looks more aesthetic to me lol.

A lot of trial and error. I had bouts of Christianity, Atheism(that one lasted less than a year and I don’t recommend it.) and Agnosticism before turning to the occult. I spent a lot of time on Thelema, and I got some good things out of it, but I came to the realization that I wanted something more intense, more open-ended and experimental, and more suited to the surrounding culture where I reside in the physical.

I’m glad I’m not the only one.