Magick
The theory behind magick is that there are unseen forces in this world, and one can tap into them and align oneself with them so that one can help others and improve oneself. This is really a simple concept: you do this every time you plug an electrical cord into the wall.
The great mystery of Witchcraft is HOW one taps into the Unseen Forces. You can read many, many books about spells and incantations, and they're all different. And some of the spells just don't work (if you don't already know this, it means you haven't done very much hands-on spellwork ... at some point, you should stop reading and start doing. You don't want to be a virgin all your life!).
There is a theory to the effect that the natural world (phenomena such as warm sunshine, snow, rain, and sprouting plants) is a subset of "super-nature" (the supernatural). In other words, magick is just another kind of science, a branch that we don't understand yet (there's an entire book written on this subject: The Science of the Craft by William H. Keith).
When two particles are "entangled," they are somehow connected because the fate of one depends upon the other, no matter how far apart they are. This phenomenon is linked to the fundamental properties of matter and the nature of observing and measuring reality. One might describe it as ... magick.
In 2005, scientists were able to cause six beryllium atoms to rotate clockwise and counterclockwise ... simultaneously. Like magick.
Synergy means that there are no isolated systems.
Newton viewed the world as being made of objects moving, and pushing each other around (and colliding with each other) in predictable ways. This is called "locality." Around 1900, physicists began realizing that it is possible for a star to explode 40 million light years away and INSTANTLY affect something here on earth, even though (theoretically) nothing can travel faster than light; this is called "non-locality." In 1935, the term "spooky action at a distance" was coined.
This, of course, violates our intuition (common sense).
Bell's Theorem (postulated in 1964 by the late physicist John S. Bell) holds that there is a connection or correlation between systems that are not causally related. Bell thought that no physical theory of local hidden variables can ever reproduce all of the predictions of quantum mechanics. This idea entirely contradicts an assumption that has governed science for centuries, i.e., the assumption that any given scientific law operates on only one "billiard table," and the moving balls on that "table" are affected only by the balls on that particular table. Bell's Theorem demonstrates that there is some sort of non-local "field" (or perhaps an implicate order) that controls the balls on all the tables, even if they aren't connected to each other and aren't even in the same house.
Bell's Theorem has been expressed thus: "Reality must be non-local."
Appearance is the facts of experience, both inner and outer. Reality is the hidden causes behind these Appearances. Theory is the stories we tell one another about both Appearance and Reality.
My own Theory: Magick is the hidden cause behind the Appearances. This explains how maybe, just maybe, if I turn off the lights one evening and light some candles and say some words, it can affect something that happens 180 miles away.
I believe that what we call magick is really a form of nature that we don't yet understand.
Magick sometimes works for me, though not in the way that I expect. The Goddess seems to have a sense of humor, a mischievous side. One writer says that magick works by making everything fall apart.
Doing your spellwork carefully and precisely is (probably) important, and saying the words the right way is (probably) important, but the bottom line is:
