Do you want to practise witchcraft but don't know where to start? Do you find it all too confusing? Maybe you've been practising for a while and want to go back to basics. Or perhaps you're a seasoned witch and want to explore more ways of practisin...
Have you ever taken a Rorschach test? You look at a random splotch of ink, and point out any people, animals, or objects you see. Everyone will say something different depending on their unique life experiences and personality, it's just whatever resonates most with your brain and pops into the conscious mind.
Do you see how ideas, concepts, order, and logic can emerge out of completely random chaos? This is the conception of chaos magick.
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I believe that chaos magick is a very important concept in modern witchcraft. Most eclectic witches are probably practising chaos magick without even knowing it, so it's very valuable to find out exactly what chaos magick is all about.
Chaos magick is important in modern witchcraft because of how liberal the culture around witchcraft is in current times. Before the late 20th century, the "power" in witchcraft was essentially thought to be borne out of rigid rules, organisation, hierarchy, dogma, and consistency; tradition. Before the more laissez-faire witchcraft we have today, ceremonial witchcraft -or high magick- was the order of the day. Ceremonial magick consists of elaborate rituals where much importance is placed on the precise words, movements, timings, ingredients, and tools that you use. Essentially there is very much a "right" and "wrong" way to do things in ceremonial witchcraft.
The idea was that practising the "Old Ways" automatically makes this flavour of witchcraft better because it is tried and tested. Do you know any other discipline where the "Old Way" is better than modern methods? This principle seems to only apply to religion and occultism - could you imagine if we still used medicine invented in the 1800s? How ridiculous would a medical doctor sound if they said, "This is the Old Way of practising, therefore it's the best!" In reality, the Old Ways of practising were perfectly suited to the time in which they were invented. In the 21st century we have electricity, and cars, and aeroplanes, and mobile phones, and the Internet. Why shouldn't witchcraft & paganism change with the times as well?
The "Old Ways" rhetoric around witchcraft & occultism began to change with the work of occultist Austin Osman Spare, probably most famous for popularising sigils and the sigilisation process. A few decades after his death, the Chaos Magick movement in the 1970s rediscovered his unconventional ideas so that now we have the more liberated style of witchcraft today.
What is Chaos Magick?
Chaos magick, at its most elementary level, is results-driven magick. Basically it is a practice of "anything goes" thinking, and you simply keep doing what brings the results you desire, and throw out the practices that don't serve you.
This idea emerged from the belief that your mind creates your reality. By communicating with the subconscious by any means possible, it is possible to alter the reality around you.
I won't pretend that this belief does not have limitations. It's not possible to use chaos magick to do things that are physically, biologically, economically, or systemically impossible. However, let's say that you wanted to increase your confidence so you could ace that job interview or land a date - that certainly is possible with chaos magick. Just by altering the beliefs about yourself and the way you assert yourself, can manifest very powerful results.
