For this weeks challenge, i wanted to reflect on what i have learned about science and witchcraft and how the two topics actually do go hand in hand.
So far i have learned that the relationship between magic and science is that they both are about controlling the world around us, however, magic is more about controlling the people around us and science about controlling things. (Source: https://www.quora.com/Are-magic-and-science-related#:~:text=Kind%20of.,way%20that%20they%20donāt.)
Now my thoughts on this was that i do agree to an extent but about the controlling people part does not ring true to me and i focus on more about making an impact on my environment and outcomes rather than physical people or objects.
I found that i do agree with this statement also, however for me personally it is not somewhat of the time rather all of the time as my craft is my very soul and if i did not believe in my craft and beliefs fully then to me i could not follow something if i had doubts let alone apply it to everyday life.
I am a scientist. I worked in research science went to undergraduate and graduate school, have published papers. For the past 25 years I have taught science (secondary and college courses). I see science as the physical world and my magick is my inner energy and spiritual world. It is how I connect with my less āVulcanā side. Yin and Yang. They both have to be there is no homeostasis.
I know that much of the scientific discovery we have built our civilization upon is rooted in the wisdom of witches, shaman, and healers. I know that science seeks to explain the unknown and that takes away some of what was once magic. But they arenāt opposed. I can explain how plants bend towards light on a biochemical level, but that doesnāt make the leaves turing toward the sun any less magical. Itās how we choose to perceive and interact with the science and the magick.
My practice is heavy on potions and minerals, cooking, glassware and crockery. I aspire to herbalism but get distracted and killl my plants. I approach my spell prep with the same strategy I approach lab prep, except with a deference for the vibrational energy of whatever I am doing. Instead of thinking about chemical properties and contaminants, I consider correspondences and the elements (the ones not on the giant table on my wall). For me there is no science without magic, and my magick doesnāt exist when I ignore my science.
So this week is going to be a strange one for meā¦Instead of taking any action I am just opening myself up to others integration of magic and science. That sounds like itās just me lurking in the thread, but Iām having some visceral reactions to the posts (both positive and negative).
I am making a conscious effort to open myself up to new ideas and interpretations and clarify why I am reacting.
Challenge entry.
Another one of my lifeās many synchronicities! I just finished reading Dean Radinās book Real Magic: ancient wisdom, modern science, and a guide to the secret power of he universe. Published by Harmony Books in 2018.
He worked on Stargate, the US governmentās top-secret psychic espionage program. He spent 40 years doing experiments that proved thoughts are things, we can sense otherās emotions and intentions from a distance, and we can tap into intuition. His problem has been getting scientific journals to publish his findings.
In chapter 5 Practice of Magic, Radin states: āThe essence of magic boils down to the application of two ordinary mental skills: attention and intention. The strength of the magical outcome is modulated by four factors: belief, imagination, emotion, and clarity. Thatās basically it. The ceremonial robes, somber setting, black candles, secret handshakes, chanting in ancient languages, sex, and drugsāall are good theater, which may help in withdrawing the mind form the distractions of the mundane world. But ultimately, theyāre unnecessary.ā
Personally, the intention is building while I make the pouch or bottle, and the spell chant is the icing on the cake!
If someone is having trouble integrating magic and science I recommend reading this book.
I am still looking into the Fibonacci sequence & Sacred Geometry in Nature. Iām easily fascinated with flowers, plants, and animals and while math isnāt my strong suit, the mathematical patterns in nature are incredible. I could spend hours looking up photos of examples.
Fibonacci sequence in a nautilus shell and a snowflake
Wow! Thank you for this one. I have never thought about mathematics coinciding with nature! Iām definitely going to be spending more time paying attention to that on my nature walks now.
This is not entry, but it does have to do with science. Hubby gave me an orchid for valentines day. The first thing I thought of was Iām going to kill this poor plant. I had one about 20 years ago. Whenever I get a new plant, I repot it because they are usually root bound, so thatās what I did with the orchid 20 years ago. I murdered the poor thing. So I read up on them when I got this one. Never put it in soil because it breaths through itās roots. Something I found fascinating about the orchid is it sleeps. It needs to be in the dark for 7 hours a day because it sleeps! I have it on my altar and turn all the lights off in the room so my orchid can sleep. Lol! Wish me luck (or my orchid luck) that I donāt murder this one.
ENTRY:
I love science and wanted to be a vet when I was a kid. But I am allergic to too many chemicals, including formaldehyde. Which makes it hard to dissect animals to learn about them.
I love astronomy and biology. I guess you could say I have a thing for spirals.
I have been thinking about the fibonachi sequence and scared geometry just like @Artemisia.
I have also been thinking about the web of life from the conversation that was had in the weekly group ritual and how this coven is connected. Meditation for Peace @MeganB had a fire dream, then @starborn expereinced a fire and then I had a fire embryo come to me in my meditation, and it all happened around the same time.
The sequencing in nature in so many different things reminds me that we are all connected all of the time. It helps me when I am feeling lonely and remembering Animism and that everything in inanimate or animate has a frequency and a life.
So all I have to do is connect with my environment when I am feeling lonely or off. It is comforting to remember this fact and it is in the spiritual magick and science.
So I attempted to make my own fibinachi spiral of the golden meanā¦
I made a cyanotype of the image with a transparency but it seemed to be too light so I attempted to use embroidery thread to create it. It is very imperfect but so I life. Here it is:
I find Math and science provide explanations for what already exists for the most part. Witchcraft produces things that never existed before in ways that usually cant be explained bu Math or science. This is not rue in all cases, but the miraculous is found and explained more by the Craft than by Science. IMHO
That sentence sums up this entire challenge! That photosynthetic reaction is a quantum biological process that captures Magick paradoxically at its most mundane and profound point.
We see it, and countless others, daily, yet, as you perfectly described it, itās sheer Magick!
I love your post. I know just like most of the population knows science is real, because it proves itself to everyone everyday, But I know magic is real because I can see it proving itself in ways others donāt. Itās like most of my town dont believe it unless they can see it and I think theyre just not looking hard enough or arent open enough to see it, like they have on rose colored glasses. I however maybe see too much sometimes or maybe I just go looking for things I didnt really want to see. Anyway your post is awesome and this is my entry for this challenge.
If you would like to participate and havenāt done so already, please post about your challenge experience by the deadline:
ā Tuesday, Feb 19th at 7:00 AM EDT (Eastern US Time)
Eureka! What a wonderful collection of discoveries, insights, thoughts, reflections, and more exploring the links between science and magick- Iām loving all of the entries shared so far! Thank you so much to everyone who has joined in to share an entry with their fellow coven members so far
If you havenāt already shared an entry but would like to join in, this is your friendly reminder that you still have time left to do so.
So Iām going to have to shorten it a bit!
Especially relating back to what I discovered from 
Itās a whole lot of fun.
. Well done!
