Magic Words

The Best Word is Not Always Standard English

2012-02-11T00:00:00.000-05:00

This could be advice for choosing a magic word:

"When I'm choosing a word, I never choose the right word; I choose the best word, and the best word is not always Standard English." —Patricia McKissack

Magic Words at the Fountain of Youth

2012-02-08T00:00:00.001-05:00

Did we forget to mention this recent article about our search for "shapes of magic" at Ponce de León's Fountain of Youth?

http://oneletterwords.com/weblog/?id=7350

Part of the Magic is the Mystery

2012-02-05T12:33:00.000-05:00

"What makes it magic? ... Magic can't be defined, can it? Or it loses what makes it magic. ... Part of the magic is the mystery, don't you think?"
—Megan Hart, "This Is What I Want" (2007)

Passwords Old and Ancient

2012-01-30T00:00:00.005-05:00

The password to get into Abulafia had to be seven letters or fewer. Letters or numbers. How many groups of seven could be made from all the letters of the alphabet, including the possibility of repetition, since there was no reason the word couldn’t be ‘cadabra’? I knew the formula. The number was six billion and something. —Umberto Eco, Foucault’s Pendulum (1988)

We've previously discussed how the original password was open sesame (better translated as "simsim"), and how passwords are like magic words in that they are the keys for unlocking barriers, dissolving obstacles, revealing something beyond. Passwords are the coveted guarded secrets that grant admittance into inner chambers and secret circles. The folks at Wired sought to track down the first computer password. (Thanks, Gordon!)

Beka

2012-01-26T00:00:00.000-05:00

We have a doozy for you — an extraordinarily rare magic word from Hebrew mysticism, courtesy of Doctor of Biblical Studies, Trailblazer of Ancient Texts, and Specialist in the Book of Enoch, Dan Olson. Dr. Olson kindly invited us to share the fruits of his labors. He wrote:

— — —

One of the many magic words from the world of Hebrew mysticism: Beka.

I know of only two texts that bear witness to this magic word, but as far as I can tell no one else has noticed the connection between them.

Beka consists of two letters, and it means “in you (sg.).” This is a common Hebrew word, used dozens of times in the Old Testament. In Isaiah 26:13, however, it appears in a very odd construction. The verse is usually translated along these lines:

Oh LORD our God, masters other than you have ruled over us;
But in you alone do we make remembrance of your name.

Some such meaning seems to be the intent, but the syntax is awkward. According to the usual meaning of the words, taken literally the second line should read, “Apart from in you do we make remembrance of your name.” This weird construction was a red flag to Jewish mystics, who quite naturally took “in you” (beka) here as a noun, part of a prepositional phrase. “Apart from beka do we make remembrance of your name.”

For those who don’t know, it needs to be pointed out that Hebrew, like many languages (including Greek and even Latin in the case of Roman numerals), uses the letters of the alphabet for its numerals. Beka has a numerical value of 22 if you add the two letters together. Very pedestrian gematria that.

In the Zohar (13th c. kabbalistic text), we find a commentary on the verse. “Rabbi Simeon” claims that while meditating on “the letters of the Holy Name” (i.e. YHWH, “Yahweh,” the personal name of God usually rendered “LORD” in English), he received a vision:

It is written, “O LORD our God, other lords beside thee dominated us, apart from thee do we make mention of thy Name” (Isa 26:13). This verse, apart from other interpretations, contains a profound doctrine of faith. YHWH Elohenu (LORD our God) is the source and beginning of supreme mysteries indeed....this Name dominates all. However, “other lords beside thee dominated us”; the people of Israel, which is destined to be ruled only by this supreme Name, is ruled (now) in exile by the “other side.” Indeed, “apart from thee (beka) do we make remembrance of thy Name.” The name “by thee” (beka) symbolizes the Holy Name comprising twenty-two letters,^[1] and this is the name by which the Community of Israel is always blessed, as, for instance, “to whom thou swarest by thine own self (beka; Exod 32:13); “in thee (beka) shall Israel be blessed” (Gen 48:20); “for in thee (beka) I can run through the troops” (Ps18:29). In times of perfection, peace, and harmony, the two names are not separated one from the other, and indeed it is forbidden to separate them even in thought and imagination; but now, in exile, we do separate them... “Apart from thee,” being far away from Thee, and being ruled by other powers, “we make remembrance of thy Name,” in separation, thy Name (YHWH) being separated from the Name expressed by beka” (Zohar Shemoth 9a-9b).

The reason I took an interest in this obscure text in the Zohar is that when I was working on my translation of and commentary on The Book of Enoch, I came to the conclusion that this was the key to understanding a very difficult passage. In chapter 69 we are given a list of evil angelic powers that are causing much mischief on earth. (These powers would be equivalent to the “other masters” who are currently exercising illegitimate rule, according to the Zohar.) The last on the list is Kasbeel. The verses in question are quite difficult to translate because there are MANY variations in the manuscripts, and the text is obscure by any reckoning. I stuck closely to one particular manuscript^[2] that really was the only one that provided a coherent text throughout the entire section.

This is the “number” of Kasbeel, chief of the Oath (which Oath he revealed to the holy ones while he was still dwelling above in glory). Its name is “Beqa.” He tried to talk Michael into revealing to him the secret Name in his possession, in order that they might then pronounce it [or make it to be remembered] in the Oath, and in so doing make those who revealed everything secret to the children of men [these are the fallen angels] tremble before that Name and that Oath. This is the power of that Oath—for it is indeed powerful and strong—and responsibility for this engraved Oath was given to Michael, and they are his secrets (En 69:13-16a).

The way I read this, the good angels were each in charge of one of the divine names of God. Kasbeel was in charge of the cosmic Oath Beka, being entrusted with its “number” (i.e. gematrial value). Michael was in charge of a different secret Name, possibly the divine Name YHWH. In the story told here, the end result is that the cosmic Oath is taken from Kasbeel and is now in Michael’s charge. This cosmic Oath is elaborately celebrated in the following section of chapter 69, which tells in a long series of stanzas how all of creation came into being and is held together in orderly fashion “through the Oath.” The Oath represented by Beka has a gematrial value of 22, the same as the number of letters of the Hebrew alphabet, which in turn is virtually a secret name of God in his creative capacity, as both the alphabet and the divine Name YHWH are credited elsewhere in Jewish tradition as functioning in this manner, creating, ordering, and “binding” all of creation (see, e.g., Prayer of Manasseh 3 and Sepher Yetsera 2:2). Perhaps Kasbeel tried to get Michael to reveal the secret name in his possession (YHWH?) so that the two of them could then combine it with the name/oath in his—Kasbeel’s—possession (Beka), expecting that the power in this combination would terrorize the rebel angels into submission. He may have tried to persuade Michael and the other “holy ones” to go along with this plan by first revealing to them the Beka name, hoping they would feel obligated to reciprocate. If so, the plan failed, and Kasbeel may have lost his heavenly post as a result, since he is no longer “dwelling above in glory.” Alternately, the “holy ones” to whom Kasbeel revealed the Beka oath while he was dwelling above were in fact the angels who later rebelled, and what we see here is a desperate and unsuccessful attempt by Kasbeel to undo the damage caused by his mistake. Either way, Kasbeel is gone, and Michael is now in charge of the Oath known as Beka. Coming as it does at the end of a list of wicked angels, the passage identifies Kasbeel as one of them and explains the circumstance that persuaded him to cast in his lot with the fallen angels. That’s my reading of this obscure passage.

Note how both passages seem to deal with the artificial separation of divine names/oaths, which results in the weakened state that allows “other powers” to exercise rule in God’s creation.

This section of the Book of Enoch is generally dated to around the turn of the era, give or take three or four decades. There is evidence elsewhere in the Zohar that the author(s) were familiar with this section of Enoch^[3], so it may well be that we have in the Zohar is a mystical interpretation of Isa 26:13, the core of which already existed around the time of Christ and is alluded to in Enoch 69. As I said, I know of no other instances of Beka as a name/oath/magic word.

NOTES:

[1] R. Simeon is alluding to the 22-letter divine name derived by arcane permutations from the first five words of the famous priestly blessing in Num 6:24-27. This mystical name is not explicitly attested earlier then the beginning of the medieval period, but there is an older tradition, found already in the Sepher Yetserah (“Book of Creation”), which may go back as far as the second century AD. The Sepher Yetserah identifies the 22-letter Hebrew alphabet as the means by which all the cosmos was created and ordered, making the alphabet itself virtually a 22-letter divine name.

[2] For this section of Enoch, there is only an ancient Ethiopic version available, and there are dozens of manuscripts to sort through.

[3] In the Zohar Vayaqhel 202a we hear of an angel named Gadriel who is in charge of human warfare. The angel Gadriel in exactly this capacity appears also in Enoch 69:6-7. “Gadriel” is an extremely rare angel name, so the Zohar is likely dependent on this section of Enoch in this case.

Weaving a Tale of Magic

2012-01-24T00:00:00.003-05:00

The caption reads, "Engaged, evidently, in weaving a tale of magic." From Hampton's magazine, 1909.

Magic Words Must Be Born of the Moment

2012-01-18T00:00:00.000-05:00

We love this intriguing passage about how magic words must be improvised to be powerful:

"In the worlds of Jewish mysticism and Germanic fairy tales, a single magic word can make all the difference. The mojo of an effective transformative incantation involves using the right word at the right time. It must be improvisationally born of the moment, not a mindless, memorized formula. Magical words are by their very nature surprise—words that accidentally evoke mojo."
—Bradford Keeney, The Flying Drum: The Mojo Doctor's Guide to Creating Magic in Your Life (2011)

The Real Secret of Magic is that the World is Made of Words

2012-01-13T02:49:00.009-05:00

Our friend (who also translated our book Magic Archetypes into Italian) Ferdinando Buscema notes that believing in magic may sound like an outdated superstition, yet it "means believing in the supreme power of the imagination to shape reality. As neuroscience has validated to a great extent, we are and we become what we think. And so, the magic meme is a kind of mind software to conceive and do things which are, as it were, magical." Buscema shares the third secret of magic: "Reality is made of words." He explains that "Magic is the art of the word that enchants and has concrete effects upon the world. The words that we speak shape our reality more deeply that we generally acknowledge. One postmodern philosopher [Terence McKenna] pushes the idea so far as to say that the real secret of magic is that the world is made of words. Those who know the right words can realize virtually everything they want." For concrete proofs, see Buscema's TEDx talk here.

Egg

2012-01-10T00:00:00.002-05:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

Egg, then, is a perfect magic word, both broadcasting a signal to create as well as facilitating a new reality.

Hocus Into Pocus

2012-01-04T00:00:00.001-05:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

The formula is a distillation of the intention: “May that which we call Hocus be changed into Pocus.”

Begone!

2011-12-31T00:00:00.000-05:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“Persian poets say that Satan is sustained by his memory of the sound of God’s voice when he said ‘Begone!’"

The Magical Word is the Chanted Word

2011-12-28T00:00:00.001-05:00

"'This is really a magical revolution', [W.B.] Yeats concluded, 'for the magical word is the chanted word.'" —Sean Pryor, W.B. Yeats, Ezra Pound, and the Poetry of Paradise (2011)

Designed to Hoodwink the Public

2011-12-22T00:00:00.004-05:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“It smacked of impenetrable mumbo jumbo, designed to hoodwink the public.” —Ron Chernow, Alexander Hamilton (2004)

Tohin-ontan

2011-12-17T00:00:00.000-05:00

“You'll tell me the magic word, then?”
Morgan relented. “It's Tohin-ontan.”
—Julie Tetel, Sweet Sarah Ross (2011)

A Door to an Alternative Reality

2011-12-12T00:00:00.001-05:00

"When we find a magical word like epopt or construe words to bring a surprise in our life, like placing an unexpected ad in a newspaper, we find that a word can be more than a representation of what we already know. It can serve as a door to an alternative reality."
—Bradford Keeney, The Flying Drum: The Mojo Doctor's Guide to Creating Magic in Your Life (2011)

Love

2011-12-08T00:00:00.000-05:00

"When love reaches you, it is a magical feeling. It is a magical word, 'love', in my language and in all languages: amore, sayang, dragoste, liefde, amour, upendo , bhalobashi. They all have a special ring to them." —Robert F. Luce, Fall Into the Ebony (2011)

Strung Together Fantastically

2011-12-04T00:00:00.000-05:00

"The hymns from the Rig-veda are no longer used with any regard to their sense, but the verses are taken away from their context and strung together fantastically, because they all contain some magical word, or because the scheme of their meters, when arranged according to the increasing or decreasing number of syllables, resembles a thunderbolt wherewith the sacrificer may slay his foes, or for some equally valid reason."
—E. J. Rapson, Ancient India: From the Earliest Times to the First Century AD (1914)

Voilà

2011-12-01T00:00:00.000-05:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“Voilà!” she repeated, perhaps with a hint more insistence, when the magician failed to take her cue.

LeiKeiShei! Obeh Keh! Leh'keh Rekisha!

2011-11-29T13:46:00.003-05:00

We were contacted this week regarding a mysterious phrase:

Every so often I'll hear a song in a dream. Every so often I'll hear an eldritch language in a dream. Recently it was both. Sometimes the meaning of the words is given to me in the dream. Sometimes I have no idea what the words meaning is but later find out they are words that exist in currently living, foreign languages.

As I recall, this time it was strange words coloring a kind of song-incantation. Also there were a lot more words this time, so I doubt I would be able to figure it out on my own at my current level of resources and learning at this point in life without the help of someone more expert in this area.

LeiKeiShei! Obeh Keh! Leh'keh Rekisha!

I tried to transliterate the words based on how they sounded to me as well as my seeming innate understanding of where phrases began and ended.

I currently I have no idea what language it could be, if it's a language that exists on Earth. It reminds me of Japanese but it doesn't sound like any Japanese I've ever heard.

Your website was one of the first things that popped up when I decided to seek out the meaning of these words through Google. As you've written a book about Magic Words, I figure there might be a chance you'd be willing to help me, Mr. Conley.

Any assistance provided is appreciated.

We've given the mysterious syllables some thought. In a Malay dialect they seem to suggest "A worthless, sorrowful torch commensurate to the insignificant protection [afforded by] Shiva." Though we're officially stumped for the time being, consider this about the nature of words heard in dreams: "Though it may sound like a contradiction, the inner voice originates from a source outside us. There are many names for this source: God, Mother, Earth, the noosphere, the collective unconscious, Universal Spirit, and so on" (Hal Zina Bennett, The Lens of Perception, 1995).

Discerning Beauty Beneath the Surface

2011-11-26T00:00:00.000-05:00

Can a magic word unlock nature's deeper meaning?

In all things a song lies sleeping,
That keeps dreaming to be heart.
And the world will rise up singing,
If you find the magic word.
—Joseph von Eichendorff, qtd. in Darwinism and the Divine: Evolutionary Thought and Natural Theology by Alister E. McGrath

When Words Fail, Music Speaks

2011-11-23T05:37:00.001-05:00

Mitch Traphagen turns to music when words fail him. He notes that "Music is magic. Words, however, are becoming a problem, I think. Words are failing. In my opinion there are simply too many of them."

Once Upon a Time

2011-11-23T00:00:00.000-05:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“The audience has come to the theatre to believe, to respond to the magical words, ‘Once upon a time.’”

2011-11-21T06:34:00.003-05:00

Do we need a good reason to look at these bunnies peeking out of a magician's top hat? They are from Alfred Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes. (Screen grab courtesy of DVDBeaver.)

We'll Change the Word to Sparkle

2011-11-18T00:00:00.002-05:00

"You didn't use the magic word."
"Ben, please."
“That isn't the magic word. It's twink—”
“Don't say that.”
“Okay. We'll change the word to sparkle. Do you like that better?”
—Karen Toller Whittenburg, The Fifty-Cent Groom (2011)

Read, Aim, Fire

2011-11-16T00:00:00.000-05:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“‘Ready, aim, fire’ is [a] mantra.” —Howard Kaminsky and Alexandra Penney, Magic Words at Work (2004)

22 (and counting) Definitions of Magic

2011-11-13T17:10:00.001-05:00

Here are twenty-two (and counting) thought-provoking definitions of magic, curated by The Conjurer:

http://magicandconjuring.blogspot.com/search?q=%22what+is+magic%3F%22

Whether It Went Well or Not ...

2011-11-10T00:00:00.000-05:00

Whether it went well or not, say the magic word.
—Binami Eva-Uku, The Power of Mistake (2011)

Xeper

2011-11-06T00:00:00.000-04:00

The ancient Egyptian word transcribed as xeper, pronounced khefer, means "to come into being." "To know this word is to know that the ultimate responsibility for the evolution of your psyche is in your hands. It is the Word of freedom, ecstasy, fearful responsibility, and the root of all magic" (Don Webb, quoted in Stealing Fire from Heaven: The Rise of Modern Western Magic by Nevill Drury, 2011).

Once an Open Sesame

2011-11-02T00:00:00.002-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“[S]eal (and otter) skins, once an open sesame to the teas and silks of China . . .” —Roy Nickerson, Sea Otters (1998)

Hallowe'en and Candlelight

2011-10-31T00:00:00.000-04:00

In this incantation from Life magazine, 1903, "Hallowe'en and candle-light" are summoned to reveal one's true love.

Odin

2011-10-28T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“In desperation, Samuel grasped the ring pin tightly in his hands, closed his eyes and shouted, ‘Odin, Odin, Odin.’"

(For a picture of Odin and a note about the "Odic Force," see this page from our book entitled Jinx Companion.)

The Magic Word Fled to California

2011-10-25T00:00:00.001-04:00

One day, the magic word made a dumb decision and fled town to the mythical far away land of California.
—Tj Klune, Bear, Otter, and the Kid (2011)

Love stands at the gateway of each human soul, holding in his hands a rose and a drawn sword—the sword is for the many, the rose for the one.

2011-10-22T00:00:00.006-04:00

We love this visionary passage in which love is defined as a "magician whose word can change water to blood." Here's the full context:

Love is the immortal essence of mortal passion, together they are as soul and body, one being; separate them, and the body without the soul is a monster; the soul without the body is no longer human, nor earthly, nor real to us at all, though still divine. Love is the world's maker, master and destroyer, the magician whose word can change water to blood, and blood to fire, the dove to a serpent, and the serpent to a dove—ay, and can make of that same dove an eagle, with an eagle's beak, and talons, and air-cleaving wing-stroke. Love is the spirit of life and the angel of death. He speaks, and the thorny wilderness of the lonely heart is become a paradise of flowers. He is silent, and the garden is but a blackened desert over which a destroying flame has passed in the arms of the east wind. Love stands at the gateway of each human soul, holding in his hands a rose and a drawn sword—the sword is for the many, the rose for the one.

(F. Marion Crawford, The Witch of Prague, 1890)

A Review of The JINX Companion

2011-10-20T00:00:00.002-04:00

Thanks to magician Jamy Ian Swiss for his Genii review of our book The JINX Companion. Swiss concludes: "This is like taking a jungle safari with a guide who loves the terrain. It’s a trip you shouldn’t miss."

Now You See It, Now You Don't

2011-10-19T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

The magic trigger in now you see it, now you don’t is actually in the silence between the two phrases.

(See our previous note about "now you see it, now you don't.")

Words as a Playground for Mojo

2011-10-16T00:00:00.001-04:00

"Can the right words evoke magic? As a mojo doctor, I can tell you emphatically YES. A single word can bring on sudden and profound transformation. Through spontaneity, words also free up the tension between opposite or extreme ideas, allowing them to be teased and played with, which leads to even greater transformation."
—Bradford Keeney, The Flying Drum: The Mojo Doctor's Guide to Creating Magic in Your Life (2011)

An Air of Authentic Secret Knowledge

2011-10-13T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

Medieval conjurors first began using exotic words to “give their performances an air of authentic secret knowledge.”

The Only Thing Worth Pursuing in This Life

2011-10-09T00:00:00.001-04:00

"No sane person really wants to live scientifically, they simply did magic wrong and became disenchanted with it. But saying you believe in 'science' and 'reason' is like saying you believe in tape measures and staple guns. Those things are just tools. Transcendence is the only thing worth pursuing in this life." —Christoper Knowles. Here are his suggestions on re-enchanting one's life.

Azabache

2011-10-05T00:00:00.002-04:00

Black jet crystals: I swear to you that azabache
is a magic word. If you repeat
the incantation for a thousand million years
black shiny fossils will appear
in the carbonized tears of Araucaria
—Mariana Romo-Carmona, Sobrevivir y Otros Complejos

(Azabache means a deep black, glistening color.)

Savoring Even the Tiny Silence

2011-10-02T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

"She would utter them slowly, savoring even the tiny silence between the two syllables, and the almost inaudible t."

Ancient Esotericism was a Remarkably Pragmatic Undertaking

2011-09-29T00:00:00.001-04:00

Sure, your Richard Dawkinses may scoff at it all but people who'll still be remembered long after he's rotted away took it all very, very seriously.
—Christopher Knowles, in this terrific article on esoteric words that have lost their meaning

Words Take on Meanings that Transcend Them

2011-09-26T00:00:00.002-04:00

Christopher Knowles puts it quite nicely: "Words are triggers. No matter what their technical definition may be, words take on meanings that transcend them. In order to put new ideas across, we need to learn to use language more skillfully."

A Quest to Find a Magic Word?

2011-09-23T00:00:00.000-04:00

“So we're going on a quest to find a magic word?”
—Brandon Mull, A World Without Heroes (2011)

(Photo by mygothlaundry)

Rune

2011-09-20T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“The very word rune conjures up magical associations in the word hoard of Old English and Germanic languages.”

Legba

2011-09-17T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

In Vodou, green bananas and bones are offerings to Legba, the supernatural Master of Passageways and opener of doors.

Dabrekotwasuhoro

2011-09-14T00:00:00.001-04:00

This magic word from African folklore is understandable by goats alone:

"As Anansi was about to get home, he addressed the animal in the sack by saying the magic word, dabrekotwasuhoro."
—Kwame A. Insaidoo, Moral Lessons in African Folktales

Rata-pata-scata-fata

2011-09-12T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

Of Caribbean origin, Rata-pata-scata-fata is “an old-time Virgin Islands way of talking nonsense—Caribbean gobbledygook.

Bring Back What Once was Mine

2011-09-09T00:00:00.000-04:00

Flower gleam and glow; let your power shine
Make the clock reverse; bring back what once was mine
Heal what has been hurt; change the fate's design
Save what has been lost, bring back what once was mine
What once was mine.
—Tangled

The One Minute Mystic

2011-09-07T00:00:00.004-04:00

Instantly understand and even see a mystical image when you gaze upon a heavenly body. We discuss a technique for staring at the sun and other sources of bright light in this field report from USA's oldest city: Saint Augustine, Florida. (See our companion booklet The One Minute Mystic.)

Reverse the Spell

2011-09-05T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“'And to reverse this amazing effect,’ I boomed in my biggest stage voice, ‘you simply reverse the spell.’"

Kazazum and Kazuzam

2011-09-02T00:00:00.002-04:00

The anagrammatic magic words Kazazum and Kazuzam are used for opening and closing a tent in "Skeezicks, Sknks and Co" by George Randolph Chester (McClure's magazine, Feb. 1907).

Nonmagic Words Hinder Real Communication

2011-08-28T00:00:00.001-04:00

"Nonmagic words—the vocabulary of the human race—hinder real communication. ... Magic words emanate from the heart." —Phillip Cooper

It is a Seed

2011-08-24T00:00:00.001-04:00

Can you guess which magic word is referenced here?

“[I]t is a seed, a spiritual food, a magic word which opens a long-hidden, underground treasure-house.”

Here's the answer, if you give up.

Money

2011-08-20T00:00:00.000-04:00

“‘Money?’ Pett, the student, became Pett, the financier, at the magic word.” —P.G. Wodehouse, Piccadilly Jim (1918)

Tu-Ku-Linga Mvula

2011-08-18T11:05:00.002-04:00

Tu-ku-linga mvula: "we want rain" (an invocation by a Congo medicine man). From E. J. Glave's In Savage Africa: or, Six Years of Adventure in Congo-Land (1892).

Not Without the Magic Word

2011-08-16T00:00:00.000-04:00

“Not without the magic word. If you can't say it, get me someone who can.”
—Chris Knopf, Bad Bird: A Mystery

The Breath of Witches

2011-08-13T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

More predominant in old Gaelic folklore, the breath of witches or wise-women was said to have magical properties.

(See also our previous post about magic on the breath.)

(Photo by chiaralily)

Alakazoo, four-leaf clover

2011-08-10T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“Alakazoo, four-leaf clover, back we fly, your turn is over.” —Deborah Hautzig, Little Witch’s Big Night (1984)

Alla-kazooey, alla-kazammy

2011-08-08T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“[H]e waved the wand over the cloth-covered cage several times, ‘Alla-kazooey, alla-kazammy, hey . . . presto!’"

Presto

2011-08-06T00:00:00.001-04:00

Presto is a flash—the very essence of spontaneity, the profound magic of the “instant” when something shifts. Presto says “magic is in the air. Do not try to figure it out; you cannot. It is the power of the unknown at work, and something special is about to happen.” The word itself begs to be spoken quickly, as if without thinking. Truly spontaneous speech is when the thought and the word are identical, like unselfconscious singing in the bathtub. We capture that energy when we jump outside ourselves with “courage and humor and openness and perspective and carelessness, in the sense of burning your mental bridges behind you, outreaching yourself.” When a magician says presto in such a spontaneous way, the air is electric and his spectators are transfixed, astounded. Presto is the moment that will be etched in their memories, because it is the moment they opened up to the possibility of the impossible. Upon speaking the word presto, even the magician’s mouth is open in amazement.

Presto is the moment when legends are born. Brandon Bays recalls such a moment while seeing ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev in Romeo and Juliet at the Metropolitan Opera House. “[T]here was a moment when it seemed as if time stood still. It was as if Nureyev reached into the depths of his soul—into genius itself. He leaped into the air, and his legs spread into a full split; then, for a moment, it was as if he lifted even higher—as if he was practically floating in the air.” Presto moments happen often in the world of sports, as when a bat sends a ball soaring. That “whack” is the presto that brings everything to a standstill, “and in that gap of absolute silence the soul flashes forth—an immensity revealing itself . . . a presence of vastness . . . a greatness that can’t be explained . . . and then whack!—ball hit, hair standing on end. Something great had revealed itself in that tiny instant. One heart, one breath, hair on end. We’d dropped into the ‘Gap’ for an instant and this vast truth had, in a flash, revealed itself.” What is that vast truth? Bay suggests that it’s the same as Nureyev’s inner genius: our own greatness flashes forth, we see ourselves in the mirror, we remember our own magic, and ripples of joy spread through the audience. The magic of those presto moments is what sweeps people up for a standing ovation. No wonder presto is such a popular magic word. It’s the magic wand blooming into a bouquet. It’s the miracle of levitation. It’s every special effect that’s especially affective. It’s smoke and mirrors in a nutshell.

(See our dictionary of magic words for the footnotes to the above passage.)

Waiting for the Two Magic Words of Wisdom

2011-08-04T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“My friend held his breath, waiting for the two magic words of wisdom that would solve all his problems."

Kum [kunka] yali, kum buba tambe

2011-08-02T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

"‘Kum [kunka] yali, kum buba tambe,’ and more magic words, said so quickly, they sounded like whispers and sighs."

Compassion

2011-07-30T00:00:00.000-04:00

The magic word learned from the brothers of San Juan de Dios is compassion.
—Gelasia Marquez, Finding Myself

Brahman

2011-07-28T00:00:00.001-04:00

Lines taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“Brahman was, at first, nothing else than the sacred word itself in the magic hymn and in the sacred myth; it was the magic word of power, the priests set in motion, which they attributed to the gods themselves and exalted above the gods, which they associated with the forces and the processes of nature, until it became identified—still in a mystic sense—with the ultimate principle of the world and nature itself.”

Out of Its Pages

2011-07-26T00:00:00.001-04:00

An illustration from a 1908 issue of Harper's magazine. The caption reads: "A strange new light would shine out of its pages."

Most Dreadful Moans

2011-07-24T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

To my amazement, he turned perfectly white, covered his face with his hands, and burst out with the most dreadful moans.

Attitude

2011-07-22T00:00:00.001-04:00

'Attitude' is universal and it is the magic word. 'Magic' means a manifestation of order.
—Clever Zulu, Absolute Abundance

Pif and Paf

2011-07-20T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

In British folklore, Pif and Paf are names of “the country where cats are made,” homeplace to the Breton fairies.

Discarding the Spell

2011-07-19T16:39:00.003-04:00

"In the war of magic and religion, is magic ultimately the victor? Perhaps priest and magician were once one, but the priest, learning humility in the face of God, discarded the spell for prayer." -- Patti Smith, Just Kids (2010)

Of East and West

2011-07-18T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

The knowledge of the East and the West is mine, and the secrets of the mysterious cults of Africa and India!

Alakazam

2011-07-16T00:00:00.002-04:00

Alakazam’s power lies in its mystery. The word is the very definition of secret. It’s something beyond understanding, something we can never get to the bottom of, something so wondrous it should only be whispered, if uttered at all. Alakazam expresses something unobservable, hence its appropriateness for sleight-of-hand. It describes a contradiction—a paradox—hence its appropriateness for illusions demonstrating the impossible. It’s an ephemeral word, gone almost before it can be fully spoken: the initial ala is a distant echo by the time the zam takes a powder. It’s also an ethereal word, inherently otherworldly.

Alakazam retains an aura of mystery—and therefore magic—even as most other words have become mundane with usage.

Attempts to Change the World

2011-07-14T00:00:00.003-04:00

Lines taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

"Unlike concrete poetry, these shapes are not clever linguistic games but attempts to change the world. Dismemberment of language produces enigma; but at the same time a performative act is being brought about. Language is simultaneously ruined and employed."

Gold

2011-07-12T00:00:00.001-04:00

“You said the magic word ‘gold’ again, Ghend. I could sit here all day and listen to you talk about it.” —David Eddings, The Redemption of Althalus (2000)

(Photo by rhino8888)

Bing Bang Bam (Boom)

2011-07-10T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

Bing bang bam is an expression of a quick sequence of events, sometimes followed by a boom to signify the culmination.

Puzzling Black Marks

2011-07-08T00:00:00.001-04:00

An illustration from a 1908 issue of Harper's magazine. The caption reads: "The puzzling black marks on the white pages spoke to us."

A Combination

2011-07-06T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

"Maybe it’s a combination—of magic in the words, and naming.” —A.C. Lemieux, The Fairy Lair: A Magic Place (1998)

Oocha Coocha Bing Bang Bam, Alakazy Alakazam

2011-07-04T00:00:00.000-04:00

Oocha Coocha Bing Bang Bam, Alakazy Alakazam is an incantation for making a serpent hiccup in the novel The Key to the Land of Dogs by Gareth M. Wilson (2004).

Eliminating the Word "Trick"

2011-07-03T04:42:00.001-04:00

The Conjurer explains eliminating the word "trick" from one's vocabulary.

2011-07-02T00:00:00.006-04:00

There's an ancient magic word within this painting by Geof Huth. The letters i, a, and o spell Iao, the name for the light that only the mind can perceive. Iao is the demiurgic god with the adorable name (i.e., Abraxas [from the Egyptian Abrak, 'bow down' or 'adore']) who features prominently on amulets. Iao "bears the cock's head, which is the emblem of Aesculapius, the god of healing. ... The serpent (the emblem of mystery, of eternity, of wisdom, the prophet of gnosis) walks without feet, and therefore Iao is serpent-legged" (Paul Carus).

From the Inside Out

2011-06-30T00:00:00.002-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

The Oracle’s vocabulary contains magic words that instantly mesmerize the spectators, dazzling them from the inside out.

Hollywood

2011-06-28T00:00:00.002-04:00

"Hollywood?" Her eyes have lit up; clearly I've mentioned the magic word.
—Holly McQueen, Confetti Confidential

(Photo by neonmarg)

Open Sesame

2011-06-26T00:00:00.000-04:00

“‘Open Sesame!’ yelled Henry, just in case it might work.” —Beverly Cleary, Henry and the Clubhouse (1962)

A Peach, A Plum, a Half s Stick of Chewing Gum

2011-06-24T00:00:00.000-04:00

“Say the magic word, a peach, a plum, a half a stick of chewing gum.” —T. Berry Brazelton, Touchpoints 3 to 6 (2001)

2011-06-22T00:00:00.002-04:00

In our tireless hunt for magic words in the wild, we stumbled upon an honest-to-goodness [witch's] cauldron at the site of the bubbling of the very first Brunswick Stew.

Not Abra and Cadabra

2011-06-20T00:00:00.001-04:00

“The two most potent magic words are not abra and cadabra.” —Steven L. Case, The Book of Uncommon Prayer (2002)

Ala-ka-zee, Ala-ka-zam

2011-06-18T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“Ala-ka-zee, Ala-ka-zam, Let me be who I am.” —Elyse F. Aronson, “Ms. Goose and Her Wonderful Rhymes” (1999)

Some Strange, Weird-Sounding Name

2011-06-16T00:00:00.002-04:00

From The Strand magazine, 1895:
"He called some strange, weird-sounding name three times."

Ooo-cha!

2011-06-14T00:00:00.000-04:00

"And she thunked the tiger over the head with her good witch wand and said the magic word, ‘Ooo-cha!’" —Coleen Sydor, Ooo-cha! (1999)

All the Innocent Awe

2011-06-12T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

Speak a magic word as if you might never utter it again, with all the innocent awe of a child beseeching a parent.

Abraxas

2011-06-10T00:00:00.000-04:00

"I must be an Abraxas of change, a maker of effect.” —Marvin Spiegelman, Reich, Jung, Regardie & Me (1992)

(See our previous explanation of the magic word Abraxas.)

Bibbity Bobbity Boo

2011-06-08T00:00:00.001-04:00

“One ‘bibbity bobbity boo’ later, there she is dancing with the prince.” —Calvin Miller, The Empowered Leader (1995)

The magic phrase in question was popularized in Disney's Cinderella.

Long Strings of Vowels

2011-06-06T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

Incantations of long strings of vowels appear in Greek-Egyptian magical papyri dating back to the second century BCE.

Jiggery Pokery

2011-06-04T00:00:00.000-04:00

“The universe is what it is and can’t be changed by jiggery-pokery.” —Robert A. Heinlein, Glory Road (1963)

(See also our previous note about the meaning of jiggery-pokery.)

Bingo

2011-06-02T00:00:00.000-04:00

During a show at the Magic Castle, professional magician Tom Ogden called bingo “the magic word I learned in church.”

The Golden Key

2011-05-31T00:00:00.000-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

“It’s the magic word all right, the golden key, the open sesame.” —Keri Hulme, The Bone People (1986)

Yesterday

2011-05-29T00:00:00.000-04:00

"[The] past is near us, so near that we almost feel its warmth. That word, yesterday, envelops us in nostalgic echoes, as when we awaken with our sense of time and logic still confused, and the memory of a happy hour lived the day before reverberates in our minds."
—Giorgio de Chirico, Hebdomeros (and other writings)

Romantic

2011-05-27T00:00:00.003-04:00

"Romantic! A strange word, pregnant with meanings that seem to come to us from afar. A word that gives rise to suspicions and ambiguities."
—Giorgio de Chirico, Hebdomeros (and other writings)

Memories

2011-05-25T00:00:00.000-04:00

"Memories! What a deep resonant word, so evocative and full of feeling! It grips you simply to say it, or even read it."
—Giorgio de Chirico, Hebdomeros

Out of Nowhere

2011-05-24T22:05:00.002-04:00

"She looked at Victor expectantly, as if he could conjure up Prosper like he'd magicked Bo out of nowhere." -- The Thief Lord, Cornelia Funke

Syos

2011-05-23T00:00:00.001-04:00

A line taken out of context, from our dictionary of magic words:

"Magicians living in the 12th and 13th centuries used Syos as a magical invocation to the cardinal directions."