A Fragment by Sappho

[Is poetry holographic? Like a hologram, can a surviving fragment of an ancient poem unfold the original meaning in its entirety? We like to think so.]

Here's Sappho's take on magic words:

Although they are
Only breath, words
which I command
are immortal
(translated by Mary Barnard)

Papparapa

Meaning “suddenly” this Japanese version of presto is used as a teleportation spell in the Dragon Ball manga and role playing games [created by Akira Toriyama, 1984].

Kesk Ma'sik

These words for changing from reality to non-reality are of Micmac [Maritime Algonquian] origin. Similarly, kesk matiket means a magician, and kesk mta’q means “making a magic sound” [Micmac elder Michael W. Francis, quoted in Beverly Diamond and Franziska von Rosen, Visions of Sound, 1994].

Vessel of Moss

In 1916, the United States American Ethnology Bureau recorded some magic words from Tsimshian mythology, spoken by both humans and animals:

Magic words enable a man to escape from a mountain. He says, "On the thumb," "On the sand," and, repeating these words, gets down safely. When the Porcupine throws himself down from a high tree, he shouts, "Vessel of moss!" and falls on the ground without hurting himself. When the Beaver shouts, "Stone!" he strikes the ground and almost dies. Magical words addressed to the West Wind and to the East Wind cause those winds to blow gently. A wound closes as the effect of magic words.

Hiram Abif

The magic words of professional magician Thurston [1869-1936], Hiram Abif is a name from a legend studied in Freemasonry concerning “freedom of speech, conscience, and thought.” The legend became a central part of Masonic ritual in 1730 [Paul M. Bessel, “The Hiram Abif Legend in Freemasonry,” 1999].

Excelsior

The magic word was—‘Excelsior!’
—Roy Thomas, Stan Lee’s Amazing Marvel Universe (2006)

Excelsior is a cry of ascendancy, supremacy, mastery, greatness. It is a charm for gaining the upper hand. The silvery tones of this heart-stirring magic word “put a soul in every bell / To triumph o’er the powers of hell—Excelsior!” (Thomas Bracken, “Longfellow,” Musings in Maoriland, 1890). In his poem “Excelsior,” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow likened the word to a sigh, an oft-repeated prayer, the accents of an unknown tongue, and a falling star. Excelsior is of Latin origin, ex meaning “beyond” and celsus meaning “lofty.” It is typically taken to mean "ever upward."

Rantorp

The magic word rantorp [a Scandinavian name] changes people into chairs in the play General Gorgeous by Michael McClure [1982].