Magical Thinking

In neo-Spiritual thinking, we are awash with messages of love and light. And while they may provide temporary solace for many, only spiritually actionable thinking can actually change something of this world to better suit and reflect us. Real and persistent forces are at play in the world, and while most of us feel powerless to do anything about larger societal issues, we ALWAYS have sway over our own. And if we feel powerless over our own issues, then we return to our proverbial drawing board and see what has stopped us from recognizing the choice we have over each decision we make.

All of us (who are honest) have gone through periods where we feel small but palpable influences that seem to wear away at our sense of selves, our sense of being engaged with our destiny and the world, and the understanding that we have the power to do something about it.

Could it be that magical thinking, the childhood mechanics that we're constantly told to put away in our adult years, be the place where our power lives? Or perhaps magical thinking is simply a haven where all of our powers go after we've been called ridiculous or idealistic too often.

Note: Magical thinking is NOT the same as fantasizing. We fantasize when we feel powerless and we need some avenue of not-this-world-ness to give vent to unrealistic stories of how we're going to get our power back--such as winning some love who represents who we want to be, or becoming suddenly popular and famous and showing those bullying former classmates what is what. When we think magically, we KNOW that we are in our power and that the actions we take (even in those small and simple ways) change the world around us in non-cause-and-effect ways: you know that helping that beetle out of the watering can has somehow made the world warmer and friendlier, or that wishing upon that star made something happen. And that is what I think (for now) is at the heart of shamanism.

If you were lucky enough to have childhood moments when you felt the wonder of such things (and you're not so repressed that you've blocked them out), then you know what I mean. If you haven't had these moments, or you don't remember them, then it's probably a good time for you to get yourself over to a professional Magical Thinker and Doer, a.k.a., a shaman (or in this society, a shamanic practitioner). Because honestly, I don't think that people can have a sense of their own real power without some experience exercising their magical machinery (and I'm not talking about the domination flavor of power which is ultimately false--although it can wreak havoc nonetheless).

You practitioners, this goes for you too.