In all my decade and a half of being on the path of studying the Craft and magical arts in all of their many forms, I would think that by now I would have a great grasp on the basic concept of centering.  However, just a few short weeks ago, I came to an entirely new appreciation for centering.

"Ground and center." That sentiment is at the top of rituals and practices, from the British Traditional circle casting to the LBRP to hatha yoga.  In my tradition of Witchcraft, grounding means to connect solidly with the earth beneath your feet.  Your energy body is connected to the energy body of the earth.  You are one with the earth, a tree rooted firmly upon the soil. 

In magic, this gives us solidity in the real world, which yields real world results - after all, if our heads are constantly in the clouds, how can we be doing anything upon this earth? In ceremonies in which we honor the Goddess as Mother Earth, this helps solidify our connection with her.  In all practices, it helps us because we have a place to put our extra energy after a rite or a working. 

Centering, though, is somewhat more elusive.  In rituals such as the Middle Pillar ritual, chakra-aligning rituals, yoga and kundalini work, centering is talked a lot about.  However, I never really got the depth of the importance until I started back with belly dance classes, and started working out with a Wii Fit.

I have been doing a lot of training to build myself up to be a better belly dancer.  It has been my new years' resolution to drop the extra fat, to tone the muscles, and to better my body so that I can live more vibrantly.  So far, so good - it's almost February, and my momentum is still going.  Part of what has kept it going is the fascination with centering.

The Wii Fit is a delightful little device.  You stand on the board, which has four weight sensors - one for the front and back of each foot.  It measures how far you are leaning to any side, thus helping you see, visually, problems with your posture.  Having your center of balance not too far to the front, back, left or right is optimal for the best health.

I'd been walking sideways, leaning to the left for all of my life and never knew it.  My lower back was constantly being needlessly strained because I wasn't supporting myself properly.  A hip injury that I had about 6 months ago might have healed a lot faster if I had not been working against it.

The direct feedback given by the Wii Fit helped me to find where my center of balance is, and what it feels like to stand in perfect alignment.  It takes a bit of work, as the lower abs, glutes, and thighs need to tone up to keep your body properly supported and centered.  It wasn't easy the first few days as my body was working muscles that I let get far too lazy.

The most amazing thing I noticed was the proper stance for a neutral stance in belly dance is by being supported by strong lower abs, glutes, and thighs.  Proper belly dance posture - what they teach you in your first belly dance class - is all about being properly centered, perfectly aligned between front, back, left, right, up and down. Again, no wonder I was having so much trouble with certain moves - I was leaning to the left and my muscles were improperly balanced.  Once I trained myself to drop immediately into a centered position, my dancing came much more readily to me, and the dance itself became much more graceful and beautiful as I flowed more naturally.

The lesson here is this: when you're centered, things just flow more readily.  When we do rites that involve invoking aspects of the six directions (north, south, east, west, up and down), we are psychically centering ourselves.  We are putting ourselves neatly between the push and pull of the logic of the east and the emotion of the west, the stillness of the north and the passions of the south.  When we place ourselves firmly in the center of Up and Down, we live in the here and now, standing firmly and proudly upon our memetic and genetic heritage, and aspiring ever toward the infinite possibilities that our futures hold.

By putting myself in my body's center as a bellydancer, I have access to the widest range of motion - my body can move left, right, forward, back, up and down and back to center again.  By putting myself in the center of the circle, I have access to the widest range of abilities, tools, and realms - my mind can go to the west, north, east, south, up or down, and back to center again. 

This is important, because when we are faced with challenges to which the answer is not obvious, we can look in another direction and draw strength from there.  Not able to complete the difficult mathematical task?  Step away from the east, as Archimedes did, and go to the west.  Take a bath, let the mind relax, and go back to the east again when your mind is ready.  Is the heart heavy with depression and stasis, feeling in a rut?  Then turn on the music and let the fires of dance, sex, or an invigorating workout light you up again.  Feeling nostalgic and homesick?  Aim toward the skies, and start planning out a future endeavor.

The mind and body are inherently linked.  When the body is centered, the mind becomes centered.  When the mind becomes centered, the body becomes centered.  Learning how to properly center myself has been an immense help to me in both the physical world of bettering my health, and in the psychic world of bettering my mental and emotional abilities.  As above, so below.

My latest creation: a handmade, hand-dyed robe, made of 100% 8mm china silk habotai.  So light and airy, breezy and comfortable, this will be a joy to wear in the warm months.  Additionally, the circlet I am wearing is of my own making - the phases of the moon, cut out of stained glass.

Go to my gallery page to view full size.

In my extensive reading and research into all matters arcane, I am always delighted when I come across a book that manages to brilliantly balance simplicity and depth.  Advanced Magick for Beginners by Alan Chapman, published in 2008 by Aeon Books, is one such book.  Following along in the Chaos Magic current ("post-modern magic," as the author refers to it), Chapman strips away all of the cultural and personal pretenses placed upon magic, and pares down to the bare bones of the underlying theories of magic.

The author describes his approach to magic as an art, a science, and a culture of experiencing truth. As an art, a magical act is an experience that we ascribe meaning to. As a science, a magical act is a technique which we refine through an experimental practice and observation of results.  As a culture, a magical act is a means of working with a cultural framework, a set of ethics both personal and cultural, to achieve results which are relevant to the life and world in which the mage lives.

That is it, as far as Chapman believes the complexity of magic should be taken.  The techniques he outlines are more guidelines than anything else.  They are a methodology of how to approach magic.  This is no book that will tell you what to say or do; Rather, this book will help the reader discover for him or herself the style of magic that flows best with his or her own personality. The author cares not which gods you work with, worship, or pray to (if any at all), nor does the author care which tradition, style, or culture you borrow your elements from (or whether you have invented them all on your own).  Instead, the author cares that the reader develops an understanding of magic which will be able to answer the questions of why things work. 

As such, there is no art, no poetry, no romantic language.  Chapman wants to make certain that you really get a solid grasp on the theory, and that you decorate it as you see fit.  The book's starkness is both a blessing and a curse. While maintaining its no-nonsense tone throughout the read, it can feel a bit dry at times and one can get lost in some of the more complex ideas he weaves. Thankfully, the author does have a sharp sense of humor, which he does pepper up the book with.  Even when the theories get thick with layers of metaphysical concepts, the author keeps the reader there with his clear and thoughtful presentation.

This book is not so much a curriculum for learning the magical arts as it is a catalyst to get the reader thinking on deeper levels about his or her magic.  Chapman places a strong emphasis on technique.  In many of his chapters, he has laid out spreadsheets in which he examines the core aspects of a magical working, and cross-references many different approaches to magic against those core elements.  Thus, he distills the steps of all magic down to 5 simple steps: deciding what you want to occur, making sure it is possible for the outcome to occur, choosing an experience and equating that experience to the desired outcome, and finally performing or engaging in the experience.  Last, the mage observes his or her results, and modifies methods as needed.  It is against these five steps that he examines sigil magic, sympathetic magic and magical links, nonsensical styles of magic, as well as magic involved with working with Gods, entities, or created servitors.

The author likewise explores facets of magical culture, such as the usage of magical names and mottoes and aeonics, with the same forthright manner.  He addresses the need for a mage to choose, or not choose, a magical name, and the potential importance of doing so.  He speculates upon the concepts of the kind of world the mage lives in, and the evolving consciousness of humankind, and where magic fits in.  Ultimately, his wanderings in various topics magical culture augment his explorations into magical methods and puts them into a greater framework where magick that is self-sufficient, self-driven, and ultimately, the most satisfying to the self can thrive.

What appealed to me most is that this book helps those who seek to know the magical arts to get to the heart of how and why they work.  Chapman's work transcends cultural, stylistic, and traditional boundaries in an intelligent way that can help the dedicated mage intelligently develop a system of magic that is unique to the one using it.  As I hold true that every mage must find his or her own path, I find that this book can offer some good information about the terrain.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

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