Ritual Magic

Rituals and Magic of 'Deep Play' of Past and Present Eras

It is common in our present location and age, perhaps except for those minority religious subcultures or communities who identify themselves as part of Wiccan or Goddess worship organizations, to view ritual magic as a legitimate practice only of the far past. Though millions read their horoscopes daily, and wear lucky talismans, there is a common intellectual currency amongst both scholars and the public at large to see rather than a system of belief structure that still has echoes in our present modalities of belief and being.

This is one reason why the anthropological works of Catherine Allen regarding the Runa, upon its publication in the 1980's, initially struck its readers with such force. The Runa are a small group of townspeople who adhere to customs of ancient Incan and colonial Spanish civilization. The book's most recent...
[ View Full Essay]