In fact, the historical path of witchcraft or magic that is the same, where the extent and branched than the distance from 1486, when Germany came the infamous treatise on demonology "Hammer of Witches", until 1997, when it was published the first novel by JK Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." Magic for most of human history has been a natural part of the nature of Homo Sapiens, like, say, walking upright or peripheral vision.

When witchcraft was a natural ...

Witchcraft or magic, or sorcery - a system of symbolic actions of different nature (verbal spells written spells, rituals and practices, etc.) to achieve a certain desired result with the help of supernatural forces of nature. Modern followers of magic as a whole do not dispute such a generally accepted definition, at the same time trying to refine and upgrade it, adding allegations that magical acts - natural, natural method of interaction between man and the environment. In this magical action can be divided into direct, as a result of a ritual, a person acquires a private power, and "borrowed" when using various rites sorcerer (magician, wizard) calls to his aid some otherworldly, mystical powers or beings that and help him to achieve his goal.

Historians and archeologists argue themselves hoarse, but when it is the first time people have turned to magic actions .  The spread in the dating is very high, between 15 and 40 thousand years ago, but one thing scientists agree - primitive magic was part of the life of the human community back in the days when our ancestors had only stone tools .  Judging by cave paintings and archaeological finds in the graves of the Stone Age, already in those days to perform various magic rituals: from the symbolic destruction spear image of the animal before the hunt (it was to "kill" the beast, and in reality) to the mysterious rites of initiation, the there making young people as full members of the tribe .  Over time, it becomes difficult magic, magic acts took everything more sophisticated look and character of the common .  A huge system of elaborate rituals existed in ancient Egypt and ancient Greece and Rome, as classical civilization based on paganism, were thoroughly imbued with home and the "official" magic .  The original magic system existed in pre-Columbian America .

However witchcraft, which in our time is a new interest because, first of all, the "magic" fashion show-business, direct your source has medieval European magic. Legacy of druids, ancient echoes of everyday magic, magic rituals penetration from the East, the independent development of folk superstition, active alchemical quest for the educated part of the population - that was the basis of medieval witchcraft. However, by itself, this phenomenon is unlikely to be so well known, if not unfolded c XV to XVII century "hunt for witches" by the Catholic Inquisition, and some Protestant churches. That aura of martyrdom, is actively used later anti-Catholic writers, compounded interest of future generations to witchcraft.

Return to the magical roots

Being in the Middle Ages under the ban and harassment witchcraft, enters into conflict with the basic concepts and the very spirit of Christianity, hid in the underground is not too long. Of course, the magic had to be masked for many centuries, but about from the XVIII century, from the time when religious values ​​began to lose popularity, witchcraft again become fashionable to have a sufficiently wide layers of the population.

If 300 years ago this passion was still the lot of the privileged classes, from the XIX century, thanks to the democratization of public and political life and the development of media, magic has become a subject of interest for many people. Beginning of the last century was a real magical boom: demand for the supernatural, and even on a supernatural, which can be subjected to their own needs and whims of a sharply increased. Especially due to the fact that many discover the "wizards" and "witch" gave his statements and teachings mixed mystical-scientific nature, resulting in the confirmation of his own words supposedly scientific data.

After two world wars and socio-economic shocks between them when humanity was not up to the elementary magic, witchcraft popularity went up again in the second half of the XX century. Experiments with the substance, orgiastic teachings from the East, interest in the pre-Christian, pagan religious stratum in Europe, which operate by means of techniques of psychological manipulation of pseudo-religious teachings of the sect, one-sidedly interpreted eastern philosophical practice - this is what currently is the magic and witchcraft. In addition, the water mill on the successful use of pouring tickling the nerves and brains mystical component of literature, music and cinema: the novels of Stephen King, many "horror" books and movies Harry Potter and "Twilight."

Alexander Babitsky