Oaklight

Magic,
The very word conjures up images of Gandalf, Merlin, and other legendary mages. But the truth is that almost every one uses magic in one form or another. There are three basic levels of magic Meditative,
Ritual / Ceremonial,
and Direct Manifestation.

Now when I speak of levels, I am not saying that one form is better than the other, instead they blend one into the other.. Like many facets of reality they are actually artificial categories.

Meditative Magic
Meditative magic is one of the most basic types of magic. It includes many types of magic that are used by almost everyone such as Visualization and Prayer. It also includes many types of "Light Work" , and many types of Past Life Regression and Healing techniques.

Ritual / Ceremonial Magic
Ritual / Ceremonial magic takes things one step further by adding Physical actions to the meditative techniques. Often tools are also used. The use of Physical actions and tools re-enforce the ability of the mind /spirit to focus on the purpose and energies of the Magic being worked.
The Key to Ritual is properly directing your thoughts, words, and actions.

Direct Manifestation
Just as Ritual magic builds on the solid foundation of Meditative magic,
Direct Manifestation builds on the principles of Ritual magic.
With Direct Manifestation tools are almost never used. Instead the focus is on controlling our thoughts, words, and actions in our day to day life. By doing this we can manifest our own reality. This is the ultimate responsibility. But on the other hand, this also means that the only things that we can be held responsable for are our thoughts, words, and actions.