After my post Chaos Magick: Expectation vs. Reality, I thought it could raise some questions about the difference between this path and eclectic witchcraft. So here we will explore definitions and comparisons between the two.
- Chaos magick is eclectic, but eclectic magick is not necessarily chaos magick.
Eclectics are apt to pick and choose from practices and beliefs to cobble together their own personal system that speaks to them. Their beliefs evolve until they settle on what works for their practice. Sometimes it never settles. Regardless, these practitioners use tools, methods, and avenues time and time again, forming their own personal paradigm.
Chaos magick is eclectic in the sense that its practitioners use whatever serves them whenever they need it, much like eclectics picking and choosing from other paths. But instead of hanging on to it, Chaotes discard whatever was used after they’ve used it. They don’t hang on to it and codify it into a system.
Another way to see it: If a practice is continually subscribed to as being true, it is not chaos magick.
- Chaos magick has only one tenet, while eclectic magick has as many as the practitioner deems true.
The one credo of chaos magick is as follows: “Nothing is true, everything is permitted.” As such, because chaos magick postulates no beliefs, practitioners are free to use anything they wish and use it like it were true for as long as they need to.
Magickal eclecticism, on the other hand, encompasses as many beliefs as the practitioner believes and has use for. While everything is permitted to a chaos magician as long as they need it, an eclectic witch curates a system of their own belief to serve for a much longer period.
- Chaos magick uses only one tool
Just as the practitioner who walks the eclectic path boils down systems and curates what they believe, they also find tools that work and discard those that do not. As a practicing eclectic witch myself, my tools and methods are all over the place from years of exploring and simply figuring out what works for me and what doesn’t.
On the other hand, chaos magick requires not a damn thing. Maybe space in which to be alone to concentrate efforts. But as far as tools, there’s only one: belief. Belief is used in the sense that it serves as a tool to further a goal or intention. I go a little further in the Chaos Magick: Expectation vs. Reality post:
“A big part of chaos magick is rooted in the rejection of rituals and ceremonies.
Let’s dig a little deeper. A lot of the science that backs chaos magick includes the witch or magician releasing magickal energy properly. This magickal energy release of theirs creates what’s known as a “wave form” around the practitioner. This “wave form” causes turbulence or agitation in the a aetheric realm and will most likely generate a result – hopefully this result aligns with the intention of the practitioner.
In other words, because life itself is mostly inconsistent and choatic, when you put focused intentional energy out in the world you’re able to shape that chaos and in turn, change your world.”
PIN IT!
IN CONCLUSION…
There you have it. A very brief post, but hopefully it has served to identify the differences between chaos and eclectic magick. Are you a chaos magician or eclectic witch? Let me know in the comments!
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