- “It's magic, I can tell.”
- ―Tara Maclay[src]
Tara Maclay creates a trail of magical sparkling light
Magic (also referred to as magick, mojo and the whammy) was the accumulation of mystical energy inherent to the Earth and all its inhabitants, due to the Seed of Wonder, as well as existing in other dimensions.
Everyone (both humans and non-humans) was connected to this power and was able to access it through practice and study. This energy allowed them to perform extraordinary, reality-altering feats which ranged from modifying one or more aspects of reality to reshaping the nature of an entire world. Magic was a supernatural force that thrived within the universe which did not actually violate the natural laws of nature, but was simply a law unto itself that remains a mystery by scientific means.
Magic was a term that both referred to the mystical energies that permeated through the Multiverse, and also the art of using these energies for one's own means along with all the practices associated. Magic was not only a means for changing reality, but also an essential aspect of life because—according to Willow Rosenberg—it was responsible for the aesthetic gratification experienced by everyday people (specifically things like good music, poetry and even the will to live). Additionally, many beings such as Slayers, Demons and Vampires were inherently magical by their very nature and constituents of their existence (particularly their reproduction) was dependent on this extra-dimensional energy.
Function
Dawn: OK, but if another witch was to do it, where would she start?
Willow: Uh, physics, principles, basic laws...
Dawn: Such as?
Willow: Uh, conservation of energies. You can't really create or destroy anything, only transfer.
(Anya scoffs)
Dawn: I'm sorry, are you helping?
Anya: No, but at least I'm not galloping off in the wrong direction.
Willow: Magic works off physics.
Anya: Not without a catalyst. If you're talking about transferring energies, you need some kind of conduit.
Magic did not rewrite the laws of physics, but instead "works off physics"; adhering to the basic physical laws of nature. Consistent with the Law of Conservation, magical energy could not be created nor destroyed, but transferred with the help of a catalyst (for example, Kraken's tooth, skin of Draconis, ground up Balthic stones etc). The basic components to magic was the energy being transferred, the individual or objects transferring that energy and the specific actions involved that influenced the result of that energy's transfer. [1]
History
The Seed of Wonder
The Seed of Wonder
All of Earth’s magic, the metaphysical rules it adhered to and the Earth itself originated from the Seed of Wonder, a powerful beacon that—upon coming into being— was responsible for containing all the demons and magical energies that spilled over from another dimension and keeping them in this dimension.
The Earth’s ties with other dimensions remained along with the magical energies connected to them so long as the Seed was in place, acting as a sort of gateway.
If the Seed was removed from the dimension completely, the Earth would crumble.
If the Seed was destroyed within Earth's parameters, the Earth's connection between the dimensions would sever and thus render the magic in those dimensions inaccessible to the Earth and all its inhabitants.
Magic Usage throughout History
- Thousands of years ago, three powerful elders by the name of the Shadow Men used their magic to fight the forces of darkness. They captured a young girl and imbued her with the powers of a demon, creating a superhuman warrior with the physical attributes extending above that of most demons. This girl was known as the first Slayer. A separate group, known as the Guardians, forged a special weapon for the Slayer which they kept hidden from the Shadow Men.
- The Temple of Sobek was an ancient Egyptian cult that was heavily involved in dark magic. They manufactured a number of transmogrification spells through the use of mystical bloodstones and an amulet forged by their high priest, intending on creating an army of reptile warriors by transmogrifying them out of normal reptiles, using different bloodstones for different types of reptiles.
- Magic usage was present during the time of the Aztecs. Tezcatcatl was a demon and one of the Aztecs' most powerful warriors who forged a mystical talisman to allow him to access the power of the Sun God. When this plan was discovered, Tezcatcatl was sentenced to death on the Day of the Dead. However, Tezcatcatl managed to strike a deal with a shaman prior to his execution who cursed him to come back every 50 years in order to reclaim his talisman.
- 15th century: When the Incan princess was sacrificed to the mountain god named Sebancaya, her mummified corpse was buried inside a tomb with a mystical seal that was used to prevent her from regaining life where she would drain the life force of living beings in order to continue her existence.
- In Cortana, Italy, 1418, an order of monks lead by Brother Thelonious used a magic ritual to trap the demon Moloch the Corruptor in a magic tome after he memorized and killed a number of townspeople.
- In 1898, a tribe of gypses by the name of the Kalderash Clan conducted a powerful ritual that restored the soul of the notorious vampire Angelus after he killed their favourite daughter. The return of Angelus’ soul reawakened his consciousness, causing him to endure the guilt of the many people he killed or harmed over a 150 years. Such a powerful spell ceased to exist over the next century as the transliteration annals were lost, rendering the remaining text indecipherable until it was translated by Jenny Calendar in 1998 using a computer program.
Undated events
- War of the Warlocks[2]
- Age of Levitation[2]
- The controversy surrounding Resurrection[2]
The End of Magic
- “This is what I'm talking about, Buffy. You don't realize how the destruction of the seed affected everyone. You only think about how it affected you. All the Slayers, the vampires, even the demons with the magic mojo. You all got to keep your power because it was inside of you. But everyone else got cut off from what made them tick. For me, it's magic. For that demon, his home.”
- ―Willow Rosenberg[src]
See End of Magic
Buffy destroying the Seed of Wonder and all of Earth's magic with it
Early in the 21st century, Buffy Summers had every Potential Slayer in the world activated into full Slayers with the help of the Scythe. This unknowingly set in motion the Twilight prophecy which foretold that a Slayer would change the world and bring about the creation of a new dimension in place of Earth: that Slayer being Buffy and that dimension being Twilight. Twilight granted Buffy and her ex-lover Angel with god-like abilities and convinced the latter to secretly work against her to protect the world from the inevitable apocalypse involving Buffy's Slayer army. When Buffy discovered Angel's deception, Twilight manipulated them into having destructive, passionate intercourse that would give birth to Twilight's dimension. Twilight's birth unleashed an army of demons where upon Earth through inter-dimensional portals. The demons desired to remove the Seed of Wonder from Earth in order to complete the prophecy. Buffy and her cohorts attempted to protect the seed, Twilight possessed Angel in order to finish what he started. It was when Twilight killed Buffy's Watcher and mentor Rupert Giles that ruined his plan.
Overwhelmed by the grief caused by Giles' death, Buffy destroyed the Seed of Wonder using the Scythe.[3] The doors to other dimensions were closed off from the Earth, sending the demonic hordes back where they came from and averting the apocalypse. However, this also meant that witches and warlocks could no longer draw on magic from demons, gods or other realities. While magical beings, such as Slayers, demons, and vampires, already present in this reality continued to exist, the Slayer line was rendered dormant and all vampires sired after the Seed's destruction were mindless. Earth was essentially without magic.
The Return of Magic
- “"Music, poetry, everything's going bad. This isn't just me not liking new trends. No one can hit a note, everyone's auto-tuned. Coke doesn't taste right anymore. I see examples everywhere. It's not just that there suddenly aren't witches and the occult around now. Suicide rates are moving up everyday. It's the inspiration, the dreams. All the things that make life so wonderful. It's just not quite ... there like it used to be. So I'm setting out to do something about it. To bring magic back."”
- ―Willow Rosenberg[src]
Severin almost finished aging the new Seed
In a dream, Buffy discovered that the Slayer Scythe was the key to restoring magic to the world after being contacted by the First Slayer. Willow Rosenberg took it upon herself to revive Earth's magic with the help of the Scythe. Her plan was to travel to the hell dimension Quor'toth and gather as much magical energy as she can there, using a combination of the residual energy of the Scythe and Connor to open up a portal to Quor'toth. Following her transversal through Quor'toth and various other dimensions, Willow descended into the Deeper Well to absorb the massive amounts of magical energy there, having already accumulated a large portion at Quor'toth. As she reached the depths of the Deeper Well, Willow absorbed so much energy that a new Seed of Wonder was spawned directly in her body, rendering her powerless in the process. However, the Seed needed over a millennia to mature.
Severin proceeded to age the new Seed to completion, restoring magic to the world, albeit with different rules than before; for example, new vampires were now immune to sunlight and could morph into giant bats, while spell casting no longer involved the use of incantations.
Magical energy
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Magical energy—when being extracted or absorbed—usually resembled electrical discharges, though its appearance varied between different spells where it could manifest in various colors and textures.[4][5][6]
Magical energy was a key component in performing magic as this energy fuelled the applications magic allowed and using too much magic at any given time would make the user lose that energy thereafter and thus limit their capacity to perform magic for a period of time, potentially requiring the user days to recuperate.[5]
Any being was capable of harnessing this power. This included humans, demons (such as Cyvus Vail), vampires (such as Kumiko Ishihara) and even cyborgs as a whole cell of them employed glamours to disguise themselves and the cyborg duplicate of Roger Wyndam-Pryce could activate the Staff of Devosynn.[7] It's unknown if beings such as robots or ghosts also had the capacity to perform magic.
Sourcing energy
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Willow absorbing the magical energy from a bundle of black arts books
In order for magic use to be accomplished, the user had to channel that energy from a source and exert it through themself. While more experienced magic users could use the magical energy inside of them, magical energy usually needed to drawn from external sources. These sources ranged from specific objects (such as the Scythe), higher beings (like Yeska) which granted this power or even drawn from the Earth itself; which according to Rupert Giles was where the true essence of magic came from.[8][9][10][11]
Because the Earth acted as a conduit for magic, a person could draw this power anywhere on the planet as every being and every object was connected to the Earth, meaning that every person had at least a small sum of innate mystical energy. Willow was able to utilize this to quickly heal her wounds by simply mediating in her bedroom, though also needed the help of Buffy Summers to further accelerate the process.[9] A more brutal instance occurred when Willow performed a portal spell using the combined life force of Kennedy and Anya Jenkins by forcibly pulling it form them.[1]
Certain spells could also cause a significant surge of power into the caster. An example of this includes the Ritual of Restoration performed by Willow Rosenberg, which Rupert Giles claimed that this could "open a door that that you [Willow] might not be able to close", meaning that this spell led her to becoming a powerful witch.[12]
Transferring energy
Rack and Willow share each other's magical power
One way of gaining magical energy was through transferring it with other beings. It could be shared among other users,[5][9] or forcibly taken. This usually required physical contact[5][13][14][9], but an exceptionally powerful practitioner could drain that energy without any contact [1] and not only drain the energy without the other person knowing, but also decode it to manipulate as they wished.[15] Draining too much energy from one user could kill or at least weaken them as it also drained their life force.[13][1][14]
Magic users could also likewise give some of their own magical energy to others, shown when Amy transferred a portion of her energy to Willow via a spell.[6] Absorbing unexpected bursts of magical energy can have unwanted effects, such as vomiting, one's eyes color changing and unintentionally magically effecting one's surroundings.[16][6]
Magic could also be transferred into a host for a limited time, as was the case with Rupert Giles, who had immense magical power bestowed upon him by a very powerful coven in England who then sent him to Sunnydale in an attempt to stop a rampaging Willow from destroying the world.[14]
Residual energy
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A graph depicting a "spike" of magical energy
When a person casts a spell, they are channeling magic through themselves and a portion of that magic remains within them. The magical energy was detectable by certain beings (such as Sweet and Rack) who could sense that energy from practitioners which could inform them of that person's magical power, including what spells they cast, how much power they had, if that power was depleting and what they intended to do with it.[17][5] Jonathan Levinson, a magical practitioner of a fair degree of skill, could "practically feel" that Willow was running out of magicks, while Rack immediately knew that Amy Madison was previously a rat years after they last had contact, and a coven from Devonshire sensed the dangerous magical force Willow possessed fueled by her grief.[5][13] Casting powerful spells could exert a notable amount of energy that was capable of interfering with the casting of lesser spells [18] and make the location of the casting susceptible to being discovered.
The Twilight Group possessed technology that detected large amounts of magic usage, but it wasn't easy to pinpoint the exact origin of the energy as it was abundant in all magical beings (which encompass beings that were inherently magical, possessed magic, and/or used magic).[19] While all beings on Earth were connected to magic, beings like Slayers, witches and Werewolves (in their lupine form) possessed a greater concentration of energy. As this fact made the Slayer Organization more detectable to Twilight, they decided to withdraw their energy by practicing the tradition of Bon, which stated that a person could make their internal magical energy flow out of themselves and redirect it back into the Earth. They did this by performing hard labor on Oz's farm without using their super strength. This method also allowed werewolves, such as Oz, to control their lycanthropy.[19][20] It was later revealed that they were actually redirecting their magic to a trio of earth-bound goddesses who protected the monastery in exchange (but eventually ended up attacking the Slayers due to their confusion).[21][22]
It was stated that it took many months for a person to completely clear themselves of magical energy.[20] This was demonstrated when Willow successfully summoned the god Osiris without any tools or special preparations after months of not using any magic.[23]
Usage and Execution
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A chest full of magical tools.
While in essence, the rudimentary process for using magic was simply drawing mystical energies and manipulating it for a desired effect, there were many factors involved that determined how successfully this energy can used and what it can be used for.
Methodology
Practitioners of magic, commonly known as witches, warlocks, sorcerers, wizards, mystics, alchemists and shamans, employed a number of ways to perform magic.
Spells
Tara casting a releasing spell
The most common form of performing magic was by the casting of spells; the recitation of text which summoned a particular force: demons, spirits or deities, in order to affect reality in a determined way. It was the most common way of employing magic.
Many spells simply involved just exclaiming an incantation for it to work, but some others could have additional requirements. Some spells came in the form of rituals: a combination of physical actions, spell recitation and use of talismans, potions and other ingredients to manipulate reality, and may even require specific times and locations. Despite this, the amount of effort put into a spell could simply depend on the individual's level of power and experience. For instance, the ritual to summon Osiris in order to resurrect an individual was a strenuous affair that couldn't be completed without Osiris' urn. The fact that Willow was able to accomplish the spell despite the offering being ruined and surviving the process was nothing short of impressive.[24] Months later, Willow was able to summon Osiris by simply calling for him.[23]
All spells left a trace signature after they were cast which weren't perceptible to the human eye unless the ritual Tirer La Couverture was preformed.
Potions
Potions are substances created from the mixing of certain ingredients which resulted in a concoction with magical properties.
Tools
Magic Practitioners used various tools to perform magic, such as candles, colored sand, crystals, charms etc.
- Talismans: Physical objects that had been imbued with mystical properties.
- Cauldrons: A container used to mix ingredients in.
Training and potency
Willow studies up before undertaking any magic
With proper training, magic practitioners become capable of performing feats of magic through sheer will. These acts ranged from minor telekinesis[25], levitation,[26] and glamours [27], which were suitable steps for inexperienced practitioners; to more complicated feats of transmogrification,[28] conjuration[29] firing energy blasts and lightning bolts,[13] and even flight[30], which could only be mastered by practitioners of a high-level of experience and power. Going beyond one's current limits posed a danger to themselves and others because they were invoking other-worldly forces.
Some people, Willow Rosenberg for example, had a greater inherent talent for magic than others who had to work "twice as hard to be half as good". There also seemed to be a commonality between magical power and family heritage, particularly on the maternal side. For instance, both Tara Maclay and Amy Madison were powerful witches and both of them had mothers who were also adept at using magic (Xander Harris speculated that magical ability "runs in the family" after discovering Amy using magic).[28]
Though all living beings, humans and non-humans alike, could perform spells with the usage of artifacts and incantations, witches and warlocks typically had greater knowledge and power over such forces. The technopagan Jenny Calendar, while able to cast spells and use methods of divination, did not call herself a witch because she didn't have "that kind of power".[31]
Having a vast array of knowledge wasn't the only factor that determined if someone was sufficient in accomplishing a particular magical action. For instance, Rupert Giles was fluent in several ancient languages and well-versed in a multitude of texts about demonology and witchcraft, but didn't possess any amount of the magical power possessed by Willow who wasn't as knowledgeable as Giles was. This was demonstrated when they had to combine their essences (along with Xander and Buffy's) in order use powerful spells against Adam since they required both Willow's power and Giles' multilingualism. In essence, the difference between Giles' power and Willow's power is that the former's lies in theory and the latter's was gained through practice.[32]
The Watcher's Council rated a magical practitioner's power by a "magical proficiency level". Though how such a scale functioned was never explained.[33]
Deities
Willow summoning the god Osiris
Many spells called upon higher beings or named gods in their incantations. Multiple beings could also be called for a single spell. Such named gods and their specialties included:
- Aradia: Guiding spell[34]
- Asmodea: A presumably offensive spell[35]
- Cadria: Blinding curses[26]
- Kali, Hera, Kronos, Thonic and Cassiel (though the last two aren't actually gods): The Thick air spell[36]
- Corsheth and Gilail: Reversal spells and the Curse of Corsheth (Corsheth only)[37]
- Diana: Love spells[28]
- Eligor: The Vampire Restoration Ritual[38]
- Granath: Reanimation spells[39]
- Hecate: Transmogrification spells.[28]
- Janus: Halloween transmogrification spell[40]
- Kokopelli: Presumably spells about fertility[5]
- Osiris: Resurrection spells[24]
- Thespia: The Demon Locator Spell[41]
Other spells called upon demons such as Proserpexa.[42] Whether these gods granted the practitioners wish was dependent on the situation. For example, Osiris refused to resurrect Tara Maclay since her death was caused by another human which was either not his jurisdiction or beyond his power.[23] Another instance included Hecate, who was known for her impatience, seemingly refused to de-rat Amy when Willow summoned her, even though Amy originally summoned Hecate to turn her into a rat, as Willow wasn't as powerful as Amy at the time.[43] Also, the Davric Demon Yeska, falsely considered a goddess among wizards, granted them power on their 50th birthday in exchange for a virgin sacrifice.[8]
Types of Magic
There were several branches of magic that focused on a specific application and differed with the level of difficulty associated with performing them.
- Conjuration: involved creating matter out of nothing, one of the few magics that ignored physics. It was considered a powerful form of magic and inexperienced practitioners were discouraged from conjuring as it was hard to control what was conjured.[34]
- Transmogrification: involved transforming the shape and appearance of an object into something different. This form of magic could be preformed by first-year practitioners but wasn't advised as it was harder to reverse the affects.[28]
- Glamouring: involved altering how objects and individuals were perceived, both in terms of how they were seen, heard and touched. It was considered a basic form of witchcraft that could be easily learnt and taught to non-practitioners.[44][45]
- Divination: involved the use of tools to predict future events. It was apparently a rather simple form of magic as those with little power or experience with magic were known to use it, though this could depend on the method of divination that was used.[31] [46]
- Flesh Magic: an ancient form of magic that relied on flesh and blood rather then words or incantations. It was considered more powerful than word-based magic.[47]
Magical practices
The approach to performing magic varied widely and there were different types of magical practice based on what methods the practitioner used and what results they hoped to accomplish. These practices could also serve as the practitioner's religious/spiritual belief system.
- Witchcraft: Practiced by Witches and Warlocks.
- Wizandry: Practiced by Wizards.
- Necromancy: Practiced by Necromancers.
- Alchemy: Practiced by Alchemists.
- Shamanism: Practiced by Shamans.
- Technopaganism: Practiced by Technopagans.
- Voodoo: Practiced by Voodoo Priests.
Good and Evil
Different magicks could be defined by their moral implications, power and source. Dark magic was often associated with powerful spells that posed a risk to others, the universe or the caster, and often involved subjects that were considered against nature, such as Resurrection spells.[24][12] These magicks could be found in certain books and came from a "place of rage and power".[36][23][14] Good magic could be channeled for equally powerful spells and were sourced from things like the Earth and the Scythe.[9][10]
Limitations
Magic also had its limits and could have negative consequences on the user and those around them, both physically and mentally.
Addiction
- “Willow, you are using too much magic!”
- ―Tara Maclay[src]
Willow feels the after-burn after a night of excessive magic use
Overuse of magic could lead to a drug-like addiction which, if left untreated, caused the practitioner to eventually disintegrate or burn out.[5] For instance, a group of African shamans became addicted to dark magicks to the extent that they eventually died.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many
A prime example of magic addiction was Willow who originally started to practice magic as a way to aid Buffy Summers in the fight against evil, but as her power grew, she began to using magic for her own enjoyment and to solve her own personal problems.[48][29] The real problems started to arise after she de-ratted Amy who introduced her to the warlock Rack. Rack supplied the girls with magicks that fueled them for days without any burn-out factor. These magicks created notable changes in their behavior; making them spaced-out and irresponsible, giving them symptoms characteristic of what one would receive under the influence of stimulants. It also caused physical changes in Willow who's eyes turned black and began emitting magical energy from her body.[5] It was after the event wherein one of her spells caused the creation of a demon when she realized things needed to change. She relinquished all of her magical items, such as crystals, tarot cards, crystal balls and herbs, and vowed never to use another spell again. She was even unable to make potions.[6] Despite dealing with some problems along the way, such as performing strange acts like carefully arranging straws and highlighting entire pages of a book,[6][49] Willow managed to overcome her addiction until the death Tara which caused her to absorb the magical energy from dozens of books and go on a murderous rampage.[13] During this time, she didn't exhibit any of the drug-like symptoms she did until she absorbed the collective energy via a coven from Devon.[14] After being convinced not to destroy the world, Willow received rehabilitation in England, learning to draw energy from the Earth while also still struggling to keep herself from becoming addicted again.[50]
Physical repercussions
- Willow: “Totally. And magic wasn't all great. I mean, I won't miss the nose bleeds and the headaches and stuff.”
- Buffy: “Right”
- Willow: “Or keeping stinky yak cheese in my bra. Don't ask.”
- — Willow Rosenberg describing the negative effects of using magic[src]
Willow falls over and gets a nosebleed after casting a Teleportation Spell
Since magic required physical energy in order to function, only so much could be used at any one time as posited by Willow Rosenberg in her battle against the hell God Glory[36] and after resurrecting Buffy Summers.[51] Likewise, after a night of heavy magic use, Willow returned home exhausted and unable to use even simple magic to close her blinds. This clearly indicated that overuse of magic and lack of energy had localized detrimental effects on the practitioner's magic use. Magic could also cause mental duress and painful headaches, e.g., after Willow used a very powerful teleportation spell on Glory, she had recurrent headaches for roughly a week or so after.[52][53] Heavy nose bleeding was also common of magical overuse or after completing a very powerful spell as was the case with Willow Rosenberg a number of times, e.g., creating a large force field when the Scooby Gang were on the run from Glory and the Knights of Byzantium[54] and, likewise, when Willow created a force field to defend the Summers' home against a Turok-Han.[55] When the Slayers' base was under attack by Twilight's army, a few of the witches protecting the keep had what appeared to be brain aneurysms through severe overuse of magic, one of them even collapsing dead after having what Willow called a "brain fry".[56] Despite all the negative effects, using magic can have a good effect on the user. After casting the Slayer Activation spell, Willow was overcome with a powerful force of transcendence as the spell took effect, leaving her in a spent yet gleeful state as she collapsed on the floor.[10]
Risk factor
Willow is attacked by the very fireflies she conjured
Practicing magic was a risky operation as things could go easily wrong, resulting in an unwanted or even harmful after-effect.
Maintaining control while preforming a spell was challenging in itself and required concentration. Willow could levitate a pencil at her will so as long as she retained "emotional control" and upon hearing something to her dislike, she accidentally torpedoed the pencil into a tree.[25] When imprisoned in a frat house under the influence of a demon, Buffy warned Willow, only then a witch practicing since last year, that she shouldn't cast a conjuring spell and her spells were just "50/50". A stubborn Willow proceeded to perform the spell anyway and it ended up backfiring.[34] Tara seemed nervous in summoning the goddess Thespia [41] and she, along with many others expressed hesitation that Willow would be able to pull off a resurrection where the ritual itself was a trial of torture. Although Willow ended up successful, the offering was ruined.[57]
Spells could have unwanted results if things were to go wrong during the performance of one. A love spell that Xander Harris had Amy perform on Cordelia went wrong, resulting in every woman in town falling for him as Cordelia already loved him.[25] Willow tried to alter the memories of Buffy and Tara but ending up removing all the memories from them, herself, Xander, Rupert Giles, Spike and Dawn Summers, simply because she unknowingly left a bag of Lethe's Bramble to burn, a necessary ingredient which enhanced the effects of the spell.[58]
Physical Effects
- “I'm so angry at me, I cannot believe these aren't black.”
- ―Willow Rosenberg, commenting on how she usually changes eye color due to magic.[src]
Magic could also have manifestly visible and bodily changes on the caster, the most common of which was the caster's eyes turning completely black when using very powerful magic, or when wielding magic with evil intent or uncontrolled emotions. This was shown in Catherine Madison and her daughter when preforming feats of transmogrification[37][28][43] and to Willow several times.[36][5][1]
Willow was subject to severe physical change after she absorbed the latent magical power confined within dozens of spell books, which turned her hair and eyes black and caused dark veins to sprout up on her face. After this point, whenever Willow over exerted herself, her hair and eyes turned black and her voice often deepened and had a slight echo to it.[23] When Willow used the power of the Slayer Scythe to turn every potential in the world into the real Slayer. This temporarily caused Willow's hair to turn white and her whole body to glow with a godly light.[10] After Tara was shot, Willow's eyes turned blood red.[59]
When combining her essence with the essences of Willow, Giles, and Xander during the Enjoining spell, Buffy's irises turned orange and eventually red for the duration of the spell.[32]
Magic in the Modern World
The idea of magic as an actual functioning force was not widely known in mainstream human society. While the Watcher's Council was aware of magic and Watchers themselves were known to possess a degree of magical skill as well as employing alchemists; the Initiative, a government agency tasked with studying demons, were unfamiliar with the power magic had and failed to take it seriously.[32] However, Dextralcorp Recycling Technologies, a government-run organisation, seemed to possess better knowledge on the subject.[60]According to the Watcher's Council, witches were required to be "registered".[33]
Even though some humans did genuinely believe in magic, their knowledge of what magic actually involved tended to be rather limited. For example, the Daughters of Gaia was a Wicca group based in UC Sunnydale that consisted of nothing but "wannablessedbes" who actually didn't know anything about real magic, up until 2003 when they consisted of real magic practitioners.[61] Also, the Dragon's Cove sold genuine magical items, but the majority of purchases made was of Ouija boards and rabbit's feet.[62]
Technopaganism was the usage of modern technology, such as computers, in magic rituals.[31]
Notes and Trivia
- Magic had been known by several alternative names. The term magick was used as a countable noun (for example, potent magicks or the magicks).[12][13] In reality, magick was the term used by English occultist Aleister Crowley as a way to distinguish between the occult and stage magic in relation to Thelema. He defined magick as "the Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity with Will." Colloquially, magical energy or magic in general has been referred to as mojo [28][13][63][55][64]and the whammy.[28][65]\
Behind the Scenes
- Magic has been used as a metaphor for various themes during the course of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In the fourth season when Willow and Tara began practicing witchcraft together, magic was used as metaphor for the sexual side of their relationship. In particular, the powerful scene that accompanied the spell preformed by Willow and Tara in "Who Are You" was "designed specifically to be their first sex scene", according to Joss Whedon who claimed it was "one of the steamiest sex scenes" he and the crew ever shot.[66]