"Ancient History; Egypt" Lesson Two, History of Magic Class (All Years)

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As he began to read, Shadow thoughtlessly started sketching out the illustration of an Anubis that was printed on the left corner of the page next to the text. As his pencil was busy marking up the page in his sketchbook, he rested his chin in his palm and began reading the first few paragraphs on the page. As the words transferred from his eyes, to his thoughts, he imagined what a royal court of the ancient Egyptians would look like. The room would have been constructed out of pure gold. Pillars would have been adorned in jewels, and symbols of great meaning to the people of the time. Those who took part in the court would have been mainly of regular, non-magic descent, but all wise, and purposeful in one way or another. A few who were of magic blood were most likely dream interpreters, or consultants upon matters dealing with the Gods, or other such things. Shadow was certain he would find himself drawing such a setting later in the evening.

To see magic and non-magic people coexisting was a curious thought, and in such a unique setting, it was an interesting picture indeed. As he finished his sketch of the Anubis illustration, he began writing out what he had just read on the same page as the Anubis, so it would be similar to the page in the book. His handwriting was all that differed. Once finished, he reread what he had just written, before he moved onto the next page.

At this point in time, about 3000 through 1000 B.C., magic was beginning to integrate into society and wizards were held in high esteem. The division between the Magical world and the Muggle world was nonexistent. The Egyptians used magic for both practical and religious purposes. They believed magic was a divine creation for the benefit of humanity. It was considered a field of knowledge just like architecture, literature, medicine, etc. It was just another category of knowledge to be used in coping with their environment and religion.

In our modern society of today, the word magic no longer conveys the same force it did in the ancient Egyptian culture. To the Egyptians, magic was a real and potent force. It was a tangible means of communicating, manipulating, and controlling their gods. For example, their life depended on agriculture, and thus the weather. Using magic to control the weather was important for their survival. The Egyptians also believed magic was essential after death for safe passage through the afterlife.

Examples of some important ancient Egyptian magic rituals concern defense against enemies. Wax or clay figures of the enemy were ritually destroyed. Magic was also used to keep away spiritual enemies, such as god’s that were not favorable towards them or wanted to harm them. There were also personal spells that were used against personal enemies. For example, there were spells that could invoke evil spirits to appear in a person's dreams. Also personal use of magic included the use of love potions, usually consisting of some liquid or food that came was finished with an incantation. To the ancient Egyptians, it did not differ much from a medical prescription. As stated previously, magic was just another field of knowledge like medicine and was very real to them.

The purpose of the magic was to compel the help of divine powers. Usually, the person carrying out the magic was identified by name with a deity to obtain from him the power of that god. Also the person might threaten that god with dire consequences if his demands were not met. Many of the mythical Egyptian gods were supposedly invoked into using magic, but the most frequent god invoked was Isis, since she was the protector of her son, Horus, with whom the person seeking help would often be identified with.

He wondered what it would be like today, if magic was known to all like it had at one time before, during the ancient times. If the 'muggles' would be capable of accepting witches and wizards into society. It didn't take long for Shadow to come to a conclusion. Some people would fear magic, as some witches and wizards would provoke reason to. Others would expect magic to solve all their problems, win their wars, and demand that it be the responsibility of wizards to use their magic in such a way. By no means was the world simple during the times of the Egyptians, but it was far more complex now than it was back then. To establish the presence of magic in the world would take centuries, maybe even a millenia. And even still, there would be much conflict that would follow such an extreme endeavor.

The way the book seemed to be presenting the facts, it did not seem to be the Gods that the wizards had been controlling, but rather, the elements themselves. Of course, that might have been what their entire culture had been based on as well. Wizards who could control the weather must have been powerful though. People don't just walk around these days and make it rain, after all. During such a time, when magic was openly accepted, perhaps that meant those with magic potential were brought up into the higher ranks of society. Or perhaps the Gods just simply granted such abilities to those who were already well established in society. In either case, the proper tools to become strong wizards were most likely readily made available. There also seemed to be a surplus of opportunity for wizards, for as the textbook stated, each wizard identified himself with a particular God or Goddess. They specialized in one thing or another, in other words. Thinking on this, Shadow figured there had to have been many of magic descent back then, just as there is now.
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