Jargon and specialized vocabulary are used for nearly every trade or system in the world.\u00a0 Sometimes this results in the general population taking on part of this way with words, such as the use of the term, \u2018download.\u2019 But more often than not, most people can listen to some conversations between two people who work or play at the same thing and not understand what the heck they\u2019re talking about.\u00a0 For instance, I sat next to a table that held three accountants one time.\u00a0 They were not trying to keep their conversation quiet or secret in any way; I heard every sound uttered by them.\u00a0 But for the life of me, I don\u2019t think I understood more than twenty words in the half hour I sat four feet away.\u00a0 No wonder those guys get paid lots of money: nobody can understand what they are talking about!<\/p>\n
One of the things I\u2019ve always used as a measurement of how well somebody knew something is what I call the simple-words gauge.\u00a0 The math behind intergalactic navigation is pretty wild and difficult, no doubt.\u00a0 But if somebody wanted me to understand what needed to be done by that math, it could all be explained in simple language.\u00a0 I know, because I once had a PhD mathematician explain it all in about fifteen minutes\u2026 and I understood it.\u00a0 Rather than try to dazzle me with specialized words and esoteric concepts, he just drew from his vast knowledge and gave me the whole picture (with the pesky mathematical details left out, of course) in plain language; he did not try to flimflam me.<\/p>\n
Flimflamming is in itself a specialized field.\u00a0 It requires an extensive vocabulary of impressive Greek- and Latin-based words with perhaps some French phrases for color and a German colloquialism or two to add excitement (some flimflammers have even been known to go into ancient Sumerian and Sanskrit!).\u00a0 It also requires many years of training the teeth and tongue to talk at an astoundingly fast rate while speaking these words so the listener can be put into a state of shock trying to understand how the words are related to the subject they believe is being discussed.\u00a0 Flimflamming is an art, yes indeed.<\/p>\n
We all do a little flimflamming for various reasons.\u00a0 But there are really only two basic motives to flimflam something and they are not mutually exclusive: one, to confuse the issue and\/or the listener; and two, to create an illusion of great knowledge where little or none exists.\u00a0 Flimflamming, really good flimflamming is one of the main tools of the con artist. Which brings me to the subject of magic and esoteric, super-secret, ancient (ever notice that it\u2019s always ancient?) knowledge.<\/p>\n
Now, I would like to believe that the Egyptians knew how to levitate huge blocks of stone so they could build the pyramids, but something in me just can\u2019t quite buy into that.\u00a0 I would like to believe that aliens came down and gave us knowledge about everything from fire building to how to make beer.\u00a0 But, once again, I think the truth of the matter is probably more pedestrian.\u00a0 Life would be so much more exciting if I could somehow be let in on \u2018ancient secrets\u2019 that would make me rich and youthful and beautiful and powerful and\u2026 well, you get the idea.\u00a0 But the problem is this: how come these \u2018secrets\u2019 are not known worldwide?\u00a0 I mean, even the Masons admit their \u2018secret\u2019 handshake is not a secret any longer!\u00a0 And anybody with internet access can find out how to build a damn atom bomb!<\/p>\n
What really gets me boiling though is how some people will try to impress and confuse folks who are new and curious about the magic and spirituality we lump under the term \u2018Pagan.\u2019 The most common instance of this is the horny jerk who thinks he can get into a girl\u2019s pants under the guise of \u2018ancient magical practices\u2019 or the guy who wants everyone to follow his orders and do his laundry because he is some high priest of Gumdrop Magic.\u00a0 Give me a break!<\/p>\n
It might be argued that the victims are asking for it by being so na\u00efve, but that argument does not wash either.\u00a0 Even though I would love to be instructed in ancient lore that would make it so I would never need Viagra or have to pay taxes again, I know it just is not going to happen.\u00a0 But it is not because I would not want it to happen; it\u2019s because I have not been told how to do these things in plain ordinary language.\u00a0 All I have ever heard is the wagging tongue of the flimflammer and over the years I have grown to distrust it.<\/p>\n
If, when asked to explain something, a person goes into a long discourse and uses specialized jargon, they are not necessarily trying to flimflam us.\u00a0 Specialized words make a great deal of sense when used the way they\u2019re supposed to be used and with people who know what they mean.\u00a0 This sort of jargon is there for the purpose of reducing the amount of verbiage among folks who already know about the complex ideas behind the special words.\u00a0 It takes a long time to explain the way kinetic energy acts when it is conducted along a curved line.\u00a0 And, trust me, proving it in a physics class using Newton\u2019s laws is about as exciting as drying your clothes.\u00a0 But once the concept is understood, why waste the time going into all that when you can use the term \u2018torque\u2019 to call up all that information instead?\u00a0 Even common, everyday tasks use specialized words.\u00a0 Take cooking for instance.\u00a0 Nobody knows what saut\u00e9 means until they are told and shown how.\u00a0 And you might think a person was talking about a type of cocktail lounge if they used the word \u2018isobar\u2019 and you had not learned anything about weather predictions.\u00a0 See?\u00a0 Specialized language has its uses.\u00a0 But no matter what the words might be, they have a simple-word explanation behind them.\u00a0 If you do not know that simple explanation, you would not understand the information behind the special words.\u00a0 And anyone who uses the special words without that information will inevitably fail at having any semblance of understanding of the subject matter.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, a lot of the specialized words in magic and Paganism are bandied about without any real understanding by some who do Pagan-speak.\u00a0 For example, take the word \u2018energy.\u2019 We talk about \u2018the energy of that person\u2019 or \u2018we need to put energy into this or that.\u2019 What is the simple-word meaning behind our use of this term?\u00a0 Well, since you ask, I will tell you:\u00a0 \u2018Energy\u2019 refers to the relationship between one thing and another (sometimes several others) that produces a change in one or more of those things\u2026 period.\u00a0 And so we can use the word in many ways and it still retains this meaning.<\/p>\n
\u2018Energy\u2019 doesn\u2019t have to be measured in any particular way.\u00a0 We can measure it with volts, horsepower, degrees of temperature, calories, speed, torque (!), pounds of pressure, etc., etc.\u00a0 Some things we can\u2019t seem to find a unit of measurement for.\u00a0 How can we measure love or pain or trust?\u00a0 And yet these things are energy just as much as a jolt from an electrical outlet.\u00a0 Pagans speak of energy in a lot of ways that can\u2019t be measured by any instrument but recognize that these forms of energy are just as real as the horsepower under the hood of their cars.\u00a0 And even though we don\u2019t have a way of measuring those energies it doesn\u2019t make them any less useful.\u00a0 Pagans recognize the importance of these energies and attempt to use them in a wide variety of ways.\u00a0 Our way of thinking says these energies follow the same general rules that the classic energies of physics do and there are ways to mimic the tools and methods that physicists use for exploring and controlling their energies.\u00a0 For instance, when we use a magic circle to \u2018contain and protect,\u2019 isn\u2019t that pretty much the same as using \u2018insulation\u2019 around an electrical wire?<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re using terms in your magic that you don\u2019t understand, terms you can\u2019t explain in simple words, you probably aren\u2019t going to get much out of your magic (or maybe you will but it won\u2019t be what you want!).\u00a0 You may not be trying to flimflam anybody, but you most certainly are flimflamming yourself.\u00a0 And if you are trying to impress others or con them with quickly spoken fancy language, don\u2019t be surprised when your house of cards comes crashing down on you.<\/p>\n
So, for those of you who are relatively new to our circles: don\u2019t allow yourself to be drawn into something if you do not understand it you should always ask what something means if you are not sure?\u00a0 If anybody gives you any static about your questions, just walk away.\u00a0 Nobody is such a greenhorn that they aren\u2019t due an explanation of the terms used.\u00a0 But if the person you ask tries to answer but doesn\u2019t have a good explanation, one that gives you an understanding in nice, simple language, then your question has served a dual purpose: you have found a gap in that person\u2019s knowledge (and they should thank you for finding it) and you\u2019ve caused both of you to search for greater understanding.<\/p>\n
Magic is not rocket science.\u00a0 But even rocket science can be explained in simple language.\u00a0 If you wish to do magic, you must know what your words and ideas mean.\u00a0 But if you are just trying to impress the newbie\u2019s, be gone from our circles; flimflam artists are not welcomed here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jargon and specialized vocabulary are used for nearly every trade or system in the world.\u00a0 Sometimes this results in the general population taking on part of this way with words, such as the use of the term, \u2018download.\u2019 But more often than not, most people can listen to some conversations between two people who work or play at the same thing and not understand what the heck they\u2019re talking about.\u00a0 For instance, I sat next to a table that held three accountants one time.\u00a0 They were not trying to keep their conversation quiet or secret in any way; I heard every sound uttered by them.\u00a0 But for the life of me, I don\u2019t think I understood more than twenty words in the half hour I sat four feet away.\u00a0 No wonder those guys get paid lots of money: nobody can understand what they are talking about! One of the things I\u2019ve always used as a measurement of how well somebody knew something is what I call the simple-words gauge.\u00a0 The math behind intergalactic navigation is pretty wild and difficult, no doubt.\u00a0 But if somebody wanted me to understand what needed to be done by that math, it could all be explained in simple language.\u00a0 I know, because I once had a PhD mathematician explain it all in about fifteen minutes\u2026 and I understood it.\u00a0 Rather than try to dazzle me with specialized words and esoteric concepts, he just drew from his vast knowledge and gave me the whole picture (with the pesky mathematical details left out, of course) in plain language; he did not try to flimflam me. Flimflamming is in itself a specialized field.\u00a0 It requires an extensive vocabulary of impressive Greek- and Latin-based words with perhaps some French phrases for color and a German colloquialism or two to add excitement (some flimflammers have even been known to go into ancient Sumerian and Sanskrit!).\u00a0 It also requires many years of training the teeth and tongue to talk at an astoundingly fast rate while speaking these words so the listener can be put into a state of shock trying to understand how the words are related to the subject they believe is being discussed.\u00a0 Flimflamming is an art, yes indeed. We all do a little flimflamming for various reasons.\u00a0 But there are really only two basic motives to flimflam something and they are not mutually exclusive: one, to confuse the issue and\/or the listener; and two, to create an illusion of great knowledge where little or none exists.\u00a0 Flimflamming, really good flimflamming is one of the main tools of the con artist. Which brings me to the subject of magic and esoteric, super-secret, ancient (ever notice that it\u2019s always ancient?) knowledge. Now, I would like to believe that the Egyptians knew how to levitate huge blocks of stone so they could build the pyramids, but something in me just can\u2019t quite buy into that.\u00a0 I would like to believe that aliens came down and gave us knowledge about everything from fire building to how to make beer.\u00a0 But, once again, I think the truth of the matter is probably more pedestrian.\u00a0 Life would be so much more exciting if I could somehow be let in on \u2018ancient secrets\u2019 that would make me rich and youthful and beautiful and powerful and\u2026 well, you get the idea.\u00a0 But the problem is this: how come these \u2018secrets\u2019 are not known worldwide?\u00a0 I mean, even the Masons admit their \u2018secret\u2019 handshake is not a secret any longer!\u00a0 And anybody with internet access can find out how to build a damn atom bomb! What really gets me boiling though is how some people will try to impress and confuse folks who are new and curious about the magic and spirituality we lump under the term \u2018Pagan.\u2019 The most common instance of this is the horny jerk who thinks he can get into a girl\u2019s pants under the guise of \u2018ancient magical practices\u2019 or the guy who wants everyone to follow his orders and do his laundry because he is some high priest of Gumdrop Magic.\u00a0 Give me a break! It might be argued that the victims are asking for it by being so na\u00efve, but that argument does not wash either.\u00a0 Even though I would love to be instructed in ancient lore that would make it so I would never need Viagra or have to pay taxes again, I know it just is not going to happen.\u00a0 But it is not because I would not want it to happen; it\u2019s because I have not been told how to do these things in plain ordinary language.\u00a0 All I have ever heard is the wagging tongue of the flimflammer and over the years I have grown to distrust it. If, when asked to explain something, a person goes into a long discourse and uses specialized jargon, they are not necessarily trying to flimflam us.\u00a0 Specialized words make a great deal of sense when used the way they\u2019re supposed to be used and with people who know what they mean.\u00a0 This sort of jargon is there for the purpose of reducing the amount of verbiage among folks who already know about the complex ideas behind the special words.\u00a0 It takes a long time to explain the way kinetic energy acts when it is conducted along a curved line.\u00a0 And, trust me, proving it in a physics class using Newton\u2019s laws is about as exciting as drying your clothes.\u00a0 But once the concept is understood, why waste the time going into all that when you can use the term \u2018torque\u2019 to call up all that information instead?\u00a0 Even common, everyday tasks use specialized words.\u00a0 Take cooking for instance.\u00a0 Nobody knows what saut\u00e9 means until they are told and shown how.\u00a0 And you might think a person was talking about a type of cocktail lounge if they used the word \u2018isobar\u2019 and you had not learned anything about weather predictions.\u00a0 See?\u00a0 Specialized language has its uses.\u00a0 But no matter what the words might be, they have a simple-word explanation behind them.\u00a0 If you do not know that simple explanation, you would not understand the information behind the special words.\u00a0 And anyone who uses the special words without that information will inevitably fail at having any semblance of understanding of the subject matter. Unfortunately, a lot of the specialized words in magic and Paganism are bandied about without any real understanding by some who do Pagan-speak.\u00a0 For example, take the word \u2018energy.\u2019 We talk about \u2018the energy of that person\u2019 or \u2018we need to put energy into this or that.\u2019 What is the simple-word meaning behind our use of this term?\u00a0 Well, since you ask, I will tell you:\u00a0 \u2018Energy\u2019 refers to the relationship between one thing and another (sometimes several others) that produces a change in one or more of those things\u2026 period.\u00a0 And so we can use the word in many ways and it still retains this meaning. \u2018Energy\u2019 doesn\u2019t have to be measured in any particular way.\u00a0 We can measure it with volts, horsepower, degrees of temperature, calories, speed, torque (!), pounds of pressure, etc., etc.\u00a0 Some things we can\u2019t seem to find a unit of measurement for.\u00a0 How can we measure love or pain or trust?\u00a0 And yet these things are energy just as much as a jolt from an electrical outlet.\u00a0 Pagans speak of energy in a lot of ways that can\u2019t be measured by any instrument but recognize that these forms of energy are just as real as the horsepower under the hood of their cars.\u00a0 And even though we don\u2019t have a way of measuring those energies it doesn\u2019t make them any less useful.\u00a0 Pagans recognize the importance of these energies and attempt to use them in a wide variety of ways.\u00a0 Our way of thinking says these energies follow the same general rules that the classic energies of physics do and there are ways to mimic the tools and methods that physicists use for exploring and controlling their energies.\u00a0 For instance, when we use a magic circle to \u2018contain and protect,\u2019 isn\u2019t that pretty much the same as using \u2018insulation\u2019 around an electrical wire? If you\u2019re using terms in your magic that you don\u2019t understand, terms you can\u2019t explain in simple words, you probably aren\u2019t going to get much out of your magic (or maybe you will but it won\u2019t be what you want!).\u00a0 You may not be trying to flimflam anybody, but you most certainly are flimflamming yourself.\u00a0 And if you are trying to impress others or con them with quickly spoken fancy language, don\u2019t be surprised when your house of cards comes crashing down on you. So, for those of you who are relatively new to our circles: don\u2019t allow yourself to be drawn into something if you do not understand it you should always ask what something means if you are not sure?\u00a0 If anybody gives you any static about your questions, just walk away.\u00a0 Nobody is such a greenhorn that they aren\u2019t due an explanation of the terms used.\u00a0 But if the person you ask tries to answer but doesn\u2019t have a good explanation, one that gives you an understanding in nice, simple language, then your question has served a dual purpose: you have found a gap in that person\u2019s knowledge (and they should thank you for finding it) and you\u2019ve caused both of you to search for greater understanding. Magic is not rocket science.\u00a0 But even rocket science can be explained in simple language.\u00a0 If you wish to do magic, you must know what your words and ideas mean.\u00a0 But if you are just trying to impress the newbie\u2019s, be gone from our circles; flimflam artists are not welcomed here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1806","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1806"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1806\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}