ANCIENT MAGIC: A Practitioner's Guide to the Supernatural

In the ancient world there was no such things as the "supernatural", not because nothing was magical, but because everything was. The process of making a delicious loaf was as magical as casting a spell: you assembled the ingredients, mixed them in a certain way, and then waited hopefully to see if the magic worked, whether it involved yeast or the chthonic spirit of Hermes Trismegistus. In the modern world the supernatural is associated with religion, but in the ancient world it was mythology that humanised the deities and unseen forces. Talking to the dead, often through oracles, was an important aspect of ancient magic. In Homer's Odyssey, when the hero Odysseus summons up Tiresias to ask for help on the journey back to his native Ithaca, there are three important factors. First, the summoning must take place where the veil between the worlds of the living and dead is thin. Secondly, blood is usually involved, because blood gives the dead temporary life. Thirdly, following the conjuration there is little control over who answers, and Odysseus has to hold the unwanted spirits back with his sword while he consults Tiresias. Leaving aside the fictional hero Odysseus, what role did magic play in everyday life? The use of talismans was widespread, with many Romans wearing a bulla or amulet round their necks. Before drinking wine, it was usual to splash some on the ground as an offering to the gods. Many so-called witches were actually pharmacists using the medicinal properties of natural resources. An example was Locusta, who according to the historian Tacitus suppled Agrippina with the poison to murder her husband the emperor Claudius. A fascinating aspect of antiquity. 208pp, monochrome illustrations.