The History of Magic and Kings

By Jennifer Singer



THE OLD TESTAMENT HAD forbidden the use of magic and the punishment for
performing acts of magic was the death penalty. (Exod 22:18, Lev 20:27,
Deut 18:10-11) The terminology of the Bible implies that the use of magic
and charms was considered a serious problem. Magicians were considered to
be wise and learned men but magic was considered to be pagan. The writers
of the Old Testament made it clear that the use of magic was an offensive
attempt by man to make himself equal to God. Magic was considered to be
separate from God though there are many references throughout the Bible to
magic, astrology, sacrifice and divination. The position taken in the
Bible was that magic was a path to learning the secrets of God in an
inappropriate way. The message conveyed was that man was nothing without
God and that even the Greatest of Prophets operated as "vehicles of God's
will" ( http://bible.crosswalk.com <http://bible.crosswalk.com/> ). Any
miracles performed by a Prophet were really the act of God because the
Prophets were essentially the employees of God. When Moses parted the Red
Sea this was a miracle that appeared to be performed magically by a man but
was written about as an act of God. References to magic in the New
Testament and magicians continued and there were warnings against its
practice. There are many mentions of magicians in the New Testament and
the book spoke about the magic of the Egyptian Priests. In some writings
Moses is mentioned as one of the Egyptian Magicians. According to the New
Testament miraculous things occurred because of faith not magic.


Kings and Magic


King Solomon ruled Israel in the 10th century. King Solomon centralized
the government of Israel and built a Temple for the Arc of the Covenant as
his father King David had requested. King Solomon had as many as 700 wives
and 300 concubines. He would marry the daughters and families of the
nearby rulers as incentive for peace treaties. This is reportedly how he
kept Egypt out of Israel. He allowed these women who came from many
cultures to continue worshipping their pagan Gods and Goddesses and do
pagan rituals. There is a great deal of evidence that King Solomon was a
ceremonial magician. Allegedly King Solomon used sorcery to imprison 72
evil kings in a vessel. When the Babylonians found the brass vessel at the
bottom of the sea they broke it open thinking it was treasure and released
what is called the 72 spirits of Solomon. King Solomon wrote down all of
his magic in a book and left it for his son when he died. That book is
archived at the British Museum and copies have been translated and copied.
These books of ceremonial magic are published under the name "The Key of
Solomon", "The Greater Key of Solomon" and "The Lesser Key of Solomon".
This book was to be secretly guarded.


Rameses, Pharoh of Egypt


Rameses son Setna learned the ancient art of magic and was able to read and
study books that even the temple priests could not. Some of the books he
learned from were "The Book of Thoth", "Amen Re" and Ptah. While the other
prices were hunting or fighting the Pharoh's army, Setna chose to become a
great and powerful magician as did other Princes many centuries before.
Setna found "The Book of Thoth" in a great tomb encased in boxes of silver,
bronze, ebony, ivory, gold and sycamore. In the book there were spells
that would give him the power over heaven and earth, the mountains and the
sea, the secrets of the moon and stars and the shining sun above.


Priests as Kings


In ancient times it was common for Kings to be Priests. Kings were honored
for their power and thought to be closer to divinity than ordinary men.
Kings were expected not only to rule men but to rule the elements and
nature as well. This was done through the mastery of magical procedures.
Kings were held responsible for things such as the growth of healthy and
abundant crops. As Priests it was the job of the King to be the
intermediary between the mundane world of men and deity. The idea of Kings
being
Priests and magicians seems to have originated in Greece and later made its
way to Italy and all over the world. In Africa the Kings were also the
rainmakers and thought to have the magical power to manipulate events
through will and ritual. If crops failed and the community did not
flourish then it was the King that was held responsible. Sometimes they
were even put to death for neglecting their duties when such things as
draughts occurred.

English Kings were thought to have special magical power as hands on
healers. Queen Elizabeth is reported to have used her gifts to heal the
sick as did Charles the Second. There is a story about Charles the Second
healing as many as one hundred people on the Summer Solstice or what was
then called Midsummer in 1633. This practice of Kings and Queens healing
the sick continued through the reign of Queen Anne and illustrates the
former belief that Royalty were both human and divine.

In the Arthurian tales of Bulfinch's Mythology, there is a split between
the responsibility of the King and the duties of the magician. In these
post Christian tales, Merlin is neither human or divine. He is the child
of a mortal woman and an Incubus. Merlin is baptized to protect him from
the evil influence of his father but becomes a wizard anyway. These
stories represent a significant shift from the earlier belief that the
King's power over the elements was to be admired. In the stories of
Arthur, Merlin is the Kings advisor. King Arthur no longer has magical
power. He relies on Merlin the Wizard to perform the tasks that would have
been expected of Kings in ancient times.

In modern times the pagan religion and the practice of ceremonial magic has
been forced underground and Kings are merely mortal. They are "Head of
State" and no longer considered to be the link to the divine they once
were. Kings are no longer considered all powerful. Their authority has
been watered down by the creation of modern government. Kings have become
figureheads that represent their country. The link between magic and Kings
has been severed. The only representation of ancient Kings exists only in
the most primitive of tribal societies. The tribes that they serve often
know them as "Chief". In modern times, Kings are mere men, mortal and
anything but sorcerers.++

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Works Cited:

"Early Magical References to King Solomon"
Retrieved May 16, 2002, http://www.delirumsrealm.com
<http://www.delirumsrealm.com/>

"Bakers Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology"
Retrieved May 16, 2002, http://bible.crosswalk.com
<http://bible.crosswalk.com/>

"Occultopedia, Kink Solomon"
Retrieved May 16, 2002, http://www.occultopedia.com
<http://www.occultopedia.com/>

"The Book of Thoth"
Retrieved May 16, 2002, http://virtual-egypt.com
<http://virtual-egypt.com/>

"The Key of Solomon"
Retrieved May 16, 2002, http://www.esotericaarchives.com/solomon/ksol.htm

Bufinch, Thomas, Bulfinch's Mythology, NY: Random House, 1998

Frazer, James George, Sir, "The Golden Bough: A Study in Religion and
Magic",
Retrieved May 16, 2002, http://www.bartleby.com/196