It is difficult to say what is and what is not magic. From the perspective of many of the knowledgeable and wise, there exists only a single, vast continuum of the world, which is entirely as “magical” as it is “natural.” Nowhere is it possible to draw a dividing line, for the same magical energy allows the grain to grow in the soil, causes the sun to rise, makes the spring gush forth, and sinks the ship; and that same magical energy causes men to go mad, grants them enlightenment, brings sudden death as well as immortality, allows the spirits of the dead to return, gives birth to demons, and allows signs to bind beings.

Nevertheless, from a purely practical standpoint, it is necessary for us to distinguish magic from non-magic, even if doing so is inaccurate and, in fact, contradictory. We shall call everyday and “ordinary” magic non-magic, and exceptional and “extraordinary” magic we shall call magic. Thus, we decide that the birth and death of a living being is not magic (though it is), that a storm is not magic, that the order of celestial bodies is not magic, that the human speech of simple daily interaction is not magic, that human habits and customs for an ordinary day are not magic, that victory in battle is not magic, and so forth.

Conversely, we shall call magic those doctrines with whose help certain natural forces are utilized and awakened to life. The only reasonable way to further define magic is simply to enumerate all the various schools of magic that are at least somewhat known to the world.

There are three different ways to attempt to categorize magic: to count the various magical doctrines belonging to different nations and races—”racial magic”; to count the doctrines tied to the various energies or means that magic utilizes—”energetic magic”; and to count the doctrines that have somehow become culturally established in the form of cohesive schools—”order magic.”