Notice to the Reader
First of all, I should clarify that the following essay is intended purely to promote understanding of alien cultures with whom we are bound to interact. Of course Science and Enlightened Religion alike teach that Magic and miracles neither exist nor, if they did exist, could possibly be considered anything but contrary to the beatific and all-seeing intentions of the Creator and One True God. Nevertheless, this enlightened understanding exists only in the modern Kingdom of Waltia, in the Western Nations, and, in somewhat corrupted form, in the Kingdom of Masovia. In most of the rest of the world, among the millions of Sanctonians and Caputonians in the thrall of an unreformed hierophantism, among the many more millions of blood-thirsty, pagan Diluvians, and among the heathenish, savage Rouvanians and the poor, benighted slaves of the western nations, Magic is believed to be as real as you and me. And though we may pity their ignorance and superstition, if we wish for a real understanding of their cultures, we must delve somewhat into the Magical Worldview.
Some devout readers may be offended because what I am about to relate, I relate without offering the traditional defenses of the faith. For the purposes of this essay, however, it should become quite tedious if at every turn I was required to present all the traditional arguments, which have been presented elsewhere much better anyway.1 Please keep the aforementioned purpose of this essay in mind; it is to understand.
I will treat the Magic worldview of the native peoples of Haldevia separately from the Magic worldview of the Old World, for though it is tempting to assume that all peoples who believe in Magic must hold similar understandings of its nature, the peoples of the West in fact have a view of Magic that is quite unique.
Magic in the Old World
In ancient times, Magic, simply put, was a means to Power. The ancient texts describe a primeval struggle for supremacy between those who would achieve dominion through sheer physical strength and agility, and those who would achieve dominion through wit, charisma, and the power of the mind over matter and energy. Many of the great philosophers of ancient Diluvia were primarily concerned with the problem of which was greater: the Wand or the Sword. And in truth, history attests that neither was greater, for at times, the way of the Warrior prevailed and at other times the way of the Wizard.
The first and most ancient polity to arise in Diluvia was that established by the Warrior King Torosus, who declared that those who would make Magic a way of life were "parasites, feeding off of the sweat and hard work of those who truly create." He outlawed Magic, and his soldiers ruthlessly hunted down and executed sorcerers and banned all pursuits that might lead to the development of the mind. The penalty for uttering words known to belong to incantations was cutting off the tongue; the penalty for making an arcane gesture the dismemberment of the hand; death for possessing anything whose sole function was to provide the material component for some spell. He was notorious for having lopped off the heads of thousands of supposed sorcerers and displaying them on pikes all along the roads leading into his capital as a warning. Torosus Magnus, was, nevertheless, regarded as a great King, for he built some of the first extensive roadways and canals, and the first fortified cities. He was a great promoter of the agricultural arts.
It was no small irony that Torosus was ultimately overthrown by a rebellion led by the sorcerer priest Cerebrus. Cerebrus gathered around him all those who, though physically weak, clumsy or awkward, were individuals of towering intellect. In secret covens that met under cover of night in remote forests or on mountain peaks, he taught the way of magical combat, summoning energies of fire, lightning and ice as weapons, opening up pits beneath the feet of an opponent or raising walls of thorns in front of his nose. He also taught the ways of enchantment, the charms that would convince an opponent not to fight at all. When Cerebrus' rebellion began on the margins of the kingdom, all those who had ever been persecuted simply for showing interest in mental pursuits rallied to his cause. The ensuing battles were terrible, and ultimately it was Torosus' arrogance, his belief that "a mongrel band of sniveling, bookish curs" could never overcome his virile strength that led to his downfall.2
The Kingdom established by Cerebrus was, in its way, every bit as tyrannical as that which preceded it. Cerebrus declared that those who would live by physical work and strength were "mindless, oafish louts who delight in violence and can't possibly appreciate the finer things of life." Cerebrus disbanded the army and reduced its former ranks to slavery. Now, it was physical pursuits that were banned, with imprisonment or slavery imposed on those who practiced combat with weapons or fists. Cerebrus established numerous libraries and institutions for the study of the magical arts, including the ancient University of Eburneus, the sole to survive from those times, and still renowned for its shining towers of ivory. A bureaucracy was established for the purpose of applying the magical arts to daily life. But this kingdom of Magic was not to last. Roads were neglected, for a good sorcerer did not need roads, he could fly or teleport himself anywhere he wanted. Agriculture was neglected, for a skilled priest could produce bread from stones and wine from water. Unfortunately, this spelled starvation and stagnation for the majority who were unskilled in Magic. Cerebrus' successor, Ingenius, was overthrown after a slave rebellion led to a general insurrection of the masses against the elitist rule of the Mage Priests.
And so on it went for centuries, a seemingly endless struggle. It was not until the advent of the first great Diluvian Emperor, Pacificus, that a reconciliation of the warring classes was achieved. Pacificus came to power as the result of a particularly deadly civil war that had left all the major cities of eastern Diluvia burned and ravaged, and half the population dead. Pacificus was the leader of a new faction that had arisen, in which warriors and mages had agreed to put aside their differences and work together, and the combination of their strengths made them a formidable force that was ultimately victorious.
After overwhelming all other rival factions, Pacificus, instead of imprisoning or killing his enemies as previous victors had, called a grand council at the neutral city of Marium, which he ultimately made his capital. At the council of Marium he insisted that in order for there to be peace there must be balance. Neither the material nor the magical arts must be neglected, both must be fostered for the mutual benefit of all. Roads must be maintained, for there will always be those who need to walk them rather than fly through the air. Grain must be sown, harvested, ground and baked into bread, for Man cannot live by the Word of God alone. On the other hand, the Universities would be fostered so that humans might benefit from the labors of the mind. Magic should be allowed to "ease and heal both body and soul." The "Law of Pacificus," which has become the foundation for every civilized legal system since, stated simply that "to every end there shall be, promoted in equal measure, means both magical and material." The Diluvian caste system evolved from this legal consensus. Every class was to be recognized as having its own rights, responsibilities, and roles. None would be allowed to become too powerful, to gain an advantage that would make any one dominant. This concept of balance is the foundation of all Diluvian philosophy.
It is for this reason that the peoples of Diluvia, as well as its philosophical heirs, Sanctonia and Caputonia, find our society quite puzzling. Since we do not believe in Magic, we are often caricatured among them as a sort of revival of the ancient Kingdom of Torosus, a rule of mindless brawn over brain. But when they see how many resources we have committed to the study of Science, we also appear to them to be a revival of the ancient Kingdom of Cerebrus, a rule of mind without mercy. They reject modern Science as a "philosophy of barbarism." We are, of course, neither Torosan or Cerebran, but something quite different. Through Science and technology, we have risen above the need to boost our egos or justify our class aspirations through an infantile belief in Magic. We are Moderns.
Magic in the West
While the Old World cultures view Magic as one side in a bitter, never-ending struggle between opposing elements of human nature, the native cultures of Haldevia view Magic as a form of energy that infuses all being in what they call the "Quincunx World." They do not find a need to impose balance between the magical and the material, for the fundamental nature of Magic is Harmony. This world was formed as the convergence of four essences: Space/Matter (represented by their goddess Chrysoprase), Time (represented by their goddess Amethyst), Law (represented by their god Obsidian) and Magic (represented by their god Jacinth). The marriage between the goddess of Space/Matter and the god of Magic made possible the birth of the gods of the four elements of the physical cosmos: earth (represented by their god Garnet), air (represented by their goddess Topaz), fire (represented by their god Hematite) and water (represented by their goddess Emerald).
There is a saying among the Rouvanians, "All things seek their nature." That is to say, some creatures more of Space/Matter seek to achieve their ends by physical means, while creatures more of Magic seek to achieve their ends through mind over matter. It is their nature, and by allowing them to follow their nature, a natural harmony is achieved. Another important concept among the native cultures was the notion that the World Soul delights in the mundane as well as the magical (or it might be more appropriate to say that the mundane is magical). Due to the calamities of war and plague which have destroyed or transformed the native cultures of this great western continent, we unfortunately may never know much about the full ramifications of cultures that see Magic as a source of all being, and that find no need to constrain or balance it.
Some will say it is just as well, for Magic is Farce, it is non-existent, a figment of the minds of deluded souls, and the teaching of the Church and of Science will agree with that judgment. But nevertheless, it is a shame not to know more of these cultures of Magic from a by-gone age, if only to enrich our understanding of peoples and ways much different from our own.