Magic, belief systems + web3

Beyond that, the community knowledge is also emerging, as the broader web3 community increasingly begins to document what works, even if, like magic, so much of this world can seem impenetrable to those not yet in it (and we need to work harder on magical user experiences).

By community knowledge, I mean beliefs, truths and cures passed down over time. By solidarity networks, I mean acting with trust, in small self-selecting groups. By folklore, I mean the ritualistic repetition of the first to build the second.

As the ruler was seen to subvert nature, as some would have it, we also see an incredible outpouring of the supernatural in the cultural artefacts of the era, from Prospero in the Tempest, to Dr Faustus, the Witch of Edmonton, and many more.

Let’s consider that formula: community knowledge + solidarity networks + folklore. The web3 communities I’m in have powerful ideologies; these are spaces with shared perspectives and rituals that have emerged over a compressed period of time. This manner of collective world-building in and around projects (in the best possible way, I wouldn’t use t... See more

Why have institutions such as the church and the state always been so threatened by magic? Part of the answer derives from who practices it; again, there are few robust studies of the trials, but less than 15% of those executed were men. Often the women prosecuted were unmarried and intelligent, while lacking the formal education given to their mal... See more

Both then and now, belief magic is ultimately decentralised and community-led (just ask a modern practitioner how they feel about the Magic Circle’s elitism). Just like the homemade pamphlets that circulated and enabled citizens to criticise the monarchy or church, their information channels do not rely on conventional means.

By community knowledge, I mean beliefs, truths and cures passed down over time.

By solidarity networks, I mean acting with trust, in small self-selecting groups.

By folklore, I mean the ritualistic repetition of the first to build the second.

At its heart, belief magic is a combination of community knowledge + solidarity networks + folklore.

At heart , magic embraces the power that small solidarity networks have to change the world through changing their own perceptions of reality .

this piece is about belief magic, which Merriam-Webster defines as “the use of means (such as charms or spells) believed to have supernatural power over natural forces” and especially how belief magic is represented in culture. After all, culture, from films to books to art, has always shaped society, just as we shape it.