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Article THE HISTORY OF MAGIC. ← Page 6 of 15 →
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The History Of Magic.
Magoi . The arts of the Magian professors were widely scattered , owing to some circumstances which took place on the death of Cambyses , 521 , B . o . One of their number , named Smerdis , relying on his personal resemblance to the heir apparent ( who had recently been put to death ) attempted to usurp the Persian throne ; the fraud being discovereda
con-, spiracy was formed , winch terminated in his destruction , followed by a general massacre of the Magi , and the elevation to the regal power of Darius , by whom the kingdom was reorganised . The Magi were never again re-united , although they held communication with Socrates , and other of the Greek philosophers . Some portion of their art fell into the hands of
the profane and ignorant , while they themselves carried its precepts into the newiy-civilized countries . In looking at the condition of the sciences among the Western nations , we must premise , that the Egyptian rites , preserved under Alexander and the Ptolomies , w ere only tolerated by the Romans . The yoke of subjection was felt
upon Egypt , and its flourishing hierarchy dwindled to decay . Many of the inferior sorcerers travelled to Rome , there to exhibit their arts for money . These subalterns were held in contempt by Cicero and the enlightened Romanswhile the progress of civilization and rise of Christianity conduced to the disappearance of augury and superstition of every kind .
The priests of the Ganges , however , were instrumental in transmitting their magical skill , not only to the Western Empire , but to the tribes of Northern Europe and to Britain . The time of such communication cannot be fixed with certainty ; but it is indisputable that the Druids of Britain and Gaul , and the Scalds of Scandinavia , were taught by them .
Odin , 70 B . c , is regarded as the founder of the art in the latter country . The torch-light assemblies of the Druids are thought to have formed the origin of the famous Sabbat , a mystic convocation of sorcerers . The Faidhs , or adepts of the occult science , are supposed , too , to have dwelt in the immense grottoes of the Alps , whence they may have given
rise to the tradition , still believed , that these caverns are in the hands of the fairies . We can pause to name only the modern gypsies , Zingari , or Bohemians , whose original seat appears to have been in Hindostan , whence they migrated at the commencement of the fifteenth century of our era , durin . othe invasion of India by Timur-Beg . Their peculiar language manifests a very strong resemblance to Sanscrit ; their dis-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The History Of Magic.
Magoi . The arts of the Magian professors were widely scattered , owing to some circumstances which took place on the death of Cambyses , 521 , B . o . One of their number , named Smerdis , relying on his personal resemblance to the heir apparent ( who had recently been put to death ) attempted to usurp the Persian throne ; the fraud being discovereda
con-, spiracy was formed , winch terminated in his destruction , followed by a general massacre of the Magi , and the elevation to the regal power of Darius , by whom the kingdom was reorganised . The Magi were never again re-united , although they held communication with Socrates , and other of the Greek philosophers . Some portion of their art fell into the hands of
the profane and ignorant , while they themselves carried its precepts into the newiy-civilized countries . In looking at the condition of the sciences among the Western nations , we must premise , that the Egyptian rites , preserved under Alexander and the Ptolomies , w ere only tolerated by the Romans . The yoke of subjection was felt
upon Egypt , and its flourishing hierarchy dwindled to decay . Many of the inferior sorcerers travelled to Rome , there to exhibit their arts for money . These subalterns were held in contempt by Cicero and the enlightened Romanswhile the progress of civilization and rise of Christianity conduced to the disappearance of augury and superstition of every kind .
The priests of the Ganges , however , were instrumental in transmitting their magical skill , not only to the Western Empire , but to the tribes of Northern Europe and to Britain . The time of such communication cannot be fixed with certainty ; but it is indisputable that the Druids of Britain and Gaul , and the Scalds of Scandinavia , were taught by them .
Odin , 70 B . c , is regarded as the founder of the art in the latter country . The torch-light assemblies of the Druids are thought to have formed the origin of the famous Sabbat , a mystic convocation of sorcerers . The Faidhs , or adepts of the occult science , are supposed , too , to have dwelt in the immense grottoes of the Alps , whence they may have given
rise to the tradition , still believed , that these caverns are in the hands of the fairies . We can pause to name only the modern gypsies , Zingari , or Bohemians , whose original seat appears to have been in Hindostan , whence they migrated at the commencement of the fifteenth century of our era , durin . othe invasion of India by Timur-Beg . Their peculiar language manifests a very strong resemblance to Sanscrit ; their dis-