Post by Trixie Lulamoon on Nov 5, 2015 20:35:26 GMT -6
Guide to Magical Pedantry
~ By Star Swirl the Bearded
~ By Star Swirl the Bearded
Chapter I: On the Nature of Magic
Despite being central to the lives of unicorns for generations, magic yet still remains rather mysterious. We have learned to manipulate it to great advances in our society. Even the other tribes have some magical force, as passive as it may be. Yet, there still remains no satisfactory explanation to its nature. It is my hope, in this chapter, to briefly put forth some thoughts to this question.
To begin, it is well understood that magic is an internal force present in all ponies, to some extent, differing primarily in the manner to which it is externalized onto the world. It should not appear to me controversial to state that the externalization of magic ranges from Earth Ponies at the lowest levels to Unicorns at the highest levels, the Pegasi in between. If the reader finds such a comment controversial, however, please indulge me as I will discuss the matter momentarily. For now, however, I wish to focus simply on the internalization of magic.
After my many years of study, it is my belief that magic is primarily a form of internalized energy, produced and stored within the bodies of ponies as easily as food and water sustain life. With proper training and skill, it can be tapped on to brought forth onto the world around us, establishing a connection of sorts from which we can manipulate the world to our will, within certain bounds.
For proof of this concept, let us return to the previous statement on the differences in externalization. In doing so, perhaps I can convince the reader. For the Earth Ponies, the usage of magic is purely passive, simply flowing from them into the ground. This is not to demean their magic, of course, for such transference brings sustenance and growth to the lands around them. It is simply not an ability for which the will of the pony is irrelevant to the conduction. It is in, a sense, the transference of life force to bring forth new life. Similarly, the Pegasi skill in weather manipulation and flight requires little active use of magic, instead again primarily on passiveness , the magic brought forth purely contact with the materials needed for clouds and weather.
It is Unicorns, however, in which magic's ability to be externalized is truly brought forth. Many a Unicorn are quite familiar with the physical symptoms of magical exhaustion, the sense of fatigue and draining that comes with the overuse of magic. For readers not of the Unicorn tribe, imagine the strain and fatigue of a full's day labor for comparison. Unicorns are also quite familiar with the sense of connection between themselves and their target of magic, and with it the formation of an aura signifying the use of magic. No better sight is better to show the bringing forth of the internal energy into the external world.
In being energy, however, the limitations of magic are reached. It is, in a sense, not magic that allows the unicorn to produce their wonders: it is the energy provided by magic, with the combination of knowledge, that allows for it. Magic provides the fuel for the change and transformations, among many other effects, that come when a spell is cast, but it is knowledge that allows for the understanding necessary to make use of it. Consider a fire. Fire, of course, have many uses, but must be fueled through wood or other flammable objects. Magic, in a sense, is the fuel, but it is knowledge that turns fire from simple burning wood into a tool for crafting metals or cooking food.
The obvious conclusion, of course, is that the improvement of magical skills is closely connected with the study of all fields of knowledge. For it is with improved knowledge that one comes to the understanding of the world necessary to influence it. A mage without knowledge is as dangerous as a fire without a master behind it, risking destruction as they fling magic about willy nilly. But with proper application of studiousness and curiosity, it is possible that the applications of magic are, for all purposes, practically limitless.