Magic

In Hindu tradition there are many different powers in the universe, and many
ways of influencing them, both seen and
unseen. The emphasis on magic goes
back to the Atharva Veda, one of the
oldest Hindu religious texts, which is
mostly a collection of spells. Even today
many Hindus accept that certain powerful religious adepts have the power to
command unseen forces, as well as the
power to counteract the spells levied by
others. People who have gained high
levels of religious attainments are also
believed to have superhuman powers
(siddhi), allowing them to do things
that ordinary people cannot. These
superhuman powers are not seen as
magical, but rather as the normal exercise of a level of understanding higher
than most people have attained. Indian
culture also has a long tradition of illusion, sleight of hand, and other sorts of
trickery, baffling and entertaining
onlookers for centuries. For an extensive
account of these powers, see Lee Siegel,
Net of Magic, 1991.