Magic circle

“ When the proper time and place are fixed upon, a magic circle is to be formed within which the master and his associates are carefully to retire. The reason assigned by magicians and others for the institution and use of the circles is, that so much ground being blessed and consecrated by holy words and ceremonies has a secret force to expel all evil spirits from the bounds thereof, and, being sprinkled with sacred water, the ground is purified from all uncleanness ”

“ If in the external universe any one constructive principle can be detected, it is the geometrical; and in every part of the world in which magic pretends to a written character, I find that its hieroglyphics are geometrical figures. Is it not laughable that the most positive of all the sciences should thus lend its angles and circles to the use of—what shall I call it?—the ignorance?—ay, that is the word—the ignorance of dealers in magic?”
He took up the paper, on which I had hastily described the triangles and the circle, and left the room, chanting the serpent-charmer’s song. ”

“ A magic circle is made to keep out all evil spirits 217 and enemies, and the medicine men then proceed to walk in single file, and with measured steps, completely around the spot which they would render sacred, and which is generally half a mile in diameter, marking their route by plucking a single leaf from every tree or bush which they may happen to pass, all these leaves being carefully deposited in a pouch carried for the purpose. ”

“ From a perfect magic ring of n2 cells containing one number each, n2 distinct magic squares can be read off; as the four numbers round each intersection of a zonal circle and a transverse circle constitute corner numbers of a magic square. The shape of a magic ring gives it the function of an indefinite extension in all directions of each of the aforesaid n2 magic squares. ”

“ The startling analogy between Australian and old Scottish markings saute aux yeux.
On the cover of Sir James Simpson's book, stamped in gold, is a central set of six concentric circles, surrounding a cup. From the inmost circle a groove goes to the circumference of the outer circle (the circles often occur without this radial groove) , and there the line gives a wriggle, suggesting that the circle was evolved out of a spiral. ”

“ The rout is Folly's circle, which she draws
With magic wand. So potent is the spell,
That none, decoy'd into that fatal ring,
Unless by Heaven's peculiar grace, escape.
There we grow early grey, but never wise; ”

“ Under the flaming yellow stars it stood out luminous, marking the exact center of an enormous circle; a circle roofed by the radiantly flecked heavens, bounded by mountains which rose against the sky-line, abrupt as a wall, black as ink. ”

“ Have your circus on top of a large table, or on the floor, or out of doors on the bare ground. Almost any place will do where there is a good-sized level surface.
Make the circus ring about forty inches in diameter, outline it with chalk and cover the marked line with either sawdust or dry corn meal built into a narrow ridge similar to that of earth around the large rings; then your circle will look just like the ring of a real circus. ”

“ Every ultimate fact is only the first of a new series. Every general law only a particular fact of some more general law presently to disclose itself. There is no outside, no inclosing wall, no circumference to us. The man finishes his story, — how good! how final! how it puts a new face on all things! He fills the sky. Lo! on the other side rises also a man, and draws a circle around the circle we had just pronounced the outline of the sphere. ”

“ The circle, therefore, is the cause of ornament to all things, even to the last participations, and leaves nothing destitute of itself, since it supplies beauty, similitude, formation, and perfection to the universe. ”

“ But this idea of the circle—an idea which, in view of all ordinary geometry, is merely the mathematical, as contradistinguished from the practical, idea—is, in sober fact, the practical conception which alone we have any right to entertain in regard to the majestic circle with which we have to deal, at least in fancy, when we suppose our system revolving about a point in the centre of the Galaxy. Let the most vigorous of human imaginations attempt but to take a single step towards the comprehension of a sweep so ineffable! ”

“ Thus, the proposition, “A circle is a plane figure bounded by a line all the points of which are at an equal distance from [pg 170] a given point within it,” was considered by them, not as an assertion that any real circle has that property, (which would not be exactly true,) but that we conceive a circle as having it; that our abstract idea of a circle is an idea of a figure with its radii exactly equal.
Conformably to this it is said, that the subject matter of mathematics, and of every other demonstrative science, is not things as they really exist, but abstractions of the mind. ”

“ He hath not, as you know, an hour to live.
MEPHISTOPHELES He's my good friend, with whom 'twill prosper well;
I grudge him not the choicest of thy store.
Now draw thy circle, speak thy spell,
And straight a bumper for him pour!
[The WITCH, with extraordinary gestures, describes a circle, and places strange things within it. The glasses meanwhile begin to ring, and the caldron to sound and make music. Lastly, she brings a great book; places the MONKEYS in the circle to serve her as a desk, and to hold the torches. She beckons FAUST to approach.] ”

“ A long and somewhat narrow room should be hung with black cloth, and at one end may be placed a large mirror, so arranged that it will turn on hinges like a door. The magician's circle may be placed at the other end of the chamber in which the spectators must be rigidly confined, and there is very little doubt that the arrangement about to be described was formerly used by clever astrologers who pretended to look into the future, and to hold communication with the supernatural powers. ”

“ A circle is in itself a consummate wonder of geometrical symmetry. It is the line in which the omnipotent energy delights to move. There is no fault in it to be amended. The first drawn circle and the last both embody the same complete fulfillment of a perfect design. Then look at the rays which pass from the inner to the outer circle. How beautifully they bring the greater and lesser circles into connection with each other! ”

“ It is, then, possible to call the circle perfect when it is truly a circle, that is, when it is joined with its own proper or relative virtue, it is then complete in its nature, and it may then be called a noble circle. ”

“ Why should not the circle represent other things than the sun? In modern astronomy the full moon is represented by the plain circle, while the sun, at least in heraldry, is always represented as a circle with rays. It is believed that the “cross or four wheel-like spokes” in the Chaldean emblem of the sun will be found to be rays rather than cross or spokes. A cast is in the U. S. National Museum (Cat. No. 154766) of an original specimen from Niffer, now in the Royal Museum, Berlin, of Shamash, the Assyrian god of the sun. ”

“ Not all persons can see these things, but only those whose hearts are kind and gentle, and whose minds are in accord with Nature, and who have reverence for holy things and for the beauties and mysteries in Nature.
THE SACRED SYMBOL OF THE CIRCLE
To the Dakotas the form of the circle is a sacred symbol because Great Spirit caused everything in nature except stone to be round. Stone is the implement of destruction. The sun, the earth and the moon are round like a shield, and the sky is round like a bowl inverted over the earth. All breathing creatures are round like a human body. ”

“ A ring of 44 feet outer and 30 feet inner dimensions, has been formed by constructing a sunken circle about 12 inches below the level of the original floor, which is rendered capable of removal to just such an extent as will disclose the ring, the boarding being replaced to form the ordinary promenade, at such times as the circus performances are not going on. ”

“ Therefore, sitters at the circle should endeavor to do their part in producing and maintaining such harmony with both the medium, the spirits, and finally with each other—and this last is not the least, by any means. Unless there be at least a very fair degree of harmony between the several members constituting the circle, there will be something important lacking in their harmony of the circle as a whole toward the other two sides of the psychical triangle. ”

“ All great circles of the sphere cut each other in two points diametrically opposite, and consequently their points of section are one hundred and eighty degrees apart. A great circle, which passes through the pole of another great circle, cuts the latter at right angles. The great circle which passes through the pole of another great circle, and is at right angles to it, is called a secondary to that circle. ”

“ And, moreover, were the circle drawn round each a very contracted one, every man of talent, every genius, in so far as he is in some degree a magician and an enchanter, possesses a secret entirely his own, whereby to perform prodigies within this circle and work wonders there. ”

“ In the third class of the circle game the players form the circle to act the part of “chorus” to the story. There are also two, three, or four players, as required, who act parts in dumb show suitable to the character personified. In this class the circle personate both animate and inanimate objects. The circle is stationary—at least the players forming it do not dance or walk round. They sometimes represent houses; a village, and animals are usually represented rather than people. ”

“ For God there is no circle, there can be none. But we outline a portion of an immense circle, of which we can touch but one point. We indicate only the inner periphery of a circle it is impossible to finish, and then retrace our steps.
When the circle is made small, we make it with one, two, three or four fingers, with the hand, with the arm. If the circle is vast as can be made with the arms, it is homogeneous. ”

“ The circle was undoubtedly known to the early civilizations, its simplicity specially recommending it as an object for study. Euclid defines it (Book I. def. 15) as a “plane figure enclosed by one line, all the straight lines drawn to which from one point within the figure are equal to one another.” In the succeeding three definitions the centre, diameter and the semicircle are defined, while the third postulate of the same book demands the possibility of describing a circle for every “centre” and “distance.” ”

“ Hence the importance of the choice of co-operators—of the composition of the circle. The number of experimenters is comparatively unimportant; in principle, the more numerous the circle the greater the force thrown out. But the presence of a large number of sitters is a bad condition for observation; it also enhances the difficulty of the realisation of, what spiritists call, the harmony of the circle. But I ought to say that the finest luminous phenomena, which I have seen, have been obtained when there were from fifteen to twenty people present. ”

“ A person to whom the double circular motion is familiar in the lathe naturally looks upon one circle moving upon another as in simple motion, if the second circle be fixed to the revolving radius, so that one and the same point of the moving circle travels upon the fixed circle. ”

“ A circle has proverbially neither beginning nor end. In what order then are we to consider these signs? In the heavens they form a never-ending circle. Where is the beginning and where is the end of this circle through which the sun is constantly moving? ”

“ A seventh or sixth circler can be almost as truly God-knowing—sonship conscious—as a second or first circler, but such lower circle beings are far less conscious of experiential relation to the Supreme Being, universe citizenship. ”

“ The head by Van Dyck carries with it the repose which belongs to the completeness of the circle.
Like Saturn and his ring, this sphere within the circle is typical of harmony in unity, and for this reason, though detached as we know it to be, it has a greater completeness than though joined to a body. It is on this general principle that all circular compositions are based—absorption of the attention within the circuit. ”

“ It is easy to see that a circle, for instance, traced on the spherical surface will, generally speaking, have for its shadow an ellipse on the plane. As this circle is displaced on the sphere towards the north pole, its shadow will grow larger and larger, tending finally, when any point of the circle coincides with the north pole, to become a parabola extending to infinity. ”

“ Besides the circles or spheres, the symbols of eons (divine beings, powers) that are enthroned in the ether as eternal beings, the human soul—the psyche or anima, which does not coincide with reason or the purified soul—appears as a broken circle. As the sun and its symbol, the ragged circle, symbolize the eternal light, the half circle is, as it were, [pg 189] the symbol of that spark of light that slumbers in the soul of man, or, as the alchemists often say, the hidden fire that is to be awakened by the process. ”

“ According to Lipps’ theory the circle has a centripetal character and these radial forces toward the center, which apparently have overcome the tangential forces during the process of creating the circle, lead to underestimation of its size as compared with a square of the same height and breadth. By drawing a circle and square side by side, with the diameter of the former equal to the length of a side of the latter, this illusion is readily demonstrated. ”