While there really is no accounting for taste, unfortunately when someone describes something as “magical”—unless I really trust them—I often worry it will turn out to be cringe-worthy.
I’m afraid that the “magical” phenomenon—whether it’s a movie, anecdote, season, or theme park—will be saccharine-sweet or, worse, presented as cosmically significant when it’s merely an ordinary coincidence.
Even so, with the year winding down—especially this year—my craving for magic is at an all-time high.
Thus, for December’s theme—new meditation HERE—and my January 2025 course HERE—I’m embracing this yearning and offering my exploration wholeheartedly to you.
Right from the start, defining magic is problematic.
I immediately thought of that terrific quote—attributed to Einstein since 1942 by geographer Gilbert Fowler White, but probably anonymous—that unfortunately doesn’t really help much.
“There are only two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle.
The other is as though everything is a miracle.“
Substitute “Magic” for “Miracle,” and your head starts spinning .
Or there’s sci-fi great Arthur C. Clarke’s quote:
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
It quickly becomes clear that magic is indeed tricky to define.
Similarly, as U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart famously said in 1964 about obscenity, “I know it when I see it,” I believe magic is an equally obvious mystery.
For now, your own definition will do just fine.
Recently, I had a significant breakthrough when someone wise grabbed me by the shoulders (metaphorically), saying that unless I left something (very specific) behind, I couldn’t get to where I wanted to go.
That concept—that letting go is necessary to move forward—is superabundant in all spiritual practices.
In fact, just last month in our Transformation Book Club, I quoted from Joseph Nguyen’s Don’t Believe Everything You Think where he recounts the classic parable of the scholar visiting a Zen master.
Though the scholar humbly asks for advice, it’s clear he’s completely full of his own opinions.
The master suggests they have tea, pouring his guest a cup.
Even after the cup is full, the master keeps pouring until tea spills onto the table, floor, and the scholar’s robes.
“The scholar cried, ‘Stop! The cup is full already. Can’t you see?’
”‘Exactly,’ the Zen master replied with a smile.
‘You are like this cup—so full of ideas that nothing more will fit in.
Come back to me with an empty cup.’”
In short, you must make room for magic.
We all know the classic story of the couple desperate to conceive, who, after deciding to adopt, suddenly get pregnant.
A friend recently had a similar experience while planning a cross-continent, dual-citizenship medical journey for IVF.
She basically discovered she was pregnant just as her plane landed.
In my own life, I recall decades ago welcoming a new roommate into my Chinatown loft the day before my July 2nd birthday.
During our first real conversation, I gave a sincere, passionate, perhaps even Oscar-worthy speech about being focused on creative projects and having no interest in romantic relationships for the foreseeable future.
I meant every word I said, of course, but the next day at my birthday party, sparks flew with a stranger and, for better or worse, the next year of my life was basically a season of Bridgerton.
In some ways, despite its practical aspects, I admit it initially felt a little bold to offer a new course with “Magic” in the title.
That’s why I love my great friend SARK’s quote:
“Let the magical stand up to the practical.”
In a similar way—and there are many authentic quotes by Einstein about this—we know that light is both a wave and a particle.
In fact, quantum mechanics has proven that this wave-particle duality means that light (and other particles like electrons) exhibit properties of both waves and particles, depending on the experiment or observer.
As with everything, perspective is all-important.
Indeed, as Roald Dahl wrote:
“Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”
I’d love to guide you with that discovery HERE (and offer deep discounts until December 21st.)
The first step toward experiencing magic is clearing space—a spiritual decluttering if you will.
As the Zen master instructed, we must empty the cup first.
Otherwise, we cannot perceive the magic that’s already there.
Indeed, as Yeats wrote:
“The world is full of magic things,
patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.”
If light can be described as both a particle and a wave, the holiday season can certainly be described as both “magical” and “supremely stressful.”
Again, it’s all a matter of perspective.
Thus, I hope you enjoy the new meditation HERE and feel inspired to join me for the full “Make Room for Magic” experience HERE.
Perhaps together, we’ll live our lives that second way—growing sharper senses and firmer beliefs so we can truly view everything as miraculous and magical.
Namaste for Now,
