Absurd Magick: Mixing Albert Camus' Absurdism with Agnostic Enchantment

Albert Camus' philosophy goes into fundamental subjects such as life's divine meaninglessness and lack of sacred purpose.

 

"Should I kill myself, or have a cup of coffee?" — ALBERT CAMUS, attributed, The Paradox of Choice

 

 

While Camus' philosophy does not deny the existence of life or natural processes, it does challenge traditional concepts of spirituality and philosophy. Camus' ideas may impact a physicalist worldview that appreciates agnostic enchantment and skeptical curiosity.

 

"Absurdism, like methodical doubt, has wiped the slate clean. It leaves us in a blind alley. But, like methodical doubt, it can, by returning upon itself, open up a new field of investigation, and in the process of reasoning then pursues the same course. I proclaim that I believe in nothing and that everything is absurd, but I cannot doubt the validity of my proclamation and I must at least believe in my protest." — ALBERT CAMUS, The Rebel

 

 

Agnostics and atheists may believe life originates from non-cerebral, chemical, and physical interactions, leading to the formation of life as we know it. Meaning can be regarded philosophically and scientifically as a construct generated by human minds and influenced by societal standards, personal values, and subjective experiences. Recognizing this might free us from the hunt for an external purpose and encourage us to create our own meanings.

Rather than attributing life's genesis to gods or supernatural regions, agnostics recognize its divine meaninglessness, rarity, preciousness, and phenomenal character in a non-mystic style.

Albert Camus reveals an agnostic escape hatch from suicidality and nihilism to pursue a state of awe and irony in the understanding that existence is both complicated and pointless.

 

"Man stands face to face with the irrational. He feels within him his longing for happiness and for reason. The absurd is born of this confrontation between the human need and the unreasonable silence of the world."— ALBERT CAMUS, The Myth of Sisyphus

 

 

Camus' philosophy challenges us to confront existence's intrinsic meaninglessness and refrain from despair. Instead, we are asked to embrace the absurd, and thrive even if there is no creator god, sacred purpose, or ability to make total sense. Camus urges us to live truthfully, to interact with things that bring us delight and to find consolation in the little joys and treasures of a mortal's daily existence.

 

“Men, too, secrete the inhuman. At certain moments of lucidity, the mechanical aspect of their gestures, their meaningless pantomime makes silly everything that surrounds them. A man is talking on the telephone behind a glass partition; you cannot hear him, but you see his incomprehensible dumb show: you wonder why he is alive. This discomfort in the face of man’s own inhumanity, this incalculable tumble before the image of what we are, this “nausea,” as a writer of today calls it, is also the absurd.” ― CAMUS

 

 

Richard Cox's (2005) concept of enchanted agnosticism, or bedazzled doubt, welcomes the strange and ineffable aspect of reality while accepting the limits of human comprehension. It acknowledges the universe's astounding intricacy as well as the unanswered questions. Enchanted agnosticism advocates an open-minded and curious approach to life's mysteries. It encourages people to embrace the beauty and wonder of the unknown, finding enchantment in the investigation of various points of view and the constant search of knowledge. Enchanted agnosticism offers a unique method to navigate the domain of doubt and find inspiration in the immensity of the cosmos by combining a feeling of humility with an appreciation for the remarkable.

 

"Albert Camus examines a humanity wrestling with its own sense of individual of communal strangeness." — A. CURZON-HOBSON on Albert Camus

 

 

Magick has an alternative significance in Spookywood's non-religious framework, pairing with a practical approach that adheres to physicalist principles rather than relying on religious powers. Magick can be viewed as the design of function, where some magick is non-cerebral and non-mystic, utilizing the underlying and, at times, non-living or even disenchanted mechanisms of nature.

Similarly, reinterpreting occultism as a philosophy rooted in knowledge-seeking curiosity allows for a secular exploration of nature's mysteries. Accepting a physicalist worldview does not weaken reality's inherent charm and appeal.  Secularists might discover astonishment and amazement using an emphasis of natural processes, evidence-based reasoning, materials, and individual search by merging Albert Camus' concept of the absurd with Spookywood's agnostic and mechanic notions of magick and occultism, then creating something independent.

 

“If I convince myself that this life has no other aspect than that of the absurd, if I feel that its whole equilibrium depends on that perpetual opposition between my conscious revolt and the darkness in which it struggles, if I admit that my freedom has no meaning except in relation to its limited fate, then I must say that what counts is not the best living but the most living.” — ALBERT CAMUS, The Myth of Sisyphus  

 

References

Schneider, K. J. (2005). Enchanted agnosticism. Spirituality and psychological health, 316-321.

Curzon-Hobson, A. (2013). Confronting the Absurd: An educational reading of Camus’ The stranger. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 45(4), 461-474.