The Magician’s Oath
“I promise never to reveal the secret of any illusion unto the laity, unless one swears to maintain the Magician’s Oath in turn. I promise never to execute any illusion for any layperson without practicing the effect before I could do it well enough to maintain the illusion of magic.“
When you are devoted to learning, understanding, and mastering the magical arts, then you proudly stand and utter the above Magician’s Oath.
By so doing, you establish yourself as a magician.
Magic is about amusing and amazing your crowd, leaving them with a sense of wonder; magic is about your enjoyment of what you’re performing.
You made the sacred vow to yourself and fellow magicians you will abide by your promise. You will not knowingly expose secrets of the trade except by your own inexperience and ineptitude. By the assiduous practice of technique and mastery of misdirection, you will prevent yourself from unknowingly exposing secrets of the trade.
Once a man etch and utter the oath, he will be forever bound by it. Even after the magician’s death.
For the magician, there is no renunciation.
If a magic trick you are about to perform had already been revealed to your audience, then the fun for both your spectators and for you has all but vanished.
Contemplate the implications that opening the backstage curtain can have on your show and the performance. Such contemplation should be enough to dissuade you from opening the curtain.
if it is not, remember that many professionals perform magic tricks for a living. Such magicians worked hard for many years to present a good show. Suppose you knew how all Magician X’s tricks were achieved. As a spectator, would you pay money to patronize Mr. X or Mr. Finch?
Most audiences would not.
One of the characteristics of magicians is that the word “secret” is not a bad word.
A magician respects the art, the audience, and himself—in that order.
The magician’s oath keeps the integrity of the performer and assures he will, with magic, amuse and not harm.
The magician values secrecy because he knows why magicians never reveal their secrets and has the self-control to keep secrets.
If his dearest friend, by exposing a secret, betray the magician, the true magician forsakes his dearest friend for three years.
A performer who has unceremoniously entered the spotlight to reveal secrets is the cancerous whore staining the mattress of magic.
Such performers have been publicly outed and struck with cancer. Villainous magicians who betray the magician’s oath and break the magician’s code, like the masked magician, now find themselves ostracized and exiled from the realm of magic.
Among the most things about magical entertainment is that the impossible is made possible, the fantastic is made real, and the possibilities are infinite. Old tricks can always be shifted around to that the revealed secret is no longer applicable and a fresh trick is born.
