The Magician's Hidden Library Magic Words: A Dictionary

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MAGIC WORDS Facts: "The psychologist Eugene Subbotsky showed four-to-six-year-olds a magic box that, he said, turned drawings into real objects if you said the magic words 'alpha beta gamma.' When the experimenter left them alone in the room with the box and a set of drawings, almost all of the children tried the machine out. They put drawings in the box, said 'alpha beta gamma,' and looked disappointed when nothing happened" (Paul Bloom, Decartes' Baby [2004]). Alu (see also rune) Meanings: • Ale, beer Though the precise meaning of alu is unclear, "it is evident that as time went on it became increasingly identified with the Germanic terms for 'ale' or 'beer.' The eddic poem Sigrdfrífumál speaks of ölrúnar ('ale-runes'), which may describe rules where alu is invoked, while the Old English poem 'Beowulf ' describes grief or terror as ealuscerwen ('pouring away of alu?')." -- Andy Orchard, Cassell's Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend (1997) • Ecstatic psychic force -- Edred Thorsson, Runelore: A Handbook of Esoteric Runology (1987) • Good fortune • Inspiration -- Edred Thorsson, Runelore: A Handbook of Esoteric Runology (1987) • Magic -- Edred Thorsson, Runelore: A Handbook of Esoteric Runology (1987) • Power -- Nigel Pennick, Magical Alphabets (1992) • Protection -- Freya Aswynn, Northern Mysteries and Magick (1998) Origins: Alu is the "best attested of a range of magic words" found inscribed in Norse runes, evidently invoking luck or the suggestion of protection. 156 Facts: Alu is composed of three runes: Ansuz, Lagus, and Uruz.157 156 Andy Orchard, Cassell's Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend (1997) 157 Freya Aswynn, Northern Mysteries and Magick (1998)
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