ARTE GLAMOR
On the topic of glamour magic, a lot has yet to be said. Regarding its ethics, and its uses, cultivation and employment, a late witch I admired, made of wood and bone, once wrote : « They are the magical equivalent of hallucinogens ». I will expand hereafter, but bear in mind this piece of writing has no desire to provide technics nor methods - it is, merely, a personal reflexion.
What is a glamour ?
A glamour is a spell of illusion and delusion. It is, first and foremost, an image - a fantasy, a myth, a chimera or mirage - in one word : a fallacy or decoy. Although it can be cast on objects as well as more immaterial artefacts (I know of texts protecting their secrets in such a way), a glamour relates mostly to an enchantment of the self. A glamour changes the way one is seen by the world. It is the art of manipulating one own’s appearance in sorcerous ways, to deceive, bewitch and mock another’s perception. Now, it is my controversial (and certainly debatable) opinion than there lies in glamours what makes something of the root of witchcraft. Of course, nearly every magical act, every witchcraft deed is, by nature, an act of manipulation. There is no shying away from that simple fact - it is a truth to be embraced. But the goal of the glamour is the specific act of bending your target’s will to the point of them rejecting the evidence of their own eyes, so as to leave an impression, or rather, a mark, on this receiver’s mind. It applies pressure. Thus a glamour is both a direct action, and a performance (that is, a facade that is reflexive). From seduction to invisibility, from fear to awe, its sublime applications are many and diverse - a scope of possibilities, all of which being, let it be clear, not exactly moral.
How does one cast a glamour ?
Contrary to what Tumblr’s usual misinformation and laziness towards witchcraft in general would have you believe, glamours are no self-love spells in a bath by candlelight, with rose petals, milk and honey. A glamour is not soft, a glamour is not tender, a glamour is not even benevolent. It is about domination pure and simple. Now that the air is clear, let’s get to the meat of it.
A glamour is a mask. It is the Mask. To cast a glamour is an epitomization : one must project an ethos into the world. It requires an absolute control of one’s own image to command and compell others. Complete domination equals complete power - ask the iridescent glimmer reflecting on a snake’s scales.
To cast a glamour properly, is the raw flaying (fraying) of one’s own self in order to dissect the spirit of a target. Benefits are entirely personal, shamelessly egotistical - that is enticing, luring, numbing your target’s vigilance, to sedate their awareness and corrupt their conscience. A quintessential distortion.
A successful glamour contrives another’s spirit by feeding it with a juicy lie it will happily digest, all too quick to absorb what it wants to see, rather than what is.
To do so means shedding skin to better embody - blurring the distinction between the Face and the Mask. It is to be a living mimesis. A shape, a shadow, that one has to learn to wear like one’s own clothes. You need to be what you want to be. Do not wish-to-appear -as, do not wish-to-become - be. Be a full-scale, real-size embalming, from illustration to demonstration
Sidenotes
Glamour is not a magic to be taken lightly, and as such, it is not within the reach of the first person to come. Not everyone can, nor want, to lie, not everyone can, nor want, to cheat. It is a technical form of magic, and energy-consuming at that. You have to focus all the intensity of your will onto the projection of the image, and to grasp the permanent maintenance of a vision that is true. This is not psychology. You have to develop this image by stratification, on your body, on your face, in your attitude, your language, your emotional and corporal intelligences. The clothes you wear, the perfume, the makeup, everything can help you in the building process, in the development of your mask - the complexity of which making to all the more formidable. The Mask requires a firm hand, and a firmer mind to be held consistently and from all angles, for a long period of time, so that you can send your ethos back to the world. This spell is a sustained effort, and therefore a performance in the most literal sense of the term, for a glamor is always performative - sum ergo sum, fiat lux, et nox facta est. This mask you wear, you must wear it as a new identity. An armor that you forge. Suffice now to act, move, speak, think, be accordingly.
Conclusion
Distrust the Witch who knows the Mask, for its mastery is a weapon. They might as well just enslave you, all of which by the sheer, mighty power of their own Fire. Verticordia. A confirmed practioner of glamour magic will make use of your integrity at their own discretion and pleasure - they will make you worship them, drink their words, or fall in love. With a light touch of the hand, they will slow your pulse down, and with the blink of the eye, make you forgive them for it. It is my belief that glamour magic should definitely inspire more awe and fear around than curses.
Distrust the Witch who know the Mask, for you’d be sorry to be naive.
A good witch only needs a couple of artifices to produce a decently shaped device, a wearable glamour - the mirror being an appropriate tool. An excellent witch, however, needs none.
