It’s a common fallacy that an emotional ritual is somehow going to progress the magician. Can it help with healing and getting things out? Sure. It’s an emotional outlet and there’s a chance that the work may produce results. Ex
Emotion(al trauma) is a cheap fuel best left for beginners. Why? Where’s your attention? On your trauma you’re using for fuel at some level, while part of you is either consciously (or not) reliving it to generate the fuel.
Controversal and people are going to try to say that hundreds of years of amateur(ish) experience can’t possibly be wrong. And those using it will continue to stay in the amateur(ish) area, regardless of output. One could also likely look at the state of life and progress of those people and see they aren’t exactly “sorted” – provided they actually have ability and can move larger amounts of energy towards their goals. Not emotion, (related) energy.
Wait – isn’t it about the results? Sure, when you don’t know what you’re doing or you need to keep a fragile ego/empire going. Gotta sell those ephemeral emotional experiences with each book when the techniques are shallow.
And what’s the recovery like from that? Especially when you need to recover from retraumatizing yourself for ritual fuel, too. Not just the ritual itself. Newer magicians won’t know what I’m talking about and are the prime candidates for intervention.
What are the alternatives? Well, you could try the overly-analytical approach of some magicians that try to use largely external components to make things work. Or you could stick with petitions and hope that your offerings were good enough to get the Gods attention.
Or you could start to actually feel magical current and then practice ritual while doing so to then cultivate the ability to replicate that. And once you can, you can then find a source and use THAT. Damn, but that takes dedicated work! Yeah. Which is why it isn’t popular.
And when you’re tired and worn out, crying on the floor from retraumatizing yourself for ritual fuel, likely over something without staying power. That’s fine. I’ll still be fine and ready for my next ritual while also getting results. Consider it.
You could be, too, and making a momentous impact on your personal causes. Instead of recovering.
