Vaeira: Do You Believe in Magic?

Is magic real? There are three views among the Rishonim. This used to be an open question. But if these Rishonim were alive today, they'd all be in agreement.

The Torah Content for the remainder of July has been sponsored by the Lichters in honor of Jonny Schneeweiss, just "for being Jonny."

Originally posted on 12/27/13. Edited and republished on 7/19/24.

Click here for a printer-friendly version of this article.

Artwork: Jace, the Mind Sculptor, by Jason Chan

Vaeira: Do You Believe in Magic?

In Parashas Vaeira, the Torah recounts the first of the many miracles performed by Moshe in Egypt:

Moshe came with Aharon to Paroh and they did so, as Hashem had commanded; Aharon cast down his staff before Paroh and before his servants, and it became a snake. Paroh, too, summoned his wise men and sorcerers, and they, too—the necromancers of Egypt—did so with their magic. Each one cast down his staff and they became snakes; and the staff of Aharon swallowed their staffs. The heart of Paroh was strong and he did not heed them, as Hashem had spoken. (Shemos 7:10-13)

The question is: Did Paroh's sorcerers perform real magic? The answer to this question is a machlokess Rishonim (a disagreement between medieval authorities). 

Some Rishonim, such as the Rambam, Ibn Ezra, and Radak, maintain that there is no such thing as “real magic.” All instances of magic, sorcery, and occult practices mentioned by the Torah were nothing but illusions and trickery, whether by sleight of hand or by sleight of mind. For simplicity’s sake, we will refer to this position as “the Rambam’s view,” [1] since he was more vocal about his stance on this matter than many of the other Rishonim.

Other Rishonim, such as the Ramban, Sefer ha’Chinuch, and Rashi, maintain that magic—at least some forms—is real, and involves tremendous chochmah (wisdom). Of course, they do not believe that magic involves powers other than Hashem. Rather, they conceive of magic as a method of manipulating natural phenomena in “unnatural” ways. This can be compared to “hacking” a computer program: the program is designed to be used in a certain way, but the potential for other uses exists within its code. If one knows the programming language, he can change the program to be used in an “unnatural” manner—contrary to the intent of the program’s original designer. We will refer to this position as “the Ramban’s view,” since he was one of the most vocal opponents of the Rambam’s view.

Last but not least, there are Rishonim who are in doubt. They acknowledge both sides of the issue but admit that they don’t know which side is correct. One of these Rishonim is the Ralbag (Shemos 7:11, beur ha’milos), who writes:

I maintain that these “wise men [of Egypt]” were the men who were knowledgeable in the chochmas Mitzrayim (Egyptian wisdom). This chochmah enabled its practitioners to produce acts of sorcery to bring about strange and unnatural phenomena. They either (a) perform illusions which cause people to think they are doing what they are not actually doing; or (b) devise natural mechanisms to produce strange phenomena that appear to be acts of sorcery; or (c) did these strange actions by means of actual sorcery—assuming these things are possibly by way of actual sorcery. Today, however, we lack knowledge of the nature and character of this [Egyptian] “sorcery,” and so we have not seen fit to discuss it.

Whenever I present this machlokess between the Rambam and the Ramban to my students, I am inevitably asked two questions: “How do we know which view is correct?” and “What do you believe?”

My answer to the first question is to analyze each theory in depth, evaluate their relative strengths and weaknesses, and arrive at a conclusion with your own mind. If you are unable to conduct a full investigation or cannot reach a conclusion, the most intellectually honest position to hold is that of the Ralbag, who said, “I don’t know.” Do not be intellectually irresponsible by adopting whichever belief you find most emotionally pleasing or stimulating to your imagination and fantasy.

My answer to the second question, “What do you believe?” is more nuanced than the two basic Rishonic positions outlined above. I will say, without hesitation, that I believe the Rambam’s view to be correct. I do not believe that there is or ever was such a thing as “real magic,” and anything that appears to be real magic is the product of trickery, imagination, and/or ignorance. Furthermore, I maintain that if the Ramban were alive today, he would agree with the Rambam. There would be no machlokess.

To appreciate why, we need to understand why the Ramban believed in magic in the first place. The answer is not simply, “Because the Torah talks about people doing magic, and prohibits magic, so magic must be real!” After all, the Rambam and other Rishonim were also aware of the references to magic in the Torah, yet they still maintained that magic is fake.

The Ramban’s clearest statement of his reasons for believing in occult practices (such as magic, astrology, omen-reading, etc.) can be found in his commentary on Devarim 18:9. He writes that we ought to believe in these phenomena because “we cannot deny things [that] have been done publicly in the sight of witnesses” and are based on “empirically verified science”—that is to say, they have been confirmed by observation and experience. Scientists [2] at the time of the Ramban believed in these occult phenomena, and the Ramban relied on their conclusions. To deny magic would be to reject science and sense observation, which is the basis of everything – including our acceptance of Torah. [3]

The Ramban’s true position is now clear. Just as he relied on the empirical conclusions of the scientists in his time, so too, if he were alive today, he would embrace the empirical conclusions of modern scientists. To my knowledge, there is absolutely no scientific evidence to support a belief in magic and the occult. Scientists today uphold the view expressed by the Rambam (Hilchos Avodah Zarah v’Chukos ha’Goyim 11:16) over 800 years ago:

Anyone who believes in these and similar things and, in his heart, holds that they are true and scientific but forbidden by the Torah, is nothing but a fool with a deficient mind, who belongs to the same class with others whose intellects are immature. Intelligent people, however, whose rationality is intact, know by clear proofs that all these practices which the Torah prohibited have no scientific basis but are senseless and empty; and that only those with deficient minds are attracted by these follies and, for their sake, leave the ways of truth.

In the Ramban’s time, the evidence wasn't so clear. To deny magic was to take a stance on what was regarded as a two-sided scientific dispute. Today, however, there are no two sides. In this day and age, to believe in magic is to reject science and to deny sense observation. That, we can be sure, is a stance that the Ramban would never take and would never advocate.

In conclusion, although there were three camps among the Rishonim, today they would all side with the Rambam.

[1] See Rabbeinu Moshe ben Maimon (Rambam / Maimonides), Mishneh Torah: Hilchos Avodah Zarah v’Chukos ha’Goyim 11:16; Commentary on the Mishnah, Avodah Zarah 4:7; Letter on Astrology, and elsewhere.

[2] Strictly speaking, “science” in Ramban’s time. They called it “natural philosophy.” I’m speaking in the vernacular.

[3] This isn't the only instance of the Ramban basing his interpretation of Chumash on empirical evidence. In his commentary on Parashas Noach (Bereishis 9:12) the Ramban relies on the explanation of rainbows given by the Greek scientists, even when their words undermined the straightforward reading of the text. The Ramban writes: “We are compelled to believe the words of the Greek [scientists] that rainbows are a natural phenomenon resulting from the sun’s rays passing through moist air, etc.” We see from here that even according to the Ramban, empirical evidence overrides a literal reading of the text.

---

Do you think that the three Rishonic camps I’ve outlined here encompass all possible views, or can you think of a fourth? How would you answer the two questions my students ask me?

Like what you read? Give this article a “like” and share it with someone who might appreciate it!

Want access to my paid content without actually paying? If you successfully refer enough friends, you can get access to the paid tier for free!

Interested in reading more? Become a free subscriber, or upgrade to a paid subscription for the upcoming exclusive content!

If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.

If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_sharel