--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is what magic is. It's being able to…" description: "\"This is what magic is. It's being able to speak in a voice which makes things happen, being able to speak in a voice which causes facts to be beheld by..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf4/terence-mckenna-287_able_this-is-what-magic-is-it-s-being-able-to_2722446.jpg" --- # This is what magic is. It's being able to speak in a voice… ![“This is what magic is. It's being able to speak in a voice which makes things happen, being able to speak in a voice which causes facts to be beheld by groups of people in a way that has been purged from profane language, for us relegated to poetry and that sort of thing.” quote by Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf4/terence-mckenna-287_able_this-is-what-magic-is-it-s-being-able-to_2722446.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf4/terence-mckenna-287_able_this-is-what-magic-is-it-s-being-able-to_2722446.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf4/terence-mckenna-287_able_this-is-what-magic-is-it-s-being-able-to_2722446.jpg) > “This is what magic is. It's being able to speak in a voice which makes things happen, being able to speak in a voice which causes facts to be beheld by groups of people in a way that has been purged from profane language, for us relegated to poetry and that sort of thing.” [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Magic is the power of language to shape perception and reality, turning ordinary speech into poetic influence. **In simple terms:** Words can change how groups think and act. Key Takeaway Use language deliberately to inspire change. Themes communication influence poetry Mood inspirational thought‑provoking Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - public speaking - writing - leadership - creative expression Key Concepts semantic power collective belief language as magic Questions to Reflect On - What words have you used to shift perception? - How can you balance poetic language with clarity? A Different Perspective Language can be misused to manipulate; not all audiences respond to poetic framing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Able](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/able/) [Able Speak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/able-speak-427256/) [Causes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causes/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/groups/) [Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic/) [Magic Able](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic-able-2893425/) [Make things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-things-happen/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Profane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profane/) [Speak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speak/) [Speak Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speak-voice-314286/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice/) [Voice Causes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice-causes-1603878/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [You don't get to choose your voice! I was never like, 'Oh, I'll take the voice that causes dogs to gather outside.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-wolf/you-don-t-get-to-choose-your-voice-i-was-never-like-oh-i-ll-take-the/) [Michelle Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-wolf/) > [If you go back a few hundred years, what we take for granted today would seem like magic - being able to talk to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elon-musk/if-you-go-back-a-few-hundred-years-what-we-take-for-granted-today/) [Elon Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elon-musk/) > [To contact the cosmic giggle, to have the flow of casuistry begin to give off synchronistic ripples, whitecaps in the billows of the coincidental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/to-contact-the-cosmic-giggle-to-have-the-flow-of-casuistry-begin-to/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [But those two plays left me on fresh terms with language. I didn't always have to speak in my own voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrill/but-those-two-plays-left-me-on-fresh-terms-with-language-i-didn-t/) [James Merrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrill/) > [I really knew how to speak - from my female voice, that "different voice" that Carol Gilligan so presciently described many years ago in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/i-really-knew-how-to-speak-from-my-female-voice-that-different-voice/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [Somebody has always wanted me to speak as a voice of black America, but it has dawned on me that I can only speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yolanda-king/somebody-has-always-wanted-me-to-speak-as-a-voice-of-black-america/) [Yolanda King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yolanda-king/) > [The people did not elect me. I speak with one voice that may echo other people, but I am part of a group of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/the-people-did-not-elect-me-i-speak-with-one-voice-that-may-echo/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [A lost voice will always be heard by the heart of your loved one. Always speak, even if no one is around; your voice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-hofland/a-lost-voice-will-always-be-heard-by-the-heart-of-your-loved-one/) [Dylan Hofland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-hofland/) > [I speak not for myself, but so those without a voice can be heard. Those who have fought for their rights. Their right to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malala-yousafzai/i-speak-not-for-myself-but-so-those-without-a-voice-can-be-heard/) [Malala Yousafzai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malala-yousafzai/) > [We speak with one voice,” Walt said. “Especially on this matter. No one hurts Sadie Kane.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/we-speak-with-one-voice-walt-said-especially-on-this-matter-no-one/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [The key is always to speak in your own voice. Speak the truth. That's Acting 101.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-d-onofrio/the-key-is-always-to-speak-in-your-own-voice-speak-the-truth-that-s/) [Vincent D'Onofrio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-d-onofrio/) > [Data can't speak for itself; it's up to you to give it a voice. Try to speak truthfully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-coase/data-can-t-speak-for-itself-it-s-up-to-you-to-give-it-a-voice-try-to/) [Ronald Coase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-coase/) > [“Speak because your voice is currency, and their comfort isn't worth your silence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudy-francisco/speak-because-your-voice-is-currency-and-their-comfort-isn-t-worth/) [Rudy Francisco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudy-francisco/) > [President Lincoln called upon Americans to speak with one voice and one heart. That's just what we have to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/president-lincoln-called-upon-americans-to-speak-with-one-voice-and/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [SPEAK UP FOR OTHERS! AND YOURSELF! HAVE A VOICE! TREAT YOUR VOICE LIKE IT'S A WEAPON!!! SPEAK UP,LOVES! YOU NEED TO BE HEARD!!! You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine/speak-up-for-others-and-yourself-have-a-voice-treat-your-voice-like/) [Jasmine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmine/) ## More by Terence McKenna > [History was an incredibly damaging experience, and now it's over . . . in a sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/history-was-an-incredibly-damaging-experience-and-now-it-s-over-in-a/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [The history of man that you don't know is what your unconscious is made out of. 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In other words, being here now is the primary datum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/and-what-is-the-primary-datum-it-s-the-felt-presence-of-immediate/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Our culture difinitely takes an egocentric dominator view. The fear of the psychedelic experience is quite literally the fear of losing control. Dominator types…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/our-culture-difinitely-takes-an-egocentric-dominator-view-the-fear-of/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Every step into freedom contains within it the potential for greater bondage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/every-step-into-freedom-contains-within-it-the-potential-for-greater/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [This is the message of your life and my life - it’s that nothing lasts. Heraclitus said it: Panta Rhei. All flows, nothing lasts.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/this-is-the-message-of-your-life-and-my-life-it-s-that-nothing-lasts/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [I often like to think that our map of the world is wrong, that where we have centered physics, we should actually place literature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/i-often-like-to-think-that-our-map-of-the-world-is-wrong-that-where/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Knowledge, or verbal facility, is no proof that you know what you're talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/knowledge-or-verbal-facility-is-no-proof-that-you-know-what-you-re/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [No culture on earth is as heavily narcotized as the industrial West in terms of being inured to the consequences of maladaptive behavior. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/no-culture-on-earth-is-as-heavily-narcotized-as-the-industrial-west/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Man was not put on this planet to toil in the mud. 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