[Opinion] Physical Appearance and the Use of Magic

[Wumeiniang]

Hi everyone!

Today I wanted to open a discussion and hear your thoughts on using magic to change one’s appearance, how different traditions approach this idea through spells and rituals, and what “transformation” really means in magical practice.

Before I dive in, I want to include a little reminder: if you ever struggle with body image, weight, or appearance-related concerns that affect your mental well-being, please take care of yourself first. This post isn’t meant to encourage obsession with physical looks, just to explore how people express beauty and self-image through spiritual paths.

Lately, there’s been a lot of buzz on TikTok and other spaces about glamour magic and how offerings to beauty deities or simple rituals can “transform” someone’s appearance. From what I’ve seen, many modern glamour spells involve things like lighting a pink candle, adding glitter or flowers, and setting an intention of radiance or confidence (which seems kinda Meh... to me but Hey! Do what feels right to you!). While these rituals can feel empowering and symbolic, I personally didn’t notice dramatic physical changes beyond perhaps new styling choices, different makeup, a new haircut, or a new outfit which is honestly kinda underwhelming for what they preach.

Looking at older sources like the Greek Magical Papyri, glamour or beauty related spells were called favor spells which are more about attracting admiration and charm. People might invoke deities such as Aphrodite or employ symbols like her stele to inspire love and appreciation. I even saw nowadays practitioner even use her stele on their beauty products! In Goetic traditions, certain demons were also said to influence charisma and attraction.

From this perspective, glamour magic seems less about literally altering the body and more about amplifying our own presence, charm, and confidence. If someone were truly seeking physical transformation, it might make more sense (to me) to use magic toward opportunities or resources, like meeting the right stylist, doctor, or trainer, rather than expecting direct bodily changes.

One word of caution (according to me) : it’s best to avoid spells aimed at instant weight change or drastic physical modification. Sometimes fast results come with unintended consequences. If you’re drawn to this kind of result, try focusing your energy on realistic pathways, like summoning spirits for motivation, support, or healthy opportunities to reach your goals safely (yeah it is not fun, but you gotta do what you gotta do!)

I’d love to hear from others on this. Have you practiced glamour magic or similar traditions in your culture? What results or experiences have you noticed, were they drastic?

 

[Keldan]

If you use magick to spell yourself or spell other people so it changes the way they look at your appearance, then yes, it works. But if you’re looking for real physical appearance changes, that happened to me too, just not because I purposely went looking for ways to change my appearance. I didn’t. It was more like a “funny incident” that happened along the way.

For context, I don’t struggle with my appearance or weight. My work is physically intensive as my recorded steps are 10k+ a day. I’m also within my BMI and I’m healthy. I don’t use glamour magick or anything like that to change the way other people perceive me. And I don’t use spells, rituals, or anything aimed at transforming my physical appearance either.

But about 9 years into my practice, I started noticing my physical appearance had changed. And it kept changing positively for 3 years after that, which is a long time. So it wasn’t an overnight change or some quick makeover. It was a transformation over three consecutive years. After that it stopped, and there weren’t any more changes to my physical appearance.

At that point, people usually ask me how did I get a positive physical appearance change without spells or rituals targeting it? And I keep saying it was a “funny incident,” because I didn’t do anything special and I wasn’t chasing the change. But if you want something closer to a controlled experiment, this is the only thing I can point to. I’m practicing about 5 and a half hours every day, 365 days a year. So if you practice that much, there may be something positive that happens to you too.

One thing you have to realize about magick is that rituals that actually transform you aren’t simple at all. It doesn’t matter whether they’re targeting bad habits, fears, your mindset, or anything else, it won’t be simple. So you can’t just grab a simple ritual from online spaces and hope it gives you the transformation you want. It’s not going to happen like that.

And I’m not going to recommend using magick to find the right doctors for physical changes. The thing is even if you find the “right” doctor, that doesn’t mean they won’t botch the surgery.

I also don’t recommend physical modification spells. If it’s DIY spells you make for yourself, then it’s ok because you know what they are. But if it’s spells made by another practitioner, there are two scenarios. First, if you’re lucky, you just meet a scammer who sells you empty promises. Second, if you meet a real practitioner, you still don’t know their intent and you can end up with a bad accident in the exact physical area you wanted to change. Oh yes, you get drastic physical modification… just negative changes.

Magick can influence perception.

 

[AlfrunGrima]

But about 9 years into my practice, I started noticing my physical appearance had changed. And it kept changing positively for 3 years after that, which is a long time.

Cool that you mention that. I noticed over years that when I have periods of doing magic on a daily basis, my hair grows faster. I even kept measurements of that, just for fun. When I do magic workings less than 2 a 3 days a week, the effect is gone. I think my link is in the autogenic effect that magic can have on the body, being in other states enables the body to do its work with less stress. @HoldAll was that you wo did some experimentation with autogenic training?

 

[HoldAll]

Cool that you mention that. I noticed over years that when I have periods of doing magic on a daily basis, my hair grows faster. I even kept measurements of that, just for fun. When I do magic workings less than 2 a 3 days a week, the effect is gone. I think my link is in the autogenic effect that magic can have on the body, being in other states enables the body to do its work with less stress. @HoldAll was that you wo did some experimentation with autogenic training?

I did a basic course long ago focussing on relaxation, it didn't go beyond the foundations. The idea was that relaxation could help conditions like insomnia or anxiety, we never targeted specific problems.