How Magic Works
What is magic?
Understanding of the nature of magic is the most fundamental and at the same time the most complicated question in the Harry Potter universe. I make several important assumptions about the nature of magic right from the start and every explanation on this website is based on these assumptions.
- Magic is very similar to programming.
- All existing physical laws from our world still apply.
- Magic has always existed. It could be that it exists across universe and there were other civilizations that used magic before humans.
Being an engineer, it’s really easy to notice how similar magic is to the technology that we are using every day. Some of the things we use are indistinguishable from magic.
Take Large Language Models (LLMs) for example. At this point you can tweak them to behave just like a ghost from the Harry Potter universe: they can answer questions, they can talk to you, they can teach history and even talk endlessly about failing to join the “Headless Hunt”.
Same LLMs could act like any “sentient” being from the Harry Potter universe that is not actually sentient, but is just a program that is very good at imitating a sentient being. For example, talking portraits, paintings and letters from Hogwarts, Sorting Hat, as well as other artifacts.
We, humans, program incredibly complex systems that can do things that are indistinguishable from magic.
One could argue that all the diagrams that physicists, mathematicians, computer scientists and engineers draw all the time are unbelieavably similar to occult pentagrams and runes that are created to summon electricity in such a way that it makes metal alive!
It is impossible to explain anything in the magic world without accepting one of the theories presented below. Each theory attempts to explain the nature of magic as if it exists in our world.
Theory 1: It’s all a simulation
This theory is based on the assumption that we are living in a simulation. I hate this theory, because it is a cop-out. It is a way to explain anything. The whole universe becomes a game engine.
However, some of the things that happen in the Harry Potter universe are extremely hard to explain without this theory. For example:
- Time travel
- Instant teleportation
The fact that light behaves both as a particle and as a wave in our world but looks like wave from distance and like a particle when photon is observed is a good example of how our world could be a simulation.
It’s like a game engine saving precious resources and optimizing physics by a wave function because it makes no difference. But as soon as we start observing individual particles it suddenly changes their physics and they loose their wave function.
Theory 2: It’s all anceint technology
This theory is based on the writings of Elizer Yudkowsky in his rationality series. It is a very interesting theory that explains the nature of magic as a technology that was created by an ancient Atlantis civilization that existed long time ago and was destroyed by a catastrophe or left the planet.
They also invented a language that is used to program magic. The book assumes that magic is stored some energy source that are powering the whole magical world.
I kind of like this theory. It would explain a lot. Seeing what we are currently capabl of does make one wonder if people didn’t already arrive at the same level of technology in the past. And then even surpassed it.
Reminds a lot of the Warhammer 40k universe. It’s a very interesting setting that is based on the idea that in year 30,000 humanity has reach the peak of its technological development but then things unraveled and in year 40,000 nobody remembers how to build anything advanced anymore.
Theory 3: It’s a real part of the universe
It plays fundamental role in making the universe work and explains some of the things physics can’t explain. It might even be a consious entity.
In order to control the magic, not only you need to be human but you also need to know the language and must be able to control magic with your mind.