The Rituals We Don’t Call Magic: How Secular Societies Still Seek Power, Control, and Meaning

From corporate mission statements to self-help mantras, modern people haven’t abandoned magic, we only think we have.

I was recently thinking about anthropologist George Gmelch, who once played professional baseball before turning to the study of human belief and ritual. He noticed how his old colleagues, American baseball players in the 1960s, who by all accounts were living in a rational, competitive environment. However, they often relied on superstitions and personal rituals: lucky socks, precise lunchtime routines, and charms. They didn’t call it magic. But by anthropological standards, that’s exactly what it was: a symbolic action to influence uncertain outcomes.

Along the same thread: what does magic look like today among people I know?

Most Americans would never describe themselves as “superstitious” or “magical thinkers.” Yet, across secular spaces from business culture to wellness trends, rituals and symbolic behaviors thrive. We may not wear talismans from our distinguished spiritual practitioners who chant spells, but we engage in actions designed to invoke power, shape fate, and create meaning.

What Is Magic, Really?

In anthropology, magic isn’t just about spells and wands. Scholars like Bronisław Malinowski and James Frazer described it as symbolic actions believed to influence outcomes or provide psychological control in uncertain situations.

Malinowski famously observed that the more uncertainty people face, the more they turn to ritual. His study of Trobriand Islanders showed that when fishermen stayed close to shore, they relied on skill alone. But when they ventured into the dangerous open ocean, they performed elaborate rituals to manage their anxiety.

Malinowski’s open-ocean rites find their echo in my own secret travel charms. I carry a blue-suede coin purse stuffed with special tiny rocks and tchochkies, a miniature Buddha, and teething beads--tokens from moments of liminality that, like a fisherman’s prayers, help me negotiate the unknown in my own way.

Magic arises where risk, fate, and the unknown meet human desire for control.

The Persistence of Magical Thinking

Even in today’s data-driven world, magic hasn’t vanished; it has simply evolved. If we've given ourselves the illusion that magic is reserved for children, fastasy media, and those who live in some other time long ago, we fail to see the everyday magic around us now.

In business, mission statements are recited like modern creeds. Logos and branding adopt symbolic colors and shapes meant to attract prosperity and loyalty. Quarterly forecasting becomes a ritualized attempt to predict the unpredictable.

Self-help and wellness culture also reflects contemporary magic with affirmations and vision boards promise to manifest success. Crystals and astrology offer symbolic meaning in uncertain times.

In everyday life, “lucky” clothes and jewelry are worn to job interviews, even when being conducted on Zoom. Social media users craft “ritualized” morning routines that promise productivity, peace, and longevity. Athletes and fans alike perform pre-game rituals, just like Gmelch’s baseball players.

These behaviors aren’t framed as magic, but they serve the same purpose: to invoke control, create order, and find meaning in an unpredictable world.

Why Secular Societies Still Need Magic

If modern life is supposed to be rational and disenchanted, why do these rituals persist? Because humans crave control over the uncontrollable just as much now as we ever did. Ritualized meaning is found in daily life, despite humans believing we are the most rational creatures on the planet. While that may feel true, we are highly symbolic creatures.

As life grows more complex, our need for symbolic actions may be increasing. When science and data can’t soothe anxieties about relationships, careers, health, or world events, ritual steps in.

Magic never disappeared. It adapted to modern anxieties.

Who Gets to Call It Magic?

Just as we saw with veiling debates, not all symbolic actions are labeled equally. Meditation is called “mindfulness” when supported by neuroscience. Affirmations are seen as positive psychology or personal growth. When Human Resources introduces it, it's backed by social science research. Prayer or folk rituals from marginalized groups? These practices are often dismissed as “superstition” or “irrationality.”

This reflects deeper power dynamics about who controls cultural labels. Western secular societies tend to validate rituals that align with individualism, capitalism, or science. Those that come from religious, ethnic, or non-Western traditions often face scrutiny or mockery.

It’s not just about belief. It’s about who gets to frame belief as legitimate.

Final thoughts: Magic Never Left

We may dismiss magic as obsolete, a relic of less enlightened times. But our modern rituals, however secular they appear, tell a different story.

When we feel adrift, we turn to symbols: a spreadsheet forecast or a well-worn suede coin purse brimming with charms gathered over a lifetime. Across eras, our need to bend fate has remained constant. Whether it’s a multimillion-dollar branding campaign or a tumbled obsidian stone from a country market, these practices form a continuum of symbolic action. They remind us that, no matter how rational our facades, we remain creatures of ritual.

Magic never left. We just keep changing its name.

Stay bright; stay curious,

AP