The term "black magic," usually referred to as "dark magic," has historically been used to describe the employment of magic or supernatural abilities for evil or self-serving ends, particularly the seven magical arts that are forbidden by canon law as outlined by Johannes Hartlieb in 1456.

Daemonologie, a philosophical dissertation that described modern necromancy and the historical connections between the many forms of divination utilised in black magic, was published in 1597 by King James VI and I. One of the primary materials William Shakespeare is thought to have utilised to create Macbeth is this book.

In The Book of Ceremonial Magic (1911), A. E. Waite gave a thorough account of black magic practises, rituals, and customs throughout his period of research.

History:

According to Robert M. Place's 2009 book Magic and Alchemy, black magic's roots can be found in the primordial, ritualistic worship of spirits, just like those of its counterpart white magic.The rituals that gave rise to modern black magic were intended to call upon the same spirits to yield favourable results for the practitioner, in contrast to white magic, which Place compares to early shamanic attempts to become close to spiritual beings. Place offers a comprehensive definition of both black magic and white magic, but he prefers to refer to them as "high magic" (for white) and "low magic" (for black) depending on the practitioner using them.

He admits, however, that this more inclusive definition of "high" and "low" is flawed because well-intentioned folk magic may be viewed as "low," but ceremonial magic requiring pricey or exclusive components may be viewed by some as "high magic," regardless of aim.

Numerous magical techniques and rituals were seen negatively during the Renaissance and consequently as black magic in the broadest sense. The Inquisition forbade and persecuted witchcraft and other occult pursuits. Natural magic consequently emerged as a means for thinkers and intellectuals like Marsilio Ficino, the abbot Johannes Trithemius, and Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa to advance esoteric and ceremonial research (though still sometimes in secret) without facing substantial condemnation.

The phrase was most frequently used to refer to people who were accused of summoning demons and other evil spirits, hexing or cursing their neighbours, using magic to ruin crops, and people who were able to leave their physical bodies and travel great distances in spirit (a topic to which the Malleus Maleficarum "devotes one long and important chapter"). These people typically did so to practise devil-worship. Summers also focuses on the etymological history of the term "nigromancer," which was used frequently between the years 1200 and about 1500 and is defined as "one skilled in the black arts" (Latin: niger, black; Greek: v, divination).

The distinction between white magic and black magic is somewhat more distinct in the current day, and most definitions place more emphasis on intent than on practise. Additionally, a lot of contemporary Wiccan and witchcraft practitioners have made an effort to keep their distance from individuals who wish to engage in black magic. In a time where friendly magic is more and more linked to new-age practises and self-help spiritualism, those who aim to do harm or evil are less likely to be accepted into mainstream Wiccan circles or covens.