What do you consider Ceremonial Magick and how do you define it?

I consider ritual or ceremonial magick to be those forms of magickal working that are highly ritualized and formalized. They are usually based on the classic grimoires, or systems such as John Dee's Enochian, hermeticism, or the Kabala (however it's spelled.)

Most of the magickal societies such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and its offshoots are ceremonial or ritual magick systems.

Some witches tend towards ceremonial magick, but there are also many who lean to the other end of the spectrum, which could be described as spontaneous or shamanic in nature.

Does that make sense?

Yes, that does make sense Ben. However, there also seems to be a bit of a 'grey' line, if you will, where there is some crossover between the two.

Oh I agree completely that there is crossover.

I see it more as a continuum. Ceremonial magick is at one end of the scale, and shamanic magick is at the other. Depending on the circumstance and the particular practitioner, they might fall at different points in between at various times.

Yes, indeed they do.

I am reading a book now that goes into the history and crossover between the two, if you can even make a line that divides the two. There are the two points at either end of the spectrum and every point in between.

Before learning about all this, I had in my own mind imagined a system of the practical aspects of magick up to and including magickal studies for the same of spiritual growth. It is nice to learn what it is called.

Technically, as my current author points out, practical magick can become very spiritual in its intent and result--that makes it "high" magick. My author dislikes the terms "high" magick and "low" magick.

In my studying of magickal history, it is interesting how many incidentals I am encountering that are clearing up a lot of mystery. Mini-enlightenments...