Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-26184563-20130421015649/@comment-995426-20160505171811

I will not assume magic unless it's specifically referred to as magic and not then given an in-universe science fiction explanation. Otherwise it's just speculation and fanfiction.

And the portrayal's traditions are based on Japanese Shinto-Buddhist syncretism&mdash;none of his principles or practices assume themselves to be magic, unnatural or otherwise necessarily occult, and the show's internal mechanics treat them as real yet not scientifically understood.

Also, Classical Chinese is a literary language that has historically also been used by the educated elite in Japan, Korea and Vietnam, though the native languages of those cultures are not related to Chinese. Compare European cultures that long used Latin as a literary language.

Magic is an explanation of last resort, when all other invocable explanations have been exhausted.