n his influential and scholarly The Encyclopedia of Magic and Magicians, pg.

232, copyright 1988,

author T.A. Waters wrote, "Misdirection is the cornerstone of nearly all successful magic; without it,
even the most skilled Sleight of Hand or mechanical device is unlikely to create an illusion of real
magic."
Misdirection takes advantage of the limits of the human mind in order to give the wrong picture and
memory. The mind of a typical audience member can only concentrate on one thing at a time. The
magician uses this to manipulate the audience's ideas, or, perceptions of sensory input, leading
them to draw false conclusions.
The Audiences attention may be directed in various ways. In the book, "The Secret Art of Magic",
authors Eric Evans and Nowlin Craver posit the theorem that Magic is directly related to warfare, and
relies upon the same principles for success. Sun Tzu's "Art of War" is referenced showing how
deception is essential to any successful campaign. What is more, Mr. Craver goes on to illustrate,
through the 36 strategies,[1] how they form a blueprint for every known method of Misdirection.

Controversy[edit]
In his book Principles and Deceptions (copyright 1948, page 27) Arthur Buckley questioned the
accuracy of the term. Since that time, magicians have debated the use of the term "misdirection",
thereby creating a great deal of discussion about what it is, and how it works.
Buckley drew the distinction between misdirection and "direction". One being a negative term, and
the other a positive one. Yet ultimately, he equates the two as the same thing "If a performer by
some means has directed the thoughts of his audience to the conclusion that he has done
something which he has not done, he has wrongly directed them into this belief, hence,
misdirection."