The magical or spiritual journal is a bit different from a diary. It's focus is on matters spiritual vs. material, and it serves as a record of practice, a database of results and observations. In the Western esoteric tradition, we talk about "the aim of religion and the method of science." This type of journal creates a sort of data set, making a more scientific approach possible. This record of the spiritual journey enables to rely on more than our elusive memories and abstract sensibilities to see our progress, and what has and has not worked for us.