four

Charms

Unlike casting a spell, where you send energy out toward a specific goal, a charm is an object (or group of objects) that is imbued with power for a specific goal. The power is then held within the charm to attract your goal to you or protect you from harm. A charm may either be a natural object such as a feather, crystal, or shell, or may be an object or objects specially constructed to work toward a goal. Charms to attract things or forces are known as talismans. Charms to deflect or repel people or forces for protective purposes are known as amulets.

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Metals such as silver, gold, or iron should be used in the construction of amulets because metallic substances have natural deflection abilities. Organic materials such as wood, herbs, or shells should be used to make talismans as these substances have greater absorption and attraction capabilities. Crystals and stones carry traits of both metallic and organic matter so they may be used for amulets or talismans with equal success.

When creating a charm, all the ingredients of the charm must be symbolic of the desire sought. When charging the amulet or talisman (using the charging ritual on page 75), load it with energy and will that the intention stay in the object for as long as the object exists and that the charm will draw power from the cosmos as it is used. This will keep the charm from diminishing in strength as time passes.

The altar setup for the construction of a charm is usually the same as the basic altar setup used in spell casting. Sometimes, because we are not trying to expand and release energy outward but rather contain and intensify energy into a charm, a simpler altar with only a censer, a cauldron, the charm ingredients, and a few other objects may be used to keep the power close. As in all things magical, variations and personal adjustments are encouraged to suit your own taste.

Astrological Talisman

Even those with little to no knowledge or interest in the power of astrology usually know their sign. Each zodiac sign is believed to carry certain personality traits that can manifest in either positive or negative ways. A brief list includes:

Aries (March 21–April 21): red; ruled by Mars; daring and impatient, strong and dominating

Taurus (April 22–May 21): green; ruled by Venus; level-headed and stubborn, decisive and overbearing

Gemini (May 22–June 21): orange; ruled by Mercury; communicative and babbling, friendly and scattered

Cancer (June 22–July 21): silver; ruled by the moon; nurturing and smothering, sensitive and melancholy

Leo (July 22–August 22): gold; ruled by the sun; outgoing and obnoxious, optimistic and deluded

Virgo (August 23–September 21): yellow; ruled by Mercury; organized and nitpicky, cerebral and mercurial

Libra (September 22–October 21): pink; ruled by Venus; friendly and insincere, helpful and indecisive

Scorpio (October 22-November 21): black; ruled by Pluto; independent and detached, original and secretive

Sagittarius (November 22–December 21): royal blue; ruled by Jupiter; fun-loving and noncommittal, free thinking and impractical

Capricorn (December 22–January 20): indigo; ruled by Saturn; hard-working and boring, practical and stodgy

Aquarius (January 21–February 19): white; ruled by Uranus; social and aloof, humanitarian and gullible

Pisces (February 20–March 20): opalescent blue; ruled by Neptune; sensitive and erratic, imaginative and unrealistic

Zodiac Charm

A specific charm can be created for a person in their astrological sign to channel the positive aspects of that sign and minimize the sign’s negative aspects.

Items needed:

Procedure

To create this charm first, obtain a small disk of wood. On this disk, paint or carve the astrological symbol for your sign on one side and the symbol of its planetary ruler (see Symbolism, page 56) on the other side. Next, properly prepare with a cleansing bath. Now, set up your altar with a single candle in the appropriate color for your sign placed within the cauldron. Place the cauldron in the middle of the altar table and set the censer behind it; place the disk of wood and other charm ingredients in front of the cauldron, perhaps on a pentacle if desired. Finally, cast a circle. Then, go into a meditation. When you are relaxed, focus on the positive qualities of your zodiac sign and fill yourself with these qualities. Feel happy and content. When this state is achieved, pick up the disk and infuse it with this positive energy; visualize this energy as light in the color of your zodiac sign pouring into the charm from your third eye and hands, willing that it remain in the disk for as long as the disk exists and that it will draw in further energy from your ruling planet in order to reinforce the positive aspects of your sign. Finally, pass the charm through the smoke of the incense and say:

May the positive qualities locked
within be unleashed for all to see,
And as I will, so shall it be.

Wear the charm as much as you can (hidden on you, if possible) in order to absorb its influence.

Healing Charm

A charm can be made to feed healing energy to the body to aid in recovery from illness or injury. In creating this charm, it is a good idea to put as much of yourself into it as possible. The true beginning of any magical process is when you decide what you are going to do and begin gathering the ingredients. If you take the time to connect with the process of constructing any charm, particularly one as important as a healing charm, its power will be greatly enhanced. Cut the wood yourself, paint or carve it yourself, etc. if possible. It is good to use oak wood for this charm because the oak is sacred and will empower you with its strength. If you choose to paint the symbols on the wood, blue paint should be used.

Items needed:

Procedure

This rite is best performed during the waxing or full moon. Before anything else, you must cut a branch of wood and then cut off as thin a circle of wood as you can from the cut branch. Next, sand the disc smooth and carve, paint, or engrave a solar cross (a cross inside a circle) on one side of the disc and a triangle on the other side. The cross symbolizes the creation of a nexus point (a point through which energy flows) and the circle surrounding it symbolizes the containment of this energy so that you may use it. The triangle symbolizes vitalizing growth energy, which is the energy type we are trying to draw and channel.

First, cast the circle and place the disc on the pentacle or plate. Then, take a magical cleansing bath and arrange your altar according to the basic altar setup. The blue candle and red candle are anointed with healing oil; the healing incense should be smoldering.

Light the candles and go into a meditation. Visualize yourself (or another) in a completely healthy, strong state. Once you have completed the meditation, draw in pure healing energy (bright blue light) from the universe and visualize the disc being a powerfully charged talisman for as long as it exists. Now, open your eyes and pick up the charm. Holding it in your right hand, will your own energy and the universal energy that you’ve gathered into the talisman. At the same time, focus on how you want to feel (or how you want the wearer to feel) while the talisman is on your body (healthy, strong, happy, etc.).

When you have filled the talisman with as much energy as you can, will that it shall draw in further energy from the universe as needed in order to maintain its charge. Finally, hold it briefly over the flame of the red candle (carefully!), then anoint the charm with a drop of healing oil. Hold it in the smoke of the incense while chanting:

Vital strength fills this charm,
Healing to its wearer impart.
Perfect health is now restored,
Health to the body, strength to the heart!

The talisman is now charged and complete. Proclaim, “For the good of all, this charm is made,” and open the circle. Keep the talisman with you whenever possible to absorb its healing energies.

Love Charm

This is an old love charm. The charm consists of snail shells strung together on a red or pink thread, either to be worn as a necklace or hung in the home. Personally, I’d go with the hang-it-up-in-the-house option but either way will work. Snails are associated with love and sexuality, so you can use their shells to create an aura of love energy around you. The trick is to find twelve intact snail shells; twelve is a magical number relating to the twelve zodiac signs and the months of the calendar year. Do not kill any snails for this charm. The snails must vacate the shells on their own (however that may be), or the charm’s effect will be altered. Just be on the lookout for empty snail shells in your yard or whatever until you have acquired twelve. You will also need pink or red thread and a sturdy needle.

Being a practical person, I prefer to do all the tedious tasks in the charm-making process before actually lighting candles and working the ritual. Mistakes happen, and like many, I have a tendency to swear when I accidentally jab my finger with a needle; doing so while empowering the charm in the circle would disrupt the intention and scatter the power. I would advise that you string the shells on the thread before you prepare the charging rite. To string the shells, thread your needle with a long enough thread to easily fit over your head. Next, tie a small knot at the open end of the thread about three inches up (not at the very end). Carefully poke the needle through one snail shell. Only make one hole in the shell. Don’t try to stab it through the middle to make them perfectly placed symmetrical beads; this is difficult to do perfectly, and the shells will likely break. Once you have the shell on the thread, gently slide it down to the knot toward the end of the thread. Now, tie another knot in the thread so that there is a knot on each side of the shell. Repeat this process with each of the remaining shells; string, slide, and knot until all twelve shells are strung. The final knot should be tied to loop the shells together like a necklace. There should be a total of thirteen knots.

Items needed:

Procedure

Ritually bathe and cast your circle as usual. Place the shell necklace on the stone, plate, or pentacle. Go into a meditation. When you are relaxed, visualize yourself holding the shell necklace and being surrounded by a bright-pink aura of light. Feel this aura having a magnetic quality to it; feel that it will attract like-minded individuals to you by its very presence. Visualize this as strongly as you can. When you feel you are ready, pick up the necklace and infuse this image and energy into the necklace through the power of your will. Imagine the pink light streaming out of your hands and into the necklace. See it absorbed into each shell and into each knot, your will becoming linked and forever bound to this object. See the light radiating out of the necklace, glowing with magical force.

It is now time to consecrate the charm in the name of your patron or favorite “love” deity. Anoint the necklace with love oil and then place it again on the stone, plate, or pentacle. Sprinkle it with saltwater; pick it up and pass it through the incense smoke and over the flame of the right (beeswax, pink, or lavender) candle. Finally, cup the necklace in both hands and breathe loving energy into it while chanting:

Through earth and water, air and fire
Cleansed and charged with my desire.
Shells of snail, knotted cord,
Draw the correct love to me,
With passionate force.

The charm is now complete. Open the circle and either hang the charm in your bedroom or wear it often to surround yourself with an attractive aura of love energy.

Charm for Employment

A metal key can be used as a charm to “unlock” new opportunities for a new job. You will need to obtain a metal key, preferably of the traditional old-fashioned skeleton-key type; in a pinch, any key can be used. If you use a regular key, make sure that it is either a new blank key or a properly cleansed (in blessed saltwater) key for which you no longer have a current use.

Items needed:

Procedure

This charm is best created during a waxing moon and on a Thursday. First, take a magical cleansing bath. Then, arrange your altar according to the basic steps and cast a circle. Light the incense; anoint the blue candle with luck oil and the green candle with money oil. Light the candles and pick up the key. Go into your meditation. When you are relaxed, visualize the type of job that you are seeking (not a specific job). See yourself working at the type of job that you wish; feel satisfied and content to be there. See the key unlocking the door to your new place of business. Infuse this energy into the key and will that it shall stay within the key. As you charge the key, chant the following words three, seven, or nine times:

Magic key, unlock for me the job that I seek!

Now, string the key on the cord; wear it as a pendant when you are looking for work and to all interviews (under your clothes). When not in use, store the charm in a blue or green natural-fiber bag for safekeeping.

Key Charm for a New Home

A key is the perfect charm for seeking a new home. If you use one of your old keys for this charm, make sure that it is thoroughly cleansed in saltwater. Ensure that it was not the key to a previous home (this could confuse the intent of the spell).

Items needed:

Procedure

This charm is best created during a waxing moon. First, take a magical cleansing bath. When you are finished, anoint your forehead, wrists, and back of the neck with luck oil. Arrange the altar and cast your circle. Anoint the candles with the oil and light the incense. Pick up the key and go into your meditation. When you are ready, visualize the type of home you wish to have; focus on a relaxed, safe, peaceful feeling at this home you are envisioning. Infuse this feeling and energy into the key while you chant the following:

Power of earth, heed my call;
Charge this key to open the door.
With harm to none, for good of all
Bring the home I’m searching for.

Now, string the key onto the cord and wear it as often as possible, especially when you search for your new home.

Charm of Good Fortune

Luck charms are often misunderstood, as is the general nature of luck. Luck is both the ability and circumstance of making the “correct” decision at the necessary time. For example, if you decide to go to the store early, say at 5:00 p.m. instead of 5:30 p.m., and in so doing you have unknowingly avoided a horrible accident, then you would be perceived as lucky. If you thought about going early but were too tired, and got into a horrible accident as a result of leaving later, then you would of course be considered unlucky. Luck is really a matter of connecting to (and listening to) your intuition and higher consciousness.

In creating a luck charm, what you create is a charm designed to aid your ability to make choices that will result in positive actions and consequences in your life. It is much like making a charm to increase psychic ability in that it will help you communicate in a greater way with your own inner guidance. The following charm is quite old and time tested. If properly made, it should serve you well. This spell is best done on a Thursday, Jupiter’s day, during a waxing moon.

Items needed:

Procedure

First, take a magical cleansing bath. Afterward, anoint your forehead with luck oil. Cast the circle. Light the luck incense; anoint the candles with the oil and light the candles (blue first, then green). Go into a meditation. When you are ready, focus on a peaceful feeling and visualize yourself having the best possible day, a day when everything goes your way. Feel blissful and content. When you feel at the peak of happiness and luck, call on the energy of the planet Jupiter and ask that good-luck energy fills you with every breath you take. Breathe in the energy of Jupiter and pick up the horseshoe. Will this energy into the horseshoe and state that it will stay in the horseshoe for as long as the horseshoe exists and that the Jupiter energy will renew itself as time goes by. Next, place the horseshoe in the royal blue bag along with your hair or nail clippings. Bury the bag in the ground, preferably at a crossroads.

Money Charm

To create a charm to draw money, take either two new silver coins or two coins that were minted in the year of your birth. Charge them using the method that follows.

Items needed:

Procedure

First, take a cleansing bath and cast a circle. Light the incense in the cauldron and dress the candles with the money oil. Anoint your wrists, third eye, and the back of your neck with the money oil. Light the candles left to right and watch them glow for a minute. Go into a meditation. When you are relaxed, focus on a feeling of relaxed security and visualize having the amount of money that you need. As you focus in your meditation, draw in power from the earth; visualize this power as pure gold light for abundance. When you feel that the power is at its peak, open your eyes and pick up the coins. Pour the money energy into the coins while chanting:

Money magic fills the charms,
For good of all and without harm.
Linked together, the coins shall bring
Abundance and prosperity.

To use these charms, one coin should be placed in your wallet or purse (be sure to keep it in a special place so that you don’t accidentally spend it) and the other coin should be buried in the earth (preferably at a crossroads during a waxing moon on Jupiter’s day, Thursday).

Pendulum

Any object can be made into a pendulum. A pendulum is a device where an object acts as a weight attached to a chain or cord. You hold the pendulum by the cord and ask a yes or no question. The weight will begin to swing in either a back-and-forth or a circular motion. This movement will indicate the answer to your question.

Perhaps the best medium to use as a pendulum is a quartz crystal on a natural fiber cord. Purple or black would be good colors for the cord. Quartz has inherent electrical properties that help it react when used as a pendulum. After you have either made or purchased your pendulum, you should consecrate it before its first use and dedicate it to the purpose of divination.

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Procedure

To consecrate the pendulum, on the first night of the full moon brew a tea made from mugwort or white rose petals in your cauldron and allow it to cool. When it has cooled, take the cauldron to your altar and have psychic incense and the black and white candles burning. Next, dip the crystal into the brew and then waft it in the smoke of the incense and carefully pass it over the flames of both candles, left then right. Finally, cup the crystal in both hands and gently breathe your energy into it while chanting:

Cleansed and charged, your magic pure,
Through each realm your powers shine.
Spirit connection, now secure,
To bring the truths, I divine.

The pendulum is now ready for your questions to begin. To discover which motion means yes and which means no, simply ask your pendulum an obvious yes answer and then ask it an obvious no answer; pay attention to the ways in which the pendulum swings these two times. You may wish to do this several times at first if the movements seem unclear. Keep the pendulum in a purple or black bag made of natural fibers when not in use. Using a pendulum may take several attempts before you get the hang of it but it is a worthy pursuit as it will lead to your enhanced understanding. As long as you are the only one to hold the pendulum, it should not need to be consecrated again. Others may ask questions, but you should hold it.

Charm for Increased Magical Power

This charm is worn on the body to enhance your innate ability to draw in spiritual energy; it will also help you develop your mental and psychic faculties.

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Procedure

This charm is best created during the full moon. First, gather your ingredients and take a cleansing bath. Cast your circle, anoint the purple candle with power oil, and light both the candle and the power incense. Mix the herbs together in a bowl and go into a meditation. When you are relaxed, visualize yourself brimming with power, surrounded by a huge aura of white light, a glow of yellow-gold light in the area of your forehead (third eye), a glow of blue-green light in the area of your heart, and a red glow in the area of your groin. See all the light merge into a purple light. Concentrate the light into your hands, open your eyes, and place your hands over the bowl of herbs. Concentrate on sending the energy into the herbs, charging them with power. Sprinkle the herbs into the center of the purple bag and bring the corners together, trapping the charged herbs inside. Now take the purple cord and wind it around the gathered corners to seal the bag. Now tie nine knots in the cord and chant:

Magic charm, build my will,
Lend me strength, hour by hour.
To my mind and heart, please fill,
Open me to the spirit power.

Carry the bag with you as often as possible. Sleep with it under your pillow and rub it over your third eye before meditations and magical ritual.

Malice Stones

This talisman can be a cleansing and therapeutic tool to rid you of negativity. To create a malice stone is to create a battery of negativity and anger outside of ourselves so that we may be free of such stress. It can be charged whenever necessary. Always return the stone to its spell box for safekeeping so that its energy can be contained. If it is not contained, it will radiate negativity wherever it sits. For instructions on how to create spell boxes, see Chapter ten.

Items needed:

Procedure

Whenever you are filled with anger, simply hold the stone in your hand and grasp it in a fist. Feel the angry energy transfer into the stone and will that it shall remain locked within the stone until you release it. After you have released your anger into the stone, place the stone in the spell box to contain its energy and prevent anyone from coming into contact with its negativity. This procedure may be repeated over and over again as a way of releasing hate and anger from your body and spirit.

Personal Amulet

Objects can be charged to offer personal protection in times of need and for general protection against disturbing energies and forces. Amulets ideally should be in the form of jewelry or garments since these may be easily and inconspicuously worn for long periods of time. The form chosen for an amulet should be one that can be worn over or near a person’s primary receptive psychic center. In some people this will be the third eye while in others it could be the heart area, the hands, the solar plexus, etc. Different people have sensitivity in different places. Generally speaking, your primary psychic center will be known to you because this will be the area that will become warm, tingling, tense, or upset when impressions or warnings come upon you.

If your psychic center is in your hands, a ring or bracelet should be chosen for an amulet. If your psychic center is your heart, a pendent should be used for an amulet, etc. Use your best judgment. The object chosen should contain some type of protective stone, metal, color, or symbolism; this helps the object to retain the protective charge.

Items needed:

Procedure

This rite is best performed during the waxing or full moon. First, take a magical cleansing bath, then arrange your altar according to the basic altar setup, using the black candle on the left and the red candle on the right. Both candles should be anointed with protection oil. Light the incense (it should be smoldering for the charm). Cast the circle and place the amulet on the pentacle or plate. Light the candles and anoint the amulet with blessed saltwater and state that any incorrect energies are cast out and that only positive protective energy shall be held within this amulet. Sit before the altar and go into a meditation (the three cauldron meditation works well for this). Once you have completed the meditation, draw in pure protection energy (bright white light) from the universe and visualize that your amulet will be powerfully charged for as long as it exists. Now, open your eyes and pick up the amulet. Holding it in your right hand, will your own energy and the universal energy that you’ve gathered into the amulet. Mentally pour energy into the amulet; at the same time, focus on how you want to feel while wearing it (safe, secure, relieved, content, etc.).

When you have filled the amulet with as much energy as you can, will that it shall draw in further energy from the universe as needed in order to maintain the magical charge. Finally, hold the amulet briefly over the flame of the red candle (carefully!), anoint it with a drop of protection oil, and hold it in the smoke of the incense declaring:

A charm of protection, now and forever
Charged by land, by sky, and by sea,
Blessed with oil, flame, smoke, and water
As I will, so shall it be!

The amulet is now charged and complete. Open the circle and then wear the amulet. Store it in a safe place until needed, or give the amulet to the one to be protected.

Warding

Warding is the act of creating protective amulets and placing them evenly around the area to be protected (such as a home or car) in order to keep out unwanted forces. Warding can be done with quartz crystals or flat metal discs painted with a protective symbol (such as a solar cross within a circle).

The individual amulets are charged and linked together so that their combined power will create an interlaced network of threads around the property to deflect negativity. In the case of protecting a house, a ward will need to be placed in each window and over any entrance into the home. If a single room is to be protected, a ward should be placed in each corner of the room. If a plot of land is to be protected, then enough amulets to encircle the entire property will have to be made. The amulets should be placed no more than ten feet apart. In this case, the amulets may be buried around the property.

Items needed:

Procedure

This rite is best performed during the waxing or full moon. To create the wards, first you will need to determine how many you will need and obtain as many crystals or metal discs as necessary. Next, if metal discs were chosen, they must be painted with a proper symbol using white paint (see Symbolism on page 56). Then, whether crystals or discs, they must be gathered together in the cauldron or a large bowl to be charged.

Prepare the mixture of warding incense. Please note that the warding incense contains toxic ingredients, so only burn the incense in small amounts with proper ventilation and be sure to keep any magical mixtures away from pets or children. Place the cauldron with the wards and the unlit white or beeswax candle on the altar. Now you must prepare yourself for the magic by bathing in blessed saltwater and focusing on the intention that, once linked together and put in place, the wards will create a sphere of protective energy that will envelop the area. At the same time, build within yourself the contented feeling of being protected. Feel as if the work has already been completed and security is guaranteed and absolute.

Now cast a circle and anoint the candle with the protection oil. Light the candle and the incense as you sit (or stand) before the cauldron of wards. Summon power and ask your patron deity (if you have one) to charge these amulets with protective power. Place your hands over the cauldron and send your power into them while visualizing that as each amulet absorbs power, it joins with the others like links in a chain. As you pour energy into the wards, chant the following spell:

Guardian force, protect this space,
Threads of magic, shield this land,
Merge your power, weave the web,
Gifts from earth join hand in hand.

After you have completed the charging, will that the wards shall draw in the universal light continuously for as long as they exist in order to renew themselves and keep their power strong. Place the wards in their designated locations as soon as possible.

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