Amulets, talismans, and charms

Much has been made about the difference between amulets ans talisman. Some, such as Donald
Michael, claim that an amulet drives forces away and a talisman attracts things. Others claim that
amulets refer only to those charms found in nature, which are imbued with innate qualities such
as hagstones, and talismans refer to objects crafted by the witch and charged in a ritual. There
doesn’t seem to be much linguistic support to either of these claims, and I won´t argue one way
or the other. What is important is that the carrying of charms is one of the best-known and widely
practiced methods of magickal protection on the planet. Certainly this form of magick has crossed
over into mainstream culture more than any of the other practices in this book, and it is not
uncommon to find rabbit’s feet, saint medallions, or rune necklaces worn by folks who consider
themselves to be about as far from witchcraft as can be.

Amongst naturally occurring amulets, iron ranks as the king of protective substances. Its use in
protecting against spirits, witches, and fairies is well known all over the world. So disruptive is iron
to spirits that some traditions of the craft do not allow any metal inside the circle until it is well
consecrated and stable. Many old cemeteries are surrounded by iron fences with spikes not only
to keep intruders out, but to keep the ghosts in. before we learned to mine and smelt iron, a
major source of iron for ancient man was meteorites that had a high concentration of iron and
nickel. This sky-iron is particularly valued in magick and is one of the metals called for in the
traditional construction of the Tibetan phurba.

The practice of driving an iron nail or knife into the door frame to keep witches out is well known
throughout Europe and possibly derives from Pliny’s historia naturalis , which talks of iron’s
apotropaic properties:

[f]or take a knife or dagger and make and imaginary circle two or three times with the point
thereof, upon a child, or an elder body, and then go round withal about the party as often, it is a
singular preservative against all poisons, sorceries, or enchantments. Also to take any iron nail out
of the coffin or sepulcher wherein man or woman lieth buried, and to stick the same fast to the
lintel or side post of a door, leading either into the house or bed-chamber where any doth lie who
is haunted with spirits in the night, he or she shall be delivered and secured from such fantastical
illusions.

Note that not only does pliny speak of iron’s ability to disrupt enchantments, but specifically of the
power of an iron coffin nail. Coffin nails are particularly valued in hoodoo practice as well, and are
used both in the laying of curses and the protection from them. I myself have a cross made from
two iron coffin nails, which serves as a powerful protective amulet.

The cross itself is also a powerful protective symbol, and has a history that extends much further
back than Christianity. The equalarmed cross is one of the oldest religious symbols on earth and
has spawned many variants, including the crux-ansata, or ankh, of Egypt; and the swastika, which
is known as the yungdrung, or the eternal, in Tibet and the fylfot, meaning four feet, in Europe.
The symbolism of the cross is manifold and can indicate the meeting of two worlds or planes, the
spinning wheel of the sun, or the division of the world into the four directions. Its use as a symbol
of the sacrificed god should not be overlooked and is not restricted only to the Christian tradition.
The Persian/roman Mithras, the Etruscan god ixion, and the Aztec Quetzalcoatl have all been
shown crucified on crosses of one kind or other.

You can certainly purchase a cross to wear as an amulet, but I have always found the actual
binding of two beams together to be a powerful moment and an ideal time to charge the cross
ritually, so I recommend making your own. The material is up to you,but it should have meaning.
You can use a sacred wood such as rowan, oak, or thorn, or you could use the aforementioned
iron nails (coffin nails can be difficult to come by, so you may just have to find iron nails at a
hardware store), or bones. Chicken bones or other animal bones will more than suffice, but you
can use human bones if you want, which can be purchased legally from someplace such as the
bone room in California. If you do use bones, be sure to make an offering to the spirit that is
attached to the bones and do a divination to see if there will be any obstructions in using them.

To work the spell, simply hold the two beams of the cross out in front of you with your arms fully
extended, in a pose similar to someone in a horror movie repelling a vampire by holding two sticks
together. Visualize the arms of the cross extending outward into infinity, and focus your mind in
the point where they cross. As you hold the cross out, make a proclamation such as:

By boreas, zephyrus, eurus, and notus

By phlegethon, cocytus, stix, and Acheron

By all the princes and powers of the four directions

I bind and consecrate this cross

that it may forever be a shield and protection

against all manner of malevolent powers

hateful spirits and baleful spells.

By will and word

So shall it be!

After charging the cross, set it down upon the altar or on the ground without separating the
beams, and bind them together by wrapping them in black string or leather. If you are working
with iron and have the skill you can weld the cross together.

Apart from the cross, there is an almost infinite variety of protective symbols that can be
purchased or made into amulets:
• The hamsa hand also known as the hand of fatima (the daughter of mohammed) of hand
of Miriam (sister of moses and aaron) is a popular symbol of protection from the middle
aeast. It consists of a downward pointing hand usually with an eye in the middle.
• A variation of the hamsa hand is the eye set in blue glass, found everywhere in morocco,
turkey, and also in Santeria. This taked numerous forms, ranging from a simple eye
painted on them.
• The palad khik, or surrogate penis, of Thailand is a penis amulet usually with a
monkey,tiger, or some other animal riding on top of it. The penis amulet protects against
spirits and spells that would cause infertility or loss of virility and would be worn on the
belt. If it falls off, that is a sign that it has done its job and absorbed and attack on behalf
of your actual genitals.
• The triskele is shaped like a three-armed swastika. It is composed of three bent legs united
at the thigh. In Greece and Italy it often has a gorgon or medusa head at the center and
petrifies any witch or harmful person.
• Italy’s mano fico and mano cornuto are protective hand gestures that are commonly seen
on hand amulets. The mano fico, or fig hand, places the thumb in between the index and
middle fingers of the closed fist. The mano cornuto, or horned hand, raises the index and
pinkie fingers up from a closed fist, representing horns, both of these amulets can be
made from silver, iron. Pewter, but are especially potent when made from blood red coral.
• The silver dime is a particularly American protective amulet. Not only does it have the
protective qualities of silver, but it is said to turn black if someone has cursed you. This
belief originates in the practice of placing silver dimes in your shoes, where a root doctor
would put goofer dust, hot foot powder, or some other cursing powder. These powders
almost always have sulfur in them, which would turn the dime black.
The list of traditional protective amulets could and does fill several books, but these are
good start to any collection of apotropaic charms.
Apart from these amulets there are talismanic seals that can be drawn on parchment or
engraved on an appropriate metal. An endless variety of these can be found in grimoires
such as the keys of Solomon. The two most famous of these are the so-called sator square
and abracadabra charm.
The sator square is derived from a latin palindrome that reads sator arepo tenet opera
rotas, and can be arranged into a magick square: