Introduction To Talismanic Magic-Making a Talisman

The creation and application of talismans is a vital part of the magical art, which this article aims to examine at a level suitable for the novice, or those with a limited knowledge of such things.

A talisman can be well defined as a material object that holds an inward spiritual or occult power, with the aim of conveying this essence upon the creator to aid in personal transformation. In a more basic summary it can be seen as a spiritual storage battery.





The creation of a talisman usually occurs after someone wishes to stimulate a particular factor in their nature or to attract a certain force toward them. The first step in achieving this is to take the desired factor and to give it thorough analysis, to uncover the factors primary attributes. It is at this point the realisation dawns that talismanic magic relies heavily on the form of magical correspondence. This being the interrelation of forces by identifying the attributes that are common amongst them. For example the element of fire corresponds with youth, the lion, Archangel Michael, Angel Aral, the colour red, the metal gold etc. Having then clearly in mind the nature that one wishes to attract, a base is created and graphical representations of the desired force applied. An example may be as follows. A person wishes to create within themselves a more forceful nature. They study the correspondences and find that the element of fire is appropriate for such a task. They would then take a disk of gold and inscribe upon it the sigil of Archangel Michael, a picture of the sun to represent fire, letters, shapes and other representation of the desired force. As can be seen, you are left with an object upon which graphical representations of the qualities you desire all linked by their interrelated correspondences.





This is all well and good however, before any magical action a divination should be performed to see if that action is appropriate and to gain foresight to prevent any mishaps. This warrants some further explanation. If a person with an inherently forceful manner finds themselves in a predicament due to this trait, they may decide that a talisman of force is required to get them from their current state. If they went ahead and created this device they would send themselves out of balance, by adding even more force to their nature. This may manifest in a trait such as cruelty. Before, they would have been very driven by their natural tendencies, whereas after the talisman they would manifest pathology resulting in a steam roll over all opposition approach to situations.





Now that we have seen in basic form why talismans are usually objects with pretty symbols on them, it is required to look at the material from which they should be made. Any object can be a talisman, however this statement ignores the fact that some objects hold the magnetic essence with which it is to be charged better than others. It is common to find people propagating the idea of creating talismans from paper. This from my experience is not a good approach as paper seems to be awful at holding the charge.





Objects that conduct electricity are well documented to be best, metals and quartz crystals are excellent. Also as a side note, wood, while containing inherent etheric properties is also noted as being a bad conductor, which is why I believe many practitioners insist that their wooden wands have a magnetized iron rod running the length of the tool. As we have seen earlier different metals correspond to different forces, planets etc. I don’t know about you but I have neither the money nor facilities to start creating talismans of solid gold. Copper however is a different matter. It is widely available from metal smiths, is relatively cheap in sheet form and doesn’t seem to have a vast bearing on the effect of the talisman. Symbols can be carved in if you have the tools and skill or can be applied with coloured enamel based paints found in craft shops. You therefore have the basic talisman, the metal disk with the relevant symbols applied.





There are many methods available to charge talismans, which should be the subject of another article as it requires much direction and elaboration. Here though I will say that the symbols upon the device should be meditated upon and built up in astral form so as to be conditioned to the force that they represent. They should be significant to the person who possesses the talisman. These meditations build up a thought form that creates a link between the symbols, the force they represent and the creator. If this is not done the device merely becomes an object covered with patterns.


Making a Talisman

Roughly defined a talisman is an object charged with mægen and a spell coded

into it. This

spell acts like a computer program, instructing the talisman what to do.

Most talismans are designed to accomplish one general aim, such as protect

its wearer or attract the affections of another. One of the ancient Norse

words for a talisman was teinn which originally meant "small twig." As most

talisman's were made of wood in the North, the word quickly came to mean

"talisman." The modern English cognate of this word is tine (which evolved

from the Anglo-Saxon word tán).

Tines can be made and charged for a wide variety of purposes. There are

tines that give health, protection, bring good fortune, attract the love of

another, and a myriad other things. In ancient Northern Europe, talismans

were made of wood, bone, ivory, horn, metal, and sometimes even stone.

Nearly any item made from natural materials can be charged. It is vital that

any item used for a tine be properly taken. That is any tree or such from

which something is taken must be given something in return such as loaf of

bread, milk, or even a fertilizer stake. Failure to do so can result in a

loss of mægen for the runester and a tine that does not do what it is meant

to do.

Before ever charging a tine, one should fashion it into a form pleasing to

them. Some shapes can actually augment the talisman's powers. For example, a

talisman for health could be shaped into a heart prior to the charging

ritual. A tine for protection might be shaped into a shield. One should let

their imagination guide them. Holy signs and jewelry such as the Walknut and

Thor's hammer can also be charged and made into talismans and these make

very powerful protective devices. A dremel tool is handy for carving

intricate designs in wood while an engraver can be used for metal. Those

with craft skills in earthenware, soapstone, metal, or wood should find no

problem in designing a variety of shapes for talismans and signs.

Once a talisman is given its shape, a rite to charge it may be carried out.

In the rite and prior to loading mægen into a talisman, the spell

instructing what to do is coded into it. This is done by speaking or singing

a galdor over it. The tine is then loaded with mægen. This is done by

projecting energy from one's self directly into the tine. When loading a

tine with mægen, one must fuse as much energy as possible into it. The

galdor is then reinforced with runes and other magical symbols as well as

smoke from any herbs or incense sympathetic to the process. Words of power

may be used such as wéoh "sacred" to give the tine added power, or even

phrases such as "ward the bearer well."




One of the simplest ways of making a talisman is outlined below:

1) The area is hallowed

2) The firepot is lit.

3) The would be talisman is passed through the smoke of the fire. This is to

drive away unwanted energies, and to serve as a preliminary charging.

4) The galdor instructing the talisman what to do is sang over it and into

it. Also at this time mægen is projected into the tine. During this time,

one wants to project as much energy into the talisman as possible.

5) If used, any magical signs, runes, etc. are carved into the talisman to

further define its function. Or other things such as a lock of hair to bind

it to a particular person may be added . With each addition, a galdor must

be said, stating its purpose.

6) A final galdor to hold the energies in the talisman may be done.

7) The rite is closed

The above ritual is simple enough to meet most needs. There are however,

other ritual outlines used by Northern European runesters such as the one

outlined in Edred Thorsson's book Futhark and Gundarsson's book Teutonic

Magic. None of these rites are authentic, as the ancient rites were lost,

but they are all based on what we know of later methods. Below is a rite for

the construction of a health giving talisman.

One will need: 1) A talisman of some kind, preferably of a wood known for

healing like oak 2) Herbs or incense of a health giving kind. 3) A firepot

4) A carving tool of some kind like the sax.




1) The protective circle is put up.

2) The firepot is lit with the following words (which are a translation of a

galdor composed in Anglo-Saxon):

Spark, spark, smoke and fumigate---Embers become bright

Burn, burn, kindle and blow---Torch becomes fire,

Fire, Fire, drive away evil---Bring frith and free right.

Need is narrow on the chest---Though becomes it often to Man's children

To help and heal none the less---If they heed it early.

3) The would be talisman is passed through the smoke of the firepot with the

following words:

Flee evil from the smoke of fire,Fire free this tine of harm.

>From the herb smoke and smell,

Lend this tine might and main.

4) Then recite the following galdor over the talisman, trying to fuse as

much of the desired energy into it:

Wood from the holt ("forest") I give you healing main,

To heal and keep well To ward and defend,

Anyone that may bear you On his or her body.

5) The magical sign called the solar wheel can then be carved or engraved

into the talisman, as well as the word "healer" in runes. Red ocher may be

used to color the talisman charging it with more energy. A brief galdor must

be said with each application:

For the solar wheel: "I write the wheel to keep the tine's bearer well."

For the phrase healer: "Healer art you hight ("called")"

When using the red ocher: "The color of life I leave to you"

6) A galdor to bind and hold the mægen to the tine may then be said:

Tine hold the mægen whole, To work my will, And worth folk well. 7) Finally

for the closing, something like the following is said: "This work is

wrought, so shall it worth to be." A few minutes should then be taken to

wind down, preferably in meditation, as one returns to the real world. Once

that is done, the protective circle may be taken down.