Sigils are one of the staples in Magickal practices. In some paradigms they play a larger role than in others – as seen with Chaos Magick especially – however, they still play a role in all paradigms regardless of how prominent that role may be.
Sigils can be employed for a vast number of purposes, but regardless of what purpose they are used for, the central theme of a sigil is to carry the individual’s intent in a pictorial format. This pictorial rendition of will and intent of the practitioner can serve as a component in Spellwork, or even as the Spellwork itself. It can serve as a Talisman, as a focus point, as an anchor-point…the uses for sigils are as vast as what sigils can represent.
This post is not intended to serve as a compendium on sigils, but rather on how to empower them.
You see, although created with Magickal intent, sigils are not automatically empowered. What this means is that even if you create a sigil for some purpose, that it carries no power in and of itself and as such, it will not effectively serve the purpose it was created for – it will simply be a doodle. To empower a sigil serves to take that doodle of yours and to cause it to be so much more than a mere doodle – allowing it to manifest the intent which it was created with and for…sealing in energies, intent etc and bringing it to life.
There are many, many different ways to empower sigils, and this can even vary between traditions and paradigms.
In some traditions, empowering takes on a universal aspect, where the same Rituals of empowerment can be used for sigils, Talismans, seals, tools and much more. In other traditions, empowering is more item-specific…where the empowerment of a sigil would differ from than of a Talisman and so on. Some methods are simple and require nothing more than yourself, whereas others are far more complex, often making use of entire Rituals and even Entities at times.
For the sake of this blog post, we will instruct you on one simple method of sigil empowerment. This is, by far, not the only method of sigil empowerment, nor is it somehow superior to other methods…however, it is simple, effective and not paradigm-specific, which makes it excellent for novices especially.
At the end of this method, we will mention some pointers on the empowerment process that you can make use of to further enhance the process should you choose to do so.
Also, note that we will not discuss more detailed methods or even how to create a sigil, as we have written extensively on both of these subjects in some of our books.
For this process, all you essentially will need is yourself and the sigil. Mantras, statements of intent, incense and the like are all optional, but recommended.
Before we begin, we must make something rather clear: if you create a sigil and empower that sigil, this does not mean that all subsequent times you draw that particular sigil that it will by default be empowered as well – no. Although, when a sigil is created and empowered in a specific way, if it is used repetitively over a long period of time, or if the creator carries a good amount of spiritual power, then the effectiveness of the sigil will “carry over” even if not directly empowered. However, even in cases such as these, empowering a sigil must not be overlooked.
Expanding a bit on the above, this also means that the empowerment ritual we will discuss below should preferably be used every single time you draw up a sigil for use…and the sigil itself must already be on the item that it is intended to be upon – as an example, if you wish to draw the sigil upon a cloth to use in Spellwork, that the sigil must be already drawn upon the said cloth before you empower it, not after.
Let us get to the instructions…
1. As with all operations, you should already be well-prepared before proceeding. Your sigil must be ready, any other tools or items you wish to use should be ready and at hand and so on. If you will be working upon your altar, it too must be adequately prepared. You yourself must be cleansed and you must be of a clear, yet focused mind. This is easily achieved via meditation.
2. In your meditative state, with your eyes closed, focus upon the purpose of the sigil itself. Envision this as clearly and vividly as possible. As an example, if your sigil pertains to prosperity, clearly envision the prosperity it will bring you, let the emotions involved flow into you…use as many senses as possible in the envisioning process itself.
3. When ready, take the sigil within your hands and look upon it. Gently gaze at one specific point on the sigil and do not move your focus from that specific point. While doing so, keep on focusing upon the purpose of the sigil itself but do not get distracted by this.
4. Gaze at that point until the lines of the sigil seem to blur, “disappear”, “glow” or anything as such. When this happens, do not break your concentration.
5. At this point, take all that you have envisioned – all those emotions, desires, the intent (and thus energy) – and project it into the sigil itself. “Push” it from within yourself into the lines of the sigil. Do so until you feel empty.
6. It is done.
Simple, is it not? You can enhance the entire process by taking a few added steps if you so choose…we will only mention the simplest methods:
You can fumigate the sigil with copious amounts of appropriate incense ahead of time, and afterwards as well.
You can take a small amount of your blood and mark the sigil with it, or even trace the lines of the sigil with it.
You can speak or repeat a Mantra or statement of intent over the sigil.
You can “baptize” the sigil with the four Elements – salt for Earth, incense smoke for Air, purified water for Water and blood or a flame’s heat for Fire.
You can make use of the Planetary Days and Hours, choosing an appropriate day and time for the empowerment.
Simple, concise and practical – we do hope that this will serve you well in your practices.
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