Crystals as Amulets and Talismans

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Crystals as Amulets and Talismans

 

 

Before continuing, a distinction needs to be made between amulets and

talismans. An amulet is used for protection, be it from illness,

diseases, specific dangers (such as protection from lightning, while

travelling by sea, etc) " evil " (like the evil eye, evil spirits or

people) or anything else. A talisman is used to attract desired

qualities or situations, such as fertility, wealth, luck, success (in

business, litigation, hunting, fishing, etc), strength, etc. A charm

is generally an amulet, though the term is often used

indiscriminately to describe both amulets and talismans.

 

One of the oldest uses of crystals, exemplified by the Ancient

Egyptians, is making amulets and talismans from crystals: carnelian

was a particular favourite, being known as the " blood of Isis " , and

seemed to be viewed in the same way as rowan has been as a

particularly potent protection from negative witchcraft and

sorceries. This protective talisman theme is also seen in ancient

myths, such as Prometheus wearing a sapphire ring when he stole the

fire from heaven, and Orpheus carrying a piece of agate as a

protective talisman when he descended into the underworld,.

Protective talismans were considered necessary for any dealings with

spirits from the underworld - one Greek manuscript details a heart-

shaped amulet of magnetite with the Underworld Goddess Hecate carved

on it; reference is made to the amulet being " sweet smelling " ,

suggesting the use of aromatic oils to anoint the talisman, possibly

as part of an offering.

 

Egyptian amulets were usually small carved crystals of deities (who

would protect from a particular ailment or condition) or (afflicted)

parts of the body (such as hand, eye, foot, etc). This principle of

sympathetic magick can be seen in early Europe through Celtic times

right up until recently, with votive offerings (though usually wood,

stone or metal) of afflicted body parts being thrown into rivers,

lakes and holy wells and springs. Other early cultures contemporary

with the Egyptians also used amulets and talismans, so fine examples

may be found amongst, e.g., the Sumerians, early Chinese culture,

etc, and as time went by, the Greeks and Romans and other cultures

continued this useage and maintained the tradition of crystal and

mineral amulets and talismans.

 

Amulets have a long tradition of useage by sea-faring peoples, to

provide protection from the fury that could be faced at sea. Many

amulets and stones were used for this purpose (especially aquamarine,

beryl and coral), and a Greek lapidary from 3-4th century CE details

seven amulets to be made for differing forms of protection. The

number seven might suggest the amulets were each used for a specific

day of the week, though each amulet did provide a specialised form of

protection. The amulets were thus:

 

1. A carbuncle (garnet) and a chalcedony - to protect sailors from

drowning.

2. Quartz or corundum - to protect from extreme weather.

3. Aquamarine - to banish fear.

4. Agate - to protect against the evil eye.

5. Coral, placed in strips of sealskin attached to the prow - to

protect the ship from winds and waves.

6. Banded agate - to protect from the surging waves of the ocean.

7. Jet - providing major protection for any travelling by river or

sea.

 

The Christian Church decided at an early date to declare its

opposition to the use of amulets. At the Council of Laodicea in 355

CE Canon 34 decreed " Priests and clerks must be neither enchanters,

mathematicians, nor astrologers, and that they must not make what are

called amulets for these are fetters of the soul, and all who wear

them shall be cast out of the church " . As the centuries passed this

canon was used or ignored as was convenient by those in power in the

church, as is witnessed by the talismanic use of gems by the rich and

powerful, and indeed the use by the church of differing gems to

depict rank and station.

 

As man entered the Middle Ages, more and more crystal usage became

concerned with protection from ailments, particularly the plague.

Many stones were thought to protect from plague, the most striking

example being the Abraxas Stone. These stones beautifully illustrate

the thinking going into the talisman, being engraved on one side with

the image of a deity (who is appealed to for assistance/protection)

and on the other side with a magickal formula embodying the

protective formula - Abracadabra being derived from the Chaldean

phrase meaning " to perish like the word " , reduces to an " A " and

perishes like the word, so likewise by sympathetic magick any

contagion or plague symptoms should also perish.

 

One of the most common themes found in Middle Eastern charms is

protection from snake bites and scorpion stings, a fact of daily life

in many countries. Thabit Ibn Qurra (836 - 901 CE) recorded details

of an interesting charm to rid a dwelling of scorpions. First an

image of a scorpion was made out of either copper, tin, lead, silver

or gold whilst Scorpio was in the ascendant in the heavens, and the

glyph of Scorpio (Z) and appropriate astrological information

engraved on the image. The scorpion charm was then buried under the

place afflicted by scorpions, whilst reciting " This is the burial of

it and its species, that it may not come to that one and to that

place. " It was considered more effective to make four charms and

repeat this ritual, burying them at the four corners of the dwelling.

This is a lovely example of sympathetic magick, using the image of

the creature to be protected against, and the most propitious

astrological times, to ensure success in the desired spell.

 

Protective charms are still in use in some parts of the world today,

particularly the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Red coral charms

shaped like a crescent moon, representing the protective hand gesture

of index and little finger raised are still given to babies and worn

through life as a protection against the " evil eye " . Agate eye stones

have been used in this manner for many centuries and their use

continues still.

 

In India crystals were most prized in combination in amulets. The two

famous amulets are the five gem Pancharatna, comprsiing amethyst,

diamond, emerald, gold and pearl; and the nine gem Navaratna,

comprising amethyst, cat's eye, coral, diamond, emerald, pearl, ruby,

sapphire and topaz.

 

Crystals can be found to suit any attribution you may require for a

talisman, and are easy to charge and carry indeed simply carrying a

crystal and playing with it while you are doing things will help it

build up charge and also focus your unconscious mind on the energy of

the talisman and help move you accordingly.

 

Shapes which work particularly well for protection are the sphere and

egg. When casting a magick " circle " you are really casting a sphere,

representing the universe, with you as the centre of the sphere (and

of course we are all the centre of our own universe, so don't feel

this is presumptuous). Having a sphere as your focus can enable you

to perceive the balance and uniformity of the sphere and the energies

in it, and engender a more protective atmosphere about you. The egg

also tends to produce a very protective feeling, corresponding as it

also does to the universe (as in many creation myths where the

universe is formed from an egg), and to the spirit tatva (tatvas are

elemental symbols representing the elements), particularly if the egg

is black or purple as the spirit tatva is coloured. Visualising

yourself in the centre of the sphere or egg, with the sphere/egg

being the centre of the sphere you have created can also produce

a " double glazed " effect, increasing the protection around you.

 

Cut crystals were also used in the past as a badge of rank, though

this may well have been due to the crystals being thought to be

imbued with magickal properties, as with the lapis lazuli feather of

Mayat (representing truth) worn by Egyptian judges set in gold and

worn on a heavy gold chain.

 

Amber is a very good general storer of charge and jet is hard to beat

as a protective absorption talisman (though it needs regular

cleaning, of course), which may explain the witches' traditional

amber and jet necklace. These were also sometimes interspersed with

bones, such as snake spine bones. The reasons for this are not clear,

but there are a number of possibilities, such as passing on the

enduring qualities of bone, drawing on qualities of the snake such as

wisdom, regeneration, etc.

 

As can be seen from all these examples, crystals have a long history

of use to attract qualities or to protect from events, so why not

spend a bit more time meditating with one of your crystals, and see

what comes up?

 

 

Extract taken from the book CRYSTALS - Healing & Folklore (Capall

Bann, 2002) by David Rankine. Available from Capall Bann Publishing