Pendulums: An Introduction

(Pictured my Travel Pendulum Board and Turquoise Pendulum)

Welcome the world of Pendulum Boards.. also known as Spirit Boards, and Talking Boards.

Pendulum Boards are pretty much the same as Ouija Boards only smaller and round. Where Ouija use Planchettes, Pendulum Boards use Pendulums which is where the boards get their name from.

Like Ouija, Pendulum Boards allows the person to communicate with the spirits, though unlike Ouija, you only need one person to use the board instead of two.

The board pictured is my own Pendulum Board. Well, one of them at any rate. I have several, this one is my traveling board >~.^<

Today well go into the board itself and how it differs from other ways of Divination and Scrying.

A Pendulum Board functions best with simple yes or no questions, though asking it more complex questions is possible, it takes patience. You also need a steady hand to ensure your pendulum doesn't swing before you ask the question. You want your pendulum perfectly still and centered before you start to ensure that the results are accurate.

When you ask the question, you don't need to move your hand at all, it's best you don't so that your results aren't influenced. The pendulum will swing on its own after a few seconds.

Always begin with a question you know the answer to so reliability can be checked. Just like Ouija, some Pendulum Boards will attract a trickster and that's never good.

While anyone can use Pendulum Boards, they seem to work best for those who are in tune to the spirit world, or at least riding the veil.

Your pendulum can be made from any material, though according to certain lore, different crystals are best used for different types of questions. we'll go more into that tomorrow when I start on the different kinds of Pendulums used.

Pendulum Boards don't have to be made out of wood, they can be made from paper, or any other material, just like Ouija can.

Like Mirrors, Crystal Balls, the elements, etc, Pendulum Boards can be used for scrying. However, unlike the above mentioned, Pendulum Boards obviously can't show you what you're scrying for, they can tell you though.

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Strawberry Moon

The Besom

 

A besom is one of the tools used in Wicca and other Pagan paths. A traditional Pagan besom is an ash stave handle with bristles made from birch twigs. These twigs are tied on using thin pieces of willow wood. It is used to cleanse the ritual area before circle casting. As a tool, the besom is usually thought of as masculine in nature due to its phallic shape and symbolism. However the besom's components are of both masculine and feminine orientation. The handle, an ash stave, is masculine in nature while the birch used for the bristles is thought of as feminine in nature. The besom is thought to be involved with fairies.

The besom is an important part of Pagan handfasting ceremonies in some traditions. The couple jumps over the besom during the ceremony. Alternatively, the couple may jump over a small bonfire.

Stones For Protection

Agate
Amethyst
Chrysoprase
Citrine
Eye Agate
Serpentine
Malachite
Red Jasper
Sunstone
Jade
Snakeskin Agate
Black Onyx
Charoite
Selenite
Snowflake obsidian
Iron Pyrite
Sardonyx
Chiastolite
Staurolite
Tiger's Eye
Turquoise
Peridot
Bloodstone
Amber
Angelite
Mahogany Obsidian
Fire Agate
Sugilite
Jet
Infinite
Ocean Jasper

Traditional Pagan Design

Materials:
• Eight beads to represent the eight Pagan Sabbats
• Thirteen beads to represent the lunar months
• Beads symbolizing the elements - earth, air, fire and water
• Spacer beads in color of your choice
• Beading wire or string
• Pagan charm (something special to you)

Directions:
Sort your beads and arrange them so they for a pattern that you like. You may want to try different patterns and designs and see which feels right for you.

Make a knot at the end of the cord or thread. String on your first bead based on your intent. String on two or three small, neutral-colored beads. These will be used as "spacers" between each prayer bead. Continue stringing on your intent beads, with the same amount of spacers in between them, until you have the amount you are satisfied with.

Tie on a special charm at the end of the string of beads. This charm could be a special bead, a charm fro a necklace or bracelet, a coin or something else that represents meaning of your beads. It might feature your goddess, or a symbol of your tradition, or might be a small pentacle.

One way to use these beads is to choose prayers or chants for your beads, and write them yourself. Learn these by heart. To use your beads, start with the first bead and say its prayer or chant, then move on to each bead in succession. Keep a special prayer for your charm, which would signify the end of the prayer or meditation session.

Empower your beads in ritual by running them through incense, or sprinkling them with salt and water, and asking your deities or any universal spirits you appeal to for blessings. Keep your beads in a special place, or wear them if you like.


More Ideas for Pagan Prayer Bead Designs:
• Chakra beads: incorporate the seven colors of the chakras into a prayer bead strand, and use in healing meditations. Use a meditative charm or a pentacle.
• Ancestor beads: use a variety of beads to symbolize your family’s heritage and origins. Use them in rituals celebrating your ancestors and kinfolk. Pick a charm special to your family.
• Triple goddess beads: combine three different colors to represent the maiden, mother and crone aspect of the goddess often found in Wiccan traditions. Attach a triple moon charm.
• Moon goddess beads: String on 13 white beads, or beads with moon symbols, onto your string. Use dark blue or black spacers in between them. Each bead signifies one full moon cycle of the year. Attach a charm that is a symbol of the moon goddess or of the moon itself.
• Elemental beads: Choose a yellow bead, a red bead, a blue bead and a green bead, and a white bead. Also choose 20 medium-sized beads in black. You will also need small spacer beads to go in between each. A good charm for this rosary is a pentacle, with each of the five points on the star representing an element: air, fire, water, earth, and spirit, the circle being the universe that surrounds and connects them all.
• Spellwork beads: consider the principles used in the Witch’s Ladder for spellwork, and work them into a bead strand. A great charm might be a witches hat, or a pentacle.
• Mother Earth and Horned One beads: use a variety of beads in earth colors to celebrate and honor the goddess as earth and the god as lord of the beasts. Charm ideas – stag, tree, pentacle
• Pantheon beads: use colors and charms specific to your pantheon (celtic, egyptian, norse, italian, etc.) Charm ideas – eye of horus, tree of life, triskilion, hammer.
• Specific deity beads: use colors devoted to a specific deity (the Morrigan: use red and hematite for example) Use a charm sacred to your deity (raven for example, or a cat for Bast)

Moon Protection for Amulets, Talismans or Any Personal Items

Place a jewel, that you regularly carry on you, in a cup of spring water a day before the full moon. The following day, on the evening of full moon, stir the water three times with your finger in a clockwise motion. Take the cup in your hands and in a clockwise, stirring motion, move the cup in a clockwise, circular, stirring motion three times. Then, repeat these words aloud:

Oh Light of the Moon,
Wrap me
Protect Me
Keep me from harm.

Raise the cup towards the sky and drink the water. Remove the jewel from the cup. You must carry it on your person to the next full moon in order to ensure your protection. Repeat this ritual every month to benefit from its influence.

How To Use A Crystal Ball

Step 1. Preparation Most people find crystal ball gazing is easiest in a quiet, dimly lit room. Many people like to have candles burning. For some the reflections of the flames help to summon images - others find them a distraction. Burning incence is common and some people like to have soothing music playing gently in the background.The important thing to remember is that you are creating an atmosphere. The important key when doing crystal ball gazing is that you must be relaxed and your mind must be clear. It is always best to perform a cleansing ritual followed by a protection ritual, and THEN begin your crystal ball work. Normally a cleansing ritual would be performed on night one. The next night you would perform a protection ritual on yourself and within the room you intend on performing the crystal ball gazing. On the third night you can then be well prepared to use your crystal ball. Even though these rituals are not necessity, it is always wise to do them for maximum safety and best results. When performing any form of scrying or divination you are summoning forth forces from the spirit realm. Normally these forces are closed off from this plane we live in unless otherwise disturbed such as through specific rituals such as crystal ball gazing and scrying. When you perform divination these forces can either aid you in bringing forth images of the future or other events, or attack you. Evil spirits and negative influences can use your crystal ball, scrying mirror, ouija board, or pendulum a link for them to step through into this world. They can also use it as a means to drain energy from you as well. This is why it is always best to ensure proper cleansing and protection is prepared before hand. Step

2. The Crystal Ball Gazing Method Place the crystal ball on a table in front of you. Many crystal balls you can buy come with their own stand. If you don't have a crystal ball stand you might like to use a small cushion or a silk handkerchief purchased and reserved specially for this purpose. *Tip* To amplify your crystal ball gazing, you can use a gemstone sphere as a compliment to the crystal ball. Simply having a gemstone sphere resting next the crystal ball can augment your diving two fold. Sit down and relax. Lay your hands gently on the ball for a minute or two in order to energise it and strengthen your psychic rapport. Whilst holding the crystal ball, think about the purpose of this scrying session. If appropriate try to visualise the subject of your question. Some people like to ask the question out loud, others prefer to internalise it. Now, remove your hands from the crystal. Look into the crystal, stare deeply. Allow your eyes to relax and become slightly unfocused. After a little while you should see a mist or smoke forming in the crystal. Let this mist grow and fill the ball, then visualise it gradually clearing to reveal images within the crystal. The images you see might not be what you expected. That's OK, don't fight them. Your subconscious mind knows what information you need. Many people find that when they first begin to use a crystal ball, the images have nothing to do with what they focus on. This is because your mind is not yet adjusted at being able to grasp and focus on the energies being past from your subconscious into the crystal ball itself. Think of the mental energies going from your mind to the crystal ball as a funnel. The base or "tip" of the funnel is your subconscious energies and that energy is being directed upwards towards your conscious mind which is the mid point of the funnel. The conscious part of the mind that receives the subconscious energy then "spills" it into the crystal ball to form those images from the subconscious, which would be the mouth of the funnel. Since divination uses both the subsconscious and conscious part of the mind at the same time it can be rather difficult to concentrate on both at once. Your subconscious is where the energy is stemming from. It passes it upwards to your conscious which is needed to act on that energy into the crystal ball. Without the conscious mind you would be in more of a deep meditated state and your eyes would not be able to consciously focus or input the images within the crystal ball. As noted, it is perfectly ok that the first couple times you divine with a crystal ball the images are not related to what it is you want. The fact you are able to see ANYTHING in the crystal ball is showing progress. The more you work with the crystal ball, the better you will get at being able to see exactly what it is you want to see by manipulating your subconscious energies to your conscious energies, and then to the crystal ball. Either way, just let the images flow, changing and taking you wherever they choose to go. Don't try to rationalise now, time for that later.

3. Closing The Crystal Ball Session Let the images slowly fade back into the crystal ball. Don't just stop the session suddenly, instead reverse the process you used at the beginning. Visualise the mists coming back and covering the images, then receding to return the ball to its natural state. Thank your crystal ball and put it away carefully wrapped within a dark cloth is best as dark cloth keeps the energies of the ball contained within it and prevents it from leaking out. It is also always best to ensure you cleanse your crystal ball. A good, fast, and simple way of doing this is to simply light a sage smudge stick and or sage incense and move the ball around the smoke before you place it back for storage. Another quick and easy way to cleanse your crystal ball would be to give it a dip in salt water for roughly one minute. You do not want to soak it too long in salt as it can damage and ruin the crystal ball.

How to make smudging water

Smudging water works the same as actually smudging, minus the smoke and fire hazard. You can put whatever you want into it, as well. The batch that I made included these three things:

-Sea salt (purification)
-Sage (cleansing and protection; exorcism)
-Pine (healing and protection)

Process:

1) Pick out the herbs that you wish to use, the bottle you wish to use (small spray bottles that spray a mist work best), and which kind of water you wish to use--filtered, spring, etc. (Tap water will work in a pinch)

2) Cleanse the tools to make the smudging water, i.e. the pot, spoon or ladle, funnel, bottle, and the space in which you will be making your smudging water.

3) Consecrate EVERYTHING. Ask Spirit (or a specific Deity, if you prefer) to bless your tools and ingredients (especially the water), and visualize the power(s) that you want infused into your smudging water.

4) Boil the water. Then add 3 pinches of sea salt, 9 pine needles, and 3-9 sage leaves (3 if they are larger, 9 if they are smaller). *NOTE: You may use whatever ingredients you wish, just add them in amounts accordingly.* Once all the ingredients are added, stir them in slowly and deliberately, placing your intentions into every motion. Visualize the smudging water working in the way that you intend. Let the water boil for 3-9 minutes.

5) Turn off the heat and let the water sit for at least 10 minutes. Then take your spoon or ladle and remove the solid ingredients and toss them outside if you can (plants are biodegradable). Then grab your bottle and funnel, and begin pouring the water into its new container, visualizing strongly the power(s) that you have placed into it. Once the bottle is full, cap it.

6) You may want to charge your newly made smudging water by moonlight and/or with crystals. And feel free to draw a symbol on the bottle if you wish--I chose to draw a pentacle on mine.

You now have a potent batch of smudging water to use between divinations, as well as for general cleansings and protection!!

How To Make a Besom

You will need:
4ft dowel- 1? in diameter or a tree branch of the same approximate size
ball of twine
scissors
straw
thin willow twigs, broom corn or pliable herb stock

Directions:
-------------
Take the straw or other herb stalk that you have chosen and soak overnight in luke warm salted water. The water swells the stalk slightly for bending without breakage, and the salt dispels former energies. When ready, remove stalks from the water and dry for just a bit. Not too much or the stalk will stiffen up, again.

Place the dowel on a table where you have room to work. Start lining the stalks along the dowel , about 3 inches from the bottom, moving backwards. Begin binding the stalks to the dowel with the twine. Tie very securely.

You may add as many layers as you like, depending on how full you want the Besom to be. When stalks are secure, gently bend the top stalks down over the binding. When all have been bent over, secure the stalks again with more twine a couple of inches under the first binding.

Allow to air dry for a day or two. The dowel can then be stained, painted, or carved into to make personal. Remember to concentrate and charge at the next full moon.