Sign of the Witch

Yes...it's another excerpt from my soon-to-be-released book...

THE PENTACLE

    This is an article I wrote for a local newspaper in response to another article regarding our sacred symbol, the Pentacle.  I wanted to include it here, as you will no doubt encounter these very same prejudices that have been around for centuries.  I hope that you will be able to use some of the information to curb the fears of those people in your life that simply don't understand your path.

    The Pentacle, a five-pointed star or pentagram contained within a circle, is one of the oldest geometric symbols known to humankind.  It has a very rich history in the spiritual and magickal customs of many cultures and is a diagram of all existence, encompassing both Creatrix and creation.

    The pentagram related to the size and shape of the world and gave insights into other worlds and the universe beyond.  The lengths of its various lines gave the basic pitch and tone for all music, and the basic ideal lengths and proportions of all classical architecture.

    The Pentagram and Pentacle were used as a salutation to the Goddess in her Astarte aspect as Empress of the Sea and was once customarily tattooed on a sailor's "mound of Venus" between the thumb and forefinger of the right hand.  In ancient Egypt, it represented the great underground womb of Mother Earth.  Ancient Babylonians used the Pentacle as an amulet of protection and healing.  In Judeo-Christian traditions, it is the first of the seven seals representing the secret name of God and was worn as a signet ring by Solomon as a sign of his power to work magick.  Pythagorean mystics revered the pentagram which they called "Pentalpha" because it consisted of five interlaced Alphas or A's, the first letter of the Greek alphabet representing birth and beginnings.  In ancient Greece, it was the symbol of Kore or Persephone, the maiden goddess of Spring who brought warmth and growth to the Earth.  The apple has always been associated with goddess worship, and when cut cross-wise contains a pentagram made up of five seeds in its core.  The Gypsy call this seed-pentagram the "Star of Knowledge."  When Catholicism encountered the Pentacle in Old Europe, it adopted the symbol to represent the five wounds of Christ.

    In its most basic metaphysical meaning, the pentagram represents the elements that make up the universe.  The top point of the star stands for the fifth element, that of Spirit.  Spirit meaning the pure essence, the central beginning point of all things.  From there, reading clockwise, we have Water, Fire, Earth and Air.  In Leonardo da Vinci's famous illustration of Microcosmic Man, we have a physically pleasing and proportional figure suspended within the pentagram and surrounded by a circle which unifies all.  Here we find a representation of "humankind made perfect", incorporating the concepts of all the elements in balance within the body and soul.

    How does all this relate to Wicca/Witchcraft?  Well, Witches accept most, if not all these views of the Pentacle.  The Pentacle is central to Wicca and Paganism as a very sacred symbol.  Some believe it to represent the four elements of life controlled by spirit, with the center representing divine energy which exists in all of us.

    The inverted Pentacle with two of the points uppermost is a representation of the Horned God, a pagan god of fertility and hunting and consort to the Goddess, much like the Greek Pan.  It may also represent spirit controlled by matter (the four elements of life).  For those Witches following traditions with a degree system, the inverted Pentacle is often used as a sign of the second degree.  As you can see, the Pentacle not only has multiple symbolic references to the relationship between spirit and matter, but it also represents the creative movement of the universe and the central rhythm of all life.

    Madame Blavatsky, the founder of Theosophy, thought the reversed pentagram the symbol of the age of violence and darkness we now live in.  I believe this to be where much of the misconceptions began.  The Pentacle is in no way exclusively related to Satanism or Christianity, for that matter.  Satanists will also use the upright Pentacle, the ankh, the swastika, and many others.  The main thing to remember is that Satanism borrows from all religious beliefs, corrupting the meanings of its sacred symbology.  It is an anti-religion and thrives on confusion of issues and symbols.  What this means to us as Witches since we use many of the same symbols is simply, we use them based on their original ancient meaning, as closely as literature and archaeology can discern.

    So, the next time you see a Pentacle, don't allow superstition to overcome you.  You now have an educated standpoint from which to make a decision as to whether it is representing something that you do not wish to submit yourself to or something positive and life-affirming.

All Blessings Be.  )O(