Shielding: A Concise Creation Guide
Shielding: The art of protecting yourself from other entities.
This post will be much longer and more in depth than my other posts in the creation guide category. This is one of the areas that I have quite a bit of experience with and will be covering it from basic techniques to more advanced ones.
--**--
Shielding is one of the first techniques a novice should learn in magick, and to do this one must ask what a shield is-- a shield in magick is a simple protective device that is utilized to keep certain energies out. There are numerous types of shields. They can be focused around an object, a place, or person and depending on what it is focused on will change the execution and nature of the shield.
Shielding focused on objects usually take on the forms of amulets or seals of protection. I have covered making amulets of protection before, so I will not be going over this process here but I will put a link to the guide below. While my guide was focused on personal protection, objects can too be made to protect whole places with similar methods. Seals of protection are usually made to seal a negative energy source away. Maybe you have a ring that has only brought bad luck but you don’t want to completely remove the ring from your life. One may put the ring in a box and then either put a seal on the box or carve one into it (doing both can help strengthen the seal). As the seal is placed onto the object one should visualize energy surrounding the box and hardening into a solid state. Usually a seal is broken when the box is opened; especially if the seal is physically broken such as a properly place paper seal would be (as paper seals are usually placed on where a object opens physically sealing it shut). Next, I will go into a little more detail on how to craft a simple seal.
First one must find a container that can fit the object that is to be sealed away. This container should be sturdy, preferably made of wood and not a material that allows energy transfer easily, such as metal. If you do use metal try to insulate the contents from the metal.
Now that the container is selected it is time to craft the seal. How this is done will differ a lot from person to person. I usually adorn the container with symbols that I have developed myself over the years. I encourage all practitioners to determine what symbols mean and convey ‘protection’ most to them. Many use religious symbols and others use well established symbols of protection from their beliefs. Ideally these will be engraved into the box itself, but they can be drawn on to the box but it is not nearly as effective. Beyond symbols be sure have a spell engraved into the box or paper seal which can improve the entire seal. I highly recommend writing this spell yourself instead of using a ‘stock spell’ as it will be more personable much stronger in the long run. An example of a spell would be something like ‘may all energy in this container remain still.’ I find simple is better when it comes to the spell, but if it comes down to it, it is up to your own discretion. If you are making a paper seal the process is essentially the same. Paper seals are often strongest if placed where the box or container opens.
Now that everything has been constructed, place the object in the box. Completely close the container. If the container has a seal engraved or written on it, visualize energy flowing through you into the box as you close it. Wrap the energy around the box. I usually then infuse the symbols and the written spell with energy while saying the spell out loud to help direct the energy into the right places. This is followed by placing the paper seal, if one is available. If only the paper seal is available the process is essentially the same but most of the energy work is saved for when the seal is placed not when the container is closed.
There are multiple ways to modify the above spell to improve its effectiveness. These are more advanced techniques but I won’t be covering them in nearly as much detail during the go around.
One could engrave spells to make an object harder to notice.
If hiding away the object permanently is desired one could bury it with salt and cast spells to try to keep people away.
Inserting semi-precious stones, such as amethyst, can make the protection stronger.
Shielding focused on places is perhaps the most common and diverse group of shields. There a multitude of purposes for having a locational shield and this can change how such a shield is created and maintained. One of the most widely used shields that is based on location is Circle. Most rituals call for the creation of a circle as the first step. It not only protects those encircled but also makes sure no other energy interferes with their rituals and practices. I have written a guide on the creation of circles and will link it below.
Going further than circles almost all practioners end up shielding their homes and personal spaces. One of the most important things to think about regarding a locational shield is how long it should last. Many of the long-lasting shields use foci for the magical energy. Foci is plural for focus, this is an object that is the focus of the spell as the name implies. Pretty much anything can be a focus though items with certain properties work well with certain spells. A focus can be as simple as a piece of paper with a symbol and spell on it, to an actual ornate symbol carved into the wall. While more elaborate symbols usually last longer, there is some benefit for simple methods, being that they are usually easier to hide from those pesky people prying eyes. These foci usually help the shield remain strong and balanced. Foci should be infused with new energy at fairly regular intervals. It is important to remember, even though foci usually last longer, it’s not the only way to shield an area. Blessing an area is another form of shielding but doesn’t usually use foci. As shown below are so methods of shielding from most easy to most difficult—bear in mind that this really just depends on a practioners personal strengths and weaknesses.
A Communal shield: I list this as the easiest because many do it without even realizing that they are doing it. That being said it may be harder to intentionally do it as it requires a large number of people. This type of shield is usually incredibly basic due to the untrained nature of those who often create them. That being said this can also be one of the most powerful. They are usually created by a large number of people praying and believing in the protective nature of a place. Most religious places have one of these up and it can be why you sense you don’t belong when entering them. That’s really all there is to these shields. Just know the strength of a shield can drastically increase with a focus or a more skilled practitioner guiding it.
A Circle: while it may not seem that easy at first, the amount of ritual behind it and information of their creation leaves little for a novice to mess up, as long as they do their homework. Circles are often a group effort as well which can make them even easier. I go into more detail explaining the creation of a circle in the link below.
A basic blessing: while these are usually weaker and less guided they are extremely simple to perform. Usually the more faith someone has in a deity makes these easier to perform. It requires nothing more than performing a sacrifice or prayer at an altar or an altar’s equivalent and beseeching a deity for protection over the place.
An advanced blessing: this requires more time and materials. This can also function to banish negative entities or energy from a location. You will need some sage, salt, and ideally a proper sacrifice to a deity. First spend some time in prayer or contemplation. Figure out a route around the place that requires the least backtracking. Usually clockwise or counterclockwise around a house. The beginning and ending should be at the same entrance or window. At the start point begin by saying a prayer for protection and light the sage. Now walk around the inside of the place. Whenever you enter a new room say another prayer of protection then walk around the room. Continue to move throughout the place. Once you have returned to the start point with your energy try pressing all negative energy out. Maybe say a spell out loud such as “I banish all negative energy from this home.” When this is completed do to this entrance as you did to the other outside exits. Once completed all negative energy should be removed from the home and a shield in place. This shield not having any focus will disappear over time but with some skill it can last for years.
A personal room focus shield: on a piece of paper wright out a personal spell of protection such as “may no negative energy touch this place.” If you would like to you can adorn it with symbols of protection. Having one main symbol can help focus the spell. Now Infuse this paper with energy. Walk around your room focusing energy into the paper and visualize the energy coming off the paper and forming a barrier around the room. When finished place the paper somewhere safe but fairly open if possible. Under a bed or end table can make a nice, quick access location. The power of this shield varies widely based on skill of the creator.
My personal location shielding technique: over the years I have developed my own technique for shielding my location. I have used this technique on room, houses, and even vehicles. It is similar to the advanced blessing but uses no materials other than an optional focus (which will act like a battery). It also uses no divine aid instead relying completely on my own ability. This technique requires a lot of skill in energy manipulation so novices will likely get no results from it. I start by meditating and focusing myself. I then walk counter-clockwise (though clockwise would work fine) around the place I am protecting. I stretch my hand out along the wall and pull my energy along it. At each exit to the outside I draw my personal symbol. When back at the entrance I draw another symbol of protection and infuse it with a lot more energy. Ill then link that symbol to all others I have placed in the location. It is now the heart of the shield. Then with one hand in the air and one towards the ground ill pull all the energy both up and down to form a bubble. I then walk to the opposite side of the location. At this point I pull the energy together and draw another symbol (which I connect to the heart). The basic shield is now done. I usually modify it afterword by adding a something like a battery. I usually carry a small orb or stone that I regularly infuse with energy. This is then connected to the heart of the shield. I try to leave the battery in the same room as the heart to keep the shield strong for as long as I need. Another modification I have done was infusing the battery with the ability of absorbing ambient energy making it need far less recharging.
A personal shield: Typically set around a person with the person themselves being the focus point. Many advanced practioners have a personal shield up pretty much all the time. This is especially true if they know they are in an unshielded location or are in an area with many other practioners they are unfamiliar with. These shields are generally weaker than object or locational based shields unless they are being actively fortified. Stronger personal shields can take a lot of focus to maintain which makes them less common, usually only a weak shield is maintained which is then strengthened when the caster feels uneasy or threatened. The biggest skills which effect personal shielding are energy manipulation and visualization. Practicing is really the only way to get good at it. The breath shield is probably my favorite way to teach newcomers to personal shielding.
Breath shield: I have found that this is one of the easiest ways to learn the basics of shielding. To begin, sit in a comfortable position and allow your mind to relax. Now on every exhale visualize energy leaving your mouth and forming a barrier around you. Early on this may take some time don’t rush and allow this energy to crystalize in your mind. To help strengthen this energy every time you inhale, try drawing energy to your lungs. Once the shield seems to be in place push it out with each exhale. Do this till it seems overextended and weak. Allow the shield to dissipate, rest, and try again. Each time try to get the shield to go a little further. After enough practice it will become second nature to keep the shield up just like breathing. If you need to strengthen it just breathe more energy into it. That being said, when using this to protect yourself don’t try expanding it unless you absolutely need to. Expanding it in practice is simply to give you more control over the shield when you need it.
A religious practitioner may also ask their deity(s) to keep him or her safe which can result in a personal shield. Looking at your pantheon to see if a deity is known for a protection and performing a sacrifice and/or asking for aid is all that really needs to be done. Doing this before taking risk is a common practice.
There is another type of personal shielding that many tend to overlook. It can be incredibly easy to accomplish or it can be nearly impossible based on your mindset. Its main focus is to protect one from negative entities or curses. It follows the principle that these things need to sustain themselves with negative energy. All one must do is not be negative. In essence this starves these entities and curses, effectively breaking them. In other words be positive and you will be amazingly hard to curse. One weakness to this shielding is if there is someone actively supplying the curse with energy, but that’s rarely the case.
Please let me know if you have any questions or if there is another topic you want me to look at. Just remember there is almost an unlimited number of shielding methods out there and I have only listed a few here so try to practice and find what works for you and share what you find.
Shield Yourself (CG)
|
