One of the more common
materials that wands are made of is wood.
There are also wands of metal, bone, crystal -- almost any material
that you can think of, a wand has been made out of it.
This class focuses on wands made of wood -- a wooden wand
is appropriate for a first, or beginning, wand and there is a huge
amount of power in these deceptively simple instruments of a
warlocks or witches focus.
The symbology, or purported strengths and/or weaknesses implicit
in the different woods can make a fascinating study. I list some
of the more frequently used woods, and some of their brief
explainations of each wood's qualities and powers. These
symbologies are mostly derived from Celtic and/or Native
American sources. (There are different symbologies for
different trees and shrubs in different parts of the world --
and they don't always agree with each other!)
Alder - Divination, or "fortune telling; Self-protection/defense
Almond - Used a lot in magic for money.
Apple - Love and beauty magic; Spell writing;
Powerful healing magic. Also a celebration tree;
Youth; Happiness.
Ash - Psychological magic and law. Magic relating to intelligence,
sacrifice, sensitivity, and higher wisdom.
Aspen - Determination; overcoming fears and doubts.
Avocado - Love and all-purpose magic.
Bamboo - Protection and hex breaking; Wishes.
Bay - Protection, psychic powers, strength and healing.
Beech - Old magic and history. Hopeful magic and wishes.
Tolerance, past knowledge; softens over criticism.
Birch - New beginnings, cleansing of past. Vision quests.
Blackthorn - Creative magic. Plant magic and cleansing
magic (including getting rid of evil).
Cedar - Healing, cleansing, protection; Money.
Cherry - Death, and rebirth. New awakenings. Love and divination.
Cinnamon - Can be used as a tiny
all-purpose travel wand.
Cypress - Understanding of role of sacrifice. Long life,
healing and recuperation. Protection.
Dogwood - Wishes and protection. Fairy magic.
Ebony - Pure power.
Elder - Birth and death. Renaissance of the Fae.
Healing after emotional injury. Regeneration magic.
Elm - Magic relating to animals and magical creatures.
Love. Nature magic.
Eucalyptus - Healing.
Fig - Divination and love.
Hawthorne - Fertility and creativity. Magic.
Marital magic and parenting. Protection from dark magic.
Magic to bring happiness, and communication with magical
places and spirits.
Hazel - Hidden wisdom. Dowsing and divination. Creativity.
Heather - Healing from within. Immortality. Initiation.
Holly - Protection. Overcoming of anger. Spiritual warrior.
Strong protective magic. Light-hearted magic.
Courageous magic, and dream magic.
Honeysuckle - Learning from past. Discrimination. Change.
Juniper - Protection and health.
Larch - Fire protection.
Lavender - Magic. Protection. Healing. Vision.
Lilac - Spiritualization. Realization of beauty.
Lime - Protection.
Linden - Protection. Love. Luck.
Mahogany - Longevity.
Maple - Money and love magic. Balance.
Mesquite - Healing.
Mulberry - Protection. Strength.
Oak - General power tree. Strength and courage. Endurance,
helpfulness, continuity.
Olive - Self defense. Luck, or chance, magic.
Orange - Clarity to emotions, release of trauma. Beauty.
Palm - Protection, peace, opportunity.
Pear - Love.
Peach - Divination. Immortality.
Pine - Ancient magic. Practical, survival-based household magic.
Magic associated with longevity, including healing. Balance
of pain and emotions, creativity.
Plum - Protection, healing. Love.
Pomegranate - Protection. Money.
Poplar - Preventative magic? not really protection. Graceful magic.
Rowan - All-purpose protection tree. Aids all the senses working
together. Success magic.
Silver Birch - Friendship and relationship magic. Inspiration,
new ideas. Healing magic.
Spruce - New realizations, healing, intuition.
Sycamore - Communication, love, learning to receive.
Walnut - Eases transitions. Health.
Willow - Magic dealing with water. Psychic abilities. Dream magic.
Healing, inner vision.
Witch Hazel - Divination. Mental healing.
Wormwood - Protection.
Yew - Transformation. Divination. Work with spirits and
magical creatures.
So, that is quite a list of woods that
you might make your wand out of. But what about other things?
What about the length of the wand, or what colors you might paint
or draw upon your wand?
Colors, too, have their symbology
-- following is a list of colors that you might use -- with the
'positive' then the 'negative' qualities listed:
Black -- Protection
***** Secretiveness and/or sacrifice
Blue - Happiness, calm, truth
***** Depression, loneliness
Brown - Grounded, new growth
***** Lack of discrimination
Green - Growth, healing, abundance
***** Uncertain, misery, greed
Grey - Initiation, imagination
***** Unbalance, secretiveness
Orange - Warmth, joy, creativity
***** Pride, agitation, worry
Red - Passion, strength
***** Anger, aggression, impulse
Violet - Alchemy, humility, spirit
***** Obsession, misunderstood
White - Purity, sharing, truth
***** Scattered, overextended
Yellow - Communication, optimism
***** Needing clarification
Another thing to consider is the
length of your wand. Certain alchemists insist upon using wands
of only certain lengths -- because of the inherent strength implicit
in certain numbers.
To find out what 'number' your wand symbolizes, you measure it
and round to the closest whole number. If your wand is more than
9 inches long, you add together the numerals of its length to come
up with a single digit. (ie -- one of my wands is 13-1/2 inches long.
Adding 1 + 3 = 4)
Following is a list of the numbers from one to nine. Each number is followed
first by its 'positive' characteristics, then (separated by *****) by its
'negative' characteristics:
1 - Beginnings, originality, leader, trying new charms
***** Arrogance, dominance
2 - Feminine, dreams, cooperation, matter or material things, polarity
***** Sensitivity, meddling
3 - Creativity, birth, mystical, spirit, growth, and relationships.
***** Gossipy, moody
4 - Foundations, patience, builder, power and order, and the beginning making something happen (manifestation)
***** Stubborn, rigid
5 - Versatile, change, activity, represents your own role in making something happen, symbolizes mankind, individuality
***** Scattered, overindulgent
6 - Home, service, family, end products or knowledge gained
***** Jealous, worrisome
7 - Wisdom, seeker, truth, life, nature
***** Faithless, critical
8 - Power, abundance, infinity, super activity and individuality
***** Careless, greedy, authoritarian
9 - Healing, understanding, power without limits
***** Gullible, hypersensitive
The final thing to consider
is whether you wish to add some other material to your wand.
Listed below are just some of the animals, or creatures, whose parts are
sometimes used in making wands, and some of their 'qualities'.
Badger - Reliable, hard work, fierce fighter that doesn't give up
Bat - Initiation, transition
Bear - Power, strength, authority
Beaver - Builder, repairer
Bobcat - Quiet, secrets
Buffalo - Abundance
Cat - Independence, mystery
Cougar - Power
Coyote - Mischief, wisdom
Crow - Alchemy
Deer - Innocence, gentleness
Dog - Loyalty, faithfulness, protection
Dragon - Fierceness, strength, sheer raw magic
Eagle - Healing
Elk - Strength, endurance
Goose - Enthusiasm, youth
Hawk - Fierceness, clarity, vision
Horse - Strength, swiftness
Mouse - Secrecy, details
Owl - Wisdom
Phoenix - Healing, protection, rebirth
Raccoon - Disguise, dexterity
Snake - Death, rebirth
Swan - Beauty
Turtle - Protection
Unicorn - Purity, innocence, immense healing properties
Generally, it is considered by most authorities that the hair, or feather, of the animal is sufficient for maximum magical benefit. Very seldom is the skin used other than leather for decoration, binding, or wrapping the handle, and, in the case of snakes, using the shed skin. Even more seldom is blood used to dye a wand, (or dried and used as a core). The more exotic usages (or ingredients), like dragon heartstring, are usually confined to makers of fine wands and are not in the provenance of the beginning wand maker.
