Talismans, Amulets and Tarot: A Powerful Combination

I’ve always had a thing for graven images.

I surround myself with representations of Goddesses and other divine guides, helpers and deities.

A glimpse into my office

This passion also translates into a love of jewelry depicting Goddesses, symbols and incorporating gemstones.

I wear at least one talisman or amulet daily, carefully selected for their energy and purpose.

Hekate’s Key and Cimaruta

I’ve always worn amulets and talismans. My Oma gave me a guardian angel charm (Schutzengel) when I was born. This was followed by a more pragmatic but still protective Medic-Alert for an allergy (complete with caduceus). Later on, I added an Evil Eye into the mix. I wore those three pendants together on a chain everyday for many years, long before I understood the significance or thought deeply about why I wore them. I just always did.

Now, I actively use talismans to amplify my intention and focus

Now, I actively use talismans to amplify my intention and focus. They help me to draw the energy I desire towards me. They remind me of the very real connection that we have with the Divine, and serve to honor the Deities, spirits, ancestors, guides and elemental beings that support us in our daily lives.

I know that my power doesn’t come from these items. I’m not powerless without my amulets, stones and adornments.

They do, however, remind me of who I am, where my power lies, and they inspire me with their beauty and purpose. They are tools that make connection with and access to the wider universe a thing of ease and flow.

So what do I mean by talismans and amulets? What’s the difference?

Amulets are primarily protective in nature

Amulets are primarily protective in nature. They ward off danger, illness or misfortune. They protect against external threats, or deflect negative energy that is directed at you, whether that energy is unintentional or malicious. They react to the situations that are around us, protecting us, rather than actively drawing something towards us or manifesting a particular desire. A wide variety of amulets are used to ward off the Evil Eye, including blue glass or stone beads, representations of a wide open blue eye often in glass, the Hamsa, and many more.

Four leaf clovers found in my backyard plus an Evil Eye

Talismans are active and are consecrated for a specific purpose.

Talismans are active. They are magical objects that have been consecrated for a particular purpose, they are charged with intention and energy to manifest a specific desire or outcome. A talisman may be a natural object, or it may be created specifically for the user and the purpose, incorporating a number of symbols or elements that all support the work to be done.

And lucky charms are somewhere in between. They are passively protective, and also are meant to attract good luck.

Recently I’ve been blending the TAROT with the use of talismans with powerful results.

Recently I’ve been blending the Tarot with the use of talismans with powerful results.

This is something that I’m exploring in depth, and will write more about (stay tuned), but here’s the essence of my practice.

I start with the general idea of what it is I want to manifest in my life. This may be something practical and concrete, or it may involve inner work, or both. Perhaps I’m looking for inspiration for a writing project, or achieving a particular financial goal, or releasing fear and blocks that are holding me back, or connecting more deeply with my intuition.

With this as a starting point, I go to my cards. I create a Tarot spread that will help me to explore this issue or situation, and get to a point of laser sharp clarity concerning what it is I want to manifest or draw to me. I let those cards speak to me, inspire me, to paint a picture for me of what can be achieved and how I can do it.

I use those cards to formulate and write an intention or an affirmation. This can be one word, one phrase, a sentence, a poem, a song, whatever feels right.

And finally, using a personalized ritual, I seal that intention into the talisman that I’m using for this work.

Often this is a gemstone pendant, a stone chosen for its properties and energy, that I have charged by the moon or other celestial events.

I wear that pendant for a prescribed length of time, or until the goal is achieved, or simply when I need to call on the supportive energy that it embodies. I usually combine meditation and the repetition of that intentional phrase in this practice.

One of the Star of Manifestation Talismans I created for myself & a small group of clients.

This is a practice that I’ve been sharing with my Tarot clients as well. I do some ritual prep work, create and guide them through the Tarot reading, and then together we create that just right powerful intention or affirmation and consecrate their talisman. I also suggest ways that they can continue to work with their talisman.

Tarot itself is a kind of talisman. The cards themselves, the symbols contained within, the stories they unfold before our eyes, they show us how to attract what we desire, to evolve and grow, to access a source of power and perhaps even some synchronicity and luck.

Do you have a lucky charm that you take with you everywhere? Do you wear a protective amulet when you are under stress, travelling or just as a daily practice? Do you have a talisman that seems to make life flow more easily? Please tell me about them, I’d love to hear about your experiences as I continue to explore this path.

And stay tuned for more posts on this topic as I create my own line of talismans and magical offerings…