Tools of The Craft The basics and then some

by Mother Oak

The Altar
The altar or working space is the first thing you'll need in any magickal working. Ideally, you should have a special room for this, but few of us live in ideal situations. Your altar can be as simple as a coffee table or as elaborate as you wish. The ritual altar serves a dual purpose; it's a place to keep your ritual tools and materials; and it serves as a visual focus for your magickal work. Some traditions hold that the altar should always face the East, or the South, or in the center, etc., etc... Put your altar where it feels right for you. More important, put it somewhere where you will be able to see it easily, where you'll be able to reach the things you need to reach, and where you won't trip over it.

If your practice includes deity worship, then the right side of the altar is usually dedicated to the God. A red, yellow or gold candle, or an appropriate figure, is usually place there, as are the censor, wand, athame, bolline and a bowl of salt. The left half of the altar is usually dedicated to the goddess. Tools sacred to Her are placed there: the cup, the pentacle, bell, crystal, cauldron and the bowl of water. An image of the Goddess may also stand there, or a green, silver or white candle can be substituted. The besom or broom may be laid against the left side of the altar. The cauldron is also sometimes placed on the floor to the left of the altar if there isn't room on top.


The Pentacle
The pentacle is a five-pointed star surrounded by a circle. The five points represent earth, air, fire, water, and the spirit. The circle represents the protection of these five. It can be worn around the neck for protection. It doesn't need to be a fancy solid gold work of art. You can scratch a pentacle into a clay disk or wooden tile if you want. It's all a very personal matter of preference so just wing it and make or acquire one that feels right to you.


The Cauldron
The cauldron is traditionally a black cast-iron pot, but can be made of any material. It represents the womb of the Mother Goddess, and is used to brew potions, burn incense, and hold flowers, herbs etc. The cauldron can also be used as a tool for divining. A wonderful use for your worn out or damaged cauldrons is using them as a planter for your herbs. The energies collected from years of use are a wonderful boost to the already potent plants and will infuse them with your essence for a more personal connection.


The Book of Shadows
The book of shadows is as important to Witches as the Bible is to Christians. In it you write spells, thoughts, recordings of magickal rites, recipes for potions, dreams, and anything else you see as being important to your Craft. The book can be leather bound with a pentacle on the front, a $2.00 spiral notebook purchased from an office supply store, or a hard cover blank journal with rainbows and fluffy kittens. Again, it's all personal choice. Make one from sewn bundles of hand made natural papers in a soft thong tied flap-style leather cover or natural cotton or hemp woven textile if you prefer not to use leather goods. No-one except you (if you are solitary) should be allowed to access and read it, because it is private, like a personal diary. Covens usually have a Book of Shadows which is shared by the entire coven, and can be written in by the whole coven. Because it is your personal book, it should be hand written; however many Witches nowadays prefer to have a Disk of Shadows, for easier and faster use.


The Athame
The Athame is a ritual dagger with a black handle and a double-edged blade which is traditionally engraved with magickal symbols. It represents the element of air. It is used to draw and cast circles, and exorcise evil and negative forces.


The Bolline
This is usually a white handled knife traditionally used for physical cutting since you don't want to use your Athame for that. It is simply a practial, working as opposed to a purely ritualistic magick knife. It is used to cut wands or sacred herbs, inscribe symbols onto candles or on wood, clay or, wax, and in cutting cords for use in magick. Some Witches dictate that the white-handled knife be used only within the magick circle. This would, of course, limit its usefulness. Do what feels right to you.


The Chalice
The chalice is placed on the altar during rituals and Sabbats, and usually holds the sacred wine. It is traditionally made of silver, and carved with magickal symbols. Many modern Witches use brass or crystal chalices.


The Wand
The magick wand is a slender wooden rod made from the branch of a tree. It is a symbol of strength, will, and the magickal power of the Witch who owns it. The wand can be used to draw and cast circles, draw magickal symbols on the ground, direct energy, and stir cauldron brews. Many different trees can be used to carve the wand from, as each tree has a different meaning. Examples: For a healing wand carve the wand from an ash tree, and a wand to be used in lunar magick could be carved from willow and rowan trees.


The Sword
The sword is an optional Witchcraft tool. The use of the sword comes mostly from British ceremonial magick and isn’t part of most Witchcraft traditions. There is honest disagreement among Witches as to which element the sword corresponds with. Some Witches believe that the sword corresponds to the element fire. Some Witches believe the sword corresponds with the element air. Experiment and see which works best for you personally, but honor the right for other Witches to honestly have a different choice. The sword is considered to be a phallic tool and therefore of masculine element and male energy. A sword can be used for most of the same purposes as an athame, but is more formal. Witches that use a sword reserve the use of the sword for highly formal occassions. The sword is not an ordinary, everyday Witchcraft tool.


The Bell
Some Witches use a bell in their rituals, though certainly not all. Sound is vibration and vibrations are important, not only in everyday life but, especially, magick. To help achieve the right vibrations, the right "mood" or "frequency", it helps to ring a bell. It can actually be just as effective-and thereby as important-as the burning of incense, which also affects vibrations. Don't overdo the bell ringing. A very occasional single-, double-, or triple-ring, scattered throughout the ritual, can be far more effective than a constant jangling. The bell you use should be chosen carefully. Don't just take any bell - each has its own particular timbre. Find one which seems "right" to you, one which soothes and mellows rather than one which is harsh and strident. If possible, remove the handle and replace it with a leather loop. In this way you can carry the bell strung from you belt (if you prefer that is!). The bell is a feminine symbol and so is often used to invoke the Goddess in ritual. It is also rung to ward off evil spells and spirits, to halt storms, or to evoke good energies. Placed in cupboards or hung on the door, it guards the home.


The Besom/Broom
The Besom is used to cleanse the ritual area. There are those who insist that a besom must be made of broom, but this isn't necessarily true. In fact, it is said that fairies hate the scent of broom. Straw or grass brooms are fine for indoors, while outdoors, any leafy twig found on the ground will work well. Many stores and craft shops carry the old-fashioned "witch" broom made of straw or grass that is perfectly acceptable as long as it feels right to you. To cleanse your ritual area, start in the center and moving deosil (clockwise) sweep the circle from the center to the outer edges, all the while envisioning and chanting that negativity is being swept out and the circle is being cleaned. Since this is a ritual tool, it should not be used for standard cleaning and sweeping.


Candles
Candles are associated with Fire and Air, and are used for everything from lighting the altar to specifics in spells. The type of wax or scent does not matter, Color is what is important here. For basic magickal working the basic candle colors needed are white, black, green, red, yellow, blue, gold, and silver. When your candles get old or if you happen to purchase some from a thrift store that have been used, you can melt them down and make new candles. This is a good way to not only save money (these things aren't cheap, face it!), but you can make custom spell candles infused with essential oils or mix herbs and stones directly into the candle for more potency. I like to recycle my candles and bits of dripped wax cleaned off the altar and use the leftovers for sealing containers and seed packets. The uses are endless!


Herbs & Oils
Herbs are often burned for incense during a spell or ritual. Charcoal blocks are available for this purpose in gift and candle shops as well as new age and occult supply stores. Essential oils are used for anointing candles, tools, the altar and the body in rituals and spell working. They may be used as tokens of esteem and respect for the deities and energies of the Craft. As plants of various kinds have customarily been offered to the Lady, herbal offerings can be especially meaningful for their particular significance and properties. Since all herbs and oils have their own particular energies they can be a valuable, if not essential, addition to your magickal matierials. Herbs are always associated with the element Earth.


Robes
A robe that is only saved for spellworking can be a fundamental part of your magickal paraphernalia, (if your tradition doesn't call for you being skyclad that is!). It can be plain, decorated, and of any color that appeals to you as long as it makes you feel "magickal". It is nice to have more than one robe, each in a different color. The colors can be matched to the candle colors required for a particular spellworking. If you don't like the idea of a robe, wear whatever feels comfortable to you. The idea is to feel at ease not to be "fashionable".


Stones & Crystals
Colorful stones of various shapes and sizes are used in some spellworks. Whether you purchase them or find them yourself, be certain that their vibrations feel comfortable to you. Crystals and other stones are good conductors of magickal energy in their natural state and need not be polished to be of use. All stones and crystals are of the Element Earth and play an important part in spellworkings. Don't feel like you must have a gigantic museum quality stone to accomplish what you want. You can find an abundance of reference books and web sites out there that will help you identify stones you can find locally. You'd be suprised what your very own back yard may hold!


Offerings & Tokens
I was very suprised to find that not many use these very important little items! It is said that when you take a plant or material from nature that you should offer a little something in return along with your thanks for their contribution to your workings. Offerings and tokens are the perfect way to ensure that your thanks is given appropriately. These can be seeds, coins, wooden tiles, stones, beads, or anything you feel would be accepted. I use small wooden disks decorated with symbols, large seeds with a symbol drawn on them with non toxic ink or food coloring, and stones with symbols etched on them. When I take a plant clipping, I will generally plant the seed (far enough away from the offering plant that it doesn't crowd it out later) or other offering or token and give my thanks for the plants sacrifice. As a result I now have a lovely "wild garden" with a variety of plants that are useful to my needs!