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Magical Home Protection

by | Jul 17, 2024 | workshop | 0 comments

I put together a video and article all about magical home protection. This is a workshop I’ve hosted several times in the past. It’s a topic that I think is important all the time, but even more so in today’s environment. You’ll find the video below, with a transcription of the video following.

What is Magical Home Protection?

Magically speaking, house protection involves safeguarding your space from baneful magic. As with personal protective spellwork, the magic is a sort of base layer and works in support of and addition to other protective measures with regards to those issues beyond magical defense.

And while I’ll be using the word “home” throughout, magical protection can be used to safeguard individual spaces such as rooms and even altars. You only need to clearly define the space that you are protecting.

Magical protection tends to fall into three distinct categories: 

  • boundaries
  • repelling
  • trapping

We’ll be covering all three categories in more detail, but briefly they are defined this way.

Boundaries set up a line of demarcation between the space being protected and everywhere else. This is most readily seen in activities like the casting of a circle before spellwork. The witch is marking out her space and indicating who or what is allowed into it.

Repelling magic works through rebuffing any hexes or curses aimed at a person or space. Some repelling magic will send those malicious spells back at casters. Others just bounce the energy back out into the universe. This type of protection also works against spirits and other negative energies or plain old bad luck. An example of this are talismans like the nazar which protects by warding off the evil eye.

Trapping magic is just that: a trap for any malicious magic, spirits or negativity that might be sent against one. An example of this is the witch bottle.

What Magical Protection Can and Can’t Do

Items like a nazar are worn to ward off the “evil eye” not to protect against mugging. When it comes to magical household protection your goal is to ward your home from baneful magic first and foremost. Spells, talismans and charms can also be used to keep out bad luck, negative energy, and harmful spirits. They are the witchcraft equivalent of locking your doors and turnin on an alarm system.

That isn’t to say that you can’t tailor your spellwork to address physical security. But you will 1) be approaching such concerns from a magical perspective and 2) the spellwork will act as assistance to practical steps you take. For example, you can add elements to a spell pouch that repels those with ill intentions as a way to keep robbers from your door. You still want to make sure you lock the deadbolt when you are gone, though.

History

House protective magic is one of the earliest forms of spellwork of our ancestors. People would call on their gods and ancestors to protect their homes. They called in genius domesticus, or household spirits, not only to help with household chores but to act as spirit guardians. And they used plants, crystals and other items to create protective spells and talismans.

Ancient Egyptians called on deities such as Taweret to protect their homes. Ancient Greeks used the image of the Gorgon on their doors. The horrifying image was meant to ward off the evil eye. These kinds of grotesqueries were also used in Mesopotamia. You see this type of imagery used centuries later in the gargoyles that festoon cathedrals and were placed to scare off demons and evil spirits.

In Rome, houses were protected by Lares, which were the ancestors of the family. Statues of the Lares were kept in a household altar and set at the table when the family dined, just as if their forebears were joining them for a meal.

In the Middle East for several centuries (from the 2nd to 9th century CE) “demon bowls” were used for magical home protection. These bowls, painted with a spiraling incantation and the image of a bound demon, were buried upside down on one’s property or under the threshold of a room. 

In England shoes have been found in the walls of homes dating from the 1500s all the way to the early 1900s which speak to an established practice. One item that we’ll be discussing later–the witch bottle–has been found at various sites around Great Britain. And across the Atlantic, in Pennsylvania Dutch country, one can find hexen or hex signs painted on barns. These signs have a multitude of interpretations and uses, one of which being protective.

Materia Magica

Materia magica is a fancy word for magic ingredients. They are spell components used for their innate magical properties. Herbs, trees, crystals, metals, bone, fur, even water have specific “correspondences.” The correspondences mean that all those herbs, stones, etc. have particular energies that can be used in spells to power the magic. Those energies work in tandem with the personal energy of the witch to power the spell. The more closely the energy that your materia magica is aligned with the spell you are casting the more “oomph” it has.

You can think of spellcasting and materia magica this way: Say you are traveling from point A to point B. You can walk and you’ll get there eventually. Or maybe you ride a bike. You are still using your own power but you get there faster. Maybe you move up to a moped. You are using less of your individual energy but you are still steering the vehicle. Maybe you take a car with great gas mileage and onboard GPS and add some of that octane booster. Maybe you add racing stripes to the side so that the car goes even faster. All of that is in service to get you to your destination faster. Materia magica is the bike and scooter and car and even the spoiler you added. You can even take things further by using magical timing, like plotting out the best route to take from A to B. It’s all up to how detailed you want your spell to be.

All of that said, the most common materia magica are plants and crystals. Both are related, generally, to the element of Earth which is the element of the home and security. They are highly versatile materials that can be used in a variety of ways. For example certain herbs can be planted around the home to take advantage of their protective properties. Dried herbs can be sprinkled at doors and windows, burned as incense, or steeped in water to make a wash for porches, sidewalks and even driveways.

Crystals can be hung in windows or placed on windowsills, buried at property lines, embedded in fences, and carried to access their protective properties. Both are also often added to pouches and hung over doors as protective talismans.

Herbs and crystals also tend to be the easiest materia magica to obtain.

Five Herbs for Magical Home Protection

I’m going to give an example of five different herbs you can use in your home protection spells. I chose them because they are all easy to acquire–most of them you can pick from your front or back yard. The one possible exception, mugwort, is a bit harder to find in the midwest, but it is easy to grow, or find for sale in occult shops, and it’s one of those herbs I think all witches should have on hand because it can be used for so many different kinds of spellwork.

  • Mugwort leaves protect against the fae and other spirits that have ill-intent. 
  • Fleabane is used to both exorcise and prevent evil spirits from entering the home.
  • Clover is usually known for its luck granting properties, however, three leaf clovers can be used in protective amulets and white clover is used to protect from hexes.
  • Bay Leaves ward against negativity and evil and are effective against malicious spirits. I can be used in wreaths, talismans, spell pouches and burned as a cleansing incense.
  • Oak, especially twigs tied with red thread, and acorns protect from evil and harm.

Five Crystals for Magical Home Protection

Keeping with the theme of five, I’m going to cover five different crystals that can be used in home protection spells. Crystals can be a bit harder to forage, so you are better off buying them. One thing to keep in mind when buying crystals is that they are being obtained ethically. There’s been a growing awareness that the crystal market is rife with all sorts of shady and unethical behavior, especially with regards to labor practices. Take some time to research ethical vendors before you commit to buying crystals.

When it comes to crystals, too, you don’t need a huge chunk. A little can go a long way. You can use little pieces or even crystal beads for your spellwork. 

  • Jet protects from attacks by external forces.
  • Obsidian shields you from negativity and blocks psychic attacks.
  • Amethyst is another crystal that protects psychic attacks. 
  • Smoky Quartz works as a general “detoxifying” stone. It disperses negativity and is helpful to keep near the entrance to your home as a cleanser for when you come home, neutralizing any negative energies that have attached themselves to you while you were out.
  • Black Tourmaline blocks psychic attacks and negativity.

Apotropaic Symbols and Charms

“Apotropaic” means something that has the ability to ward off evil or bad luck. These are like good luck charms, but their focus is deflecting bad luck rather than pulling in good luck. There are lots of different types of symbols and charms that are apotropaic and I’m only going to cover five here. However, you don’t have to stick to just these ones. You can look at your particular path or culture and see what is used there.

  • Pentacle – The pentacle has had several different meanings and magical uses attached to it over the years, however it has been used often as a protective symbol. A silver pentacle could be added to talismans and charms to tap into its protective energies.
  • Nazar is an eye shaped amulet that wards off the evil eye. Nazar beads are easily obtainable to be worn or added to talismans.
  • Hamsa Hand is an amulet in the shape of a hand that also protects from the evil eye. Like the nazar it can be worn or added to talismans, or even hung in windows or on the wall.
  • Fascinum – an amulet in the shape of a penis that also wards off the evil eye or ill luck.
  • Troll Cross (Swedish & Norwegian) – Bent piece of iron worn to ward off malevolent magic.

Other Protective Materia Magica

A few other protective materia magica include things like:

  • Mirrors are often used to reflect curses, hexes and any other ill-intentioned magic back to the caster.
  • Iron has a long tradition of being used in magical protection, especially against the fae and other spirits. 
  • Silver is another metal with protective properties. Like mirrors, it reflects curses away from you.
  • Salt

Magical Home Protection Forms

Spells

Spells are often nonphysical magic. While casting the spell might involve materia magica, the spell itself is the direction of an intent fueled by energy to achieve a specific result. Spells can look like you chanting a phrase while laying down a boundary of protective white light around your house. This is an example of shielding. The intent is “protect my home with this boundary” which is fueled by energy that comes from you. The chanting and visualization help you to focus on your intent to lay down the boundary. You can get as elaborate as you want with your shielding spell. You can turn it into a whole ritual with white candles carved with protective runes and incense burning while sprinkling blessed water around the space. You can get really into the timing for your spell so that it gets a boost astrologically. But at its simplest, a shielding spell just needs you and your energy.

Due to the lack of a physical aspect, spells for shielding have an expiration date. Once they’ve been cast they’ll last a bit of time and fade. This means you’ll need to recast the spell often (weekly or monthly) to keep your space protected. How often depends on a number of factors but if you cast it regularly you’ll start to get a good feel for how the space around you feels and will be able to notice when the spell needs to be renewed. Sort of like when you notice the air in your place is getting a bit musty and so you need to open the windows or break out the Febreeze.

Why cast a shielding spell when you could use one of the other methods that are longer lasting? One advantage of spellwork is that it is discreet. You don’t need any spell components, you don’t need to chant. You can take thirty seconds to cast it and be done. Regularly practicing spells also keeps your magic muscles and skills exercised. and sometimes you only want temporary protection such as if you are traveling or staying someplace short term.

Powders

Various powders can be used to erect a protective barrier around your home. These include black salt (salt mixed with herbs and charcoal), powdered eggshells and red brick dust (used particularly in hoodoo practices). All three are easy to obtain or you can even make your own. 

Using powders can be convenient because, like talismans, they can be laid down and don’t need to be tended to often. And they can be more discreet than talismans. 

With black salt, a light hand is needed, especially if you’re sprinkling it on the ground outside as the salt could damage soil and plants if used too much (literally salting the ground). 

To get the maximum protection from powders, you want to sprinkle them during times of heightened energy, during a full moon or on Monday, which corresponds to household matters. As you lay the powders down you will be visualizing a protective barrier springing up where you place the powder. If you are protecting your home, it’s good to go around the entire house. You can even lay the powders on the boundary lines so that they encompass your yard as well. 

If it isn’t possible to encompass the whole building, or if you are in an apartment or just warding a room, you can instead lay the powders on the threshold and the window sills. In those cases, whenever you vacuum or sweep or dust you’ll need to reapply the powders.

Witch Bottles

I mentioned witch bottles earlier, and though they were historically used as protection against witches, in modern times they are used as protection for witches.

A witch bottle usually contains items that are sharp and piercing such as nails, thorns, pins and needles, and personal items like hair, nails, teeth or urine. Those personal items, called “taglocks” in magic, act as decoys, something the baneful magic would lock onto rather than the actual target. Then the nails, etc. would pierce, pin or tangle up the magic so it couldn’t do harm.

Once the bottle is filled, it is sealed and buried either under the stairs or porch leading into a home or elsewhere on the property. It is then left to do its work.

Because witch bottles are buried, any negativity they attract and trap is then grounded by the earth. Grounding is a means of releasing and transmuting energy much like how compostable items break down and become fertilizer for nearby plants. This is why witch bottles can be buried and left and don’t need to be renewed at a later date.

Witch Balls

Witch balls originated in 17th and 18th century England. They were hung in windows and their purpose was to protect the home from evil spirits, evil spells, bad luck, and of course witches. The balls work much like witch bottles by distracting and then trapping any evil spirits or spellwork. Witch balls don’t include taglocks, however.

A witch ball can be easily made using the refillable ball ornaments that are meant for Christmas trees. Unscrew the top of the ornament, fill it with various materia magica, close it up and hang it into a window where it will work to keep your house safe. Some paths and practices replace the witch ball every year. I think this is a good idea, as well as keeping your witch ball regularly dusted.

Talismans

Talismans are physical items that are charged with intent to achieve a certain magical effect or goal. Protective talismans are often worn or hung near the area needing protection. Pretty much anything can be a talisman. A picture of a saint or ancestor or deity can be hung by your front door. A statue, like a gargoyle, can be placed in the yard. Crystals or witches balls hung in windows, even eye symbols painted on the lintel can work as talismans. Because they are physical objects, talismans don’t need to be renewed as often as a shielding spell. Although, depending on what kind you use you may want to cleanse it once a year. 

Whatever you choose for your talisman you’ll want to cleanse it. Cleansing strips off any energy or charges that might be clinging to the physical object. It creates a clean slate for your commands. A traditional way to cleanse an item is to pass it through smoke of an incense like myrrh or frankincense. Once your talisman is cleansed you can charge it with protective intent and then place it somewhere to get to work.

I prefer to place talismans near entryways, but you can place them anywhere. Wherever you place it, keep your talisman dusted and clean. If it breaks, replace it. A broken talisman is evidence that it repelled a targeted attack. Dispose of the broken talisman by burying it.

Putting it All Together

Things to take into consideration:

  • Protecting a room, an apartment or a house?
  • Does the protection need to be hidden? I.e. do you live with nonwitches/pagans or are you practicing in secret?
  • What is your aesthetic and what will fit in with your lifestyle?
  • Allergies? Pets? Children?
  • What is your goal with magical protection? What do you want to accomplish?
  • What is your heritage and culture? Are there any magical protection practices inherent in them that you can use to tap into ancestral power?
  • What resources do you have?
  • How much time do you have?
  • What is your witchcraft or pagan path and do they have inherent protective practices?

Once you’ve decided on what kind of protection you are going to use, gather your items, if using a talisman or witch bottle, etc., cleanse and charge them.

You can time your spell casting using magical timing, so for example performing the cleansing and charging or casting your protective boundary on the full moon to tap into the energies of success and completion. If you don’t want to wait for a full moon you can time it on a Monday which is related to domestic issues, or Saturday, which is good for protection and banishing magic. magical time is a whole topic in and of itself.

Resources

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