sigils

Creating a sigil using the Spare method is a structured process of condensing a specific intention or desire into a symbolic representation. “Spare” in this context doesn’t mean extra or additional, but it’s actually named after the artist and occultist Austin Osman Spare. This method is popular in chaos magick for its simplicity and effectiveness. It’s also one of the easiest (structured) methods to create sigils, and one that I find myself using quite often for Sigil Sunday sigils and in my personal life. Step-by-Step Spare Sigil Method (With Pictures!) If you’re a beginner to creating sigils or chaos magick in general, don’t worry! It’s really hard to mess up making a sigil, especially if you follow the steps below. 1. Define Your Intention Clearly define your intention or desire. If you’re familiar with the SMART method for setting goals, it’s actually really useful here too. (If you aren’t familiar with it, basically you just want to make sure that your goals, or intention in this case, is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.) This should be a concise statement of what you want to achieve, like “I am protected from negative influences.” 2. Write It Down Write your intention down. You can do this on paper or digitally, just don’t try to do it in your head! (Props to you if you are able to do it mentally, though!) Remember, you want your intention statement to be as specific as possible, while still keeping the statement brief. 3. Remove Duplicate Letters Cross out any duplicate letters in your sentence. For example, in “I am protected from negative influences,” you would keep only one instance of each letter, which might leave you with “I am protcd f ngv lu.” 4. Drop Vowels Remove all vowels from the remaining string of letters. From “I am protcd fngvlu,” you would drop the vowels to get “m prtcd f ngv l.“ 5. Create the Sigil With the remaining letters, start designing your sigil. Arrange these letters into a visually appealing design. This can be abstract or symbolic, and the letters can be arranged in any way you find aesthetically pleasing. For me, it helps to break down each letter into its basic shape so I can really manipulate the letters to my benefit! You can overlap them, invert them, stretch them, or any other transformation that helps integrate them into a unified symbol. 6. Refine Your Design Keep adjusting your design until it no longer resembles the original letters and instead is a unique symbol that pleases you aesthetically. Personally, it takes me at least five or six iterations before I can feel the shape I want to make. Listen to your intuition and let it guide you! The idea is that the sigil should become a new and unique piece of art, disassociated from the original intent in its appearance. Activating Your Sigil Once your sigil is created, it needs to be charged or activated. Activation is essentially about charging the sigil with energy and intent to bring it to life (so to speak) enabling it to work on a subconscious or metaphysical level to manifest the desired outcome. There’s no “right” way to activate your sigil, but I generally like to choose a method that aligns with the purpose of the sigil and your intent. Here are some common methods for activating a sigil, just go give you some ideas: 1. Emotional Charging One common method involves charging the sigil with a strong emotional energy. This can be done by focusing intensely on the sigil while in a state of heightened emotion. This could be any strong feeling like excitement, anger, joy, or sexual arousal. The theory is that intense emotions energize the sigil with your personal power. 2. Meditative Focus Another approach is to enter a meditative state where your mind is calm and focused solely on the intent of the sigil. During meditation, you visualize the sigil in your mind or stare at it physically while concentrating on the desire it represents. This method is believed to embed the intent of the sigil into your subconscious. 3. Ritual Incorporation Incorporating a sigil into a broader magical ritual can also activate it. This might involve creating a ritual space, using tools like candles or incense, and reciting specific chants or affirmations. The ritual, with its steps and elements, helps to raise energy and direct it toward the sigil, activating it. 4. Physical Activity Some practitioners use physical activity to activate a sigil. This could involve dancing, drumming, chanting, or even exercising while focusing on the sigil. The physical exertion raises energy and helps to focus the mind intensely on the sigil’s purpose. 5. Destruction of the Sigil A more dramatic method of activation involves destroying the sigil. This could be by burning, burying, tearing, or otherwise destroying the physical representation of the sigil. The act of destruction is believed to release the energy contained within the sigil and sends its intent into the universe or embeds it deeply into the subconscious. 6. Gnostic State Activation Some practitioners aim to activate a sigil by entering a “gnostic state”‘” This is a chaos magick specific term uto describe an altered state of consciousness. This state can be achieved through various means such as sensory overload, sensory deprivation, or trance states. The idea is that in this state, the boundary between the conscious and subconscious mind is blurred, enhancing the sigil’s integration into the subconscious. 7. Everyday Integration Another less intense method involves placing the sigil somewhere you will see it frequently without focusing on it intensely, like on the refrigerator door or as a bookmark. Over time, it becomes a part of your environment and subtly works on your subconscious. Release and Forget Your Sigil After activating the sigil, the final step is to release it and forget about it. This doesn’t mean literal amnesia but rather an intentional avoidance of obsessive thought about the outcome. Why? The belief is that