The “Star of Hope” Personal Initiative Sigil
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Here is a layout that forms a sigil or “charm” intended to influence another person or situation that the querent wants to bend to his or her will. It uses a “significator” card at the center to represent the objective of the enchantment (for lack of a better word), and the seven classical planets of astrology (as symbolized by the planetary trump cards) in a seven-pointed array around the perimeter to show the seven “lenses” that gather the planetary forces and project them onto the target (or alternatively deflect them if the alignment is not auspicious). This technique requires the use of reversals.
The premise is that all seven planetary powers are always present in the sky and available to enlist in our cause even though they may not be arranged in a traditional aspect pattern that modifies their potency, and may not tie in with their natal positions in the horoscope of the person or entity of interest; such refinements are beyond my scope here. A pull of seven additional cards is made to provide the “triggers” that awaken the archetypal energies, which are delivered by the random cards along the “lines of force” described by the star if upright or directed away from the goal if reversed.*
Begin by intentionally choosing a card to stand for the target and place it in the middle of the table; this could be a court card for another person or any other card that best defines the situation. Then lay out the seven planetary trump cards, working around the perimeter of the star in the order shown below. (Note: Ignore the reversed Tower in the photo, it was an error.)
Next, shuffle the remaining cards in a way that introduces random reversals and deal seven of them on top of the trump cards in the same order that was used for the initial layout. If the random cards are upright, they will bring their energy and that of the underlying trump directly to bear on the significator, “for good or ill” depending on their inherent nature. If they are reversed, the energy will pivot away from the significator and become unavailable for immediate use. For the reversed cards, shuffle the deck again and deal one card toward the outside of the array for each reversal to show how its shift in emphasis might be reconciled. (These cards should always be placed upright.)
Finally, for all of the upright cards, both original and redirected, examine the elemental dignity between them and the significator to determine the extent to which the querent will be empowered in achieving his or her goal.
In this example reading, the querent had “Material Success” (6 of Disks) as the target of the conjuration, and the energies of the Sun, the Moon, Mercury and Saturn were all favorably aligned with it by both orientation and dignity, suggesting a major personal and social incentive to “go for it.” The Hermit implies that it will be a solo endeavor, the Aeon that there will be no turning back once underway, the 5 of Wands that there will be some battles to fight, and the 2 of Wands that those battles will be winnable. It’s notable that there were no Air cards — either upright or reversed — to undermine the momentum attainable by the 6 of Disks.
Although they were elementally sympathetic to the 6 of Disks, the Venus, Mars and Jupiter energies were pointed away from the objective, suggesting that they would be much more difficult to focus on success. However, the influences of both Venus (the “Lesser Benefic” in astrology) and Jupiter (the “Greater Benefic”) were transformed into energetic and constructive Earth cards, the Ace and 2 of Disks, fostering the idea that “simplification” is the key to tapping into their power. The Mars energy morphed into the Prince of Cups, which is the elemental cousin of the Prince of Disks and is similarly supportive of the 6 of Disks, suggesting that the opportunity for emotional gratification will be a bonus outcome of the drive for achievement.
*Although it is much more mystical and impressionistic, this approach has a “feel” similar to an election chart in horary astrology.
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.org on January 27, 2025.
