Animal Imagery in Magick
When witches, shamans, and other magicians include animal imagery in their spells and rituals, they're enacting a form of sympathetic magick. This means that the action or instrument used in the spell bears a similarity to the desired result. The animal images on the cave walls of Lascaux, France, which date back 15,000 years, for instance, may have been painted by early magicians to insure success in the hunt.
If you wish, you can include an animal image in your sacred space to represent the theme of a spell or ritual. A spell for protection could benefit from bear magick; a horse might symbolize travel. Place a figurine or picture of the animal in the space where you do your workings to call upon the animal's energy and to awaken its traits in yourself.
Animal Art
Because the subconscious responds better to images than words, pictures can often be very effective aids to spellworking. Some Native American tribes carved totem poles depicting their animal helpers, to petition those animals' assistance. You might enjoy drawing, painting, or sculpting representations of your spirit animal. Creative endeavors in themselves are a powerful form of magick — magick, after all, is the act of consciously creating circumstances through visualizing the results you desire.
Magicians sometimes incorporate animal images — in a stylized form — into sigils. The word sigil comes from the Latin sigillum, meaning “sign.” Sigils are meaningful diagrams made up of words, phrases, pictures, numbers, and other symbols encoded into a pattern that only the designer can comprehend. For example, if you are doing a spell to help you handle a delicate matter with grace, you might fashion a sigil using the word grace. Write the letters on a piece of paper, configuring them into a design that appeals to you. Then add a simplified illustration of a swan, perhaps only a few curved lines to indicate the neck and body.
Fetishes
Anyone who's read Shakespeare's Macbeth is familiar with the idea of using animal parts in magick: “Eye of newt and toe of frog / Wool of bat and tongue of dog …” Early humans trusted animal spirits for their powers. A magus who needed courage looked to nature's blueprint and found a lion, whose heart could be carried or otherwise used in a spell. When a witch needed stealth, it made sense to use the chameleon's skin as a spell component. To enhance perspective, a shaman might choose a bird's eye as a talisman.
A fetish is an object believed to possess magickal power. A witch might carry or wear the fetish, or keep it near her for a specific purpose such as protection. Sometime fetishes contain items that relate symbolically to their intentions. For example, you might incorporate bits of antler into an amulet to prevent you from hitting deer while driving.
Use precautions when working with animal components. All animal parts should be cleaned properly to avoid the potential for disease. Further-more, there are laws governing what is legal to have in your home in terms of animal parts. Be prudent and cautious, and check with local authorities if you're uncertain.
Most witches and magicians no longer sacrifice animals in rituals, nor do they “harvest” animals for spells. Modern Wiccans and witches honor nature and all her creatures. However, animal components that have been found naturally can be utilized in contemporary witchcraft. As mentioned earlier, feathers you come across unexpectedly could augment vision and communication. Tufts of rabbit fur found on a prickly bush would be good to put in a fertility talisman.
