#braid magic

Hair carries a portion of one’s magical potency, being connected to the head and therefore one’s thoughts, intentions, mentality and identity. A person’s hair may be one of the first things that we notice about them, directly informing our perceptions of them. Hair is often connected to emotion; tangled, brittle and turning white when a person is stressed, or neat, clean and strong if they are happy and healthy. In some societies such as in ancient China, a person wears specific hairstyles and headdresses to represent their age and status. Hair can be taken as a taglock, for good or ill. It can be cut to symbolise grief and mourning, or as a rite of passage and separation from a stage of life. We unconsciously associate many things with this part of our body. Because of its power, there are even superstitions on how to dispose of hair properly.

Hence, there is a lot of unrealised potential for those who go through the trouble of keeping and caring for long hair. I will mostly be focusing on the use of braids as a medium of magic. In brief:

Blessings and glamours can be braided into the hair through chanting, with herbal washes to accentuate their effects

Charms and accessories can be incorporated with corresponding colours and symbols

The comb can be a magical tool to remove stresses and clear one’s mind, and to prepare the hair for braiding

I recommend braiding the first inch or two to set and tidy the braid, then begin the spell when ready

Any hairs that come loose while combing can be seen as a vessel for unpleasant energy and snapped as a small cord-cutting ritual

Braids can be used for binding, as in the case of weather magic, to bind rain spirits for temporary relief from bad weather

It can also be used as a quick solution to bind the unpleasant actions of others, such as when dealing with negative colleagues and family members

Hair braids are meant for temporary magic, in the sense that you’ll eventually want to unbraid them so that you can care for your hair, and remove or change the magical effects; especially if you’ve used it for binding.

The structure of the chant can be something simple, with further embellishments added to the charm. A three strand braid corresponds to the three powers of land, sea and sky.

I braid in the blessings of XX to adorn me. By the power of Three, by Heaven, Earth and Sea

For example, a poetic invocation of knowledge and psychic power for the purposes of divination can be spoken thus:

I braid in the thoughtfulness of thousands, the movement of stars, the knowledge of worlds. I braid in the wisdom of the ages, of enlightened beings, of weathered stone. I braid in the blessings of heightened intuition, bright as the moon in her fullness. By the power of Three, by Heaven, Earth and Sea.

Planetary powers can be invoked alongside poetic imagery of that which you wish to emulate. Here are some examples.

The Sun, for leadership and prestige I braid in the light of the morning, the grace of the Sun, the dignity of lions. I braid in the voices of authority, the eloquence of leaders, the fires of torches that brighten the darkness.

Venus, for beauty and seduction I braid in the grace of Venus, the allure of sweet fragrance, the elegance of flowers. I braid in words like butterflies, and charming smiles. I braid in the seduction of union with divinity, the promise of passion, the awakening of desire.

Mercury, for wit and inspired thinking I braid in the swiftness of Mercury, the lightning strike of clarity, the sharpness of needles to pierce through all delusion. I braid in the whirlwinds of inspiration, of nectar from the heavens, the brightness of mirrors caught in the light.

Even without the invocation of various powers, poetic imagery alone can be used. In this case, one’s hair is likened to vines, nets, chains, ropes, and spider silk.

The binding of a person’s harmful words and actions I bind in my braids the spirit of XX, like a vine of thorns I trap them, like heavy chains I bring them low. I bind their vileness like the web of a spider, like a fish caught in nets, like the spring of a trap, like the tightening of a noose. No harm can come from a tangled fly, no injury from speck of dust.

Since I mentioned weather magic, I may as well include a simple chant if you happen to be caught out in the rain. You’ll find greater success if you already have a good relationship with weather spirits.

I bind the rains of heaven high, no storm above shall dim the sky. The skies shall clear, right now and here, the clouds all woven in my hair. 

In many magical traditions, braiding and weaving can come in handy as a spell work technique. As you twist and tangle strips of material or fibers together, visualize the intent of your spell -- it can almost turn into a meditative exercise. One of the most practical uses of braiding magic is to strengthen a growing relationship.

Materials:

Three strands of red cord or yarn

Three strands of pink cord or yarn

Pair up the pieces of cord evenly so you have three pairs, each containing a red and pink strand.

Hold all six strands together and not them at one end. Begin braiding the pair's slowly, crossing one set of red and pink over the next.

As you do, say:

Red for you and pink for me,

Love grows and grows and grows times three

Pink for me and red for you,

Love grows strong and fast and true

When you've reached the end of the cords, tie a second not so the braids won't unravel. Hang the braid in your home or tuck it under your mattress.

*************************************************

-Religious Symbols and Assorted Others. If you associate with a religion/practice/dharma, chances are, there is a symbol to represent it. Pentagram, hexagram, cross/crucifix, ofuda issued by a shrine, ankh, omamori, trident, swastika (be warned: sign of Nazis, but the swastika has been a ward for thousands of years but wear at your own discretion), Om, Seal of Solomon, Fatima’s Hand/Hansa, Votive tablets, Lockets, Animist figurines, Agimats etc...These symbols are easily acquired and hold intrinsic symbolic magic of their own without having to consecrate them for using as a ward.

-Circles/Mandalas. Drawing just a plain circle around you before any magical working will do just fine. You can add glyphs, sigils, scripts, sacred words around it to customize further.

-Taveez. This is a hollow cylindrical pendant anywhere from an inch to two and a half inches in length and .5 to 1.5 inches in diameter. Traditionally, you write a sacred verse from your holy books and fold it up inside the taveez (ta-huh-VEEZ). If the verse/poem/prose is too long however, you burn it and add its ashes to the taveez.

-Scrolls. I use rice paper with dragon’s blood ink to write prayers, armors and callings on them. Bless the paper and ink before use and once the ink dries, place in a small wooden/marble/stone/metal box in your room, office, altar space, desk etc.....These are incredibly versatile and can be made for a variety of things/demons. If you are not religious, fashion a rhyme of protection in your preferred language, charge it like you would a sigil, burn it and add its ashes to your ink and write with a brush. If you don’t have a box of one of the materials mentioned above, you can also use a cloth bag. Be warned though, cloth does not retain magic like wood, stone or metal, so you will have to recharge it at least once a month. 

-Painting and engraving. If you have a particular symbol/sigil/prayer/name of gods or goddesses or their images that you use as a ward, then transfer them on a plain t-shirt, jacket, cotton sheets, altar cloths, wooden plaques, stone tablets, clay tablets etc and they will work like a charm.

-Water. I use the water of the river Ganga. You may use any blessed water. Doesn’t have to be river water. Place is a blessed bottle ad spray or sprinkle on you and around you anytime you feel a presence or an influence that has no business being in your space. 

-Salt. Put it in your baths, floor washes, washing machines and any place else you can think of. Salt is an incredibly powerful tool that will suck unwanted muck right out of its vicinity. Plus. It doesn’t break the bank. What can I say? I’m cheap. 

-Braid. If your hair is long enough to be braided (love me some mini braids), recite a prayer of protection or your on rhyme and braid a small section of your hair, visualizing the prayer infusing into the strands of your hair and protecting you from negative intentions, vibes, powers and people. The magic will discharge as soon as you open the braid but you can do this with minimal effort and time so there’s that.

-Amulets. This is where shit gets expensive. If you are an excruciatingly sensitive ClairX, you should make one of these. 

            Ingredients: protection stone (obsidian, onyx, jasper, carnelian are good choices), metallic wire for housing the stone (I use silver cuz everything else irritates me), or you can use leather cords, hemp cords, yarn, twine etc if you don’t want to complicate things, tools for fashioning the housing (YouTube this), sigil of protection-make this as specific as you can I can’t stress this enough, black candles and white candles(tealights will do), wooden matches, pin/pointy objects, black salt (black chalk will do in a pinch), prayer for protection from a holy book or a rhyme of protection by you, a paper with a sigil of protection drawn on it and you. You can add what you want from this point forward but these are the basics. 

          Draw a circle with salt/chalk large enough to accommodate you and a circle inside the circle to house all ingredients.

         Draw a pentagram or six pointed star inside the smaller circle so it touches all corners. You may draw symbols of protection at this point inside the circle as you wish. 

        Engrave pentagram/hexagram on candles with pin/pointy object. Light candles and place one on each pointy corner of the ‘gram.   

        Place sigil paper in center. 

        Place stone and whatever you’re using to bind it in dead center of sigil paper. 

        Invoke elements/deities/powers that be.

        Read verse/prayer/rhyme aloud anywhere between 3 and 13 times depending on urgency. Visualize the power infusing into the stone and cord/wire. I like to visualize a ray of light shooting from each one of my chakras and intersecting into the stone. You may do as ya please. 

        Bind the stone in the cord/wire securely.

        Wear it. Carry it. Hang it. Do what you please. You’re the proud owner of a protection amulet now. 

        Thank elements/deities/powers that be for their aid and bid them farewell.

        Open circle. 

        Dispose candles.

New hair, new hair, new hair!!!

Did a little magic with it. Trimmed off the split ends to release the old. Dyed it new colours to represent transformation. Did some knot magic by braiding wishes into my hair.