The Art Of Charm Casting – Collecting And Using Charms For Divination, Insights and Clarity

 

 

Did you have a lucky rabbits foot when you where young? Have you ever spent time searching for a four leaf clover? Do you wear a religious symbol such as a crucifix, star of David or an ankh? These are all forms of charms.

A charm is a symbol that represents a belief. Whether it be a belief in luck, protection, or religious devotion, it symbolizes something you hold as truth.

Charms, talismans, and amulets are similar in that they represent something we believe in for personal protection or for something we hold dear in our hearts. The word “charm” is just a generic term for a talisman or amulet that holds a magical or spiritual purpose. For interest sake, a talisman is a object that draws and concentrates energy to it such as good fortune, confidence, or strength from a belief, while an amulet is an object that wards off energy, usually of the harmful variety.

I only explain this because in it’s essence, a charm symbolizes something of meaning to the person who holds it and it is in the power of that belief that we can use charms for divination.

Charm casting, is like any other form of divination, a collection of objects such as a set of rune stones with symbols inscribed on them, or a pile of bones, or a deck of tarot cards that are used to represent a set of meanings which in turn can be cast in such a way as to offer personal insights, clarity and in some cases, a glimpse into the future for the querent. Why I like charms for divination, which is the art of seeking knowledge from the unknown, is because the charms you collect and use are personal and of your own choice. Meaning that you create your own divination set by collecting objects that speak to you personally and then you decide what energy they will represent.

Each charm is a symbol for something that you want represented in your charm casting collection. The collection is like a dictionary of objects that you create yourself. Once you give a meaning to each charm, you have imbued it with the energy power of that belief.

I will add here for context and deeper insight, that the universe is always speaking to us and guiding us by way of signs and symbols as its language or form of communication. We only need to pay attention to see the messages. In fact, many psychic’s see images and symbols in their minds eye and have created their own dictionary of sorts or store house of meanings that allow them to communicate with their guides and angels to impart the messages that are being offered. You may just find that if you create a charm casting set of your own and begin to use it regularly, the universe will start using the symbolistic meanings that you’ve attached to the charms in it’s own communication to you. That would be called synchronicity and is another way the universe guides us along. So if you attached the meaning for your apple charm to mean good health or vibrancy of life for example, then the universe may offer up the same symbol elsewhere in your life to mean the same as well.

So what can you use as a charm in charm casting? Anything really, and that’s the beauty of this form of divination. Any small object that you can attach a meaning to works. My collection consists mostly of small metal jewelry charms that I’ve purchased from craft stores in a shape for the express intention I was looking for, but household items can be included as well such as a button, paperclip, dice, a small toy, a key, a nut or bolt, coin, bottle cap; anything that speaks to you and can have a meaning attached to it.

Of course a well rounded charm casting set will have a variety of charms to represent the many facets of life such as luck, warnings, lessons, happiness, wisdom, love and friendship. You’ll want your set to offer as many possibilities as you can think of,  but in the end, it is your unique set so anything goes. Your collection can be as big or small as you desire. Maybe you want to create a set just for love or maybe a simple set to ask “yes or no” questions. Again, that’s why I like charm casting so much because a set can be as individual as you are.

I would suggest that you clean each charm as best you can to remove any residual energy and soil left on it from it’s manufacturing or previous purpose and after you clean it, hold it in your hand while you decide it’s meaning to create an energy connection between you and it. I also would suggest creating a written dictionary of meanings for your charms in a little notebook. As your collection grows, you may not remember all the meanings you attributed to each charm and then will have a reference guide to refer back to.

Casting charms for divination can also be a unique experience. You can design your own personal practice but there are many “spreads” available online. A spread is just a pattern created with an express outcome requested. Below is an example that you are welcome to download to use as a past, present, future configuration. Just copy to your photos and print it to fit the page.

 

 

I store my charms in a fabric, drawstring bag so to use the “Charmed Life” spread, I just set an intention to open myself to the wisdom of the charms, then I picked three random charms from the bag and placed each, one at a time, in each circle. The energy, or meaning of the charms that came out of the bag is the answer to the question in each circle. By stringing the meanings out to make a divination or message, I will gain insight into the wisdom being offered to me from the cast.

 

 

My interpretation of this 3 charm cast based on the meanings I have attached to each charm would be:

What I bring forward  Entwined hearts- connected by love.

Message – A strong union of love to, and around me.

What I need to know  Horse – Freedom without restraints / Jumping over hurdles.

Message – The ability to over come a challenge that will feel freeing.

What will effect my future Glasses / Spectacles – Seeing clearly. A need to focus or see the truth.

Message – The need to be able to focus and see issues clearly through my personal truth is needed going forward.

 

 

This is a very simple way to cast – three questions, three charms. Another, more intricate cast would be to reach into the bag and randomly grab a handful of charms and toss (cast) them over the spread. Depending on where the charms land could be interpreted by stringing individual meanings together to form stories that allow for deeper understanding of the message presented.

 

 

The interpretation of this cast is a story for another time and was just pictured for illustration purposes but you are welcome to attribute your own meanings to the charms cast in the picture and create a reading for yourself.

I will say that many things could be taken into account when reading a cast such as this. Where charms land makes as much a part of the divination as what charm landed where. The choice could also be made to only read the charms that fall within or touch the circles and ignore the charms scatter above and below. Or you could choose to consider them as energies hovering or congregating outside your area of influence that may or may not be factors to your cast. The more you choose to read into the cast, the deeper the divination message.

I hope you found that the art of charm casting perked your curiosity and that you begin to look at the little found objects lying in your junk drawers and catch all baskets in your home with a new set of eyes. Or at the very least, that you will attach new and deeper meanings to the talismans and amulets that you may wear daily, but give little thought to. Humans have attributed magical and spiritual meanings to objects since time began. What charms do you believe in?

Charm casting is nothing more than creating an organized inventory of meanings to a grouping of little objects and then casting them to create a story of insight to help you gain understanding of the world around you. But when you include your intuition and offer faith and trust to the outcome of that message, then the universe will reward you with the magic of it’s unwavering connection to you and bless you with true wisdom – and isn’t that a charming thought.