Sigil Witchery: A Witchs Guide to Crafting Magick Symbols by Laura Tempest Zakroff

Sigil Witchery: A Witchs Guide to Crafting Magick Symbols Reviews

• 
  Yvonne Aburrow

  I remember the thrill I got when I first saw Laura Tempest Zakroff's blogpost where she released the Power Sigil into the wild. I get a similar buzz when she posts a sigil from a workshop on her Instagram page. So I was very excited when I saw that she had written a book about sigil crafting.

There seems to be a very welcome trend towards writing in-depth guides to specific areas of magic. Llewellyn are publishing a series on the witch's tools, and Moon Books have published guides to specific types of magic.

The book is very attractive, with the Power Sigil on the cover, and I was excited to get my hands on it.
It starts with a thorough investigation of magical marks and signs in various cultures (and warns the reader away from cultural appropriation, which is excellent).
  
Then there's a section on various symbols that are commonly used in many different cultures: hearts, stars, circles, triangles, crescents, dots, and so on, along with some handy hints on how to draw them.
Next there's a section with some key concepts like community, inspiration, love, journeys, invoke, mirror, etc and you were invited to create symbols for each of them.
  
The process of creating a sigil in a ritual way is described, and how to activate and apply sigils in various ways (drawing, planting, anointing, tattoos, henna, embroidery, fabric paints, and more).
  
Then the author presents some exercises for sigil crafting, encouraging you to have a go at crafting sigil for some more complex ideas and situations. She then shows you her solutions to these. Finally she shares some of her beautiful sigils, paintings and artwork, followed by a helpful appendix of further reading and resources.
  
I particularly like the way that Laura stresses throughout the book that this is about your personal symbols, so there is no single correct answer.
  
I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone who is interested in magic and witchcraft. It's a unique system of magic developed by Laura, and the book is very well written and enjoyable to read. I guarantee you will be putting pen to paper and making sigils after you've engaged with this book.
• 
  CR

  This book was so informative and interesting! I enjoyed learning about sigil magick and the history behind it. And the author is such a beautiful artist...I just couldn't get over the pictures. I understood and could follow along very easily, so this book is wonderful for people who are interested and want to learn more about sigil magick.
• 
  ☘Misericordia☘ ⚡ϟ⚡⛈⚡☁ ❇️❤❣

  A very cool guide to imagery with deeper meaning.
• 
  Joanne

  I've been interested in using sigils in my craft for a while now, but I didn't much like the more common way of creating them. They just never looked great to me, and I didn't really enjoy the process of creating them. In response to the way Black Lives Matter protestors were being treated after the murder of George Floyd, Laura Tempest Zakroff shared a number of sigils on Instagram created in her workshops that could be used in spellwork to protect those who were protesting, and for the dissolution of hate. Using them in my own spellwork, I realised these were the kind of sigils I imagined when I thought "magical symbol", and when I realised Tempest Zakroff had written Sigil Witchery, I snapped it up.
  
  Sigil Witchery is absolutely fantastic! The heart of this book is Tempest Zakroff sharing with us her method of creating sigils. Instead of the chaos magic style of creating sigils which I'd tried and didn't like - writing out your intention, crossing out vowels and repeated consonants, and using the shapes of the remaining letters to create a sigil - Tempest Zaroff's method is rooted in the marks and symbols the humans have been using to communicate since the dawn of civilisation. The whole first chapter is absolutely fascinating, taking us through history and the various marks and symbols our ancestors used, how they evolved, how they would have different meaning to those in different parts of the world, and so much more. I have to say, my initial attraction to Tempest Zakroff's sigils was aesthetics, but the idea of creating sigils using the marks that meant something, both mundane and sacred, to our ancestors really appeals to me. They're just so steeped in history, which to me just adds more power to them.
  
  And the rest of the book goes into just as much depth. Tempest Zakroff talks us through all the different marks and symbols, and what they mean to her, but with space for readers to write down notes on what those symbols mean to them, our own associations and ideas. Following on from this is a chart with common words used in intentions where we are to create symbols for those words ourselves. So we have Tempest Zakroff's and our own basic meanings of symbols and marks, and then our own base to jump forward from with these list of symbols for specific words that are unique to us that we can incorporate into our own sigils. I love how nothing is set in stone, and how the emphasis is on our own sigil making.
  
  But there's also so much more! Tempest Zakroff talks us through application and acknowledgement of our sigils, and suggestions of various ways we apply and acknowledge them. Application refers to actually using the sigil; you've created the sigil, but now the sigil has to be used in some way to work it's magic. There are so many suggestions - with reasons why certain suggestions might work better for specific intentions than others - like drawing them on the bottom of your shoes or on the bottom of a chair, sewing them into clothes, planting seeds in the shape of the sigil, and so many more. Acknowledgement refers to activiating the sigil over time, if necessary, which can simply be having it in your eye-line, tracing the sigil with your eyes or finger, anointing them on skin, or ingesting them, through drawing the sigil into food or tea with a spoon, among so many more. And then there's a whole chapter on how to design your sigil, with suggestions of art supplies the reader may with to use in designing their sigils.
  
  There are even exercises towards the end with a number of scenarios where people are requesting sigils made for specific reasons, and we're encouraged to work through those scenarios and create those sigils before looking at Tempest Zakroff's own solutions, where she explains what she focused on in the scenario, and how she translated those elements into particular symbols, and then created the sigil from them. But she emphasises how there is no right or wrong - your sigils will probably look different to hers, but they will, and they ought to. It's about using the knowledge you have to start actually creating those sigils, feeling confident in the process and your ability, to create your own in your magical practice.
  
  Sigil Witchery is just brilliant. For it's length and how much information we're given and the details Tempest Zakroff goes into, it's quite a quick read, meaning it won't take too long until you're creating powerful, beautiful sigils full of history and intent. It's such a fantastic guide! And I loved Tempest Zakroff's voice so much, I'm really eager to buy her Weave the Liminal, her latest book which goes into Modern Traditional Witchcraft, her own practice which she touches on in Sigil Witchery. It sounds right up my street, and if it's written anything like Sigil Witchery, it's going to be engrossing.
  
  If working with sigils is something that you're interested in, I'd highly recommend Sigil Witchery as a different method of designing and creating magical symbols full of history and power.
• 
  Liv

  What a wonderful writer, artist and person. The author writes in a friendly, accessible and deeply wise way. The exercises encourage your creativity and show how easy crafting meaningful sigils can be.
• 
  Phoenix

  Between 4 and 4.5 stars.
  
  Lots of great tips and background knowledge to help any practitioner or even just someone curious about how sigils work. I appreciated that Zakroff foregrounded the practical exercises of sigil witchery with statements about how people shouldn't culturally appropriate symbols into their sigil designs. This is a solid resource and I'm happy it's a part of my personal library.
• 
  Lora Milton

  This is a book about sigil magic, something that has roots in a spectrum of ancient cultural esoterica but became popular with the rise of chaos magick in the 1970s. The book starts with a general explanation and some history of some of the systems where sigil magick began. It then continues with a full chapter on pictorial art from cave paintings to symbols used by secret societies, hitting a few little known facts but missing out obvious things like Runes, which is later explained.
  
  I have mixed feelings about this book. As a book about art and how to apply drawing techniques for interesting looks for sigils, it excels. On magic... not so much. I have no doubt that the author's spells would work for her, but the explanations of how sigil magic works falls short and in some instances contradicts safety information I've read from more experienced and trusted authors on the subject.
  
  I noted that an early reference to the method used in chaos magic(k) gave me the impression that it had been taken from a couple of variations that might have come from Internet forums and thought the author could benefit from reading the book by Austin Spare where that particular method originated, then later she talks about having read that very book and suggests it's difficult to follow.
  
  She also never mentions anything about charging the sigils, which is an important step in the process. For people new to sigil magic, I'd suggest people start at the known authors; Spare, Carroll, Hawkins and possibly Hine.
  
  I think this book would be a good resource for someone who already has a working knowledge of sigil magic and is looking to expand on the artistic possibilities. Her information on art materials was excellent and it's clear she knows her stuff on that. This would be a good supplement for visual appeal and some alternative approaches, plus some I've read about elsewhere like motion sigils get more attention here than in the earliest sources.
  
• 
  Alan D.D.

  FULL REVIEW TO BE PUBLISHED
  I’ve seen so many books in the market that fill the description about introducing the reader to the subject of magic, divination, paganism and so on that I seriously thought there was a lack of interest and creativity in all of the content people were writing about, that everything was just being discussed with little novelty, if any.
  Then only one thing I didn’t enjoy that much were the pages specifying which materials the authors uses when working with symbols and sigils, which were only for those interested in traditional art. There were some valuable glimpses of information now and then, but in general terms it slowed down my reading process as I’m not that specific public.
  In the end, “Sigil Witchery: A Witch's Guide to Crafting Magick Symbols” proves to be a great addition for actually any witch’s personal library and a great guide for those who just discovered sigil magic. It has certainly opened a whole new chance for me.
• 
  Ella Rose Brunton

  First I'd like to thank net galley for supplying a copy of the book in exchange for a review.
  
  I loved this book. It was so informative and interesting and exactly what I needed.
  I loved how it started off with a look at the history of art and symbols.
  
  This book was about sigil magick. The author begins with a history of symbols, from cave drawings to various others. Then the author explains her method. It's not the chaos method, the idea of removing all the vowels and repeated letters to make a sigil, she uses symbolism instead. The instructions in the book were clear and encouraging. The author is a beautiful artist as well.
  
  I think Laura explains her reasonings very well. I understood everything she had to say.
  
  If you're interested in sigil magick, read this book. So insightful.
  
  You can also read this review on my blog:
  https://innerwitchwoman.blogspot.co.nz/
• 
  Kay

  This was a really excellent dive into sigil craft. I appreciate that Zakroff addresses cultural appropriation. Her tone is approachable and this is an easy to read book. I also really like the sigil exercises she gives at the end of the book, to help you practice creating sigils.
  
  Full disclosure: I've briefly met the author and found her to be a delight, but bought the book myself and was not paid/compensated in any way for this review.
• 
  Storm Faerywolf

  With style, wisdom, and a generous dose of humor, artist and author Laura Tempest Zakroff offers us a new look at an ancient magical practice: the creation and use of sigils, as well as modern tools to take this practice to the next level. From the historical and ritual use of symbols, signs, seals, and marks to the creative process itself, including tools and artistic techniques, Sigil Witchery makes an impressive contribution to a traditional body of occult knowledge.
• 
  Reiyn Machine

  Very disappointed by this book and felt shortchanged. So so basic, couldn't recommend this to anyone but an absolute beginner. A lot of filler after chapters on what is seemingly art history. Very little magick to be found in this book.
• 
  Ashley (Red-Haired Ash Reads)

  A great introduction to sigils and how to create your own. I am really looking forward to use Zakroff's teachings to further my craft with sigils.
• 
  Christina

  This is a well-written primer on sigils. Ms. Zakroff begins with a history of art, meaning wedded to shapes, intent created into form. The writing is lucid, concepts understandable, the art supplies suggestions and possibilities for manifesting sigils bold, creative, and varied. Sigil Witchery has me excited to apply what I learned from it.
• 
  Lisa Kuhn

  Accessible for Beginners
  
  I really enjoyed this book quite a bit...okay fine, I love it! The author explains the history of symbolism and spirituality in art across cultures, which helps pay a sturdy foundation for creating your own sigils. I always appreciate and respect practitioners who encourage research and give resources and recommendations. I intend to check out some of the sources listed at the end of the book.
• 
  Katie

  4.5
• 
  K.S. Thompson

  This book covers the history of our need to communicate and connect through symbols, from cave paintings to graffiti. It explores the common thread that runs through them all, connecting the proverbial (and literal) dots. The detailed information on the history of the symbols is paramount to understanding the power behind the sigils you will create. The section entitled "Getting over getting it wrong" frees you up to explore and create your own symbol library to further empower your sacred work. I have long told myself that I "can't" draw but Laura teaches all of us that we CAN draw and that it's a creative outlet that will serve us well if we are brave enough to simply TRY.
  
  This is a book that I know I will refer to time and time again. If you are considering adding a copy to your own library, I can assure you it is well worth the investment.
• 
  Stacy

  This book took me a long time to get through, which is wonderful. Laura Tempest Zakroff has explained the way she creates sigils and I'm in love. You won't find ancient languages, odd number glyphs, or runes (unless you want those). She delivers a straight-forward intuitive method of creating sigils that resonate with you, using symbols that are meaning to you. Her combination of left-brain/right-brain wholeness is a delight, and I've already been inspired to craft several sigils of my own for my own workings. Do they make sense to anyone else? Who cares! They're mine and they are meaningful to me.
  
  This book contains a chunky section of common symbols and what they could mean (everything from dots to polygons to spoons!), and also delivers some typical associations for elements, directions, numbers, and colors. But Zakroff always emphasizes that you do you, boo. You use what works for you, add what already resonates, and create your own sigils.
  
  This book also contains several pages of words for you to add your own symbols that resonate for you on those words. This is is honestly the part that took the longest for me, because some of these concepts are (a) ones that I knew immediately what I wanted, (b) ones that I had a few symbols [so they all went in], or (c) ones that I really don't think about, so I really needed to ponder.
  
  AND THAT'S ALL OKAY!!
  
  I love this book, and highly recommend it to anyone who has never been truly "won over" by runes or other types of sigil craft because all those lines and numbers and whatever just did not resonate with you at your core. These might. They did for me.
• 
  Heidi

  My main complaint about this book is that it's very basic. That could be an upside if you are not familiar with the concept of sigil work and don't consider yourself artistic (or even a doodler!) I would say that the author makes the concepts extremely accessible.
  
  If you know what a sigil is, and have a general idea of how others create them, this is probably not the book for you. You might be better off reading about histories of symbols, or even just diving in to work with symbols you already feel well acquainted with.
• 
  The Starry Library

  Sigil Witchery explores sigil magick all the way from the past such as heiroglyphics, up to the modern day present with graffitti. This book is different in that it does not show you how to make a traditional sigil using a kabbalah numbers grid. It would have been helpful to show how to make a traditional sigil rather than simply mention it and move on. The instructions on how to make a sigil were based on modern magick and witchy sovereignty. A discussion on why certain symbols were sacred to certain peoples were mentioned in many chapters which was a prelude to finding one’s own symbolic significance.
  
  Personally, I wished a more methodical approach to sigil witchery was the focus of this book, as opposed to just making your own sigil without any specific system. There was a recurring theme of playing around with shapes and designs that does require a certain level of artistry in my opinion. Not only does this turn away a large audience, but for those looking for a more ritualistic and traditional approach to sigil magick, this book would not be satisfactory.
  
  My advice to the author would be to devote some time to explaining traditional sigil magick in order to lay the proper foundation for readers.
• 
  Rebecca Mazzarella

  Link alla recensione completa:
  https://www.lunaticamente.com/witchy/...
  
  I concetti che spiega non sono affatto difficili o complesse e l'inglese è alla portata di tutti, credetemi io sono pessima con i libri in lingua ma questo me lo sono praticamente divorato.
  Una sezione molto interessante è quella in cui associa i simboli ai significati: dai numeri alle lettere, dal punto fino alla freccia, dal cuore alla bilancia e così via...
  Un sacco di simboli e significati che mette a disposizione per far si che anche noi possiamo disegnare i nostri sigilli, premettendo sempre una cosa però: questi sono suoi significati MA DOBBIAMO SEMPRE ASCOLTARE COSA CI DICE IL NOSTRO ISTINTO.
  Io conoscevo solo un metodo per creare sigilli (volevo parlarvene in un post a parte) e l'ho praticato per molto tempo e prima di comprare questo libro ero arrivata ad un punto che non mi soddisfaceva più molto.
  Il suo metodo è più completo a mio parere e allo stesso tempo semplice da usare.
  Vi consiglio questo libro dal cuore e CREDETE SEMPRE IN VOI STESSI!
  
  Voi lo avete letto?
  Buona giornata Lunatici!
  Rebecca
• 
  Akiva Ѯ

  Well done, just not exactly my jam. Still, Zakroff made it intriguing enough that I had to pick this up, and it's a fast, interesting read. The parts I knew (lots of good tips for beginner and very self-conscious, anxious artists) or found annoying were easy to skim or skip, thanks to the headers and not-overly-wordy writing. I ended up with several pages of notes on the things that did pique my interest, and wound up trying some of the exercises (yesgood, everyone should include exercises). I don't see myself practicing anything resembling the sigil magic in this book or that I've seen on the internet, but I will keep playing with the ideas that appealed to me.
  
  Points for the history section with a survey of different applications for sigils/symbols, complete with gentle reminders not to appropriate and lots of citations. Some of those points are lost for misspelling *and* mistranslating segulah (final mem instead of samech; d'oh!), which raises questions about the rest of the section.
• 
  Amanda"Iris"

  A short book that is like a survey of different ways of approaching sigil making, effective and inspiring. I really appreciate the emphasis on understanding one's own personal symbolism.
  
  It's too bad that's the author didn't really acknowledge Austin Osman Spare and the influence of Chaos Magic until the very end in the form of a recommended reading list. There is a lot of history behind the use of sigils in even contemporary, too much to contain in just one book.
  
  This book also focused more on the creating of the symbol, which may be lackluster to people looking for more *magic* , ritual, ceremony etc.
  
  My criticisms have to do with particular kinds of tone in the book. I do recommend it, but this is really a "first step" kind of book, and doesn't contain anything that you can't find for free on the internet. I would have preferred to purchase a copy of the author's live presentation. I bet it was inspiring! The tone would have been much more appropriate for a talk than for this book.
• 
  Juli Anna

  I do not generally read spiritual books that are as narrowly focused as this one, and I thought this might have limited applicability for me. But I was pleasantly surprised! Zakroff's techniques are general enough to apply to many different practices and I can even see trying out my hand at sigils in my own practices. One thing of note is that I did find Zakroff's stance on cultural appropriation to be a bit ambiguous at times; most of the time, it seemed like she was discouraging her readers from picking and choosing symbols systems from other cultures without serious thought, but there were some points where I thought she was a little lax about this. Personally, I feel that writers are better off showing a firm hand on this topic. However, I really enjoyed reading her perspective and am excited to learn more about sigils through practical experience.
• 
  Emm

  A well-written, modern, and artistic approach to sigil creation. There are a lot of aspects of the Austin Osman Spare technique that appeals to my dominating left brain. However, the artistic approach to sigil making as outlined here will definitely have its uses. I foresee a mishmash of both techniques likely becoming my own personal approach to sigil making. In fact, the line of thinking behind that very sentence can be attributed to part of what I took away from reading Sigil Witchery. Zakroff has helped me to realize that I can blur the lines and let go of the rigidity my mind had associated with sigil creation. The hangups I had with certain portions of the AOS technique are resolved in Zakroff’s technique.
• 
  Helen Griffus

  In the past, I've used Bind Runes and a Witch's Wheel to create my own sigils, but recently I've been thinking about developing my own to see if I would get different magickal results. I don't consider myself artistic in any way, but I have to say that I really like Laura's approach to sigil making. After reading the book, I feel like I can make sigils using the steps outlined in the book and I love that there was plenty of space for notes and doodling. It's a very hands on experience and my confidence is ready and in place to give it all a go!
  I highly recommend this book for anyone at any level of the Craft or drawing abilities and I would even suggest sitting in on a workshop with Laura if given the chance. I'm hoping that she will come back to ConVocation soon so I can!
• 
  Laura

  I like so much about this book. Accessible, approachable (even for those of us who would say we're awful at drawing), written in a friendly + supportive voice that feels like a friend teaching you something over coffee. I liked the different activities, the inclusion of lots of examples and practice sigils to make, and a good 'further reading' section, and as someone who's never been a visual artist the guide to buying pencils and pens was very helpful. I appreciate that the author is inclusive in her examples, and addresses cultural appropriation. My only critique of the physical book itself is that I feel like there is a LOT of blank paper (and not blank paper for drawing in, just space that could've been used more efficiently for the sake of saving paper).
• 
  El W. (readinthewillows)

  Practical & Inspiring
  
  I loved the progression of this book from historical context, to the artists methods, to tips for you to get started, and especially the exercises in thinking through sigils and purpose. When I have created sigils in the past, I have gone with what came to me, and found deeper meaning later. This book helped me find my footing in the why of my own thought process, and build on that. I also loved the look at Zakroff's more detailed work. I would love to attend a seminar or panel with her in the future. I recommend this book to any witch, advanced or beginner, even it you have been making sigils for a while, as her approach is unique and the more perspective the better in our Path!