The power of the wand: channel your intentions

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WHAT IS A WAND?

In the magickal realm of Witchcraft, a wand is a tool for channeling, directing, and focusing one’s magick. In certain paths, the wand represents masculine energy because of its phallic makeup.

WHAT ARE SOME COMMON THINGS WANDS ARE USED FOR?

Outside of the general use of channeling, directing, and focusing energy, wands are used for a myriad of tasks. Some of these tasks are as follows:

-Casting a circle for spellwork and rituals
-Intention writing by tracing words in the air to spell out your desires
-Charging other tools or spell ingredients with your energy via the wand
-Crystal grid activation
-Representation of the Air or Fire elements
-Representation of masculine energy

WHAT DOES A WAND LOOK LIKE?

When the word ‘wand’ is said, it typically conjures up images of a long, thin, wooden stick with a pointed end. While this is the norm, wands can also be made of other materials like crystals or metals and also vary in length.

WAND WOOD MAGICKAL PROPERTIES

This is a pretty comprehensive list featuring common (and not so common) woods used to create wands.

Alder | Alnus rubra

Alder trees correspond with strength, courage, protection, determination, and spirit communication. It is known as the ‘Tree of Fire’ while simultaneously aligning with the element of Water. Also known as the ‘King of Woods’

Almond | Prunus communis

Almond trees align with the magickal properties of prosperity and fertility. As far as wands go, almond wood makes for wonderful divinatory magick in addition to protection from the Evil Eye in particular.

Apple | Pyrus malus

Wood from an apple tree magickally corresponds to ancient wisdom, healing, strength, love, fertility, abundance, beauty, and eternal youth. Apple trees are also associated with the goddess Iðunn.

Ash | Fraxinus spp.

Wands made from ash make excellent all-around tools. This is due to its ability to amplify most types of magick and the capacity to ward against malicious spells.

Bamboo | Bambusa vulgaris

Magickal correspondence of bamboo wood include most notably luck, as well as prosperity, strength, stability, and protection.

Beech | Fagus

Wands made from beech wood are associated with creativity, imagination, and the ability to grant wishes.

Birch | Betula

Birch trees correspond with quite a few magickal properties. These include cleansing, grounding, inspiration, rebirth, fertility, and protection.

Cedar | Cedrus libani

Cedar wood brings with it the magickal properties of cleansing, consecration, healing, money, love, wisdom, purification, longevity, and prosperity. This powerful tree also has the ability to assist in dreamwork and astral travel. Protection from malevolent forces is also within this wood’s capabilities.

Chestnut | Castanea

Wands made from chestnut wood bring success, healing, love, and prosperity.

Cherry | Prunus avium

Cherry wood is grounding by nature. It is wonderful for wands meant for healing, love, and divination magick. Other magickal correspondences include creativity, prosperity, and passion.

Elder | Sambucus nigra

To begin, it is believed that an elder tree is sacred and should never be burned or cut. However, Olde English lore dictates that if your intentions are to cut from one, you must be granted permission by the elder tree’s spirit by reciting the following:

‘Old woman, old woman
Give me some of your wood
And I will give you some of mine
When I grow into a tree’

Aligning with the beliefs surrounding elder trees, wands should only be made from its fallen wood. Other certainties include:

-This type of tree provides protection from malicious entities
-Healing powers are granted to whomever possesses a wand made from its wood
-Lightning will never strike an elder tree, so those with this type of wand can summon storms
-Elder wands have regeneration capabilities
-The Fae is very fond of elder wood
-Elder trees are thought to be home to the “Elder Mother”
-Other magickal correspondences are exorcism, banishing, spirit communication, wisdom, healing, and prosperity

Elm | Ulmus spp.

Folklore suggests that elm wood was the choice of medieval practitioners to construct their wands. It is another kind of tree impervious to lightning strikes. Elm wood offers the magickal properties of love, protection, healing, fostering connections with nature, and transformation.

Eucalyptus | Eucalyptus

This wood boasts properties meant for exorcisms, purification rites, cleansing, and healing.

Gorse | Ulex

The magickal properties of gorse wood include love and romance — specifically for work concerned with advancing a consensual platonic relationship to that of a romantic once. Gorse wands also possess strong protective qualities meant for defending against dark and evil entities.

Hawthorn | Crataegus

Sacred to the Fae, wands made of hawthorn wood possess great power and is associated with happiness, fertility, protection, and defensive properties.

Hazel | Corylus avellana

Those seeking to cast nature-based spellwork would do well to have a wand made from hazel wood. This type of wood aligns magickally with the properties of wisdom, knowledge, protection, divination, psychic work, clarity, water magick, and nature magick. Hazel wood makes another great all-around wand.

Holly | Ilex

Wands made from holly wood brandish qualities of peace, strength, courage, protection, and luck. It is related to the waning half of the year in relation to the Holly King. It is said to have the strongest protective traits of every wood.

Hornbeam | Carpinus

Said to be ‘as hard as a horn’ hornbeam wood is exceptionally lucky. As such, those who use this wood for their wand will also be exceptionally lucky. Other magickal properties include good fortune, strength, protection, spiritual love, and prosperity.

Larch | Larix

Wands made from this strong wood protect against malicious charms and enchantments, as well as the Evil Eye.

Lilac | Syringa

The lilac tree is ruled by Venus and therefore is associated with love, beauty, balance, and harmony. Wands made from this wood are also adept at exorcisms and driving away evil.

Linden | Tilia

Strongly connected with healing and medicine, wood from the linden tree also lends qualities associated with justice. It is an ideal wood for all positive magickal workings.

Maple | Acer spp.

A tree of love, harmony, prosperity, and peace qualities, maple wood also brings energetic balance. Popular for wands, it also aids in awakening creativity and intuition. Maple wood also aligns with beauty, abundance, power, strength, vitality, communication, learning, and travel.

Oak | Quercus robur

Oak wands are meant for strength, endurance, protection, luck, potency, fertility, money, insight, healing, wisdom, and truth. Deity-based magickal endeavors also fall within the realm of oak wood. This is another great all-around wood for wands.

Pine | Pinus

Pine wood crafts excellent wands, especially those meant for protection, prosperity, purification, and creativity. Pine wands are wonderful for all-around magickal pursuits.

Rosewood | Dalbergia sissoo

If it’s true and lasting love you’re after, rose wood is a phenomenal choice to craft your wand with. Other correspondences include compassion, knowledge, psychic powers, divination, healing love, fertility, protection of loved ones, and of course, love spells.

Rowan | Sorbus aucuparia

Also known as mountain ash, wands made from its wood do their best work in protection, divination, psychic powers, and healing. Also called the Witch Tree, rowan is sacred to the Fae and in many cultures is protected from being burned or cut down.

Silver Birch | Betula pendula

Materials garnered from this tree were traditionally used in a Witch’s Besom. Wood from the silver birch represents new beginnings and fertility. Also called ‘Lady of the Woods’ wands made from the silver birch harbor cleansing and purification properties.

Walnut | Juglans regia

Wands made of walnut wood are best for fertility work, prosperity spells, and those seeking to awaken their intuition. Walnut wood also makes for great material in initiation rites.

Willow | Salix alba

Willow wands align with magick in association with the Goddess, the moon, love, healing, divination, grief, protection from disease, and strength.

Yew | Taxus baccata

Wands made of wood from the yew tree are best for complex magick. It’s also associated with the magickal properties of longevity, ancestral work, spirit communication, and that of life and death.

TO MAKE OR BUY

I believe in making anything you can in your Craft. When we make our tools we imbue them with our energy and our auric footprint. This creates and strengthens a bond between practitioner and instrument. Having said this, there is absolutely no shame in buying tools for your practice.