Those pesky pentagrams & hexagrams: when and how to use them.

1. Invoking & Banishing Stars

Where invoking &
banishing figures
come from

The forces governed

Why and when to
use them

How to do them.

2. Babylon

Edges of the pentagram probably orientations:
forward, backward, left, right, and "above"

Astrologically represent the five planets
Marduk (Jupiter), Ishtar (Venus), Ninurta
(Saturn), Nabu (Mercury), and Nergal (Mars)

Together with Shamash (Sun) and Sin (Moon)
these give sus the days of the week

3. Pythagorean Elements

elemental attributions

on the cavities rather
than the points

udor/water, ge/earth,
idea/Platonic Idea,
eile/heat, & aer/air

UGIEIA · HEALTH
(often rendered Hygieia)

4. Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa

Continues popularity
of pentagram as a
magic symbol

Kept Babylonian
planetary rulers

Arranged in day of
the week order

5. Eliphaz Levi

First to declare upright pentagram "good"
while inverted "bad", illustrating with an upright
pentagram of Microcosmic Man beside an
inverted pentagram of Baphomet

Largely through occultists inspired by him that
Lévi is remembered as a key founder of the
twentieth century revival of magic

Major influence on the magical theories of the
Golden Dawn

6. Golden Dawn

Did much to advance and disseminate roots of
modern hermetic Qabala globally (1888– late
30's)

Took symbolism of pentagram & its elemental
attributes and incorporated them as ritual
flourishes to symbolise & focus invoking or
banishing of elements

Same with hexagram, producing rituals to
symbolise & focus invoking or banishing of
planetary forces &, by extension, zodiac

7. Practical Application

Raising the plane of a Circle (banish Earth,
then invoke element required, opposite to
dismiss)

Creating a “comfy chair” for a visiting spirit

Open 'window' in center of figure to spill that
energy into/onto a prepared object or space

Planetary & zodiac energies are enhanced by
invoking towards current location in sky

8. The Pentagrams

9. ✭ Notes:

In GD system, all invoking pentagrams drawn
towards the point corr. to that element; all
banishing pentagrams away from that point

Active elements (Fire/Air) preceded by Active
Pent. up from R. foot to invoke, towards it to
banish; Passives (Earth/Water), up from L.
foot to invoke, towards it to banish, then
Elemental pent.

Suggest hex procedure instead (clockwise
from the point to invoke; anticlockwise away
from that point to banish)

10. The Hexagrams

11. ✲ Notes:

In GD system, all invoking hexagrams drawn
clockwise from the point corr. to the planet; all
banishing hexagrams anticlockwise away from
that point

Drawn as 2 triangles, first For Active elements
(Fire or Air), first draw an Active Pent. up from
the R. foot to invoke, towards it to banish

Passive elements (Earth or Water) start with a
Passive Pent. up from the L. foot to invoke,
towards it to banish

Then draw the Elemental pentagram

12. Things to Remember
• Start at point representing force you
wish to influence
• Proceed clockwise to invoke,
anticlockwise to banish
• Explode Sun from center to invoke,
implode to center to banish
• Trace sigil of the force in center of
completed figure