Amulets by Merlin's Blog

Tripple Goddess Statue

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on July 24, 2014

Posted in: Celtic Lore, Sculpture. Tagged: Amulets by Merlin, CroneX Crone Statue, Healer statue, Neo-Pagan Sculpture, Pagan Sculpture, Sculpture, Tripple Goddess Statue, Warrior Healer Crone, Warrior statue, Wiccan Sculpture, youthful spirit. Leave a comment

Warrior Healer Crone statue

The Warrior embodies the youthful spirit of the Maiden taken to twenty first century.
Women are now entering the world with an aspect of personal power,
of the assurance of success in the development of their dreams into reality.
She holds the staff the may be used to combat that which opposes her,
but also it may guide others,
pointing the way to their own destiny.
She is clothed in fire and her hair is braided to remove distraction from her goals.

The Healer holds the medicine bowl,
making the remedy that will cure illness
and strengthen those in her care.
She may be embraced as the Mother aspect,
yet many choose to nurse more that their children,
indeed cure the world of its pain both physical and otherwise.
Her hair is down to enfold and protect her work
and she is clothed in the herbs and vines
from which she draws the source of her medicine.

The Crone is the wise one, the keeper of knowledge and wisdom.
Within her she holds the understanding and experience of previous two incarnations
and offers the lore of the previous eons.
She speaks her words to those wise enough to hear.
Clothed in spider webs,
the ancient creatures that weave and spin their webs
just as the Crone weaves her stories and parables.
Her scroll in her hands holds the knowledge
of those that have come before her.

These three aspects of Woman are merged as one being,
just as every woman holds the potential of all of these manifestations.
Their hair is braided together illustrating their interwoven
and inseparable manifestation: the Goddess in every Woman.

The original sculpture of Warrior Healer Crone
was cast in bronze and is seven inches tall;
currently in private collection.

Copies now available

Knotted Penannular Brooch

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on July 23, 2014

Posted in: Brooches, Celtic Jewelry, Celtic Knot Jewelry, Cloak Clasps. Tagged: Amulets by Merlin, Brooch, Kirk McLaren, Knotted Penannular Brooch, Knotted Penannular Brooch jewelry, Penannular, Penannular Brooch, renaissance period, SCA, the Society for Creative Anachronisms. Leave a comment

You must have seen these huge brooches on the kilts and sashes
in Braveheart and other Celtic movies.
These Celtic cloaking devices are the precursor to the safety pin;
quite ingenious technology for medieval period garb.
I was introduced to these pins
when I became associated with the Society for Creative Anachronisms.

The SCA holds gatherings both small and large,
each attempting to recreate an event
(whether a baronial birthday or an all out war)
with the most authentic gear possible.
This Society has developed a world wide movement of medievalist and renaissance period re-creators
will (at the drop of a hat) construct a Faire at the corner of a parking lot,
a duel in the commons or a Grand Ball in a local Grange.

Upon my first SCA Event,
I was requested to produce a Penannular not of the normal shape
but a piece that would fit into Medieval Scotland, and functional:
like the real ones! Hence, my first creation
was the Knot Work Penannular.
A free-form knot shaping the C part of the brooch
and the classic knotted spear for the pin head.

Knotted Penannular Brooch

Following the first Penannular Brooch,
I then developed other themes that were not period:
grapes, sea horses, stars and more.

I wanted to introduce the Penannular to folks who only attend a renaissance fare one a year (if ever),
thus I created a video that demonstrates the use of these Brooches
now posted in my website.
There you will see the Brooch in action as it is placed on a Plaid!

Penannulars may be used to clasp capes, cloaks and scarves.
The pins I place on the larger versions are stout:
designed for the heavy, loose woven fabric like wool.
I also make lighter versions for finer cloth: like jackets.
I have specially made Brooches for leather as well.
The smallest Penannulars are for very light pieces and shirts, skirts and the like.

Whether they are simple or ornate,
Penannulars make a great way to tack a loose scarf
or cover an emergency missing button,
making it look like you did it on purpose!

As always, if you want something specially made for you,
just ask,
I create everything in my site
and only too happy to create it for you.

Knotted Penannular Brooch for your cloak,

Other clasps and brooches my be seen at the
Brooch and Pin Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

The Love Amulet

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on July 22, 2014

Posted in: Amulets, Jewelry for the Deaf. Tagged: american sign for the deaf, American Sign Language, american sign language jewelry, American sign language pendant, Amulet, I love you amulet, I Love you Jewelry, Love Amulet, Love jewelry. Leave a comment

Some years ago I was introduced to a local diver who works in the ship yards.
It is grueling work,
diving into the port waters to scrub barnacles,
remove wire from propellers,
underwater welding and the like.
Because of his own hearing issues,
he has dedicated his spare time
to teach the American Sign Language for the Deaf.

I Love You Amulet

A pendant in shape of the American sign language for the deaf meaning “I Love You”

I met him at a local coffee shop
we got to talking about diving,
welding and such when I spoke about my work as a jeweler
he became very enthusiastic.
On the spot he commissioned the I Love You Amulet,
a heart shaped piece with a hand in the I Love You sign.
He then asked me to make copies for his Christmas gifts that year.

Each Yule he drops by my home to pick up another batch for his students.
He has encouraged me to include these amulets as a part of my line
in hope that if no other word in this language is learned,
the gesture of Love is noticed around the necks of people everywhere.

I Love You Amulet may be used as a Talisman,

Other amulets my be seen at the
Amulets Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Sun and Moon Amulet

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on July 21, 2014

Posted in: Amulets, Moon Jewelry, nature Jewelry. Tagged: Amulets by Merlin, Kirk McLaren, Moon Amulet, Moon Jewelry, Moon pendant, Sun Amulet, Sun and Moon Amulet, Sun and Moon jewelry, sun and Moon pendant, Sun Jewelry, sun pendant. Leave a comment

A combination of the solar and lunar influences
with a whimsical feel.

Sun and Moon Amulet

Mingling the ideas presented in the Tarot Series,
an amulet with highlights of the Sun and Moon Amulets:
The Sun refers to the “countenance”,
the persona one creates and projects in daily life;
the way we use masks to protect our selves and others.
Giving the Sun a face is a classic pictogram of its brilliant personality.

The Moon presents qualities of a more private reflection.
Dreams, visions and the vary path of life we travel.
The Moon is often referred to as the Feminine qualities;
however there is a conflict of opinion between the French and the German symbolism
but the Tarot references remain the same.

The two images combine in a fusion between the Lunar and Solar qualities we all hold.
As the sun shines forth,
the face looks directly at us
while the moon looks to the sun in mild amusement.

The Sun and Moon Amulet is chosen by those who endeavor
to balance their masculine and feminine natures,
to strengthen their abilities to visualize,
protect and follow through with their dreams and aspirations with humor and grace.

The Sun and Moon Amulet may be used as a Talisman,

Other Amulets my be seen at the
Amulets Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

It was in 1986 when I requested Russ McClay to create the cards
to accompany the Tarot Amulets.
I had written a series of verse to describe the individual Tarot Amulets:
still in the works.
I had already invested nearly ten years of study in the Tarot
and felt it was time to move forward with the project.

Prose Card
of
the High Priestess Amulet

I had Met Russ four years earlier at Corona Trucking.
After two years of grueling work
we found jobs where we worked for subcontractors at the post office;
our duties did not take every waking minute as it did with Corona.
Each day we met for our lunch break and spoke about our interests in philosophy,
religion and the state of current affairs.

Tarot Prose Card
The Empress

Russ McClay at that time was well known for his Calligraphy:
his work was prominently displayed in signage in the Newport and Huntington Beach area
of Orange County as well as framed works of art
and on various fliers distributed in the better known shops of the Southland.
In a time before desktop publishing,
his hand work out shown the shaky fingers of his contemporaries
and was the envy of those of us who wanted good calligraphic art.

With my offer of the sound montage: “Something Happening”,
he agreed to create the cards.
It was a monumental task that took months of pen to paper,
running down to the photocopier to reduce them down to the right size;
creating layouts and a host of other steps.
I frustrated him with my revisions and “improvements” as he,
with great patience and endurance of my own foibles
produced what I consider to be
some of the finest Calligraphy I have ever seen.

I still have the original printing of these cards
and include them with the purchase of The Tarot Amulets.

Merlin’s prose and McClay’s flowing penmanship.

The Tarot Amulets may be used as a Talisman
or it may be used as a part of a Three dimensional Tarot Deck
The Tarot Casters
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

In the classic image of the World Card:
A Skyclad Woman suspended in a field of stars,
dances with a veil facing away from us.

Like all the cards,
this refers to our perception of the universe rather
than the Universe itself.
Once we perceive beyond the veil of reality
we can begin to understand the mechanics of what it is we see.

The letter associated with this card is Tau:
the World:
terra firma,
the Material World.
On first examination we think we are seeing limitless space,
however that is but an illusion.
Ruled by Saturn,
a symbol of limitation,
this card represents all that we know:
information, knowledge, and hear-say;
limited by the constraints of time and space
and our ability to understand what we perceive.
So often when we look out at the universe we find our own image looking back,
reflections of ourselves in nature,
random patterns in the clouds and stars.
Each time we learn something
our universe expands into a larger manifestation.

Central to the expression of The Universe is the Dance.
In the classic expression of the Tarot we find the image of the Goddess dancing amidst the stars.
Gaia represents the embodiment of all life on Earth
as a single form of consciousness dancing the ever-evolving modes of being.
Her art is Life itself,
her pallet are the millions of forms of life across the land and sea.
Within the Tarot this image is expressed with a human form
because of our tendency to perceive our world around us
by what it is we already know.

Rhythm is of Gaia;
each beat is a heartbeat,
a turn of the tide or the change of the seasons.
Music of all kinds is associated with The Universe Card:
Rhythm, tone, song, symphony.
Rhythm’s manifestation permeates all things,
including ourselves.
Seeing the dance of creation is one thing,
to participate is quite another.
To make music is to participate in Gaia’s expression;
Dancing is embodying her movements,
her gestures.
To make the structured movements and sounds of our own written and choreographed art
is to participate in the rhythms of the seasons and tides.
To improvise is to participate with her Dance of Creation.

Universe Amulet
The World
Saturn
“Tau”

The Universe Amulet
presents a moderately veiled Gaia,
immersed in stars and planets.
The letter Tau is set in the middle of the amulet,
representing “The World”:
the material world covering her like a veil.
There is always a part of Her that is obscured:
the Unknown.
As our experience of the world around us expands,
so too does our awareness of it.
The more we perceive
the more we understand our limitation of perception.

The pendant is in the shape of the Fool Amulet:
an Egg;
distorted by our ever expanding awareness of what is beyond,
bulging where we find physical limitations.

The Universe Amulet
is for those that are explorers, scholars, students,
those who have taken on the quest of Life:
ever searching for meaning, the source, and themselves.
The Universe Amulet is for musicians, dancers, lovers of music and the arts;
those who push the envelope
unafraid of new experiences,
new ideas and a larger Universe.

The Universe Amulet may be used as a Talisman
or it may be used as a part of a Three dimensional Tarot Deck
The Tarot Casters
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Two coffins are floating in a sea of Fire,
two corpses are reanimated:
a man and a woman sit up and offer a baby to an Angel floating over them.

As the Fool is Elemental Air,
the Hanged Man is Elemental Water;
the Judgment Card is Elemental Fire.
The Element purifies, burns off the unnecessary parts of the Self.
Emotional turmoil, unneeded angst, prejudice, hate, fear, grudges and so on.
What is left is the Self in its pure state.

The Ego represented by the man,
sub consciousness by the woman; offers up their child:
the culmination of life’s experience, knowledge, wisdom and compassion.
The angelic figure above it is the Higher Self or the part of us that is eternal,
the vehicle of the Spirit.
Each part is an aspect of one’s being.
The Man (ego) is quiet while the Woman (subconscious) is much more active:
offering of the purified Self.

This Tarot Card is the Baptism of Fire.
Attributed to Shin,
the Hebrew letter interpenetrated as: Spirit,
Judgment represents the incinerating of unusable values,
habits, modes of expression and more.
Judgment represents the complete destruction of a way of life,
world views, opinions.
Many have thought of the Last Judgment from the book of Revelations from Christian Mythology
and rightly so.
The experience is terrible if you have a tendency
to cling to these things being taken from you.
This is sometimes referred to as The Dark Night of the Soul
where we face our self made demons and banish them.
The experience is one of burning, loss and at times regret as we try to hold on to the past.
Spirit is not all that concerned with the foibles of the flesh.
Desires of the body tend to start and stop with the glands,
Spirit is more concerned with the over all health of the entire being.

Unlike the book of Revelations,
this does not happen at the end of time rather this is a constant process:
perpetual intelligence.
Through out our lives we discover tools and other helpful aspects of the flesh,
however if we become too attached to these things,
eventually the Spirit grows weary of the weight of the fetish and begins push it away.
If we cling to the desire for dominance,
accumulation of wealth and other things that tend to drag us down,
the Spirit develops ways of ridding itself of these attachments.
If we allow the Spirit to continually evolve,
enjoy what is there and not be mesmerized by it,
then we will be surrounded by Glory and yet it will have no claim on us.
As Shin is at the core of this card, so too is one’s Spirit:
the driving force of this continual cleansing of one’ life.
Conflict is caused when the Ego clings to the parts being burned away.

In Judgment we learn the Tao.

Judgment Amulet
Baptismal Fire
Spirit
“Shin”

The Judgment Amulet
is the shape of the element of Fire, the triangle with the point up. Like the Lovers Amulet,
it is framed in wings with male and female shapes representing the Ego and the Unconscious Self.
The third shape is a Faceless Angel of the Higher Self:
the continence is blurred to represent its transcendence.
The Letter Shin is at the base of the amulet illustrating the source of cleansing.

The Judgment Amulet
is a potent symbol of Spiritual Cleansing.
People that would find this amulet useful in daily life would be Judges,
arbitrators, housekeepers, and maintenance crews, gardeners, any whose task it is to clear,
cleanse and renew environments, relationships and patterns of behavior.
The Judgment Amulet is a potent symbol of Spiritual Purification.
It may be worn by those that are going through upheaval in their lives,
watching their positions being discarded,
acquaintances being revealed as unhealthy and discarded;
all this and keeping balance,
knowing that this period on one’s life is to be harnessed as a positive and necessary thing.

Judgment Amulet
Baptismal Fire
Spirit
“Shin”

Remember the giant Sequoia:
The only way these great trees may survive as a species is for periodic fires to cleanse the land and stimulate their seeding.

Baptismal Fire

The Judgment Amulet may be used as a Talisman
or it may be used as a part of a Three dimensional Tarot Deck
The Tarot Casters
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

In the classic image of the Sun Card of the Tarot:
A small boy sits astride a horse.
Behind him is a row of Sunflowers before a wall;
beyond the wall is the Sun.
The Sun Card of the Tarot is ascribed to Resh:
Countenance,
the Face;
and the entire zodiac,
all of the sun signs,
all of the planets: Everything.
It is the center of the solar system from which we receive the need light,
heat, energy – everything comes from the Sun.
The Sun Card uses this metaphor to represent a direction of inquiry:
the source.
The process of learning itself:
knowing the Face of God.
The child astride a horse represents Innocence mounted an overwhelming power with ease.
To understand this card we must become as a child:
with the ability to perceive things
without the inhibitions we acquire through our lives.

Sun Amulet
Sun
Countenance
“Resh”

Sunflowers are an excellent example of the nature of The Sun Card.
The Sunflower tracks the Sun through out the day,
it even resembles the sun in its shape.
We have given it the name Sunflower because of its behavior and its appearance.
The wall separating the Sunflowers
and the Sun infers the needed buffer between what is and our ability to perceive it.
This tool is the persona:
the Mask.
When approaching a concept that is so vast as to overwhelm the observer,
then it is necessary to filter the flow of information.
We do this naturally
by associating these concepts with ideas already grasped.
It is akin to holding up a filter to see the Sun,
screening out the majority of radiation in order to observe sunspots.
When our minds turn to the Divine,
we use persona to interpret these beings:
Father, Mother, Brother and so on.
These masks are also used in identifying other people:
using these assumed labels to interpret another’s actions,
confused if we use the wrong one.

The Key is to be vigilant in our assigning of persona to each other
and the Powers That Be.
By keeping constant knowledge of the fact we associate everything around us
with known qualities,
we can be prepared for new information and associations
without allowing ourselves to be fooled by our own projections.
This Card reminds us that assumptions can be dangerous,
often costly;
the use of our own persona
can mislead others into assuming things about us that can be damaging.

The Sun Amulet is a sunburst,
on the surface it is the letter Resh,
the Face of the Godhead.

The Sun Amulet may be used
as a constant reminder and dedication to the Divine.
It can also be a reminder not to take things at face value,
there are always layers of assumption between us,
no matter how close we are to others.
This amulet would be good for Actors,
representatives, politicians, teachers
and others that interface with the public.

The Sun Amulet may be used as a Talisman
or it may be used as a part of a Three dimensional Tarot Deck
The Tarot Casters
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

In the classic image of the major Arcana’s
Moon Card we find:
A crayfish crawls from pool of water.
The Path extends past a wolf and a dog
past a stone wall
and continues into the mountains.
The Moon lights the path and from it tiny Yods descend,
lighting the way.

Like the crustacean,
our beginnings are very self-centered.
As small children we learn that we are not the center of the universe
we are on a journey of knowledge
and self discovery
where by we may begin to learn wisdom.
Our defenses are strong to protect the fragile ego within.
As we move onto the Path and grow out of our shells.

Moon Amulet
Pisces
back of the head
“Qoph”

Two canines stand on either side of the road:
the wolf representing our animal,
feral instincts:
desire for dominance,
comfort and so on
where as the dog represents out need
to be accepted by our culture and society.

By striking a balance between both
yet never giving control to either,
we stay true to ourselves,
understating and evolving beyond both.
We travel past the towers:
symbols of the limits of our human experience
and the path leads on beyond the distant hills,
beyond human experience.

The Moon rides in the sky,
sometimes waxing sometimes waning,
sometimes in the brilliant full light
giving us guidance on our path.
However even in the darkness of the New Moon,
we are still on our Spiritual Path
learning all the while
the lessons needed to grow and develop.
The descending Yods are like a rain of blessings,
not always pleasant
but consistently enlightening.

The letter associated with The Moon is Qoph:
back of the head.
This is referring to several things at once:
The Sun Card
is often referred to as the Continence,
thus Qoph is representing the anterior of the Sun.
Qoph’s light is but a reflection of it’s light source.
This also speaks to one of the many aspects of sleep:
a reflection of reality’s qualities.

Pisces is attributed to The Moon:
a changeable Water sign, always in flux.
Like Pisces, The Moon Card
is in constant turmoil,
hardship and challenges wait at every turn.
In the Classic definition of Good Karma,
it is not a life’s path of calm waters and blue skies,
it is a life of challenges,
opportunities offered,
conflict to over come and painful lessons to be understood.
Much like the Chinese blessing:
May you live in Interesting times,
The Moon Card reminds us that balance in experience is nourishing to the soul.

The Moon Amulet is the Moon Itself,
obscured by cloud:
evident that it is there,
yet veiled in a way to keep its mystery:
our life’s path may at times be uncertain,
yet each time new experiences arise we have the opportunity to gain a better understanding.
A Qoph is centered in the amulet:
recalling both Visions and Dreams.

The Moon Amulet is for those
who have realized their Life’s Path
and have committed themselves to walk their talk.
Although not an advertisement for being a Spiritual Leader,
one teaches by example,
treats others with the respect due them
and learns from children as well as their Elders of community.
This is a good amulet for councilors,
advisers, leaders and solitaries.

The Moon Amulet may be used as a Talisman
or it may be used as a part of a Three dimensional Tarot Deck
The Tarot Casters
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

A Sky-Clad Woman kneels before a pool
and pours water from two containers
creating little streams that merge and flow into the pool.
Above the figure we see a cluster of stars
with a single brighter beacon of light.
Behind her is a tree and in it an Ibis.

Star Amulet
Aquarius
fish hook
“Tzaddi”

Nudity in the Tarot represents Truth Exposed
and has little to do with sexuality.
When the figures are clothed,
it refers to things unrevealed
whether we are not able to understand them
because of our position
or that we are simply not yet evolved
to understand it at all.
The Tree in the background
has two fold meanings:
it is the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life.
The former is a reference to the choices we make
whether we are to live out lives with good or ill intent,
the results are obvious:
the Intent is the Key.
The Tree of Life is a glyph that represents the entire universe
whether it has manifest or not.
It is the symbol that helps us understand the Tarot
and it interrelationships and correspondences.

The Ibis is a bird associated with the Egyptian god Thoth:
the god of Communication (among other things)
representing the importance of understanding and communication,
tools on the path of perfection.

In the Tarot,
water is the symbol of consciousness.
As the liquid assumes the shapes of these containers
they tend to take on their characteristics.
When poured again the water resumes its transient state.
When poured onto the ground it takes on the shape of the earth it flows across.
So too does consciousness flow through our bodies and our senses.
When in the end our liquid returns to the collective unconsciousness
again it will transmute into that form.
In the process of meditation we learn to observe
the ebb and flow of thought; the forms it takes.

Attributed to it is the Hebrew letter Tzaddi
often referred to as the fish hook.
The process of meditation is likened to “fishing”,
one drops one’s hook (the Star) into the Waters
(The Hanged Man)
to catch Fish (The Death Card:
Transformation of Consciousness).

Aquarius is the Sun Sign associated with the Star.
It is the experimenter, the manipulator.
Considered assign the Fixed Air sign,
meaning that it is both variable and constant.
Like the Star Card itself
it is always in process and requires a specific direction
for it to be of any positive use.
Here again the practice of Meditation keeps it on the right track.
To be able to have a goal that would improve
the health and well being of themselves and others around them
would keep its power influences on the right track.
Without the necessary perspectives,
this sign will create chaos for its own sake.

When I created the Star Amulet
I selected the star itself as its single symbol.
This is an eight pointed star:
four primary directions (the elements of Fire water air and earth)
and four secondary
(the many combinations of the elements: of states of mind).
This constellation of ideas and study
is condensed into a single celestial body.
The central letter of Tzaddi in the center.

The Star Amulet
would be excellent for those who use meditation
as a practice on their lives.
This tranquil amulet
may be used to calm and clarify one’s perspective
achieve a better understanding of themselves and their environment.
Practitioners of Yoga and martial arts,
those who use Meditation and Prayer
would find this amulet helpful
in their daily lives.

The Star Amulet may be used as a Talisman
or it may be used as a part of a Three dimensional Tarot Deck
The Tarot Casters
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Amulets by Merlin's Blog

Reflections of the Art of Merlin

Tripple Goddess Statue

Knotted Penannular Brooch

The Love Amulet

Sun and Moon Amulet

Prose Cards for Tarot Amulets

21 ~ Universe Amulet

20 ~ Judgment Amulet

19 ~ Sun Amulet

18 ~ Moon Amulet

17 ~ Star Amulet

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