How to Make a Magpie Oracle
Inspired by the video below, I decided to create a Magpie Oracle this past summer. I am using this post to detail how I put it together and assigned meaning to the pieces, as a template for others. I am using mine to offer readings to the forum.
The Seahorse: Devotion
I have been using The Magic of the North Gate (Josephine McCarthy) to develop a relationship with genii locorum and learn how to practice land magic in general. As a consequence of this, I have been spending a lot of time picking up trash in and around the local wood. Near a three-way crossroad in said wood, I came across this little seahorse.
Seahorse Symbolism
Seahorses remind me of:
The crossroad adds a Hekate element. Water is emotional, mystical, spiritual, fluid, and adaptable.
All of these combine to remind me of devotion. This could be resisting change and being stubborn even when you are poorly equipped for a task / ill-prepared for a situation, or fierce determination, or loyalty that could lead to self-sacrifice. A bit like the Hanged Man.
The Hazelnut: Inner Wisdom
I collected this hazelnut years ago from a river I used to live nearby and would meditate with / preform rituals next to. This was the first river, or source of water even, that I ever scryed on.
Hazelnut Symbolism
The first thing that comes to my mind is the Salmon of Knowledge that ate hazel nuts that fell into the Well of Wisdom in the Fenian Cycle of Irish lore.
This piece is somewhat like The High Priestess.
Cow Molar: Health
I found this tooth four years ago on a sandy little island in Orkney. My life changed drastically very shortly after this.
Cow Symbolism
All things combined, this piece reminds me of health and nourishment. It represents the welfare of the physical body.
Seal Tooth: Metamorphosis
This seal tooth was gifted to me many years ago in Shetland.
Seal Symbolism
Overall this piece represents metamorphosis. It can refer to profound personal transformation, the deep need to return to the self, or the ability to travel through multiple realms.
Spiny Shell: Protection
I picked this up from a beach in Florida during a very healing visit to the sea.
Spiny Shell Symbolism
This is a pretty straightforward piece; it represents protection. This could represent the need to retreat and recuperate, a warning to check defenses and re-establish boundaries, the presence of a guardian, or a sign of being overly withdrawn and defensive.
Crab Claw: Offense
I found this on a stony shore after a recent visit to the Rhine. I have been fascinated with this river since I read about it in Germanic sagas as a little girl.
Crab Symbolism
Rhine Symbolism
Overall, I read this as active defense (whereas the spiny shell is more passive defense). This could be a warning of baneful magic or opposing forces, the need to fight back / go on the offense, or a warning that deception is at work and needs to be unraveled.
Cracked Nut: Trauma
I stepped on this piece while pulling trash out of a thick wall of mud in a creek I keep a shrine to Freya in. It scared the shit out of me for no reason at all.
Symbolism