The Refugee Safeguard Sigil

On Tuesday, August 17th, over two dozen folks from around the world gathered together virtually for another one of my Sigil Witchery workshops. In every presentation of this workshop, the students and I work together to co-create a sigil.  This activity allows everyone to see the process come together before their eyes. We collectively decide on a focus and then work on the sigil together.  Once done, I refine the drawing and it gets posted here on this blog. Read here to find out more about shared magic sigils and why they work.

With the news of what’s going on right now in Afghanistan at the forefront for many attendees, we decided to create a sigil to help refugees.  The Refugee Safeguard Sigil is designed to help direct aid, resources, and positive attention to those in need of immediate assistance – as well as healing and resolution.  It works well in tandem with other ways we can offer humanitarian aid to refugees.

Magical + Mundane

In situations such as what’s happening in Afghanistan, magical work is what can be done in addition to the necessary physical/so-called “mundane” work that can be done. It is definitely not meant to be a substitute for physical action/impact. Rather this sigil is a means to help draw attention to the cause and lend support on an energetic level that encourages the physical work. Check to see what you can do locally to assist refugees, as well as check out NPR’s and Newsweek’s list of ways to help.

Please note: Although the situation in Afghanistan was the root inspiration for this sigil, it can be applied to other similar situations as well, whether the cause is war, tyranny, natural disasters, etc. Haiti is dealing with the aftermath of a tremendous earthquake, many people have lost their homes in the fires raging in California – there is no shortage of dire situations where people have been displaced and need help.

What’s Built Into This Sigil:

• egress, escape to safety (if escape is necessary), give direction
• nest/safe spaces/nourishing safe places and resources
• establish security and foster strength
• compassion and love
• foster connections (family + world)
• protection – of the body, but also traditions, memories
• respect and understanding
• courage
• health
• education (access and expansion)
• freedom

The Sigil:

Suggestions On How To Use This Sigil:

You are welcome to use this sigil however you see fit that is in alignment with the intent of the sigil.
Suggestions for use:
– Use as a community/group focus in ritual to help bring attention to the plight of refugees and clear the path for the resources they need.
– Apply to a candle (white is a fine option, but follow your intuition). At the time of this initial posting, the moon is nearly full, so an excellent time to burn a candle.
– Use to bless places that are aiding refugees

Please note: When sharing this sigil (or any other sigil you find on this blog), please be sure to include the link to the blog post.  The sigil works best if people understand precisely what went into it, versus just sharing the image and telling people to use it.

Refugee Safeguard Sigil by Laura Tempest Zakroff is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

To find out more about this method of crafting sigils created by Laura Tempest Zakroff (author of the best-selling book Sigil Witchery), checking out Sigil Witchery.