Today we write so much that we forget how extraordinary writing was for thousands of years. Those who could write could fix the spoken word, pass it on through time and make it visible. It is no surprise that in many traditions letters were considered sacred and that writing gave rise to seals, signs that condense a name, an idea or an intention into a graphic form.
The letter as a principle
The Hebrew alphabet
In Jewish tradition the twenty-two letters of the alphabet are not mere conventional signs. In mysticism, and especially in the Sefer Yetzirah, the "Book of Formation", the letters are described as the tools with which the world was created. Each letter has a name, a shape, a numerical value and a meaning.
Some examples:
- Aleph, the first letter, is silent: it represents breath, the unity that precedes speech;
- Bet, the second, means "house" and is the letter with which the text of Genesis begins;
- Shin, with its three prongs, is associated with fire.
The twenty-two letters are also linked to the twenty-two paths of the kabbalistic Tree of Life.
Runes
In the Germanic and Scandinavian world the oldest runic alphabet, the Elder Futhark, had twenty-four signs. Each rune had a name denoting a concrete thing: fehu, cattle and therefore wealth; uruz, the aurochs; ansuz, a god. Runes were carved on stones, weapons and jewellery, and beyond their practical use they had sacred value. Norse myth tells that Odin gained knowledge of the runes after nine nights hanging on the world tree.
Magical alphabets
In the Renaissance, treatises on occult philosophy collected several "secret" alphabets used to write sacred names or ritual formulas: the Theban alphabet, the so-called "celestial" one, "Passing the River" and the "Malachim" alphabet. Their function was twofold: to protect the content from profane eyes and, above all, to separate ritual writing from everyday writing. Writing with different signs means entering a different time.
What a seal is
The word seal comes from the Latin sigillum, "little sign", and originally referred to the impression left in wax to authenticate a document. Whoever held the seal held the authority to sign.
In esoteric tradition a seal is a graphic sign that represents and condenses something:
| Type of seal | What it represents |
|---|---|
| Grimoire seals | names of entities or principles, in the Solomonic tradition |
| Planetary seals | figures derived from numerical magic squares |
| Sacred monograms | interlaced initials, such as the Christian Chi-Rho |
| Personal sigils | an intention or a name turned into a unique sign |
The Chi-Rho
A very well-known and very old example of a sacred monogram is the Chi-Rho, formed by the first two Greek letters of the name of Christ superimposed. It is an excellent example of how two letters, interlaced, become an independent symbol, recognisable even by those who cannot read.
The personal sigil
In modern esotericism the practice of building a sigil from a sentence expressing an intention has become widespread. The traditional procedure is this:
- write the sentence;
- remove the repeated letters;
- use the remaining letters to compose a graphic sign, merging their shapes;
- simplify the drawing until it becomes a unique symbol that no longer recalls the original letters.
The symbolic meaning is interesting: a thought expressed in words becomes an image, passing from rational language to symbolic language.
Writing as a sacred act
From the perspective of Studio Esoterico Cornelio ritual writing calls for attention, slowness and care. It is no accident that many traditions prescribe particular inks, parchments and dedicated tools. Not because of some supposed power of the materials, but because care for the means trains care for the intention.
Some simple practices:
- write by hand, slowly, a sentence you wish to meditate on, observing the shape of each letter;
- study the name and meaning of the letters of a sacred alphabet, one at a time;
- draw your own monogram by interlacing your initials, as a sign of identity.
In short
- In many traditions letters are considered sacred principles and not merely conventional signs.
- The twenty-two Hebrew letters and the twenty-four runes of the Elder Futhark have their own names and meanings.
- Renaissance magical alphabets separated ritual writing from everyday writing.
- A seal condenses a name, a principle or an intention into a graphic sign.
- Ritual writing trains attention and care for one's intention.