Serpents are represented as potent guardians of temples and other sacred spaces. This connection may be grounded in the observation that when threatened, some snakes (such as rattlesnakes or cobras) frequently hold and defend their ground, first resorting to threatening display and then fighting, rather than retreat. Thus, they are natural guardians of treasures or sacred sites which cannot easily be moved out of harm's way.

Serpents are connected with renewal or regeneration. This trait is connected with the practice of snakes of shedding their old skin and growing a new one.

The serpent is one of the oldest and most widespread mythological symbols. Considerable overlap exists in the symbolic values that serpents represent in various cultures, some of this is due to the common historical ancestry of contemporary symbols. Much of the overlap, however, is traceable to the common biological characteristics of snakes.

In some instances, serpents serve as positive symbols with whom it is possible to identify or to sympathize; in other instances, serpents serve as negative symbols, representing opponents or antagonists of figures or principles with which it is possible to identify. Serpents also appear as ambivalent figures, neither wholly positive nor wholly negative in valence. An example of a serpent used as a positive symbol is Mucalinda, the king of snakes who shielded the Buddha from the elements as the Buddha sat in meditation. An example of a serpent used as a negative symbol is the snake who tempted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, as described in the Book of Genesis.

The stones used in this piece can be interpreted as relating to the elements.

Obsidian was valued in Stone Age cultures because, like flint, it could be fractured to produce sharp blades or arrowheads. Like all glass and some other types of naturally occurring rocks, obsidian breaks with a characteristic conchoidal fracture. It was also polished to create early mirrors, and often used for scrying. It possesses the property of presenting a different appearance according to the manner in which it is cut. When cut in one direction it is a beautiful jet black; when cut across another direction it is glistening gray. "Apache tears" are small rounded obsidian nuggets embedded within a grayish-white perlite matrix.

Black Onyx enhances steadfastness and determination, setting ones mind to a task. It is grounding stone, valuable in difficult or confusing times in our lives. Extremely helpful to people who are in the process of " letting go" or releasing the past attachments to people , places and things.

Excellent stone for initiating the process of centering and alignment of the total person with a Higher Power. It helps us to absorb whatever energy we need from the Universe.

Can be used to deflect or absorb the negativity of others, and in that way is a good stone for protection from negative forces and influences.

A pentagram (sometimes known as a pentalpha or pentagle) is the shape of a five pointed star drawn with five straight strokes. Pentagrams were used symbolically in ancient Greec and Babylonia, and are used today as a symbol of faith by many Wiccans, akin to the use of the cross by Christians and the Star of David by Jews. The pentagram has magical associations, including representing the five elements of earth, air, fire, water, and spirit; many people who practice Neopagan faiths wear jewellery that incorporates this symbol. Christians once commonly used the pentagram to represent the five wounds of Jesus. The pentagram also has associations with Freemasonry and is also utilized by a number of other belief systems.

In mythology, a lunar deity is a god or goddess associated with or symbolizing the moon. Female deities are better known in modern times due to the influence of classical Greek and Roman mythology, which held the moon to be female. Many of the most well-known mythologies feature female lunar deities (gods, immortal), such as the Greek goddesses Selene and Phoebe and their Olympian successor Artemis, their Roman equivalents Luna and Diana, Isis of the Egyptians, or the Thracian Bendis. These cultures almost invariably featured a male sun god.

The moon is also feature in witchcraft, both in its modern form, and in Medieval times, for example, in the cult of Madonna Oriente.

The words 'lunacy", "lunatic", and "loony" are derived from Luna because of the folk belief in the moon as a cause of periodic insanity. It is a feature of modern belief that shapeshifters such as werewolves drew their power from the moon and would change into their bestial form during the full moon.

This is a very ancient symbol, and is supposed by some to be a relic of primitive sun-worship. In most of the ancient languages of Asia, the eye and the sun are expressed by the same word. The centre of the eye can be seen as a point within a circle, expressing the philosophical idea of the Union of the two great Causes of Nature, which concur, one actively and the other passively, in the generation of all beings.
The Primordial All-Seeing Eye either alone or within a triangle has been used extensively by many secret societies including occultists and freemasons. A symbol of the higher clairvoyance, and used often as a representation of the third or spiritual eye. The esoteric tradition relates the single eye to the inner light, intuitive power, illuminatin, and even the philosopher's stone!

The eye within a pyramid originally represented the god enclosed, during his "dead" period, awaiting rebirth. He was entombed in the underworld, thus becoming Seker, the Hidden One, Lord of Death: Osiris as the mummy, the Black Sun, the Still-Heart. Nevertheless, his soul remained alive and watchful, as indicated by the open eye. Parallels from south eastern Asia might be found in the bindu or life-spark within the triangle of the Goddess-womb, and in the open "third eye" of Hindu Gods while their other two eyes were closed in their periods of deathlike sleep.

This is a very ancient symbol, and is supposed by some to be a relic of primitive sun-worship. In most of the ancient languages of Asia, the eye and the sun are expressed by the same word. The centre of the eye can be seen as a point within a circle, expressing the philosophical idea of the Union of the two great Causes of Nature, which concur, one actively and the other passively, in the generation of all beings.
The Primordial All-Seeing Eye either alone or within a triangle has been used extensively by many secret societies including occultists and freemasons. A symbol of the higher clairvoyance, and used often as a representation of the third or spiritual eye. The esoteric tradition relates the single eye to the inner light, intuitive power, illuminatin, and even the philosopher's stone!

The eye within a pyramid originally represented the god enclosed, during his "dead" period, awaiting rebirth. He was entombed in the underworld, thus becoming Seker, the Hidden One, Lord of Death: Osiris as the mummy, the Black Sun, the Still-Heart. Nevertheless, his soul remained alive and watchful, as indicated by the open eye. Parallels from south eastern Asia might be found in the bindu or life-spark within the triangle of the Goddess-womb, and in the open "third eye" of Hindu Gods while their other two eyes were closed in their periods of deathlike sleep.

According to historian Ronald Hutton, the concept of the Triple Goddess with Maiden, Mother and Crone aspects and lunar symbology was Robert Graves' contribution to modern pagan witchcraft. Many witches and other neo-pagans believe in the "Triple Goddess" of maiden, mother, and crone that originated with the first neo-pagans in mid-twentieth-century England.
* The Maiden represents enchantment, inception, expansion, the promise of new beginnings, birth, youth and youthful enthusiasm, represented by the waxing moon.
* The Mother represents ripeness, fertility, sexuality, fulfillment, stability, power and life represented by the full moon.
* The Crone represents wisdom, repose, death, and endings represented by the waning moon.

However many also believe of the fourth aspect of the moon and the goddess, her dark side.

Sterling Silver with Moonstone, Lapis Lazuli, Garnet, Green Moss Agate, and Amber. Diameter of item is 35mm.

The religious symbolism is commonly explained by reference to the neo-Pythagorean understanding that the five vertices of the pentagram represent the four elements with the addition of Spirit as the uppermost point. As a representation of the elements, the pentagram is involved in the Wiccan practice of summoning the elemental spirits of the four directions at the beginning of a ritual. The five stones surrounding the pentagram in this piece symbolise the colours of the corresponding elements.

The outer circle of the circumscribed pentagram is sometimes interpreted as binding the elements together or bringing them into harmony with each other. The Neopagan pentagram is generally displayed with one point up, partly because of the "inverted" goat's head pentagram's association with Satanism; however, within traditional forms of Wicca a pentagram with two points up is associated with the Second Degree Initiation and in this context has no relation to Satanism.

"As above, so below" These words circulate throughout occult and magical circles, and they come from Hermetic texts. The concept was first laid out in The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus, in the words "That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above, corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracles of the One Thing."

In accordance with the various levels of reality: physical, mental, and spiritual, this relates that what happens on any level happens on every other. This is however more often used in the sense of the microcosm and the macrocosm. The microcosm is oneself, and the macrocosm is the universe. The macrocosm is as the microcosm, and vice versa; within each lies the other, and through understanding one (usually the microcosm) you can understand the other.

Magic squares have fascinated humanity throughout the ages, and have been around for over 4,000 years. They are found in a number of cultures, including Egypt and India, engraved on stone or metal and worn as talismans, the belief being that magic squares had astrological and divinatory qualities, their usage ensuring longevity and prevention of diseases.

This particular square is based on Chinese literature dating from as early as 650 BC tells the legend of Lo Shu or "scroll of the river Lo". In ancient China, there was a huge flood. The people tried to offer some sacrifice to the river god of one of the flooding rivers, the Lo river, to calm his anger. Then, there emerged from the water a turtle with a curious figure/pattern on its shell; there were circular dots of numbers that were arranged in a three by three nine-grid pattern such that the sum of the numbers in each row, column and diagonal was the same: 15. This number is also equal to the number of days in each of the 24 cycles of the Chinese solar year. This pattern, in a certain way, was used by the people in controlling the river.