Unlocking Key Magic
A while back, I was doing a bit of noodling around for a thing I was working on and it occurred to me I had never written a single thing about using keys in magical workings—which is a bit odd, because I do use them regularly myself.
THUS IT WAS TIME.
I’ve always been fascinated by keys. Even as a kid, I got excited when I found random ones lying around. I think at one point I had a couple of dozen stashed in a box, just because I thought they were neat. As I got older, and began to discover the transformative power of magic and witchcraft, I realized that keys also had valuable purpose.
Keys are connected—obviously—with doors, gates, and locks. But what does that mean in a magical sense? Well, think of them as ways to access the unknown, to open up what was once off limits, or finding answers to questions.
In many religious systems—not just Pagan beliefs—keys are carried by gatekeeper figures: Papa Legba, Ganesh, and Saint Peter are often depicted with keys in hand, as are Anubis and Hecate. Notably, all of these are spiritual beings associated with death and the underworld—keys are symbolic of the journey between our realm and the next, as we pass through the locked gates to the beyond.
Using Keys in Magic
A few ways I’ve incorporated keys into magic over the years, and a bit of extra reading for your pleasure:
- Anoint one with money oil, and use it to unlock new avenues to prosperity.
- For healing magic, tie one around a blue candle dressed with healing herbs. Burn the candle and open up the doors to good health.
- Hang keys from ribbons around your home for protection
- Use a key on a chain as a pendulum for divination
- Author Cyndi Brannen, a devotee of Hecate, has a wonderful twist on the witch’s ladder using keys
- When you’re worried about being attacked by malevolent magic, or the evil eye, using a skeleton key as a talisman can keep you safe and reduce the risk of misfortune
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One Comment
John Reder
I know when I was a little kid all of us collected keys. This was in a time before the term “latch key kids”, when having keys to things were a sign of being grown up. They were an obvious symbol of power and control. You were the master who could control exit and entrance. You were an adult.
When I was really young, maybe pre-school we went to the circus. My father had gotten back stage passes so we went in where the performers were getting ready. In those days the midget clowns were as much a part of the circus as the elephants and this was the first time I had seen a little person. He was holding a ring of keys and though he was the same size as me I never thought for a second he was a kid. He has keys, so he was an adult.
Any object that we imbue with the imagery of power, practically and symbolically as we do with keys, must be magical.