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Modern Elemental Weapons?

Sirhan Sirhan Solo

21:12 / 13.09.02

It occurred to me that the traditional "elemental weapons" don't hold much meaning to contemporary magicians, insomuch as we tend to associate them with purely traditional uses. Sure, the wand, chalice, dagger, and pentacle are fairly impressive allegorical objects, but frankly, they're quite outdated.
So I got to thinking, and it seems to me as if there are more...shall we say, contemporary weapons that we could use in modern ritual. The best example I can think of is replacing the wand with some sort of firearm.
Imagine: You're standing in a field. You've got a loaded rifle in your hand, your finger on the trigger. 500 yards ahead of you, through the sights of the gun, you see the sigil for the working. You take aim, concentrating intensely on putting the bullet through the center of the sigil. Suddenly, your mind is a vaccuum, and you squeeze the trigger gently but firmly, eradicating the symbol of your intent.
Of course, this could all be a meditative/visualization exercise. Nevertheless, I think that a gun could be a much more impressive representation for a focused will than a stick.
And I think it goes without saying that it's a damned good symbol for fire, as well.

Any other ideas?

22:45 / 13.09.02

Depending on what I'm trying to do, I'll occassionally use glass, metal, plastic and electricity as my four elements. But that's about it with my modernizing.

23:42 / 13.09.02

Mmhh, so many options; like said above, electricity is a very cool thing to incorporate in any magical work. Apart from that, I occasionally use computers, laserlight or self-grown mineral crystals (you can buy sets to chemically grow crystals - it's neat!). When I was younger I used to work with minerals and fossiles (zircone, for one, is something I truly found interesting back then). As you say, 'meaning' is of importance, but if the foci can add something substantional it's a surplus (for example, for incense I use sage if applicable, it has a proven cleansing effect in the physical world). Reminds me, I once made a fetish object out of an old coffeegrinder, and used it to symbolicly 'grind sigils into nothingness'..

The 'four elements' is just something globally symbolic, why not make up your own personal worldview and apply that? For example, consider using a combustion engine, some filthy tapwater, a piece of concrete pavement and some smog (hard to detain

.. should be quite contemporary, and it's always nice to tune into that.

01:30 / 14.09.02

I tend to use electricity for air, glass for water (amorphous solid and all), plastic for earth and metal for fire. But that's just my preference.

XXII:X:II = XXX

01:45 / 14.09.02

I like the idea of using the gun as an elemental weapon, but on the other hand, I think the power of the four suits is that they are so iconographic and totemized in our minds. You can summon a lot of variations to mind of the form of the gun (a rifle, an M-16, a tank, even missiles if you think about the missile or other firing mechanism as the gun), but there are really only a few major variations on the sword (including knives and scissors). We all know what a coin, a staff and a cup look like, in very simple base requirements that qualify a given subject as one of said items.

I think the greater challenge to those who are writing the next chapter in magic is to find items in everyday life that are as iconographic that cannot necessarily be represented in the four suits nor any of the major arcana (thus something like a car or a plane would be out since The Chariot can stand for those). Now, would something like a clock qualify, or does that count as a wheel, or a collection of wheels? How about a computer? I guess the computer is such a multi-functional tool that to try to pin it down to a definitive meaning would be counter-intuitive. Anyone got any better ideas?

Nietzsch E. Coyote

19:54 / 14.09.02

I use a computer(sometimes)

The mouse is the wand you point and click your will.
The Keyboard is the sword type in analysis and reason.
The Screen is the cup home of perception and understanding.
The Hard Drive is the pantacle the world view is imprinted on it.

Sirhan Sirhan Solo

22:02 / 14.09.02

Vladimir-
I can agree with you to some extent as far as the iconic nature of the traditional weapons, but I disagree with your thought that there isn't much variation on the particular weapons, especially if you're into the whole chaos paradigm. I think part of the magical experience is making personalized, unique tools. One magician's wand can be completely different from another's staff, but both work, if properly used.

Fenris-
Good computer analogy!

17:22 / 15.09.02

I don't know if it's necessary to dissassociate "modern" icons from the traditional symbols. It may be sufficient to augment the traditional elements with consciousness, intelligence, and/or intent (since one current theory has it that consciousness, rather than matter, is the basic stuff underlying the universe).

Earth with consciousness/intent is the noosphere, fire with intent might be electricity. I don't know about water or air, though. Any thoughts?

(pardon any typos - i have a cat asleep on my arm, am typing one-handed)