While the spirit of chaos certainly would allow that sigils could be created from anything one thought appropriately encapsulated one’s desires, there might be practical reasons to using the alphabet. As we are symbol using creatures, in so far as thought appears to be linked to representations of meaning via some set of coding devices, the alphabet makes up the atomic bits of our readily understood vehicles of meaning. Thus, when we formulate our desires in a sentence, we are likely able to express these desires clearly and concisely to the conscious mind; this is to say, since the meaning of words and their composite meaning in a sentence is more fixed (but not entirely rigid), we are likely able to create a more precise formulation of our desires and intent using the tools of representation of our language.
Certainly, there could be many other methods to represent our desires and intent: cut-ups, collages, paintings, drawings—the list is only limited by our imagination. However, it seems to me that the creator of the sigil needs to posses a higher degree of self-awareness if he or she wants to use more abstract forms to represent desires and intent. I would say that this is because, when using non-alphabetic representation, we are moving from something that expresses a higher degree of clarity—the more fixed reference of words—to that which is already symbolic—the less fixed realm of pictures and images. This requires that we have an acute sense of what these symbolic and/or abstract representations mean to us. By using a non-linguistic representation of desire and intent, we move from a clearer expression of these into a murky area of already semi-conscious expression. Again, I do not think that it isn’t acceptable to use non-alphabetic representation, I only think that in order to use such methods, the individual practitioner must be that much more aware of what these non-alphabetic expressions mean to him or her self. If there are unrecognized or already subconscious elements of association in the non-linguistic representation of desire, and if this representation is intended to be used as a magickal vehicle of fulfillment, then these elements will have a greater chance of disrupting the intended results (although remember: results are never exactly as expected), and thus, the magick of the sigil is more likely to manifest itself in ways that are further removed from the original intent.
Thus, the alphabetic formulation of sigils seems more apt to do the work that sigilization is intended to do. By stating our desires and intent in a precise fashion using a sentence, we have a greater degree of clarity in expression and association; thus, when the sentence is manipulated into a sigilized format—a symbolic and composite expression of the desire and intent in a single pictorial representation—then the resultant meaning of the sigil would seem to have a greater degree of focus with respect to the associations of the unconsciousness. Therefore, the sigil itself would likely have a higher chance of manifesting more directly intended results.
Of course, part of magick is experimentation, and so, the individual is truly free to create sigils in any manner that he or she finds yields results. The above analysis is merely an attempt to understand why sigilization might be better suited to manipulations of the alphabet rather than the manipulations of more complex images: the associations we have of words to concepts/ideas/feelings seem more clear and precise to the conscious mind than the associations we have of other forms of representation; thus, if sigilization is a method to manifest conscious desire and intent via the unconscious, then the more precise our desires and intent are expressed in the sigil, the more likely these will manifest closer to our expected and sought for result. |
