🧲Iron is considered by many to be one of the best defenses against baneful magic, malicious intent and negative entities. A very well known iron talisman are horse shoes, a tradition that dates over a millennia in several cultures, and is cited in the legend of St. Dunstan and his encounter with the Christian devil. Mariners have been known to nail horseshoes to ship masts with seven iron nails for protection. Surrounding cemeteries with iron fencing was said to contain the souls of the dead. Burying iron objects, sometimes knives, under the entrance to one’s home was said to keep witches out. Witch bottles like those found in early America and pow wow magic often contain iron nails for the same purpose.
🛤️Famously, crossroads are places where energy is palpable, and that is just as true at train crossings. As an animist and someone who uses locally found items as much as possible in my practice, railroad spikes are an obvious choice when casting protective wards. Where I live, trains are very much part of the local identity and landscape. I have many memories as a teenager walking the tracks, collecting these discarded spikes as I went. They remind me of those carefree times, and it makes me happy to use them in my practice because of that.
**A word of caution. Depending on where you are it may be illegal to gather railroad spikes. Where I live, there is no third rail and no risk of electrocution, please be sure to avoid tracks with a third rail. And please, for the love of all things holy, have your wits about you if you choose to go hunting for them!
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