Last updated on April 4, 2020
Druid Tools – Wand Basics
A wand is a very personal tool used by an individual and so special that no one but the owner should touch it. The wand itself contains no power, though. All the power resides within the user who uses the wand as a conduit for their personal power. We’re fairly certain this was also true in the past.
Making a Wand
To make a wand, the wood should never be cut and instead, should be found dropped from a living tree. Rather than take the wood in an act of violence, we should accept the piece of wood offered us for the purpose we needed it.
Ideally, it should be a branch with a naturally occurring spiral in it. This would be the kind formed by a vine, such as honeysuckle, that crept around the branch while it grew. A wand created from a branch twisted this way is referred to as a Dragon. So, a wand created from ash wood would be an Ash Dragon. If from an oak, it would be an Oak Dragon and so on. Oak Dragons are especially rare and the search for the ultimate oak wand could take years. I’m still searching for mine.
Consider the type of wood
Any wand should always be made from wood that speaks to you in some way. You don’t even need to understand why. Only that you take note, pay attention when you run across such a piece of wood and pick it up.
The qualities of the wood from the kind of tree it came from add a special element to each wand. For example, hazel wood is the preferred wood for divination, often used in the manufacture of things like dousing rods. So a wand made of hazel would help focus the powers of divination, gaining knowledge. wisdom and so also poetic inspiration.
Working with the characteristics of wood types
You can choose to increase or define the characteristics of the wood by carving Ogham or other symbols into it. Crystals can also be wired onto the ends of wands to further add to the natural properties. The properties of each type of crystal can be paired with the qualities of the wood to increase efficiency in your wand’s ability to focus energy for specific purposes.
Wands can be made very fancy using modern tools, such as turning them on a lathe or carving with a wood burning kit. Ideally, though, leaving the wood in its natural state and adding any embellishment by hand is always best.
For a more colourful demonstration of some of these Druid tools in action, check out my book, The Seer. This historical sword fantasy about a Druid in the fictional realm of Edenshire in 4th-century Britain is available at Amazon!
Want more?
Check out all the articles in this series on Traditional Druid Tools!
Wand
Crane Bag
Staff or Rod
Druid Egg
Sickle
Druid Cord
