New Sigil: “I create balance and harmony amid turbulence and chaos”

It’s safe to say that we live in unbalanced and precarious times. We’ve seen the entire world grind to a screeching halt, reminding everyone just how vulnerable we, as a species, really are. Long-neglected inequities and injustices are now plain to see, uncovering deep wounds that can no longer be denied. The next few years will likely be among the most unpredictable, chaotic, and turbulent in modern history.

A sigil is a work of art. It is a statement of intent. This sigil seeks to remind us that if we want lives filled with balance and harmony, we have to create them for ourselves.

New Sigil: “My true power comes from within”

It’s easy to forget just how powerful we are. Every story you’ve ever heard, every idea that has shaped your thinking, and every innovation that has improved the world came from the same wellspring. It’s inside all of us. Yes, even you.

Your true power glows from within. It always has, and it always will. There’s nothing supernatural about it, because it’s as natural as the blood pumping through your heart. There’s no one you need to pray to in order to access it, and you owe no debt to anyone to use it. It’s yours, and you can use it however you like.

This sigil seeks only to remind you of this simple, obvious truth.

New Sigil: “I find hope and serenity in the flow of my life”

Existence has a tendency to move at its own pace. It may roll slowly at times, lazily bubbling forward with no great urgency. At other times, it may roil and churn with the ferocity of a whitewater rapid. It’s not something we typically have direct control over, but this doesn’t mean that we can’t seek out moments to enjoy along the way.

This sigil speaks to the value of appreciating those quiet moments that happen as life flows through us.

New Sigil: “What a Year for a New Year!” 

One of the unsung classics of modern holiday music is Dan Wilson’s indie rock New Year’s anthem “What a Year for a New Year,” which first came to my attention via the 2002 compilation album Maybe This Christmas. It’s kind of an “Auld Lang Syne” for the Gen-X crowd, and it really resonated with me from the first moment I heard it. It’s also a song that has special relevance this year, as we all try to put the dismal time that was 2020 in our collective rearview mirrors.

So here’s a sigil with that in mind.

New Sigil: “My actions are guided by kindness, compassion, patience, and tolerance “

As we rebuild the world, we’ll have some tough decisions to make. We’ll be tempted to do what’s easy, rather than what’s just. We’ll be urged to aim for a return to the old ways — the dying status quo — rather than building something better in its place. Those inclinations are understandable, but if we want a better world, we can’t settle for simply propping up the ruins of the old one.

At a minimum, we need to inform our future decisions and actions with kindness, compassion, patience, and tolerance. That’s what this sigil speaks to.

New Sigil: “A Year of Beginnings”

2020 has been a terrible year for almost every human being on the planet. It has been a year of sickness and isolation, anger and fear, and bravery and cowardice. Whole corners of the planet have been burned to ash by furious wildfires, and washed away by raging storms.

It’s time we were done with 2020.

Next year, let’s try starting with something new. A fresh beginning to a new era. Let’s rebuild. Let’s try new ideas. Let’s end the bad-faith posturing of the power mad and the greedy, and start building a society that we actually would like to live in.

It’s a lot to ask, I realize that. But the alternative is a 2020 that never ends. We deserve better.

Sigil: “Security and prosperity flow to me.”

"If there is nothing but what we make in this world, brothers ... let us make good." - Beta Ray Bill

Wisdom can come from the most unlikely of places. Take the quote of this sigil, for example. It reminds us that we have the power to create any kind of world we like, and that it can be as good, equitable, and benevolent as we can imagine. Just because happens to come from the fictional horse-headed alien cosmic superhero Beta Ray Bill doesn't make it any less true.

This sigil was commissioned from Etsy-based sigilist Hala, and if you like what you see, it's worth taking a moment to check out her shop. Thanks for the guest post, Hala!

Open Question: Who Should I Commission A Sigil From?

Every so often, I like to commission a work of sigil art from another sigilist. Usually, I do this by scrolling around through Tumblr and other social media, contacting people whose work catches my eye. In the early days of Sigil Daily, this was easy -- there were like three of us -- but these days there are hundreds of people making sigils for both fun and profit.

So I thought I’d open up the floor to suggestions.

To be clear, this isn’t about “exposure.” These would be proper, paid commissions, with the side benefit exposing the work of these artists to my followers. I charge $10 for an original sigil on SigilDaily.com, and I’d like to keep it in the $10-$20 range. 

Any suggestions of sigilists to check out? If so, leave them as a comment/reblog. If possible, post a link to their shop, Etsy page, or other place where I can contact them and make an order. If you’re the sigilist in question, don’t be shy!

Best wishes,

Sigil Daily

Sigil - “Experience is the prophecy of the wise.”

A bit of modern update to Alphonse de Lamartine’s famous quote, “Experience is the only prophecy of wise men.”

Sigil: I organize and manifest my plans easily

A request from a follower.

Sigil: “My heart will stop aching.”

A request from one of our followers. We all know that intense feeling of heartbreak and pain. It seems to bubble up from an endless well, so cold to the touch that it burns. It’s a wound you can’t touch, and at time it seems like the ache will never fade. But it does. Numb at first. Then roaring back to life when even accidentally touched. Eventually, it becomes a dull bruise, reminding you to step gingerly around it.

And then, when you least expect it, the pain is replaced by something else. The memory of that pain will always be there -- it’s a scar, and a part of you -- but it’s no longer the burning thing it was. That’s healing, and while it always seems to take far longer than it should, it does happen.

Sometimes you may need a little help -- someone to talk to, someone to reset the break, someone to help you stitch the wound -- but as long as you’re still breathing in and out, you can heal.

Sigil - “Through the storms and flames of life, our love continues to grow.”

Life is a dangerous, chaotic, and stressful experience. From that first disorienting moment of being pulled from the warmth and safety of the womb, to those final uncertain moments before the spark of consciousness fades, the whole thing is a hurricane of joys and heartbreaks. Thankfully, there’s also lot of downtime. But one of the things that makes it all manageable is the strength that comes from a solid, loving relationship.

Fires, flood, storms, droughts, economic collapse, pandemics, murder hornets … It’s all better with someone you love at your side. With the right person, this adversity and turmoil become bearable. In time, the become line items on a list of obstacles overcome. The bonds forged in those moments, however, remain strong.

That bond of love and partnership — romantic or platonic — is what this sigil represents.

Sigil - “Optimism comes easily to me”

It’s not always easy to look on the bright side. Even the most upbeat and positive people still struggle through dark times, after all. Being consistently optimistic often seems like requires something akin to a willing suspension of disbelief, because deep down we all know that tragedy and pain are an inevitable part of existence.

Optimism isn’t about avoiding or ignoring the pain and suffering that comes with life. We all know that the people we love will eventually die. We all know that sickness, anger, loneliness, fear, hunger, defeat, and humiliation are part of the cost for the great joys that they accompany. Being optimistic is a decision to accept all of those things, and to focus on the glowing beauty of stars of the night sky, rather than the inky blackness that surrounds them.

That’s what this sigil speaks to.

Sigil - “Sort yourself out.”

It’s Brush Practice Week here at Sigil Daily, so we’re doing some fun stuff to keep things fresh. Like this one, referencing the infinitely quotable Canadian comedy series “Letterkenny.” If you haven’t seen it, give it a watch.

“My stress and anxiety over money fades”

One of the great constants of the modern world is that money — specifically the sense of security that money provides — is something almost everyone desires. It’s hardly surprising that the desire for money is a powerful tool for shaping almost every aspect of our global culture. Make someone afraid that they don’t have enough money, or limit their access to essential things that money is exchanged for, and you have them on a leash. This is a feature of our modern economy, not a bug.

It’s not always possible to become wealthy, and even for those who do, the anxiety that comes with money doesn’t go away. Even the very wealthy can obsess over wanting more money, even when they could never spend what they already have. So let’s dig down and pull this weed of fear and stress up by the root.

This sigil aims to reduce the panic and fear that money — and the lack of it — creates.

If you were ever curious what a Sigil Daily piece might look like as an airbrushed flea market t-shirt design, now you know.

By the way, I’ll be taking sigil requests all this week (through Friday, August 28th) as I practice some new techniques. DO NOT submit your requests as comments. Instead, message me directly, and include the phrase “Sweet Airbrushed Van Art” in that message. Try to keep your sigil requests short and simple, with no more than one specific desire of 5 to 7 words. Sigil request that could be useful to a broad group of people will be given priority over super-specific ones, and otherwise it’ll be first come, first served.

Best wishes,

Sigil Daily