Reading Suggestions:

I do recommend you read this little book from cover to cover, as it has
important tips for the beginner as well as information that practitioners of
alternative religions might find interesting, or at least useful, and there
aren’t many pages to read. Hopefully this will offer some illumination
about why Talking Boards are not just a play-thing, to be treated as a
toy, and are in fact tools for communication. Some people do prefer to
think of these as toys, I do not.
 The Talking Board
Comes with the traditional planchette, a citrine dowsing pendulum, as
well as the board. All designs on this board (the planchette as well) are
original, and made to my exacting standards. This board and planchette
were completed on this date: February 28th, 2010 and completed by the
light of the Full Moon on this date.
I do not view any talking board, or any other occult item, as a “toy”, these
are tools. Tools are meant to be used with caution, knowledge and respect.
I have included in the information on the following pages complete
descriptions of all the items here, as well as how to call the corners
(protection), invoke the protection symbol (as well as banish it when you
are finished), and close the circle.
One should not use the talking board while under the influence of
substances that are either legal or (in some countries/states) illegal, as it
will influence not just yourself and your reactions, but those people
around you, and what spirits (other than alcoholic) are attracted to you
and the board. When intoxicated you are at your most vulnerable on
many levels.
Also included, at the end of this booklet, is information on how to be rid of
energies that may have been trapped, attracted and never left, or well…
other. I will let you know now that this involves burning the board
(depending on the level of activity) or burying the board from full moon to
full moon in salt. An expensive venture either way.
 About your Board
On the front you have the traditional “Talking Board” layout, with the
alphabet, responses, numbers, male and female gender symbols, as well as
the sun and moon (to indicate night and day, as well as representing
Male-the Sun, and Female-the Moon).
~
On the reverse side you have a fae star, also known as a septagram, a
Fairy star or an Elven star, this is a protection symbol. In the center is
Earth (grounded, and representing the Earthly Realm), surrounded by
the 7 common planetary symbols (representing the Heavens). These
symbols (or glyphs) are as follows (they will be in the “invoking pattern”)
starting with the Sun (representing Sunday, and your True Self), the
Moon (representing Monday, and ruling the Emotions), Mars
(representing Tuesday, and your Ambition), Mercury (representing
Wednesday, and communication), Jupiter (representing Thursday, and
Optimism), Venus (representing Friday, and Love), and Saturn
(representing Saturday, and Discipline). You also have the four
towers of North, South, East, and West marked on the reverse side.
You may also use the reverse side, if you wish, as either another plane of
the Talking Board or, if you do some research, as a pendulum dowsing
board.
~
This board is constructed out of Birch Plywood and sealed with acrylic
matte finish varnish (to preserve the wood). Birch plywood was my
chosen medium for this board, as I could not locate a more beautifully
grained wood, by itself, than this rosy-honey hued sheet.
 Places to Work
I do not advocate going onto private property, where criminal trespass is a
certainty (don’t want you to get arrested!), and meeting a man or woman
in jail called “Bubba” who thinks you’re awful “purty”. Stay off of
property you do not own! I cannot stress this enough. Criminal trespass
isn’t the only thing you should be concerned about. How well you know
your environment should be your primary concern, especially working
with a Talking Board.
You should know your environment very well. Do you have spirits
around already? If so, okay… If not, that is okay as well. They will
come to you. Do you plan on using this board outside of your home,
perhaps at a friend’s house? That’s okay too. As long as you have
permission and a “lay of the land” so to speak, you’re golden.
Stay out of graveyards, especially at night! If you do not have
permission from the land-owners, or from the city where the plot is located,
please stay out of graveyards. People’s families are buried there and it’s
a matter of respecting the dead, and most likely you will wind up in jail
(touched on this earlier). If you go to the graveyard during the day,
okay. Just respect where you are, and remember… respect the dead.

The next two sections deal with invoking the Septagram and casting a
Circle. You can do either or, depending on which you are more
comfortable with, or you can do both. It’s up to you.
 Invoking the Septagram
Standing, or sitting, is fine. Beginning with your finger, wand, or
athame (ritual dagger) your starting point is Saturn. In the air, above
the board, move from Saturn, to the Sun, to the Moon, to Mars, to
Mercury, to Jupiter, to Venus, and return to Saturn.
~
You can practice this as often as you wish, and may repeat this invocation
as many times as you wish. You can even speak them aloud, to raise more
energy. But remember, as many times as you invoke, you ought to banish
(or close) the star as well. Invoking this star, allows energies to gather
and be at your disposal throughout the time you are working on the
Talking Board as well as set up shields around you. As you are
invoking think of each planetary influence, as listed prior, how do these
planets and their associations make you feel?

Banishing the Septagram

Much easier than it sounds actually. You work in reverse. This time the
starting point is the Sun. Move your finger, wand, or athame in this
manner: Sun, to Saturn, to Venus, to Jupiter, to Mercury, to Mars,
to the Moon, and returning to the Sun. While doing this visualize the
energy you drew upon return to the places you summoned it from.
Repeat as necessary. Thank those planets for blessing you with their
energies and protecting you.
 Calling the Corners
If you know where the sun rises in the East and sets in the West where
you live, then you have your North/South orientation. On the reverse
side of your board are the four Cardinal points. Make your circle,
whether physically or in your imagination. Visualize a large sphere
encompassing you with the bottom half entering the ground and the top
half of the sphere being slightly opalescent, a creamy dreamy cloudy white
with flickers of other colors.
Facing North, with arms raised, call: “The Mighty Ones of the North,
hear my call. The Guardians of Earth, hear my cry. I ask that you
protect and guard me through this working.” While saying this, imagine a
verdant and lush green mist covering the Northern Quadrant of your
sphere.
Facing East, with arms raised, call:“The Mighty Ones of the East,
hear my call. The Guardians of Air, hear my cry. I ask that you guard
and protect me through this working.” While saying this, imagine a warm
sun-shine yellow spring air blowing towards you from the East covering
the Eastern Quadrant of your sphere.
Facing South, with arms raised, call: “The Mighty Ones of the South,
hear my call. The Guardians of Fire, hear my cry. I ask that you protect
and guard me through this working.” While saying this, imagine a ruby-
red blazing fire working its way from the South, headed towards you
engulfing the Southern Quadrant of your sphere.
Facing West, with arms raised, call; “The Mighty Ones of the West,
hear my call. The Guardians of Water, hear my cry. I ask that you
guard and protect me through this working.” While saying this imagine a
pure blue tidal wave rushing towards you with hints of rich Cobalt blue
and Cyan, drenching the entire Western Quadrant of your sphere.
Now you have called the corners. Here is how to close them.

Closing the Circle

Relatively easy to do. This should be performed after you have closed out
the session, moving the planchette to “Good-bye”. Thank each element by
addressing them individually at each “station”, so to speak. You can
make up your own thanks, or you can use the following.
Facing North, arms down, call: “I thank you Earth for attending my
circle and protecting me while my will was done. Thank you, and go with
peace and power.” Imagine the lush green melting away from your sphere,
leaving the creamy white color behind.
Facing East, arms down, call: “I thank you Air for attending my circle
and protecting me while my will was done. Thank you, and go with peace
and power.” Imagine a rush of warm yellow air drifting and blowing away
from your sphere, leaving the creamy white color behind.
Facing South, arms down, call: “I thank you Fire for attending my circle
and protecting me while my will was done. Thank you, and go with peace
and power.” Imagine the ruby-red flames leaping away from your sphere,
leaving the creamy white color behind.
Facing West, arms down, call: “I thank you Water for attending my
circle and protecting me while my will was done. Thank you, and go with
peace and power.” Imagine the rich blue tidal wave ebbing away from your
sphere, leaving the creamy white color behind.
Now that the elementals have departed, imagine your sphere dissolving
from above and below, right into the ground until there is nothing left.

Grounding and Centering

This is optional, but I’ve found that if I raise too much energy, I can’t
focus, I get very hyper, and can’t sleep. This is bad as most of the time I
do ritual and work with other occult tools at night… hence-bad. Nothing
like 4 a.m. to make you remember, maybe you should have grounded.
Grounding is simple, especially outside, but if you’re inside, that’s okay
too! Remove your shoes and sit (or lay down) comfortably with your feet
planted flat on the ground (or floor) and relax. Visualize all body parts
touching the ground are growing roots down, down deep into the Earth,
strong healthy roots attached to the rest of your body which is elongating,
stretching and reaching up into the sky to sway in the breeze. Remember
to breathe during this exercise, in through the nose out through the mouth,
nice deep breathing. The wind blows through you and all around you,
carrying away all extra energy that you need to release, the Sun is
shining down on you giving you healing energy to replenish your stores
and melting away excess energy, the earth is supporting you and carrying
away any excess of energy you might have, and the water that rains down
upon you from the sky drops and captures excess energy that you don’t
need and feeds it into the earth. Stay in this position as long as you wish,
visualizing the description, until you feel rested. It’s perfectly okay to
fall asleep during this, I do all the time.
 Tips
1. Work with more than one person. If you are uncomfortable the
idea of someone else participating, too bad. I recommend never
working alone with a Talking Board. Plus, it’s more fun with
other people.
2. Other people: everyone should be comfortable with each other as
you will be sitting closely to each other and two fingers will be
placed on the planchette.
3. Start by moving the planchette to Hello, and moving it to Good-
bye when you are ready to end a session. Don’t leave a session
open. It’s like door to your house in summer, you weren’t born in
a barn! Close it out.
4. Be sure those participating are comfortable with the idea of
using a Talking Board, some people really do get freaked out by
them.
5. Have someone, perhaps the person who isn’t comfortable
participating, record what is being said during the session.
6. People should talk to the dead with respect, no name-calling or
poking fun! They didn’t have to show up after all…
7. If too many people want to “play”, explain it’s not a toy, it’s a
tool. People play with toys. People use tools. There is a
difference. Play with a tool and you can get hurt.
8. Location, location, location. Where are you using the board?
Believe it or not, but the average kitchen or dining room works.
9. Lighting. Harsh lighting can ruin the “mood”, especially when
working with occult tools. Try using candles for lighting.
 Questions?
Why is a Talking Board not meant to be a toy?
Okay, good question. This is meant to be used as a tool to contact spirits,
things we cannot see (typically). Certain companies market Talking
Boards as toys, and I have heard horror stories from those who played
with them as such. It’s like handing an infant a pair of scissors (they
don’t know what they do or that they are sharp) they just know that they
are shiny and look tasty… dangerous to say the least. Do you really
want something that is, to our naked eye, invisible to have well… the
upper (invisible) hand, so to speak? No. This leads in to the next
question…
Why can’t I operate this under the influence of alcohol or other?
The inebriated mind can be a stupid one, imagine Punch & Judy-only
Judy is the puppet-master and Punch winds up in tiny pieces. Not that
this would actually happen! However, when one is under the influence of
anything it’s best to operate with caution… after all; you wouldn’t drive
inebriated would you? No. I, personally, prefer to do divination and
other workings with a sound mind, to be in control of any given situation,
especially while working with the ethereal.
Why should I invoke the Septagram or Cast the Circle?
This is for your own, personal, confidence and well-being. This will filter
out negative energies and only allow neutral or positive energies in.
Imagine a coffee filter-it holds the ground beans in and keeps them there,
while it filters the coffee steeped water out. Essentially, this is what they
do, only in reverse. It keeps you in, and safe, while filtering who (or
what) is allowed in. This isn’t necessary, just recommended… especially
for those new to working with a Talking Board.
Why should I set-up a staging area?
This is for everyone participating, including you. Candle-light is
relaxing, and brings focus to what you are doing. Using harsh lighting
brings everyone’s focus onto each other, and instead of being focused on
the task at hand, they will be focused on each other and you don’t want
that. You can have your circle ceremony and have everyone participate.
It helps set the “mood” for the evening. Calling the corners helps unite
the whole group. Be serious about it.
Who should I invite?
Cynics need not apply people who will judge you and the others in the
group should not be invited, as they can be a distraction or worse-fuss
with your session by moving the planchette around instead of the
planchette doing the work for you. Not that cynics and skeptics don’t
have their place, they do, and they are some of the smartest people on the
planet (for the most part, I’m sure we have all met someone that breaks
that idea right in two). They can also be one of the biggest buzz-kills as
well. Choose your company wisely. Look for the people who are open to
the idea of working with a Talking Board. Just remember, it’s okay for
people to “chicken out”, they can write down what’s being said in the
group. No one should feel pressured into it.
When should I burn my board?
Good question! Personally, I’ve destroyed boards for multiple reasons,
too much phenomena occurring in the home (lights switching on and off for
no reason, doors opening and closing, water taps turning on and off) but
the bells really ring when I hear these: “I have a cold spot where I didn’t
have one before”-this means something decided to stick around; “The
cat/dog/gerbil/bunny/hamster freaks out for no reason. Their fur stands
on end and it hisses/barks/squeaks/attacks something that isn’t there,”
ditto; “Janie’s puking green pea soup,” just kidding-I’ve never heard
this. Go ahead and laugh! Another phenomena I call the “splotch”, the
area where light just doesn’t seem to penetrate into a room, and when you
enter that room your skin begins to crawl, goose-bumps appear for no
reason, and your flight or fight mechanism is triggered. Now, this being
written… Next are your instructions on purging energies and cleansing
your board of energies.
 Purging the Board
Low-level activity
You will need:
Salt (5-10 pounds)
Sage Smudge (one large one ought to do it)
Shovel
Glass Dish (large)
4 trash bags
Wooden stake (to mark where you buried it)
Talking Board and Planchette
Tape

Timing:
Takes one month, from Full Moon to Full Moon, or 29.5 days

Instructions:
Dig approximately 6-12 inches down into the ground, with about 1-2 inches extra
inches, so the hole should be roughly 14” by 26” and the board should fit easily. Remove the
soil and set to the side. Place the Talking Board and Planchette carefully into one bag, now
fold the bag to where it’s wrapped around the board, and tape it shut. Place this into another
bag. Do the same. In the hole you have dug place a trash bag and push it down into the hole
fill it with half of your salt, place the board on the salt. Cover the board with the remaining
salt, cover with the other trash bag and fill in the hole with your dirt. Mark where you
buried your board with the wooden stake. Now that the board is in the ground, time to
smudge your home. Go inside, open ALL the windows and doors (even the closet doors) go
to the northern-most and top-most floor, and light your sage (make sure you have your glass
dish to catch the ashes) allow it to smoke up the room a little (might want to unplug the fire
detectors and plug them back in when you’re finished) moving clockwise throughout the top-
most floor until you reach where you started. Make sure the smoke permeates everywhere,
even the closets. If you have a basement, do the basement next. Same thing. Now go to the
next floor and do the same. After smudging Do Not throw away the remaining smudge, it
does continue to smolder and can catch your home on fire place it where the board is.
 Destroying a Talking Board
Things needed:
Permission needed from the owner to destroy it, in writing if necessary
Talking Board and Planchette
1-5 lbs. of salt (any will do)
pile of wood
Small pieces of kindling
3 retired white church candles
fresh sweet grass (raffia will work in a pinch)
fresh sage
fresh lavender (or rose petals)
Scrap candle (to seal the herbs onto the candles) white candle
Fire starter brick (you will need several-Talking Boards don't like to burn)
Paper & pen
Fire (lighter, matches… ect.)

Time Frame:
Waning Moon, to banish the energy attracted to the Talking Board. Also, choose a
“power day” one of particular significance to you or your path.
1. Write down your intent for destroying the board-don’t just write down to
repel/banish negative energy (you have to have the sour with the sweet, light and
dark, positive and negative). You could say to release the spirits trapped by those
who didn’t know what they were doing, or to purify the home, or cleanse the
atmosphere of the home as it was hindered by the meanderings of those who didn’t
know what they were doing…. Ect…
2. Focus on your intent written down. Gather the following items: Scrap candle,
lighter/matches, 3 church candles (reasoning behind using them-they have been
blessed and are usually used at weddings or baptism/christenings and are full of joy
and positive energy), sweetgrass, sage, and lavender (or your substitutes).
3. Light the scrap candle, and let it start to burn, meanwhile do this: pull your sweet
grass to the side, and drip wax onto the bottom of one white candle, attach your
sweetgrass to the hot wax and hold it in place until it firms up. Begin wrapping the
 candle clock-wise with the grass and add in your sage and lavender (whatever
pattern) underneath the sweet grass binding the herbs to the candle. Every once in
awhile pour some melted wax onto the sweetgrass to tack it into place. Do this until
you reach the top of the candle. Then wrap the remaining sweet grass around, tacking
it in place with more wax every so often.
4. Finish the other two candles. Stay focused on your intent, don’t get distracted. This
can take up to an hour or so.
5. Preparing the fire. Gather everything left that you haven’t messed with yet. This
should be outside, in a safe place (away from prying eyes), preferably in a fire pit.
Shred any scrap card-board into chunks, place the fire-starter brick in the center,
build a two by two pillar of wood around the scrap paper three logs high. Place the
board on top of the wood. Affix your candles to the board using the scrap candle and
place them in the center around the planchette. Stack two or three more layers of
wood on top of the board around the candles and planchette.
6. Now you are ready. Get your salt & fire making implements. Bring extra wood
into the circle with you, you are going to need it. Also, water (libations) for you to
drink-take it easy on the water. Walking clockwise, focusing on your intent, pour a
thick unbroken line of salt around your fire pit. The larger your circle the more salt
will be needed.
7. Step into the circle, state your intent upon entering, ask for your deity (or deities)
for their help in this working, and light your candles to thank them/him/her in
advance. Light the fire starter log and feed kindling in through the gaps once it is
going.
8. Burn, baby, burn…
9. Once it is burned and the fire is out, gather all of the ashes in a metal bucket and
dump them into a moving body of water. Rivers or large streams will do fine.