The Witch's Besom by Galandrea

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

 The besom (pronounced beh-sum) is the witch's broomstick and a magickal tool.  The besom is an object of magickal protection.  Besoms are often placed near the hearth or entrance of the home to protect the home and prevent evil from entering.  If negativity is a problem, just take your besom and visualize yourself sweeping these feelings out the door.       

   Most wiccans, start their rituals with a ritual sweep with their besom to begin the process of sweeping out negative energies and bringing in the good energies. This is part of creating sacred space. Many witches feel their besoms/brooms carry energies with it as well. I have a couple of sacred besoms and I can feel their energy from the many Circles they have been used to sweep with and simply by being in ritual with me and my family.  I have one particular besom hanging in my home that carries a great deal of energy and at times I will pause touch it and do a chant.  It is very special to me and very magickal. Besoms are very sacred to us and are typically placed some place special when ritual is over with. Besoms should be hung by the fire place on a nail or a place of honor within our home so that the besom does not touch the ground.

     At Halloween we are bombarded with images of the demonized Crone Goddess riding her broom across the moon.  The idea that witches could fly on broomsticks may have been a misunderstanding of astral projection, a sending forth of one's consciousness to other places. 
    The besom is used to clean your ritual circle of unwanted energies.  Different kinds of brooms are used for different things.  For example, hawthorn besoms are best for handfasting.  Oak besoms can be used as a powerful tools for personal protection and to draw in ancestral energies and knowledge.  You can also put magickal herbs on and around your broom for the different kinds of magick as apposed to investing in several brooms.  

        
MAKING A BESOM 
If you would like a besom of your own, they are fairly easy to find in craft stores, country markets, or folk art fairs.  You can also invest your energies into making one, a good idea if you wish to use it in place of a wand or other ritual tool.
     To make a besom you will need:

• A round four foot piece of wood approximately one inch in diameter
• ball of twine or hemp
• your boline or scissors
• straw or other long strands of pliable herbs

     Take the straw, or another herb you have chosen for the bristles, and allow them to soak overnight in warm, lightly salted water.  The water softens the straws to make them pliable, and the salt soaks out former energies.     When you are ready to make your besom, remove the straws from the water and allow them to dry a bit, but not so much that they lose the suppleness you will need to turn them into your besom.
     Find a work area where you can lay out the length of your dowel, and begin lining the straws alongside the dowel.  Starting about three inches from the bottom, lay the straws, moving backward, along the length of the dowel.  Begin binding these to the dowel with the twine.  You will need to tie them very securely.  You can add as many layers of straw as you wish, depending on how full you would like your besom to be.
     When the straw is secured, bend the top straws down over the twine ties.  When they are all gently pulled over, tie off the straws again a few inches below the original tie.  Leave the besom overnight to allow the straw to dry
     The handle part of the besom can be stained, painted, or decorated with pagan symbols, your craft name, or any other embellishments you choose.  Dedicate and charge your finished besom in your circle as you would any other ritual tool.