The Pentacles

The 6th Pentacle of Mars

An attacker’s weapons are said to turn against their owner, while the bearer of the sixth Mars pentacle escapes injury. Its angelic characters name divine protection; the Psalm around them sends a sword into the aggressor’s own heart. [1]

Mathers 1889 · Book I, chapter XVIII; printed p. 64; figure 30, Plate VII; plate PDF page 83

Pentacle profile

Tradition and Group: Mathers 1889 · Mars [1]
Position within the Set: Pentacle 6 · figure 30 · plate VII [1]
Attributed Purpose: When borne in combat after an attack, to prevent injury or wounds and turn the attacker’s own weapons against them, according to the notice. [1]
Design: Eight spokes end in circled dots, with Malachim characters beyond them and Psalm 37:15 around the outer ring.

[1]

Eight spokes end in circled dots, with curved and angular circle-tipped characters beyond each ray. A Hebrew verse and small six-pointed star occupy the outer band. — **Source reproduction** The 6th Pentacle of Mars: Malachim protection words surround eight rays, within Psalm 37:15’s returning-weapon verse. Mathers 1889, Plate VII, figure 30; notice on p. 64.

The turning of hostile weapons

The sixth notice imagines a person attacked and then fighting while armed with the pentacle. It promises that this person will suffer neither injury nor wounds, and that the attacker’s own weapons will turn against them. [1]

Writing of the angels

Eight rays end in small circles, each with a central dot. Beyond them lie characters made with short strokes, curves and small circular ends. Mathers identifies their script as Malachim, the writing of the angels, and reads the words as “Elohim qeber”—“Elohim hath covered,” or protected. Ordinary Hebrew lettering occupies the exterior verse band. [1]

The sword and broken bow

The ring uses Psalm 37:15: the attackers’ sword enters their own heart and their bow is broken. The preceding verse describes the wicked drawing swords and bending bows to cast down the poor and needy and kill the upright. The following lines contrast the righteous person’s small possessions with the wicked’s riches, then promise that the Lord upholds the righteous. [1][2]

Sources and editions

The Key of Solomon the King · The 6th Pentacle of Mars
S. L. MacGregor Mathers, 1889; printed edition, including editorial restoration of Hebrew characters. Book I, chapter XVIII; printed p. 64; figure 30, Plate VII; plate PDF page 83; Complete Mars notices and notes, printed pp. 63–64 (PDF pp. 80–81); Preface p. vi; general Book I VIII pp. 39–41 and XVIII pp. 56–57
Psalm 37:12–17 · The attackers’ returning weapons
King James Version, public-domain biblical text. Psalm 37:12–17

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