In all of Paganism, Wicca and Witchcraft, I think the differences between the Pentagram and Pentacle is the cause for the most confusion and has the most misconceptions. It is unfortunate because the Pentacle is probably our most mainstream symbol. It’s the one symbol that I feel anyone would see and would associate with Witchcraft and vice versa. But that same Pentacle, when inverted is the most misconstrued. Pentagram, Pentacle, inverted, not inverted. What’s the same and what’s different? What does it all mean?
I’ll start with a basic definition of what a pentagram is. According to Merriam Webster’s online dictionary, a pentagram is “a shape that is like a star with five points formed by five straight lines and that is often used as a
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When I was a teenager, I truly believed an upside down or inverted Pentacle was a symbol of Satanism. This misconception is so common that I’ve even had someone ask me if my one point up Pentacle pendant was a “devil worshipping thing.” This is probably attributed to the fact that an inverted Pentagram has been used as a representation of the Horned God and the one point up Pentagram can be the Goddess. Over the years, Christianity misinterpreted the Horned God as being their Devil. That is not the case though for the inverted Pentagram. The position of the points on a Pentagram does not change the fact that they can represent the elements or the God and Goddess nor does an upside down Pentacle become a tool for evil. The true difference in the position is more of a way you look at something similar to two side of the same coin in the case of the Horned God reference. The Pentacle for me is a magical tool and when used in a circle for example, I could be standing any place in the circle so my perspective of the Pentacle would change. That does not change the positive and protective function of it. However, I could possibly perform a spell in which I place the Pentacle upside down to represent the body being upside down indicating possible illness. I could during the spell, turn the Pentacle right side up to indicate overcoming the illness. Again, this is showing two sides of the same coin, one body, being ill and