Working with Balam: a seal ring made to be worn and worked with

Balam, as the old description presents him

The description, quoted from the old grimoire text, says he comes forth with three heads: the first of a bull, the second of a man, the third of a ram. He has a serpent's tail and flaming eyes, he rides upon a furious bear, and he carries a hawk on his fist. He speaks with a hoarse voice, answering perfectly.

That image is worth sitting with before you think about a ring at all, because it is not a gentle image, and it is not a vague one. Three heads, a bear, a hawk, a serpent's tail: this is a figure of force and of sight at once, a king who looks in more than one direction and who speaks plainly.

It is a reminder that Goetia work with a king is not shopping, and not a game. Be clear about why you are working with Balam, what you are asking for, and what you are prepared to do yourself. If you cannot state the matter in one clear sentence, write it down, leave it overnight, and come back to see if it still reads true.

A seal ring is not a pendant, and not a picture

A seal ring is a different working tool than a pendant seal, and the difference matters in practice. A pendant hangs against the chest, or under clothing, and it is carried. A ring sits on the hand, and the hand is what you work with: the hand that anoints, that holds a tool, that traces a figure, that opens a book. A seal worn on the hand is present in the working in a way a pendant is not, because it is in the middle of everything your hands do.

That is also why a ring needs to fit the way you actually work. A ring that is too loose will turn on the finger and distract you. A ring that is too tight will ache through a long working and pull your attention away from the work itself. When you order a seal ring, be sure of the size you need for the finger you will wear it on, in the conditions you will wear it in, because a working tool that does not fit is a tool you will fidget with instead of working with.

Like the pendant seals on this site, this ring is a hand cast seal, not a picture of one. It has weight, it has a surface you can touch, and it stays with you after the working is over. The seal itself is the point: the figure engraved and cast for Balam, carried on the hand, worked with over time, rather than looked at once and filed away.

How a lost-wax cast seal ring is made

The seals offered here are lost wax cast seals of the Daemon Demons of the various grimoires. They are pure metal which is actually cast, starting with a wax version.

In lost-wax casting, the seal is first worked in wax, then cast in metal from that wax form. The wax is lost in the process, which is where the name comes from, and the metal that remains is a solid, cast object, not a printed shell. You can feel that difference when you hold it: a cast seal has weight, it has a surface that shows the hand work, and it does not have the layered texture of a printed object.

This Balam ring is cast with a gemstone, which is what sets it apart from the plain Balam cast seal ring. The gemstone is part of the ring as offered, not an optional extra added afterwards, and it should be treated as part of the working tool, not as decoration alone. A stone set in a seal ring is there to be seen and touched during the working, and it changes how the ring feels on the hand, which is part of how it functions as a tool.

That process also explains why a cast seal is made to order, and why it takes time. A seal that is already listed takes about 2 to 3 weeks while seals that are not listed, but are under the other option, take 8 weeks, because she still has not carved their waxes yet. Balam is a listed seal, so the shorter timing applies to it in principle.

Preparing to work with a seal ring

Preparation is most of the work, and with a ring that preparation starts before the ring arrives. Be clear about why you are working with Balam, and what you are asking for. When the ring arrives, do not start by wearing it everywhere at once. Take time to look at it, to hold it, and to set it aside in a clean place that is used for your working tools. If your practice calls for cleansing or consecration of a new tool, follow the instructions you already follow in your system. A general article like this one is not a substitute for proper teaching in the system, and it should not be used to invent a consecration rite for a seal you have not been taught to consecrate.

Prepare the room and yourself in the same way you would for any Goetia working: clear the space, set it aside for this purpose, bathe or wash, change into clothes you do not wear for ordinary errands, and know what you are going to say, in your own words, before you begin. A clear head is a working tool, just as much as a seal, oil, or incense is.

Holding, anointing, and working with the ring

There are several ways to work with a seal ring, and they are worth knowing separately, because they do different things in a working. Holding the ring, or the seal face of it, in your hand during a working is the simplest: you are keeping the seal present, in contact, while you speak and listen. Putting the ring under a candle during a working is another: the seal sits beneath the light, set aside for the purpose, while the candle burns above it.

Putting oil on the seal is a way of marking it for a purpose. In practice, that is often done with a matching oil, applied deliberately, naming the purpose in your own words. Balam has a matching oil and a matching incense, both at $44 CAD, for spirit work and spellwork with Balam, made in small batches when you order. Anointing the ring with that oil, or fumigating it by passing it through the incense smoke, are companion practices to the ring itself: ways of preparing the tool for a working, and of starting a working, rather than separate workings on their own.

Carrying the ring is part of the work, and wearing it as a ring, on the hand, is the form carrying takes here. Wear it when you are working, and put it away properly when you are not, rather than leaving it loose with keys and change, or on a bathroom shelf. Showing the seal to the desired person, where your practice calls for that, is another recognised way of working with a seal: the seal is presented, deliberately, rather than merely worn and forgotten about.

Do not use a seal as a substitute for the rest of the working. Wearing a ring and then doing nothing else, with no petition, no attention, and no closing, is not spirit work. The seal supports the work, it does not replace it.

A simple working order, to adapt to your own practice

The following is a general order, not a fixed script. Adapt it to the system you already work in. First, prepare the room and yourself, as above. Second, set out the ring, and any oil, incense, or candle you will use. Third, anoint or fumigate the ring, if your practice calls for it, deliberately, naming the purpose in your own words, or place it under the candle for the working. Fourth, speak your petition, clearly and once, rather than repeating it until it loses its shape. Fifth, sit quietly for a time and listen, rather than filling every moment with more words. Sixth, close the working properly, in whatever way your practice requires, and put the ring away in its proper place.

Afterwards, write down what you did, when you did it, and what you noticed. Not what you hoped would happen, but what actually happened, in plain language. That record is what lets you tell, weeks later, whether anything changed, and whether that change had anything to do with the work. Note the ring itself in that record: when you wore it, when you put it away, whether you anointed or fumigated it, and what you noticed on days when you wore it compared with days when you did not.

Care for a cast ring with a gemstone

Care for a cast ring is practical, not mystical, and it is worth stating plainly. Pure cast metal will show wear over time, especially if it is worn every day, against skin, against tools, and against other objects. That wear is normal for a working tool, and it is not a sign that the seal has stopped working. It is a sign that it has been carried.

A gemstone needs a little more care than plain metal. Keep the ring in a clean, dry place when you are not wearing it, away from other metal objects that could scratch it or knock the setting. Clean it gently, with a soft cloth, and do not use harsh chemicals or abrasive cleaners on it. If the setting loosens, or if the ring shows damage, stop wearing it until it can be repaired properly. A tool that you are worried about losing a stone from is a tool you cannot focus with.

Keeping a record, and knowing when to stop

Keep a short record for each working: date, purpose in one sentence, ring and any oil or incense used, what you did, and what you noticed afterwards, over days and weeks, not just on the night itself. If nothing changes, that is also information. It may mean the petition was unclear, the timing was wrong, the work was not appropriate, or simply that the situation needs a different approach.

Do not repeat the same working endlessly in the hope that repetition alone will force a result. Do the work properly, once, observe, and then decide, calmly, whether a second working, a different approach, or no further working is the right next step. Repetition without reflection is not persistence. It is noise.

Balam cast seal ring with a gemstone

A seal ring for Balam should be a seal, not a picture of one, and it should be worn on the hand that does the work.

I make these as lost wax cast seals, cast from a wax version in pure metal, one at a time, and I bless each one myself before it is sent out. This one is Balam, as a ring, with a gemstone set in it, made for traditional Goetia work with Balam, to be worn and worked with, not left in a drawer as decoration. I make no promise about what it will do for you, only that it is cast by hand, for this work.

If you want a Balam seal ring made in this way, this is the one I offer: Balam Goetia cast seal ring with a gemstone, $324 CAD. View the product

Balam also has a matching oil and a matching incense, each $44 CAD, for anointing and fumigating the ring in the same work.

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