Why should a cauldron or spell pot have three legs?

A cauldron or caldron (from Latin caldarium, hot bath) is a large metal pot (kettle) for cooking and/or boiling over an open fire, with a large mouth and usually attached to a hanger with the shape of an arc. Cauldrons have fallen out of use nowadays in the industrialized world as the main cooking vessels they once were.
The cauldron is special in many forms of society. A photograph with this article shows preparations for matriculation day at a school in Botswana. Food is usually prepared in the school kitchens, but for a feast, special outdoor cauldron pots are pressed into service. Cauldrons became associated with witchcraft, as a cliché popularized by various fictions, including the play Macbeth. In such fantastic fiction, witches often prepare their potions in a cauldron. Also, in legend, a cauldron is purported to be where leprechauns keep their treasure. Taliesin, the founder of bard craft, was said to be born of the Celtic Goddess, Cerridwen, who had a supernatural magic cauldron. Taliesin consumed a potion from Her sacred cauldron, thus gaining the creativity and inspiration to birth the idea of bard song.
In Neo-paganism and Wicca the cauldron, or three footed spell pot, is a tool of great importance. Used by both modern witches in folk magic and those of the Wiccan faith for cooking herbal remedies, burning spell papers and ingredients, or used as a ritual vessel during ceremony to hold salt or water.
A cauldron can be made of most any material, but cast iron and copper are the most common. For practical uses a metal cauldron provides the safest container for cooking and burning, especially since they usually hang or sit on three legs allowing good air flow. Cauldron shaped pots or kettles of other materials such as stoneware and glass can be spiritually cleansed and re-claimed as ritual or ceremonial tools too. They make wonderful candle holders, scrying bowls for divination, and are much better for holding liquids and salt because those substances can damage metal. It requires each of the elements to create a metal cauldron. Such a cauldron could be seen as a symbol of the four elements; earth, air fire, water combined in both function and form.
Beside being a practical tool, the cauldron is a spiritual symbol to many. Traditionally the witches' cauldron has three legs no matter what the material it's making. This is seen to be in reference to the Goddess in Her Triple Goddess aspect of Maiden, Mother, and Crone. It could also represent three main stages of life; as in birth, life and then of course death. The symbolic meaning of the cauldron is typically seen to be the Mother Goddess. The plump shape mocks the womb of the Earth; Mother Nature. Because we come from a womb when we are born and are, in most cases, placed in the earth when we die the cauldron is also a symbol of rebirth. The afterlife for ancient Celtic people, and many in Wicca today, is known as "The Cauldron of Rebirth" (Tír na nÓg, Tir na nog or the Land of the Ever-Young). The belief is that those who die pass into the Cauldron of Rebirth before being reincarnated. It's easy to understand this transmutation when we consider the observation that ingredients going into a cooking pot are generally dead plant and animal portions. After being cooked, the resulting substance gives life supporting energy for the human body.

Ironic in this modern era, the association of food with the cauldron is found in a masculine rather than feminine example. The Dagda, who's name means, "The Good God", was the High King (Father of the Gods) of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the supernatural beings who inhabited Ireland prior to the coming of the Celts. The Dagda had a magic cauldron known for great abundance. The cauldron was bottomless, capable of feeding an army; no one would go hungry in its presence. As the Cauldron of Rebirth it appears in the story of 'Branwen, Daughter of Llyr' and is used by the Irish to resurrect their own dead soldiers; they arise to fight the next day but they cannot speak. Being mute perhaps prevented them from telling the secret mysteries of the Underworld.

As a Halloween decoration or sacred ritual tool, the cauldron remains nearly as relevant today as it has through time.

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* To reference this article see bibliography entry 29. at my site, Realm of the Mystic Griffin www.mysticgriffin.com

*To purchase mystical vintage & antique altar cauldrons, plus other metaphysical ritual tools, visit my Curio Castle shop http://www.mysticgriffin.etsy.com

"About the Cauldron; Meaning of the three footed spell pot in myth and modern neo-paganism Wicca.", by Tree Pruitt © Not to be used for prifit or personal gain.

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* A reader asks... Consecrated salt -- is that sea salt or just a blessed form of table salt?

You can use any salt and bless it ritually. However, its purpose on your altar is to represent the element of Earth. Once you think of it that way, sea salt might not seem like a good idea for general altar use. Some folks will say the same, or worse, about table salt because it has iodine added -- "It's not naturally pure", they may say. Well, I feel that salt is salt as a stone is a stone; it's still salt and it is a miracle to the planet! It all depends on what you feel when you're working with it, but table sat is certainly better than none at all in some situations.

If the salt is to be used only as a representative of Earth on your altar and in earth related spells, then blessed consecrated table salt is fine for the job. I'm sure "straight from the earth" block salt is obtainable on the Net if that feels like what you need. For ocean spellwork, Goddess and water works I'd use sea salt, personally. It can be purchased from the spice wrack at a local grocery store these days.

WARNING: Salt IS corrosive so don't use metal bowls, & don't bury the tip of an athame into it. It will mar the metal and may damage other surfaces.

Salt is blessed, basically, by first casting a casual circle -- it doesn't have to be fancy, but you will be calling the quarters & invoking the Gods. So it's formal in attitude, but a ring of candles on the floor isn't called for nor fancy dressings. Once you've invoked & so forth in your usual manner, place the tip of your athame, wand, or the index finger of your most dominate hand, into the top or just over the salt. You want to first remove any prior energies the salt may have picked up through processing and handling. You might declare something such as...

"This salt is clean. The pattern of it's energy is returned to a state of natural purity. This salt is clean, this salt is clean, this salt is clean!"

Recite a declaration prayer. You are declaring that this salt is sacred, blessed & will purify all that it touches. You can write a blessing prayer yourself based upon the words ...

"This salt is sacred, blessed & will purify all that it touches by the purity of Nature. Salt is Earth, salt is life!", or some such phrase.

What matters most is that you feel the words to be true & pull that energy down from the Gods, (or Universe), to direct it into the salt. This is good practice for charging items for a spell, or your self for ritual work too because the salt doesn't really need to be charged. It's more like you are programming it. Salt is sacred all by itself, you need not worry if you've not gotten the hang of bringing down energy or raising it when blessing salt. What you're doing is just basically telling the salt what job you want it to do and inviting the Deities to give it a boost! The same basic method is used for charging an item for ritual use & programming stones for use too.

Free graphics, many with symbols at Ambrosia's Realm of Graphics ...