Love Amulets
An original essay by Ajarn Chris  (part 1 of 2)

I am often asked what are the most powerful love amulets. There are many thousands of amulets which have been created specifically to increase and enhance charisma, personal magnetism, self-confidence, charm and sexual appeal., but very few are considered great or sufficiently proven to be any more effective than one another.

Often you will find that contemporary love amulets appear particularly attractive with appealing designs, but don’t be fooled, beauty does not equate to power. Some of the most effective love amulets appear surprisingly mundane in appearance.

This two part essay will illustrate and discuss what are generally thought to be some of the most powerful love talismans and charms ever created, These are amulets that have genuinely distinguished themselves over a period of time and have earned their reputation.

It is unfortunate that in general these amulets are only associated with those that are looking to attract the attention of members of the opposite sex, but it is important not to overlook the inherent characteristics which make this variant of amulet extremely effective for those  involved in public relations, sales or indeed any business affairs where a positive response from those we interact with is desired. As such the generic term ”Love Amulet” is somewhat misleading when these amulets should appeal to a much larger audience.

The Thai word for this type of amulet is ”Phra Maha Sanay”, which literally means charm amulets and thus encompasses all of the above

Love amulets can effect a natural harmony by increasing ambient positive spiritual energy, discharging the negative energy of anger and conflict etc. It is important to recognize that the universe is a fluid, ever-changing energy pattern, not a collection of fixed and separate things.  What affects one thing affects, in some way, all things, like ripples on the ethereal plane.

Do they work?

The second question most often asked is ”do these amulets work?”,  in short the answer to this is YES they do.  The authenticity of love amulets is not surprisingly questioned in the modern era and claims of  paranormal powers  are naturally met with varying degrees of acceptance or skepticism.

But the fact of the matter is that much of the power of an amulet is based on scientific fact not on the supernatural and requires little more than faith.

Indeed it is often suggested that love amulets have no direct effect on the target, instead they affect the user, increasing confidence and attentiveness which in turn makes romance more possible, but whatever you believe it is a  fact that these amulets do work, the extent to which depends on your own personal beliefs.

In its simplest form the amulet itself  becomes a constant reminder to the subconscious as to what we might want to accomplish in love or life, strengthening our power of positive thought, image projection and visualization. When you wear a ”love amulet” the psychology behind this concept can quickly be understood and appreciated by almost everyone, irrespective of the amulet, temple, monk or indeed your religion. This power of thought can create the necessary conditions for the subject becoming enamored, hence the term ”Love Amulet”

In essence this is the common denominator by which love amulets, and in fact all amulets, derive a proportion of their their power. but by no means all the power

What distinguishes one love amulet from another?

The positive thought or faith that is placed in an amulet by those who possess them is very powerful indeed, despite the fact that many are effectively just symbolic in nature invoking certain thoughts and ideas.

But this is not the only process at work and explains why one amulet is considered more efficacious than another. The ultimate power of an amulet is also derived in part from a combination of the natural energy of the amulet itself and the spiritual energy imparted to it during the consecration. These are probably the most difficult concepts to either comprehend or substantiate.

The consecration ritual, called PHUTTHA-PHISEK or PLUK-SEK in Thai, involves the proper recitation of Buddhist scripts by Kechi monks (monks with mystical power). PLUK-SEK means to arouse the power of a person or an object by the use of a spell or incantation, hence a consecration or a blessedness.

It is said that a person skilled in meditation who has reached the fourth jhāna stage of deep meditative absorption will gain five kinds of  knowledge and supernormal powers which are: (1) divine vision; (2) divine hearing; (3) the power of knowing other’s mind; (4) the power of performing miracle; and (5) the power of knowing past lives. 

These powers are thought to support the amulet consecration. Thus, consecration and kechi monks are the key elements to create apotropaic power and transfer it into the amulets

Through the discipline of meditation, many of the great Thai monks have mastered the the ability to move, transform or intensify energy and this is the basis upon which many believe power is imparted to the amulet and what makes one amulet more powerful than another.  This concept is not thought to be in anyway supernatural by many Thais, but considered  ‘wicha’ or magic,  a fundamental natural law of nature.

To find the the most potent love amulets you have to look to the past. In years gone by the great monks lived closer to the natural world with a more immediate sense of the larger forces shaping life and destiny.

The meditative power required to impart energy into an amulet involves a physical, intellectual, and ethical separation from the phenomenal world, something that today is much harder to achieve.

Modern day magic has been disconnected from the cycles and rhythms of nature, in fact most would agree, commercialized to the extent that there are even concerted efforts to spread superstition among the gullible for commercial ends. It is one reason why most of the amulets considered to be the best have been blessed by either the older generation or monks who have since passed away.

Natural Power

The component constituents that make up a love amulet play a vital role in providing a conduit for energy and determining its inherent natural magical powers, essentially defining its power. Exactly how these work is not known for sure other than its based on arcane magic.

Much of the magic of the natural world is not seen with the eye, but is experienced intuitively as everything possesses its own a unique energetic signature or molecular vibration.   This natural magic is derived from the relationship  between the world of spirits and nature, where spirits exist not only in humans but also animals, plants and rocks.

The monk consecrating the love amulet controls these forces through meditation, incantation and telepathy which in a cosmos where everything, including the stars, planets, humans, animals, plants, rocks and the dead are connected together via strands of energy,  brings into motion basic energies that have consequences beyond our own existence and thereby determining the power of the amulet.

The monk uses a variety of substances to achieve this such as  herbs, flowers, woods, crystals, certain metals, sacred powders, aromatic oils etc. Many of these components are in the modern age bereft of all meaning like many other desecrated values, underlining a useful but sadly forgotten knowledge.

This is somewhat of a difficult concept to explain or indeed understand and exactly how a love amulet works is very complex subject, but what we do know is that science has already established that everything in this universe is made entirely of energy which is  in a state of constant  flux and change, but beyond that we must rely on our own faith and belief, which ultimately is more important than trying to explain the physics of our existence and the cosmos.

Historical Perspective

From a historical perspective the Tibetans are known to have practiced magic and occultism since ancient times, and they might have been among the earliest Buddhists to have created sacred objects and amulets intended for protection and blessing. Early Thai literature abounds with references to the use of magic and charms, testifying to the fact that such practice had been known in the country for a long time.