The pentagram is a five-pointed star; the five rays representing the energy of the four elements; earth, air, fire and water.  The fifth arm of the pentagram is symbolic of spirit: ether, essence, "soul" - but not in the
Christian sense.  Thus, the pentagram symbolizes the four great natural elements united in harmony with the spirit of humanity.  It is this harmonious relationship - spirit interacting with the natural forces of nature - from which one can derive the ability to work Magick.  Some name it intent, or emotion, but the spirit is the Magickal force that enables us to work with nature to will enchantments, to bless our work, to protect ourselves and balance the elements within spells and within our lives.

The four sides of the pentagram are not restricted to earth, air, fire and water - they can represent whatever elemental forces one wishes; thus the pentagram’s potency as a symbol is virtually limitless.  Most often, however, the pentagram represents the five stages  of life - Birth, Initiation, Love, Repose and Death: the cyclic nature of existence for us all.

Perform this magickal exercise on a regular basis:
Draw a pentagram and inscribe above each arm the five profound turning of life.  Meditate on the deep meaning of each of these processes.  Contemplate how they relate, one to the other, and reflect upon various thoughts, insights, and emotions thrown up by this meditation.

This ritual is particularly enriching at significant turning points within one’s life.  Literally, it is enlightening and fulfilling when an individual encounters the joy and mystery of new life being born into the world, or the wrench and sorrow of death retrieving a soul for the Underworld.  It can also be used, symbolically - when a birth has taken place in the form of a new job, house, philosophy; with a death; the annihilation of a love bond between two people; or a business partnership which is no longer profitable.

Initiation, the second stage of the life cycle, is one of the most neglected areas of all for young people who no longer have the structure and power of ritual to guide them into the difficult, dazzling and sometimes dangerous world of adulthood.  In the late 20th century, Initiation is performed by young people in a haphazard and sometimes catastrophic fashion, resulting in violence and mayhem and a lack of love and respect between generations.  Understanding the symbolic beauty and the power of the links between these processes (Birth-Initiation, Death-Initiation, Love-Death, Birth-Repose, and so on) will enable you to increase your own power to experience the five stages of life to their fullest.

 The pentagram also corresponds to the five senses, so this diverse symbol can also be experienced as a metaphor for the physical realm.  Other qualities often invoked and represented by the pentagram are Sex, Self, Passion, Pride and Power.  Be imaginative and create your own pentagram meditations using five essential experiences or energies significant to you.  All these invocations will help bring you into balance - you will develop understanding as to which areas are our weak points and can them work to strengthen them, as well as developing an understanding of the transformational energies of life.

The pentagram is always drawn upright, so that it resembles a person with arms and legs spread out, in a kind of entreaty to the God and Goddess.  The reversed pentagram is often said to be a tool of Satanic witches (considered by many to be a contradiction in terms) and of black magic, due to its resemblance to the head of a goat.  It actually can represent negative workings, as it symbolically turns the harmonious co-operation
between elements and spirit on its head - spirit being the least of factors in the inverted pentagram.  In the “white” magick version it is spirit that “rules” or binds.

Different traditions of magick work with pentagrams.  In Kabbalistic and Wiccan magick, invoking and banishing pentagrams are drawn in ritual.

The Kabbalistic connection resulted in the use of pentacles in the Tarot deck:  The pentacles (sometimes called coins or discs) are the suit which represent the earth - the material aspect.  The Devil card in the Rider Waite Deck contains an inverted pentagram drawn between the Pan-figure’s horns.  Symbolizing spiritual bondage, it also alludes to occult activity with negative intent and enslaving results - the law of the Three-Fold Return.

It is important to work on your pentagram meditations.  Using your Book 
of Shadows, draw a pentagram as the Wheel of the Year moves through significant phases.  The cycles of Repose and Death are the aspect of
the pentagram which will resonate with the upcoming seasons and the festivals that honor them.  Pentagram meditation is a wonderful ritual.  It intensifies the experience of the Sabbat while reminding one of the
inevitability of the driving forces of the life cycle, and of the utmost sanctity 
of spirit.