Star of David

The geometric figure of the star hexagram is attested in several ancient cultures, with no single one being its origin. It appears in India where it symbolizes the union of Shiva (upward triangle) and Shakti (downward triangle), in medieval Christian art, and on Islamic amulets from the Maghreb. As a Jewish identity symbol, the Star of David (Magen David, shield of David) is late: it appears as an emblem of the Jewish community only from the 14th century in Prague, and became a national symbol from the 19th century onward with the Zionist movement. The Seal of Solomon, in the Kabbalistic and magical tradition, designates the same figure used as a talisman.

The symbolism of the star hexagram rests on the meeting of the two triangles. The upward triangle classically represents the masculine, fiery, ascending principle, the sky. The downward triangle represents the feminine, watery, descending principle, the earth. Their interlacing symbolizes the union of opposites, the conjunction of above and below, of spiritual and material. Medieval Jewish Kabbalah, notably in the Zohar, attributes correspondences with the sefirot to this figure. Western alchemy (Maier, Khunrath, 16th-17th centuries) uses the hexagram to figure solve et coagula, dissolution and coagulation. The Israeli flag adopted in 1948 made the Star of David a major political emblem.

In contemporary esoteric practice, the star hexagram appears on many talismans, pieces of jewelry, and ritual supports. The ceremonial magic of the Golden Dawn (1888) uses hexagram rituals intended to invoke or banish planetary forces. On Tarotoui, the star hexagram is documented as a symbol of the union of polarities. It appears on certain tarot cards, notably the Star arcanum (XVII) in some versions. The Pentacle of Solomon, a magical talisman attributed to the biblical king, sometimes carries this hexagram inscribed in a circle with divine names.

Confusing the star hexagram (six-pointed geometric figure) and the hexagram of the Yi Jing (configuration of six stacked lines) is a common lexical mistake: the two share only the word. Note also that the use of the Star of David as a Jewish identity symbol is recent and politically charged, which calls for caution in cross-cultural contexts. The geometric figure remains an ancient operative symbol independent of this modern usage.