The Triquetra
Triquetra (tri-KET-ra), Latin, three cornered.
This symbol, or something very similar, is used is many places, by many cultures, for many purposes. It has many forms. In Celtic symbology it can be three intersecting arcs. with and without a circle in it, or a similarly shaped set of parallel lines. Norse symbology has something called the Odin Knot which is almost identical to the three intersecting arcs the Celts used. The symbol, and it's many variations, seems to represent three elements as a unity or three pieces of a whole. It has been used by Pagan religions, in modern Wiccan practice, and may have been borrowed by the early Christians, who often borrowed heavily from other religions of the day, although no one is certain. An inverted version of the triquetra consisting of the circumference of three intersecting circles has been known to be found in Indian carvings as old as 5000 years. Verification on this one is still pending but rumor has it the triquetra has also been used to represent protection.
One of the more recent incarnations of this symbol is in the WB television series Charmed where it appears on the cover of the three witches’ Book of Shadows or grimoire. This is a book of spells and wisdom written over generations and invaluable to the three witches who’s traditional and hereditary job it is to protect the innocent. And yep, I'm a fan. The last episode aired in May 2006. I am very sad. Buffy, Angel, and Charmed are all gone now.
The three sister witches’ job of protecting the innocent is actually similar to part of my job which is to harden, from a security standpoint, the systems I run, This does involve a certain amount of magic, witchcraft, sorcery, and wizardry given that computer and network security is still something of an arcane art. It mostly involves white magic but requires knowledge of the blacker arts in order to know what to defend against and how to do it. Like the charmed ones in the series, I’m pretty good. The difference is I do it for real.
Author: Chris Johnson
Version: 2.0.1