#hoodoo practioner

[iridesca-enchantress]

Jar for Love and Companionship 💖

⬇️ Ingredients:

•A lock of your hair

• Small jar

• Sealing wax

•Your name and petition

•Pink sugar or regular (you can use red food coloring to make pink sugar)

•Pink salt

•Dried juniper berries

•Cinnamon

•Corriander

•Rose and Sunflower petals

•Amethyst shards

•Rose quartz shards

•Red agate shards

Enchantment 🪄:

" Sugary sweet , From my head to my feet

Come merry all, and come merry meet.

Friends and lovers that come to greet,

with hearts of gold no evil can defeat."

" Come one, come all, from big to the small

Let frolic and dance, come have a ball.

But be warned of envy, if ye come with greed

for karma waits for heinous deeds."

[buggywiththefolkmagic]

Saw your book post and I think you've confused a few things...

You seem to mix up Hoodoo and Vodou a lot. They are not the same. Hoodoo is not a closed practice nor religion. It's just fking weird and poser-ish if someone claims it without ever growing up in the culture for it. But many Hoodoo practioners will tell you their practice is not closed. Vodou/Santeria is closed.

Also saying to be careful not to fall into Hoodoo while doing Conjure... you know rootwork is similar across all cultures right? This just feels like a gatekeeping statement and prevents people from really digging into their folkwork by making them constantly worried they're appropriating.

The thing with smudging: you make no mention of which kind of smudging is closed. You just said it generally, which is a bit ridiculous. Burning herbs for the sake of energy and cleansing is not inherently a Native Indigenous practice. Bayabas, or guava leaves, have been used in the Philippines pre-colonialism. Frankenincense in Europe and Old Christianity. Ti Leaves in Hawaii. Rose in Ancient Rome, and Blue Lotus in Ancient Egypt. As a latina, and as half of one myself🇨🇺, we both know our people love to use incense at altars. SAGE, particularly white sage, is where the line is drawn. Same with palo santo. I agree with your points, but I think you need to be specific if you're being critical.

Much love from 🇵🇭✨️

Hello there anon! I see you sent another ask apologizing for assuming I was Latina, and you're quite forgiven! I am as they say white as white can be.

As a white person I went to an American BIPOC friend of mine in order to answer all of this as honestly as I possibly could. Hoodoo by means of origin IS a closed practice. It's roots come from Ghana and was created in America as a very specific response to slavery. Both Hoodoo and Vodu are tribal/family based, and both require a initiation of sorts through community in order to practice them. Vodu's roots are in Haiti, and through community, enslavement, and initiation needed through the "family" as some groups of Vodu practioners call themselves, are required therefore it is also closed. I shall include some links below to help with the distinction of Hoodoo and Vodu and why they are both closed practices/religions. Hoodoo could be considered a religion in Louisiana specifically due to it's usage there and sometimes it's blending with Vodu. https://medium.com/@empressnaima/my-hoodoo-initiation-5086e375e378 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoodoo_(spirituality) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haitian_Vodou https://cswr.hds.harvard.edu/news/magic-matters/2021/11/10 https://brizomagazine.com/2020/06/15/the-appropriation-of-magic-how-white-people-demonised-voodoo/ Now that I've cleared up through BIPOC voices/history/links on why Hoodoo is in fact closed...let me address the specific comment of

"You know rootwork is similar across all cultures right? This just feels like a gatekeeping statement and prevents people from really digging into their folkwork by making them constantly worried they're appropriating." Rootwork in of itself is a Hoodoo term iirc, but I may be wrong on that front. As for worrying about appropriation...white people SHOULD BE worried about appropriating. Hell currently in America we still through simply social climate and judicial systems are failing our BIPOC/Indigenous communities.

As a folk worker who has some herbalism that stems from Cherokee and Creek peoples I am so beyond careful to make sure my practice is not appropriating from them. White people demolished them, slaughtered them, and took away their homes and sacred spaces, hell, we stole and demolished their LANGUAGE. And you're telling me I don't need to worry about taking anything else from them? The best option is to contact the people you believe is being appropriated from and just...asking them. Wild concept I know. Make friends that are not from your station! Send emails and letters to community leaders in these appropriated cultures in an honest and respectful way to see if what you're studying is appropriated. A good example of this was I found recently an ancestor of mine worked closely with what she called "Grandmama Spider". Grandmother Spider is a Cherokee creation deity. Referencing the above horrors and terrors us white folk did and are still doing to the Cherokee people...I will not be following in her footsteps. Individuals like Cat/Catherin Yronwode has perpetrated that Hoodoo is open, and has caused catastrophic issues with her large standing in the American Folk Magic world. A link to an open letter about Cat Yronwode and her severe appropriation/dismissal of the real history of New Orleans Voodoo being "fake" and "not a slave based religion" is here: https://conjureart.blogspot.com/2013/10/open-letter-to-cat-yronwode-and-lucky.html I don't want to pick on any specific religions/groups of people but all you have to do is read through ONE "witchcraft for beginners" book written in America or England and find at least two stolen items from Indigenous Americans AND the BIPOC/Black community. It's THAT common. Totems and Spirit Animals? Not entirely Indigenous but the ones these authors are teaching about ARE. The same goes for the word smudging, when I mention a book has smudging in it I am talking about white sage. White Americans love to use their white sage with an illegal owl feather and a shell to hold their bundle of sage in. The word smudging in of itself comes from the 15th to 16th century Germanic language and was actually talking about using smoke to rid a home or building of insect infestations. The word we SHOULD be using for cleansing with smoke should simply be...smoke cleansing. It avoids the person reading from having to guess if it's appropriated or not.

Having said all of that I guess all of this boils down to one thing: Listen to the voices of the cultures first. If they say something's appropriated? Stop. If they say it's closed? Stop. I have no authority on anything at all, but if I can speak up just once and give others a platform to say, "Hey this is kinda fucked up" I will. It's the least I as a white person can do.

[tears-exe]

Hi, I'm a Black Queer who practices Hoodoo/Conjure and works with the Lwa Spirits of Voodoo. And I'm here to say, that if you're non Black but curious about the craft (Hoodoo) and the religion (Voodoo), then go out there and learn! There's so many amazing Black made resources out there to go support. There's nothing wrong with learning in good faith. (Links and reading list at the end)

If you're not Black avoid practicing and Do Not profit with, but you can learn.

With Conjure there's some aspects you can add to your Personal craft, you just need to acknowledge it's Black history and give back to Black Practitioners (don't worry I'll link a few stores). In Hoodoo for Everyone by Sherry Shone, she talks about how Hoodoo is a tool use by oppressed people to help oppressed people. And of course anyone can and should buy Mojo Bags, dressed candles, services and whatever else from Black Conjure workers!!!

Voodoo is much more closed, but nothing wrong with learning the basics. Vibrant history and the Lwa are amazing. Especially with things like AHS getting things horribly wrong, I think it's important for people to learn what's actually Voodoo.

Here's what recommend.

For Voodoo, the Wikipedia articles are pretty good, especially for basics. Voodoo of Louisiana by Monique Joiner Siedlak is a VERY good start. She also has a bunch of books I've been wanting to read. You won't find a lot of details, like I said Voodoo is very much closed. There's a reason I said I work with the Lwa and not a Voodoo practioner. You typcially need to be initiated in to a group and there's often rituals, all of this mainly kept via word of mouth in closed circles. For me just some Lwa vist and give me messages and I sometimes ask for help and have a mini shrine to Maman Bridget. One important thing to keep in mind is that nothing in Voodoo is purely Good or Bad just like in nature.

For Hoodoo/Conjure, I recommend starting with Hoodoo for Everyone by Sherry Shone. The name honestly says it all.

Lucky Mojo Publishing has countless books on a variety of crafts and history with a Hoodoo/Conjure focus. Lucky Mojo as well has a vast amount of articles about not only Hoodoo and Conjure but other spiritual things. One I love is this one about the connected history of Judaism and Hoodoo.

Yeyeo Bontanica has youtube videos and articles on many aspects of multiple spiritual crafts, mainly African and African Diaspora crafts. Also a good supply store, I love her soaps.

Big Liz Conjure is amazing, I buy nearly all my supplies from her. Her waters and oils are super powerful (and I'm sure the rest but I've only used her waters and oils). She also hosts tons of paid classes with a variety of teachers. The price might *seem* like alot but it makes sure the teacher is paid properly for their time. Her Voodoo and Hoodoo classes are for African Americans only. If you don't know if you count just ask her. Her Facebook group is a great place to ask questions and she gives out sales there 1st. A great place for cartomancy decks and other tools including books.

Now go out, do your research and go support Black Spirituality!!!

[molassiekali]

A lil' bit about me💞

🤍 I'm a British born 3rd generation Grenadian 🇬🇩

🤍 I'm an Artist and Creative who loves all forms of art from digital, to traditional to sculpture and crafts. Art play a HUGE part in my spiritual development and communion with spirit.

🤍 I grew up in an Anglican Christian Church

🤍 I've studied topics from Christianity & the apocrypha, Astrology, Numerology, Greek Mythology, Herbalism and Minerals, Spirits & Archetypes, Animism, Paganism, Hoodoo, Seven African Powers and Kemetism.

🤍 Solo practioner🧍🏾‍♀️which comes with ups and downs

[teawitch]

This one is from Hoodoo tradition and is a dust used alone or in spellwork with the intention of causing harm.

What goes into it is often not explained and may perhaps vary by the individual practioner. (It may or may not include cemetery dirt)

Can anyone explain what goofer dust is

[afr9desiac]

To all beautiful rootworkers...

I've been putting off transitioning into hoodoo, but I think it's time now. I would love if anyone could point me towards a credible rootworker to help me find a starting point or give me some advice on where to start.

Pls like/reblog if you practice hoodoo so I can follow you❤

[sierracelesteh]

Lilith Sigil Ashtray I made, only 1 left! $20 🖤

https://linktr.ee/celestialsou.l

[theafrobitch]

STOP APPROPRIATING CHAKRAS.

They are much more complex than whatever understanding you think you have

The concept and definition you have in your mind has been severely watered down and distorted

The practices of other cultures aren't yours for the taking, especially if you're going to misuse and misrepresent them

Just because you looked at a rainbow chart and bought a necklace with "chakra stones" doesn't mean you're a Buddhist

I'm talking to all practitioners, black, white, green, purple, idgaf.

[moshimene]

i'm also not too knowledgable on this, but im tagging my gf @magslovesmabel because they are a black hoodoo practioner and they will provide good input <3

Hey saw your Florida water post, correct me if I'm wrong but I think Florida water is specific to hoodoo, thought I'd let you know in case you didn't already

hey! great question, it’s actually originally a cologne from the 1800s that was used for a number of things, most notably by enslaved people for various different things. ranging from its actual use as a cologne to making their enslavers bed sheets smell nice to various purification practices.

so short answer, it’s not closed or specific to hoodoo based on my historical knowledge but if i’m speaking over poc please let me know and i’ll refrain from purchasing/using it again.

longer answer, it’s not closed or specific to hoodoo because it’s got so many varying uses. if it were closed then people who practice santeria wouldn’t be able to use it either, as florida water is a staple to them. it’s also a common thing found in american folk practices and it’s growing popularity in many pagan circles as well. i’ve never personally heard or seen anything about it being closed, but again if i’m overstepping or speaking over poc please let me know.

[indigaux]

witchy snapchats? i wanna follow some of y’all. drop your usernames below 🌙💯✨❤️🌼🌹

[primitive-roots-conjure]

Primitiverootsconjure.com #APowWowADay #primitiveroots #primitiverootsconjure #hoodoo #conjure #rootwork #brujería #folkmagic #trabajo #witches #witchcraft #cunningfolk #practioners #conjurers #powwower #spirituality #espiritista #tricks #layingtricks #work #superstition #oldways #theoldways #spells #spellwork #mountainmagic #mountainwitch #grannywitch #appalachianwitch #longlostfriend https://www.instagram.com/p/B2VpRLMn6wg/?igshid=15qpnkaxmiyxj

[iridesca-enchantress]

Hey all!

Im offering $ 2 readings on my kofi! Im struggling financially, and trying to move out and get my own place because living with my family is emotionally toxic. But im also workong hard on creative witchy projects that are in the making of being published soon! If you want to help a fellow witch/hoodoo practioner out; requesting a reading/sharing/donating would mean the world to me!

Private Readings OPEN

[hagoftheholler]

Folk Practitioner Survey Results

We had a total of 87 people take part in this survey, so thanks to all of you who submitted your responses! I won't be posting every single response to every question, because that would be way too much to fit here. Instead, I will show the charts available and mention the responses to questions that stood out/weren't repetitive.

Written responses will be quoted, and if I have any commentary to add it will be noted with an ➳ arrow.

The first question was asking about the person's general age, which resulted in the following:

The second question asked about what the individual practices, which resulted in the following:

The third question was optional, specifically catered to those who selected the "other" option. We got a variety of results from this, but to simplify it, the following folk practices were mentioned in those results: Welsh, Filipino, Caribbean, Cornish, Hoodoo, Australian, Brujeria, Jewish, Romani, Hungarian, Transylvanian, Brazilian, Dutch, Western American, Japanese, Finnish, Dutch, French, Scandinavian, Polish, Jeiwsh, Midwestern American and Lithuanian.

The fourth question asked about their ancestors homelands and where the individual came from themselves. Specifically, if they came from the region their folk practices originated from or their ancestors. This resulted in the following:

The fifth question was optional, specifically catered to those who selected the "no" option. We asked why did they choose the folk practices they follow. There weren't many responses that weren't repetitive, but I'll post this one so you can get an idea on what most people said:

"For the Slavic practice, neither myself nor my ancestors came from the region - however it has been calling to me since I was young and their stories and cultures have reached me in my soul. I do my best to not involve myself in ancestry or cultural rites I haven't been invited into, but some I have as I've traveled through the Balkans"

The sixth question asked if the individual was a generational practitioner, reconnecting, mentored or learning by themselves. This resulted in the following:

The seventh question was optional, catering to those who selected the "Not generational; I am learning by myself currently" option. It simply asks how are they learning, which resulted in responses such as the following:

"Mainly by reading books about Appalachian folk magic and following tumblr pages about it"

"Research through as many mediums as I can get my hands on. Academic histories, biographies, other practitioners online, podcasts. I try to cast my net as wide as I can so I have multiple sources that I can contrast and compare."

"books, science articles, personal experience, journaling, cause and effect"

"I have books of Scottish folktales that I try to sieve for info, I have a website full of folktales. I'm looking into witchcraft books written in/about Scotland."

"Not being mentored by any one person re: Appalachian/Ozark magic, but given general guidance and advice by a number of practitioners in the region. Self taught for the rest."

"Somewhere between reconnecting and taught. Took much of my practice from observation of my relatives but I was missing key pieces so I'm going through family accounts and works written by other folk practioners in the region to fill in the gaps."

"Online resources and folklore books mostly"

"Reading. Translating when I have the energy to do so."

"I am learning through research, talking with other folk practitioners from the same areas, and asking other people from my country/region about stories/superstitions!"

"Good ol' internet sleuthing (including JSTOR documents), repudated books, folk witch covenmates on discord, podcasts by authors I like"

➳ A small note I'd like to add; I myself do not believe people can truly learn the folk practices directly related to specific regions without speaking to generational practitioners/folk practitioners native to those regions, but I do applaud many of these people for digging up old books and translating them.

The eighth question asked why the individual chose their folk practices. These were some of the results:

"Other forms of work just didn't work for me, then came the realization that what my Granny did when I was little was a type of magic and I dove headfirst into it."

"It’s a part of my culture and religion. My parents taught it to me and it makes me feel connected to my heritage and my family."

"The adaptable nature and the instinct of it, I grew up with many of the practices just labeled under superstitions instead of magic."

"It's comforting and familiar, it makes the most sense in my head."

"I feel like I resonate with it more. Forgive me, but it's not as hippy-dippy as some of the other magic crafts I have seen. It comes from a place of ancestry and history."

"I’m not a fan of any new age stuff…I remember almost being turned away from magic because i thought it was all love and light with a bunch of yoga teachers….until a brilliant folk witch swept me off my feet and put me in the right direction."

"Truthfully it's the path of least resistance. It makes sense to me in a way that learning other systems never did. It gives me connection to my ancestors when as a queer person that relationship was fraught."

"Folk magic has established traditions that are still highly adaptable"

"To connect with my past and my ancestors. Although I am not white, I grew up in a very white environment, which was rather isolating."

"I find it comforting and it brings me meaning."

The ninth question asked if the individual believed their folk practices are closed, semi-closed or open. This is a topic that tends to be debated a lot, and unfortunately I can't narrow down the results much more than this, so here is the chart:

The tenth question asked to explain their reasoning for the previous question, but I failed to require people to include what folk practices they were speaking on in this question so I'm going to skip over this one.

Many of the responses summed up to "It's open, because if you feel called to it that should be enough" or "It's semi-closed because although many traditions are open, you should be living on the land it's from/learning from generational practitioners/much of it is oral tradition". Those who selected "closed" were dominantly bipoc individuals who were speaking on hoodoo, brujeria and things of that nature.

The eleventh question asked everybody to select the religion (or lack of) they followed. These were the results:

The twelfth question asked if religion (or lack of) impacted the individual's practice in any way. These were some of the responses:

"Yes. I incorporate the worship of God into my practices"

"No it doesn't. I keep my religion and my practice very separate due to quite a bit of Christianity related trauma."

"They are intertwined! The christian part anyway. I keep my pagan practices separate."

"I've definitely had to make compromises with a few spirits because of my personal beliefs but we cool"

"Yeah i struggle a lot with how religion fits into my practice as i am From primarily Christian areas. It’s something i am still working through"

"Yes, Christianity is very tied to Appalachian folk magic but I’m not longer Christian so sometimes it can be hard to balance being atheist with the strong Christian traditions of the practice."

"I identify as pagan and often times struggle to make folk practices which are heavily influenced by Christianity fit my deities and what I want to work with."

"A lot of folk magic is intertwined with Christianity. I'm not over the moon about it, but I understand why. I'm trying to see if it makes a difference if you separate out the Christianity versus leaving it in."

"Raised culturally Christian but Norse pagan now, but am attempting to incorporate certain Christian beliefs (saints, novenas, etc) into my own practice, since a lot of the texts/sources we have are from after the conversion of Scandinavia."

"Not particularly. I keep things separate."

And, finally, the last question simply asked if anybody had anything to add onto their submission for the survey. Here are a few responses that stood out to me:

"If you hear whistling in the woods at night no you didn't :)"

"I enjoyed answering these questions. It has brought some things up in my mind that I need to contemplate for a while. Thank you for that."

"I can’t stand witchcraft social media spaces. Incredible levels of disrespect done against all cultures and practices, meanings and definitions change and become more trendy than sincere. I can’t be a part of a community like that."

"I'm not very articulate and I'm certianly afraid of this coming across the wrong way, but I think there's too much infighting in different esoteric communities when half the time we're doing silly little spells and charms and yes, religion and spirituality are deeply personal and powerful subjects, but the fun in it came from me when I thought how ridiculous it is that my grandma on my dad's side knew mustard seed in a necklace would give me good luck and a wish, or that my baba knew that crosses on the window panes that she traced with fingers dipped in olive oil would keep the house safe. None of these things mean anything except that they mean everything."

"Trans rights"

"Personally, I think we lost something when folk magic began to go on the decline. Throughout all human history magic has been there. Now we have new age people and such. lmao"

"Even if you only just moved to a place, immediately research it's folk traditions cuz they're yours now, too. Chances are as a newcomer you prolly have something new to bring to the potluck as well. Just cite your sources, always."

Thanks to everybody who took part in this survey! I got a lot more responses than I initially expected. I was expecting no more than 30, maybe 40 tops. Yet there were 87. Y'all had me shook lol

[cuntatthecrossroads]

Methods of Divination in Hoodoo

While divination methods vary from practitioner to practioner, family to family, and region to region, there are some common threads when it comes to divination tools/methods in Hoodoo. This is by no means meant to serve as an exhaustive list.

Reminder: Hoodoo is for BLACK PEOPLE ONLY

BONES: “Throwin’ Bones” is a common Hoodoo divination method. A bone set consists of not only ritually collected animal bones, but sometimes shells, jewelry, small family heirlooms, coins, dice, other animal parts, etc. The bones are thrown and depending on where/how they land, an answer or message is determined. Bone divination existed in many ancient cultures all over the world, including cultures of the African continent, and enslaved African preserved this practice in the New World.

DICE: Divination with dice on their own is also common in Hoodoo. Most practicioners use a combination of numerology and intuition to decipher the message. Various groups of ancient Africans developed complex numerical systems and systems of numerical divination that they brought with them to the New World.

PLAYING CARDS: Many ancient civilizations, including societies all over Africa, had some form of cards for playing games as well as divination. Enslaved African people from various groups brought with them the knowledge of and philosophies about cards. When they arrived in the New World, only Western Style playing cards were available to them. Hoodoos and other Black cartomancers used intuition, ancestor contact, and African derived numerology to determine messages using playing cards.

***A Word About Tarot*** While many Hoodoo practioners are also skilled and successful tarot readers, tarot is NOT a part of traditional, authentic Hoodoo. It’s totally fine for Hoodoos to use tarot, but it should be noted that tarot is a separate practice, not to be conflated with Hoodoo. HOWEVER, it should be noted that the art on the deck known as the traditional Rider-Waite tarot deck was drawn by a biracial Black woman, Pamela Coleman Smith. This fact is often erased in contemporary tarot discourse. As such, it is now commonplace among Black spiritualists to refer to the traditional tarot deck as the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. Smith also illustrated several books of Jamaican and African folklore, if y’all wanna check that out.

DREAMS: Many Hoodoos use dreams or dream like trances to divine answers and seek ancestral guidance. Some have the gift of prophetic dreaming, others the gift of dream interpretation. Enslaved Africans brought with them their own folklore and omens to decipher the meaning of dreams. We all know it’s common among Black folks for your mom or grandma to have a dream about some fish, and that means somebody in the family is pregnant. They’re rarely ever wrong LOL.

COINS: Similar to throwing bones, it is also common in Hoodoo for a set number of coins to be thrown, and a message or answer determined by where and/or how the coins fall.

[hoodoobarbie]

I really do love my people but another Hoodoo just asked me how I’m able to determine what someone else is up to and I was like Ma’m through divination, my gifts and just simple discernment ?

Ma’m I . . . And I oop!

Like do some folks not realize anyone can do a reading on you, willy nilly or get premonitions/signs etc ? You can do glamours to shield and protections, etc but a good practioners gonna get the goods on you.

I literally did a tarot spread recently and I was able to smell the target’s very expensive cologne + I think he might sensed me. It was freaky, cuz I was snooping around a high profile white. Wanted to clarify some things, since I’ve heard some rumors. And this particular white has work on him, so others can’t read/pick up on their shit. 

I could tell she really thought she had me in the a pickle, but I’m so seasoned, I ain’t even salty.  I was just shocked at the sheer ignorance, I genuinely thought she was trolling.

Continue with your studies, y’all on this spiritual journey. It’s crazy out here.

[shewhohonors]

I just saw a book that talks about Appalachian folk magic but calls it hillfolk hoodoo... and I don't think I like that. 

Why.. Hoodoo isn’t an umbrella term. And the way its used feels very much like its an umbrella term. Which.. is erasing the vast amounts of history and energy that created Hoodoo in the first place. 

And sure... maybe its because people don’t have another word for something.. But like.. I don't like this. I don’t like that this literally erases my black ass historical and ancestral spirituality to make room for backwoods swamp witches?? And honestly, no disrespect to Appalachian folk practioners- I want to learn more about your practice so I know where the lines are drawn. But this isn’t cool.