Mardi: Herbal-Wise

Peaches are by and large considered a mild climate fruit.  In the U.S. they are particularly associated with the South where peach pie and peach cobbler are staples at holiday tables.  Not surprisingly, peach trees figure into hoodoo root work.  They also have ties to Far Eastern and Wiccan magick as well.

In hoodoo, the dried leaves of peach trees are ground down and used to make an oil that is said to help students do well in school and particularly on tests.  Adding dried verbena and sage increases the power of this dressing oil which can be used as a hand wash or to anoint things like pencils, books and other tools of the scholar’s trade.

Wiccans believe that peaches can encourage attraction;  offering a the fruit or a dish made with it – with intention of course – to a potential love interest of either sex can start a romance.  Scott Cunningham notes that the fruit can also be eaten to gain wisdom.

In China, peach tree branches are used in rituals of exorcism.  Chinese children once wore peach pits on necklaces to protect them from demon possession.  In Japan, eating peaches is thought to increase fertility and peach branches were used as divining rods.  Carrying a piece of peach bark was thought to increase longevity and possibly make one immortal.

What ever their use, the fruit of the peach is a treat at any time of the year, particularly if you live somewhere where growing them means a well-kept and spacious greenhouse at your disposal.  Bonne chance ~

Header: Orchard with Peach Trees in Blossom by Vincent van Gogh

Jeudi: Root Work

For centuries, the spirits of various beliefs have been entreated to send prophetic dreams.  Sometimes the desired knowledge is simply what will become of us but sometimes it is more specific: a future spouse, the outcome of a business deal, the best path to take.  Halloween has always been a time to practice this sort of divination because of the prevailing belief that the veil between the worlds is most thin at the turn of the year.  For the Celts – and to some extent for those of us affected by their ancient wisdom – October 31 marks the beginning of a New Year.

I believe that pleasant dreams are a year round privilege; if they happen to give us a glimpse of the future, so much the better.  That said, why not take advantage of the Halloween mojo, if you will, and make mojo bags to help the dreams of your loved ones as the wheel turns once again?  This is an easy working that I encourage my kids to do for themselves.  It’s a wonderful introduction to applying concentration and intention to help achieve a goal.  Here’s what you’ll need:

Small, drawstring bags in any color and material that appeals to you.  These are easily found in craft stores these days; just be sure to cleanse the “store-bought” versions with a dab of holy water or an extra pinch of sea salt before you begin.  You can also make your own bags, of course.  The easiest kinds of mojo bags are, in fact, no more than a square of fabric filled with ingredients then bundled up and tied with ribbon or thread.  You will want a bag/bundle that will fit comfortably in a pillow case or under a pillow.

Dried lavender

Whole cloves

Dried rosemary leaves

Dried rose petals or a whole rosebud

Sea salt

Mix all your herbs together in a bowl.  How much of each herb with depend on your intention and how many mojos you are making.  The lavender will impart restful sleep, the cloves protect from nightmares and call upon ancestors, rosemary also protects (especially women) and draws prosperity; the rose petals/buds attract dreams of love.  A pinch of sea salt in each mojo will help ground the dreamer and encourage them to make wise decisions in their waking life.

Take some time to yourself, listen to music or light a candle if you like, sit down and deliberately fill your mojo bags with your chosen ingredients.  Imagine the people you care for both enjoying and benefitting from their dreams today, tomorrow and always.  Be sure to make yourself a dream mojo as well; you’ve earned it.

When they’re done, put the mojo bags in a box or cupboard where they won’t be disturbed.  Distribute them to your family and friends on or near Halloween.  They can use them all year, and then burn or bury them the following Halloween.  Either include instructions on making the mojo with your gift, or make new ones yourself the next year.  A votre santé ~

Header: A Veil by Louis W. Hawkins via Old Paint

Samedi: The Frog With the Banjo

We have talked before about the importance of keeping quiet when in the midst of a magickal undertaking. Even after the thing is done and finished, whether successfully or not-so-much, the wise root worker keeps it to themselves, perhaps discussing it with a trusted companion or two but nothing more. Rumination on this time honored truth yesterday brought two things to my mind. The first involved the wisdom of this blog and the second involved an old hoodoo story about a reptile playing a stringed instrument.

The story, as I originally heard it, involves a frog with a banjo. Other versions I have sense collected include turtles, lizards and alligators as well as frogs playing banjos, guitars and fiddles. In one unusual case I found a version from Arizona that tells of an armadillo with a guitar, clearly a sign of not just hoodoo influence but Latino as well. Generally speaking, though, the animal is native to the bayous and swamps of the south and the instrument is either a banjo or a guitar. Here is the way I learned it:

A boy was out fishing in the bayou and the sun was going down. Unfortunately he had not been lucky and he wanted to catch something substantial before he headed home. He dipped his hook in the murky water and closed his eyes tight, praying for a healthy fish to take home to Grandpa. After a minute, the boy swore he heard someone strumming a banjo and then he heard singing too. He opened his eyes in surprise because this spot was not usually visited by anyone else.

Imagine the boy’s astonishment when, on a log floating by, he saw a frog playing a tiny banjo and singing in a handsome, tenor voice. The boy stood up, dropped his pole and with his heart thumping in his chest he ran home as quick as he could. He burst in to the little house where he and his grandpa lived.

“Grandpa! Grandpa! You’ll never guess what I saw.”

“Probably not,” Grandpa said without looking up from his paper. “You catch anything?”

“Yes! No! Grandpa, I saw a frog playing a banjo!”

Grandpa looked up this time, his white eyebrows raised and his dark brow furrowed. “You what?”

“I saw a frog playing a banjo down to the bayou, and he was singing too. Come on now. This is something you – ”

For as old as he was, Grandpa moved pretty well and before the boy could finish his sentence Grandpa grabbed him by the arm. The boy got a whipping he would remember all his life for lying, and Grandpa sent him to bed without supper.

The next day, after school was done, the boy managed to talk his grandpa into going fishing with him. He prayed the whole way down to the fishing hole that the frog would float by again, singing in his sweet voice and strumming on that banjo. After a time of silence, the boy started to talk about the frog again. Though Grandpa said he’d hear no more about it, the boy couldn’t help himself. As the sun began to go down, Grandpa was about to give that boy another whipping just for lying twice over.

All of a sudden, the sound of a banjo floated over the water and a handsome, tenor voice was heard singing along with the melody. Grandpa looked and there was that frog just like the boy had said, with a banjo in his little, amphibian hands. And the frog sang: “You all have seen me. Don’t tell all you know. Live happy now.”

The boy and Grandpa went home, and never again did either of them mention that magickal frog. In return, no matter when they went to that fishing hole they always caught enough fish to feed themselves and a few neighbors besides.

Of course the frog is a totem animal, otherworldly and only capable of working his magick if the creatures he looks after keep their mouths shut. The lesson is well taken. If we speak too freely, the ancestors will doubtless give us the beat-down. Faites attention, mes amis ~

Header: Frog Playing a Banjo in Moonlight via AllPosters.com

Mardi: Herbal-Wise

Almonds are not much considered in hoodoo, probably because edible almonds were not originally found in either West Africa or North America. In other traditions, though, particularly those from Southern Europe, almonds and almond trees are considered intensely magickal. I often think of almonds at this time of year because nonpareils, those delightful almonds covered with a colored sugar coating, were usually added to our holiday stockings when I was growing up.

Almonds themselves, as well as the leaves and flowers of the trees, are used in money drawing spells. Scott Cunningham tells us that climbing an almond tree will ensure the success of your business. He also mentions that carrying almonds in your pockets will lead you to hidden treasure. I’ll bring some with me next time I visit Barataria; maybe I’ll find that storied lost booty of the Laffite brothers.

Certain Wiccan traditions favor almond wood for magick wands. Because the almond tree is ruled by the element of Air, and these traditions cast the wand under the protection of Air and the East, this makes perfect sense.

There are also magickal outcomes involved with eating almonds. Eating five almonds prior to imbibing alcohol is thought to keep one sober. This is a tradition which harks back to the Renaissance at least. Lorenzo de Medici, the great Lord of Florence, always ate nonpareils prior to attending any feast to help keep his wits about him following toast after toast. Lorenzo suffered broken noses several times in his youth and he did not taste food very well, but he loved almonds, nonpareils and almond milk. The rumor began in Italy that ingesting these foods would make one as wealthy, powerful and successful as the Medici who favored them.

Eating almonds or taking almond milk was also considered a cure for fever. Eating almonds daily is said to increase wisdom in any individual, and that may just be their very best use. Who among us could not use a little more wisdom? Bon chance ~

Header: Almond Branches by Vincent Van Gogh c 1890

Jeudi: Great Spirits

Yesterday, December 8th, was equivalent to the date set aside in the Ancient Egyptian calendar for one of the many festivals of their goddess Neith. As with most of the pantheon of Ancient Egypt, Neith’s attributes built up over time, layer by layer, until by the New Kingdom she was recognizable to the Greeks as a distant cousin of their own Athena.

Originally, Neith was probably a foreign goddess brought to Egypt through trade or war. Patricia Monaghan, who literally wrote the book on the world’s goddesses, says in her Book of Goddesses and Heroines that Neith was the ancient “… essence of the tribal community perceived in its totems, two crossed arrows and a mottled animal skin.” These symbols, with the skin in the shape of a shield, almost always appeared in depictions of Neith up until the Amarna period.

Neith was worshipped as a creator of crafts and protector of property. She is a warlike goddess who will stand up to her worshipper’s enemies with shield and spear, but she is also the inventor of weaving who strung her loom and wove the world. By the late Middle Kingdom, Neith is called the mother of Ra and in this guise is given the form of a cow. Her priests and priestesses were doctors and wise women that Egyptians looked to for treatment in time of illness and help in childbirth.

At the height of her power, she was depicted wearing the combined red and white crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt and hailed as the Lady of the Throne. Her festival city was Sais, where bonfires and oil lamps were kept burning night and day to please the Lady of Light, a name that was probably related to her motherhood of Ra.

When the famous Greek historian Plutarch made his tour of Egypt, he wrote of the inscription on Neith’s temple which read:

I am all that has been, that is, that will be, and no mortal will be able to lift my veil.
Isis would assume a similar mantra as her worship spread around the Mediterranean and from there it would pass on to male deities of modern acquaintance. I bet you can think of some of them right now.

So today, before the sunset, raise a belated glass of your chosen beverage to Neith, the warrior mother who wove the world, then pour a little on the ground as an offering. Because all our ancestors are sacred.

Header: Sculpture of Neith c 600 BCE, currently in the Louvre, Paris

Mardi: Herbal-Wise

The delightful smell of sage is one that takes many people back to Holiday meals and warm kitchens. It has an earthy quality that is able to comfort and inspire. I find it interesting that sage is a member of the mint family.

In Europe during the witch hunts, sage was one of those nonsensical “indicators” of witchcraft. Sage in one’s kitchen garden was thought to be a clue that you were a witch even though the whole neighborhood grew sage. It was imagined that, because sage tends to attract toads, it was a favorite of witches.

Sage is also thought to ensure long life. Drinking sage tea or eating sage daily will keep one going into old age. Along those same lines, sage promotes wisdom. In modern Wicca and in hoodoo root work, sage is added to sachets and mojo bags to help people make wise decisions. Carrying a leaf of sage in your pocket on a day when a choice must be made is encouraged. The leaf is also thought to avert the Evil Eye, which may then go back to the ability to choose well. I might suggest doling out sage leaves en mass to our U.S. Congressional representatives right about now.

Dried sage can be added to reversing incenses to clear unwanted conditions. It is important to keep in mind that culinary sage and sagebrush are two different things. When you hear the term “smudging with sage” which has become an unfortunately misunderstood way to accomplish everything from house blessing to self-purification to ghost busting, sagebrush is the herb in use. The tradition of burning sagebrush or soaking in sagebrush infused baths for purification and healing comes from Native American lore and is appropriate in many situations. Unlike sage, sagebrush is not, safe for ingestion in large doses or if pregnant. Sagebrush, in fairness, is a topic for another post.

Sage is thought to be lucky in one’s garden but only if two rules are followed closely, according to Scott Cunningham. First, a stranger must plant the sage for you. And second, you must mix the sage with other herbs (mints work well as do tomatoes) and not devote an entire bed, box or pot to it. He also recommends this sage wishing spell: write your wish on a leaf of sage and tuck it under your pillow for three nights. If, on any of those evenings, you dream of your wish it will materialize. If not, bury the leaf in an isolated part of your yard or at a local park so that your wish doesn’t backfire on you.

Consider using sage this Holiday season with intent to improve health, impart wisdom and ensure long life. Why not nurture the spirit and the body all at the same time? Bon chance ~

Header: Deborah Hall by William Williams c 1766 (note her pet squirrel on a leash)