Dimanche: Swimming

"Fancy Bathers" cigarette cards from W. Kimball circa 1900

Samedi: Les Anges

Last Saturday we met the corpse cadavre and the nanm, two of the four components that make up the human being in the world view of Voudon. Today, a look at the Angels, the other two pieces of the puzzle.

The ti bon ange, or the little good angel, is probably an off shoot – at least in part – of Voudon’s contact with the Catholic Church. On the one hand, this angel is a guiding force common to all moralities through out the world. The ti bon ange is what we might call the conscience. It makes a person feel good or guilty about their interactions with others and it tells a person what to embrace and what to avoid. On the other, it is the portion of a person that can be attacked by unseen forces. Unknown and mysterious illnesses are often said to be caused by spirits or even a boko (or bokor – a person who practices magick “with the left hand”) working spells against the ti bon ange.

Of the four animating spirits, the ti bon ange is probably the least feared by the living after death. It escapes the body with the last breath and rises past the stars to greet Bon Dieu or Bondye. Here, in the home of God, the ti bon ange will account for its life on Earth and then drift off into the ether, never to touch the mortal realm again. It is this little twist of a reckoning before God that makes the ti bon ange somewhat similar to the Jewish/Christian/Islamic concept of a soul but only, in all fairness, very vaguely.

The gros bon ange, or the big good angel, is the little piece of Bon Dieu inside us all. It imparts personality, emotions, creativity and the ability to think. It is the part of a person that collects a lifetime worth of experience and knowledge and holds on to that individuality for eternity. It is also the portion of a person that is displaced during possession by a lwa and the part of us that wanders in dreams. The gros bon ange is each person’s portion of immortality.

This angel must be expelled from the body at death through appropriate ritual and burial. Otherwise, it can cause trouble for the living. Ideally the gros bon ange will make its way back to Ginen, which is generally thought to be somewhere under the ocean. This is where the lwa live and where the gros bon ange will reside as an ancestral spirit who, if properly called up, will help its living descendants and, in some cases, become a lwa in its own right.

The spirit world of Voudon is more complex and varied than that of most modern religions, even in reference to a single individual. But that, to my mind, is what makes it so fascinating. Surely each of us is more than one simple soul. Benedictions a vous ~

Header: Ti bon ange card from the New Orleans Voodoo Tarot by Sallie Ann Glassman

Vendredi: Seven of Clubs

The Seven of Clubs is an odd bird, as Grandpa used to say. It can go down one of two very clear paths and, as usual, the rest of the cards around it and the nature of the reading in general determine the interpretation.

First, this card may be a sign of unusual good fortune. Something has come to the querent literally “at long last” and his or her hard work is the result of a heady outcome. If this is the indication in your spread, be sure to ask about any partners or assistants in the endeavor. If there are parties involved of the opposite sex to your querent, this person or these people may harbor some jealousy and try to ruin or at least curtail the seeker’s happiness. A gentle warning that does not insult is called for.

On the other hand, the Seven of Clubs may indicate a need for the querent to step back from a project, job or partnership and take a good hard look at its long term value. In this case, the card is a warning. Things are not going the way the querent expected them to and a shift in gears is called for. The Seven of Clubs is not indicating that the endeavor will fail, just that a new tack is required (and potentially a new partner or partners as in the above meaning; look at any face cards near the Seven of Clubs in such cases and asked pointed questions about the people in the seeker’s life).

And so onward, mes amis. Vendredi heureux ~

Header: Le Tireuse des Cartes, French cartoon c 1800

Jeudi: Root Work

Lucid dreaming, spell work, astral projection, divination, cursing, healing and countless other ways of magick require one thing in common: the mindful and continuous shut down of the active conscious brain. I’m not saying that you have to be “unconscious” to make a mojo bag or read the cards for a friend by any means. That’s just silly. But that irritating, chattering, gerbil-on-a-wheel part of your brain that repeats the annoying commercial jingle while it reminds you to buy bread next time you’re at the store and keeps asking “did you unplug the toaster?” has got to be stopped.

The capacity to shut down that part of your consciousness is, for most of us at least, a life long struggle that requires practice. Well, in all fairness, it requires daily practice. Of course we’ve all read metaphysical authors who speak of “some people” who can “go into trance without thinking about it, as if they were switching off a light” or some other predictable metaphor. The reality is that who these people might be remains unstated and frankly, if they’re out there, only these authors seem to have met them. The fictional Merlin/Samantha/Harry Potter doesn’t exist. No amount of Latin or nose twitching is going to alter Newtonian physics or conquer millennia of evolution. Only dedication will. And the dedicated worker must practice.

So here’s what I do. Every night. Regardless. Climbing into bed becomes a ritual in itself that leads, after a lot of practice, to the ability to be able to overcome the Mom voice in my head. At least long enough to accomplish the occasional working of real, honest, magick.

Lie down on your back. That really is the best position for this meditation; flat on your back. Ladies who are pregnant or those with other medical conditions that prohibit lying in that position should modify the meditation appropriately. I liked to lie on my right side back when. Now close your eyes and take in a few deep breaths. Breathe in and out through your nose; those of you who practice yoga probably already have that exercise down. Try to silence your thoughts completely. Concentrate only on your breathing for a moment.

Now begin to systematically relax the muscles in your body while fighting the urge to consciously think about what you are doing. Start at your feet, work up through your calves, knees and thighs, relax your butt, your pelvis, your abdomen. Work up to your chest and feel your breathing slow down. Now your shoulders, down your arms to your hands and back up to your neck. Sometimes this is the hardest part of all, getting your shoulders and neck to relax; keep breathing and stop thinking. Progress upward and relax your jaw, your tongue, your face, your eyes, your forehead, your scalp. By now your breathing should be deep and slow. Without allowing your “inner voice” to disturb your peace, sink into the mat or mattress beneath you, breath and allow your subconscious to go wherever it wants to go. Try to hang in this space without thought for as long as you can but, once you are thoroughly relaxed, don’t force it. When it’s time to come out of your meditation and go to sleep, do so. You can come back to the exercise tomorrow night.

That’s it. If you are willing to do some version of this exercise consistently, I can guarantee that you will have more success concentrating in all aspects of your life. The mind is a creature of habit. Force it into some good habits and the benefits are surprising. As an aside, this is also a great way to wind up a workout, allowing your body some moments to completely relax once you have finish. Just be sure to keep warm as you may feel a bit chilly during the meditation.

Give it a try. If nothing else, this exercise is a great sleep aid that has no ill effects. And that in itself is a bonus in our hectic, modern world.

Header: Girl Asleep by Johannes Vermeer

Mercredi: The Art of Beauty

As I mentioned yesterday it’s cold where I live. Like down to single-digits-at-night cold. Along with the cold weather comes the dry air. In the summer we have a (relatively) fair amount of humidity but once the snow starts falling all bets are off. The humidifier goes on, of course, but it really can’t keep up. Our hair goes limp, our skin crackles and my daughter has to be more diligent about oiling her cello. How did Stephen Maturin ever keep his in descent condition at sea I have to wonder?

For those of you in similar climes now is the time to listen to your skin and your hair. Today, let’s talk about the skin on your body. If it’s really chilly where you are, put away the milks and the creams and head straight for the butter: body butter. It is rather a jarring term but of course it refers to consistency and not content (although certain Arctic tribes have been known to smear themselves with butter made from reindeer milk to keep skin insulated from the harsh winter elements).

Here, then, is my all time favorite recipe for body butter. The base comes from the good folks at Reader’s Digest but you can add or subtract essential oils to get the scent and treatment you need. I like to use rose oil, which is calming to the skin and has a relaxing scent, chamomile oil, which helps alleviate any itching brought on by dry spots, and jasmine oil because I can’t get enough of it. Tuberose is even better as scents go but I find it is hard to come by and can irritate my skin. A tuberose candle is a nice alternative if you’re craving that lush, romantic scent.

¼ cup grated shea butter
1 tbsp grated beeswax
½ cup avocado oil
2 tbsps olive oil
3 tbsps vegetable glycerine
10 drops rose essential oil
10 drops jasmine essential oil
10 drops chamomile essential oil

Put the first four ingredients in a ban Marie over simmering water and heat them very gently until they are all liquid. Remove the bowl of your double boiler from the heat and set aside to cool – but not harden.

Whisk in the glycerine and then add each of your essential oils in turn, mixing after each addition. Pour into a shallow, wide-mouthed jar with a tight seal (small canning jars are great) and store in a cool, dark place. Use within four weeks.

If you are just not the kind to make your own body butter (lets face it, much like Jack Aubrey, most of us have “not a moment to lose” in any given day), Bliss makes a delightful unscented body butter just perfect for adding your own scents to. Find it here at Sephora. If things are really out of hand and you have pealing or cracking due to dry skin, look for Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturizing Cream at the market. It too is made with shea butter with the added bonus of oatmeal (healing and soothing) and menthol (calming). It’s got a slight medicinal scent but the addition of five drops each of the essential oils in the recipe above (or others of your choice) will mask that completely.

Remember that if you are prone to breakouts on your backside, body butter is not the moisturizer of choice for your butt. What to do? Treat it just like your face. Seriously. Use your facial moisturizer on your behind and watch those spots disappear. If that doesn’t work, use your facial cleanser and even toner on your derrière prior to moisturizing. Trust me; it works. A votre santé ~

Header: La Bella by Titian

Mardi: Herbal-Wise

As the cold settles in (it was 14 degrees Fahrenheit when I took my daughter to school at 8:45 this morning) I turn to the warm fragrances and tastes of what is generally referred to in European influenced societies as “Holiday food”. The spices used in things like pumpkin pie, turkey stuffing/dressing, gingerbread and so many other end of the year celebratory foods are also quite magickal in their own right. But that, of course, comes as no surprise.

Cloves have been used extensively as a winter spice for hundreds of years. They have a warm aroma that calms but with just enough bite to give one the energy they need to face cold, dark days. In hoodoo, both whole cloves and clove oil are used for gambling luck, money and friendship-drawing and to stop malicious gossip.

Gambling halls in southeastern Louisiana were “smudged” with an incense made of cloves, wintergreen, cinnamon and camphor to bring in good trade. Whole cloves were carried by gamblers to bring luck. Cloves burned as an incense by themselves are said to draw in wealth, purify the air and drive off crossed conditions. Scott Cunningham says the scent can also comfort the bereaved.

Pushing whole, dried cloves into a red candle while concentrating on stopping malicious gossip against you, then burning the candle until it goes out is said to be a fool-proof charm against other people’s lies. Some workers even say that doing this ritual will bring your enemies closer to your circle of friends.

Bringing in and keeping friendships is another use for cloves. To keep a friend for life, make two necklaces with small flannel bags filled with cloves and tied to strings. You and your friend should each wear a necklace until the strings break. You will always be good friends.

To make an attractive pomander ball which can be given as a gift and will encourage ongoing friendship, select an unusually beautiful orange and then wrap a lovely ribbon around it twice, like a gift box. Tie that in a knotted bow with long tails for carrying or even hanging. Now stud the orange with dried cloves all around in as even and pretty a pattern as possible. Give the pomander as a present and as the fruit begins to desiccate (a good number of cloves will keep it from actually rotting) it will release the scent of orange and cloves while cementing your friendship with the lucky recipient. It’s a perfect project for the Holidays (and, as an aside, an inexpensive and inconspicuous way for the kids to get in good with their teachers).

Prior to the dawn of antibiotics, clove oil was used as an antiseptic with surprisingly favorable results. Clove oil was also used as an anesthetic; dropped onto a decaying tooth, it would ease the pain for a time. My great grandmother, who never lived in town but always “out on the farm”, would drop clove oil on a rotten tooth in preparation to kill the root, which she did with carbolic acid. I am not making that up. Just so you know, this last paragraph is chock full of uses for clove oil (and carbolic acid for that matter) that I do not recommend. See a dentist s’il vous plait. Bon chance et subsistence chaude ~

Header: Landscape with Ice by Hendrik Avercamp c 17th century

Lundi: Recipes

My daughters like to cook as much as I do and they both tend to be pretty adventurous in the kitchen. It was no surprise to me, then, when one of them decided she would try to make today’s recipe, a desert known as a Hot Lemon Puff. The nice thing about this recipe is the key ingredient. Even though our ability to get really good, fresh fruits and vegetables has long since passed up here, we can always get nice lemons and limes, even in the dead of winter.

Lemons are used for cleansing in hoodoo and are considered a repellent of the Evil Eye. A lemon tree near the front door, provided it is fruitful, will draw good luck and keep crossed conditions away from the home. Eating lemons is thought to give a person a fresh start as the lemon does its cleansing work inside the body.

So hear is today’s warm but refreshing recipe. It’s not only a nice desert but can also be eaten as a revitalizing breakfast. What a great way to start out a great day.

8 eggs, separated
1 ¼ cups sugar
The juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp grated lemon rind
A pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and then grease a 9 inch casserole with butter, including the sides.

Separate the eggs. Place the yokes in a ban Marie and beat rapidly with a whisk until warm and frothy. Don’t walk away or your yokes will scramble, which is not what you want here. Add the sugar, lemon rind and juice and continue to cook over the simmering water while stirring constantly. When the mixture is thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon, remove from the heat.

Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff and then fold gently into the egg yoke mixture until they are thoroughly blended. Pour the whole into your casserole. Place the dish in your preheated oven and reduce the heat to 300 degrees. Bake 40 minutes or until firm and puffy rather like a soufflé. Serve this delightfully creamy dish warm. Bon appetite ~

Header: Woman Cooking Eggs by Diego Velazquez