PICK ONE AND RUN!: KEEPING FOCUS IN SPIRIT-WORK

A theme that has come up a few ways recently is the importance of focus when working with spirits. This would seem a no-brainer, but there are specific challenges to living with this idea. One is that in the current occult world of near-limitless access to materials such as grimoires, we can be tricked into seeing a spirit list of correspondences and think that a spirit for love, let’s say, is only suitable for love. I find it more helpful to see such a list as an insurance provider’s list of Doctors. All medical doctors know how to practice medicine. But some are trained for surgery. Some are trained to deal with vision issues, etc., and I have experienced doctors, such as my PCP, who say that whatever medical issue I bring to them is better addressed by a specialist colleague. You find, then, that the specialist has a depth of knowledge and can speak to your issue in a way a PCP is not.

It can be this way with spirits. But more often than not, I have experienced a guardian spirit who clarifies that although their specialty is what it is, they are also the ones for me to go to first. Sometimes, they will indicate another spirit to go to. Other times, they will note that they are the ones who will address it. When this started to happen more and more, I began to understand that I did not need to summon every spirit on a correspondence table to address the problems and challenges of my life. I had to work with the one I felt more connected to and trust that they would direct me to who to go.

This realization had several consequences for my practice. One is that it kept me from getting overwhelmed and burned out. It also mitigated that sense, when you work with many spirits, that now I have too many mouths to feed. It also took off the pressure of the juggle of time and attention I felt I had to give everyone. As long as I maintained that primary relationship, things seemed to flow like they were supposed to.

In my upcoming class on Shem Angels, I ran with this idea. The foundation of the class is apprehending your guardian Shem Angel, and then building the rest of the practice around that spirit as the spiritual air traffic controller. Once that sort of connection is established, there are many possibilities. One can build everything from a devotional practice to hoodoo-like practical magic and even professional work within one’s community. However, being consistent with results means having consistent relationships with essential spirits. Angels such as the Shemhamforash are one beautiful way this can be done.

If you think this might interest you, I invite you to join me for the class in the next few days. The link is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-names/.    

WHAT IT TAKES TO TALK TO ANGELS: ONE PERSPECTIVE

One of the things I love about students and teaching is the questions people have. It’s the questions that lead to fruitful and energizing discussions. Many of us are sometimes insecure about asking questions, however, because we had some teacher from Hell in the past who made us doubt ourselves. I know that because I have had such teachers from elementary school all the way to my doctorate. In most cases, I later learned that the worst of these people were acting the way they were because they were suffering in some way in their own lives. It is a cruel fact of life that hurt people hurt people.

But I am not here to talk about that today! Today I want to stay with the positive and focus on a great question a new student asked me as he was considering whether to take my upcoming Shem Angels course. This post is dedicated to him.

The question was whether he had to learn and perform traditional Solomonic Ceremonial Magic to conjure the Shem Angels as I taught them. The short answer is no. Other instructors out here already teach traditional Solomonic magic, so it doesn’t make sense to me to repeat what they have done—especially when I feel like what is being taught is top-notch. I am referring to my brother from another mother, Fr. Aaron Leitch, and his wife, Rev. Mother Carrie Leitch (she doesn’t call herself that, but in my priestly tradition, that is a title given to women priests, hehe). As I say in this class and others, I heartily encourage people to take the Leitches’ class if you want to learn Solomonic magic in its fullness. Even if you don’t use that specific method to conjure spirits, you will walk away with an eye for this form of magic and understand the simplified versions someone like me teaches better!

What I teach in Working the Names is more a combination of Solomonic Magic and Hoodoo principles. This seems odd to some of you, but there is a history of Solomonic Magic and Hoodoo being fused together in all forms of American folk magic. I have seen it in Appalachian magic. I have seen it in Powwow. And I have definitely seen it in Hoodoo. Working the Names is not a Hoodoo course like some of my other classes. Still, it parallels my Hoodoo courses’ focus on generating lasting relationships with the Angels for the primary purpose of practical magic goals.

For example, the particular branch of Shem Angel magic taught has a magical circle, but the instructions could be more specific regarding the size and method of deployment. Other forms of Solomonic Magic go into great detail about the Circle and how it is used. Because of this, I opted for a portable option, where a practitioner could open a book or binder with their magical circle on a laminated piece of paper, lay out candles and other ritual paraphernalia, and perform their conjuration where they were right then and there. Most forms of traditional Solomonic magic do not lend themselves to portability, but my version does.

One area that I would say is more in line with traditional Solomonic Magic is the way we work with the Black-Hilted Knife. This is one of the places I go pretty traditional (minus animal blood) to ensure that practitioners have a tool that will command and enforce when needed and help them set strong boundaries when that need comes.

All of this is to say that the class has an eye for the traditional and even draws deeply from it in places without being bound by aspects of the tradition that are unnecessary for working with the energy of the Angels to a specific end. My approach is also not as focused on evoking to visible appearance, but instead working with your chief angel and the others to accomplish particular tasks those Angels are known for.

If this interests you, please join me in this coming cohort. The link to sign up is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-names/.

Take good care, and I hope to see you in class!    

A FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION (OR TWO) ABOUT SPIRIT WORK

I am a diviner and read people fairly often. Most times, they want to know something specific and practical, like how to find love or how to make more money. There is nothing wrong with that! Every now and then, though, I get a client who wants to go deeper, usually in their spirituality or practice. One of the most frequently asked subjects is, “How do I connect to and work with spirits?” This is the subject of what I am writing here.

The answer to this question can vary greatly depending on the tradition(s) you're interested in. For instance, in Espiritismo, there's no one-size-fits-all approach to working with spirits. While there's a tradition and foundational tools to learn, these will only take you so far before you need to forge your own unique spiritual path. It's not effective in Espiritismo to mimic an elder. You and they have different spirits and may not connect with them in the same way, if at all. Even if you share the same type of spirit, your version of that spirit will be unique.

Setting aside traditions, there's a fundamental concept I want to underscore. In my opinion, the best way to start spirit work is by forming a strong bond with a guardian spirit. There are many options, from a Holy Guardian Angel to pagan deities, to certain types of Thai Prai spirits. A guardian is crucial because, no matter how skilled you are at summoning and working with spirits, there will be moments when you need backup. I vividly remember an experience from years ago that highlights this. I was summoning a spirit I had never encountered before. The spirit appeared, but I sensed it trying to breach my defenses and establish a connection that made me feel unwell.

Just as that feeling started to pass over me, I felt my head Orisha stand up and make itself known in a commanding and intimidating fashion. The bothersome spirit immediately shrunk back and didn’t give me a problem the rest of the night. That was the first time I had experienced that since I made Ocha, and it opened my eyes to something, not even my elders at the time talked about. Sometimes, I think their lack of discussion is intentional; they often want us to learn through our own experiences.

Another reason why a Guardian Spirit is crucial is because, almost as frequently as the first question, people ask me, “How do I know the spirit is talking and not me?” This is a valid question with a complex answer. Self-doubt can be detrimental to spirit work. If it plagues you, it will make it difficult to differentiate between your own thoughts and those of a spirit. Most of us will agree that if a spirit always agrees with everything you think and want to do, and never challenges you, then it's likely not a beneficial spirit. In all seriousness, guardian spirits are even less likely to simply agree with you because they are the ones who are truly invested in your success and your learning spirit work in a healthy way.

Finally, I cannot underscore the importance of consistency and follow-through. No, you don’t have to sit with your spirits every day. If you do, that’s great, but it’s not required (there are exceptions, such as Thai Prai). Consistency, to me, is that you make an effort to prioritize your spirits in your life. Maybe you go out one time less a week, and spend that time with them. Perhaps you occasionally get that more expensive bottle of rum as an offering. But maybe even more than this, you must do what you say you will do. In this sense, spirits are like us. Recall how you feel when you have to work with an unreliable person. Not only do they not inspire you to work with them, but you will often not trust them.

Some people will displace their lack of consistency and follow through on spirits in this place. Because I asked for a million dollars by Friday and only talked to the spirit again on Saturday, said spirit has failed me. That’s not how this works. To paraphrase another occultist, your life must be enchantable for the magic to enchant. Recently, a lot has been said about human efforts toward that enchantment. However, this aspect of discipline and following through on the spirit of work is just as important.

WE ALL START SOMEWHERE: A REFLECTION ON MY EARLY FORAYS WITH THE ANGELIC WORLD

Many people work with angels today, from traditional occult methods such as Solomonic Magic to New Age practices. I have tried them all over the years of my practice. I actually remember the first time. One was working with these gemstones, which are human-made but attributed to angels called angelite. I engraved the stones with these New Agey sigils and prayed fervently to the Four Archangels while practicing Centering Prayer. They were the first time I held gemstones and could FEEL energy come from them. That whole beginning experience felt very magical and wonderful!

The second experience I had was with Richard Webster’s books on Angels. They were these pamphlet-sized books that focused on the Four Archangels. I had two of them and worked his steps to conjure and invoke those Angels. I later understood that he mixes a lot of Golden Dawn ceremonial magic into what he does to create a hybrid Angel magic. It seemed to work for me because when I did it, a rush of wind went through the house (and the doors and windows were closed). I had offerings like a bowl of salt, and when I finished, the salt was hard as a rock, like the Angels consumed the essence of it. This was another time I was blown away.

The third one relates specifically to Shem Angels. I had heard about them, read a few books, and endeavored to connect to my guardian Shem Angel. I worked on this for weeks using that method, and nothing seemed to happen. Then, one night, I was startled awake by a soft but noticeable light shining above my head. After a few blinks, I saw the faint figure of a female angel hovering overhead. I was in a friend’s basement, and they had one of those big freezers. The Angel flew from me, alighted on top of that freezer, and seemed to sit and watch me. As startled as I was initially, she was so comforting to see and feel that I could drift back to sleep, feeling very protected. The following day, my friend came downstairs and told me that when he and his wife woke up, their house was blanketed in a spiritual mist like nothing they had seen before!

Some would say these experiences don’t amount to much because they did not result in concrete guidance or actionable intel. Well, accurate as that may be, I think it is an absolute ALWAYS to expect spirits of any sort to be concrete or actionable in all they do. Humans are often not like that, so why do we project that onto spirits?

For me, when I think back on these moments, they were about beginning to show me that the spirit world is very real. That helper spirits will come when called and make their presence known. Though no words were exchanged, I felt the Shem Angel came because I had been praying for a protective presence around me. And that is exactly how her presence registered.

The course I created on the Shem Angels allows people to do this their own way. I do not find them difficult spirits to connect with, especially once a person has done the work to find their Guardian first. That Angel will direct all the traffic of the others. Because they are also, to me, angels close to the earth, their ability to help us manifest things is more significant than other spirits. So, if this interests you, I invite you to join me in August when we get started. The link to sign up is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-names/.         

Hope to see you soon!

RESISTANCE AGAINST DIVINATORY DEVICE

As some of you may know, I am psychologically trained. I have a doctorate in Pastoral Counseling. I will also tell you that when I was a pastor, I saw very early in my career that my initial training in counseling was shitty in addressing real psycho-spiritual issues people often brought to me. I DID know how to connect to community resources, so many issues were referred out to professionals with more of that training. But I knew that I would need to gain more training, which I did later in my career.

One of the bedrock concepts of psychology, counseling, and therapy is that all clients have defense mechanisms. Part of any counseling or therapy is knowing how to work with and, in some cases, bypassing a person’s defenses to get them the help they came to you for. In many cases, their mechanisms are the thing that helped them survive as long as they had before they came to your office. So, it is not intelligent or wise for a counselor to have an adversarial stance with this in people but to engage defense mechanisms with compassion and competency in their training.

There is actually something similar that happens in giving readings to people. I have seen it so much that there are times when I feel like what a person really is coming for is psychological help. Many times, my spirits, knowing what I know, will point to the root issue being psychological and cognitive and not spiritual. As an example, I read for someone who is pagan in their practice. It is their core. I saw it right away. But part of their problem is they were all over the place with their spirit work. They were doing the Pokemon thing. I had to talk extensively about the value of focusing their practice and gaining a firm foundation, then venturing out through the guidance of their foundational spirits.

Not long after this discussion, I discovered that they completely ignored that advice and conjured some very wild spirits. Ironically, they had come to me partly because of problems they were having from a very wild spirit they conjured years ago. So, they knew the consequences of drawing the wrong spirit but did it anyway.

As a reader, I don’t get angry or upset. I step back and take a deeper look at the resistance and how it is coming up. And I ask lots of questions. I am genuinely curious why someone would come to me for help but then ignore what I said. What in their ego is making them think they know better? Is a spirit causing an intransigence to get them stuck? Do they have trauma that makes it hard for them to absorb new information? Or are they just flat-out arrogant?

Any of these answers and more could be the truth. But I would ask anyone even considering going to someone for help to have the following in the front of your mind:

*Be open to the answer you are seeking not being what you assume or expect.

*Be prepared for the reader and their spirits to confront you on blinders you may have.

*Be prepared to work independently and not just expect the diviner to do your work for you.

*Be open to things you have done up until the reading, either being incorrect or not working, because there may be things you don’t know about your situation.

*Be very prepared for spirits bringing up more significant and profound issues that you are coming with because if you have a lot of defense mechanisms, odds are you have been avoiding certain pieces of your personal work and spiritual development.

These are just some suggestions to help prepare you for a reading. They will make the process go more smoothly and help you get on track!

SHEM ANGELS: WHY WORK WITH THEM?

These days, we have many options regarding the kinds of spirits we can work with. Adding to this excitement is the fact that more grimoires and spirit registers than ever before have been found and translated, opening up even more worlds of possibility. Today, I want to speak a bit about the Shemhamforash Angels.

As I've shared in previous posts, Shem Angels are uniquely connected to Earth and humanity, unlike the average angel. This is a hunch and a conclusion drawn from their correspondences and existing systems. Many of these Angels possess powers directly impacting real-world issues, a characteristic that sets them apart from other angelic registers. This 'this-worldliness' is particularly appealing in the current trend of magic that delivers results. It's as if these Angels were designed for this very purpose, making them a fascinating and efficient choice for your magical endeavors.

There can be a bias away from working with Angels. One is that it involves ceremonial magic to do the work. Fasting, purifications, special days and hours—all of that gets deter folx who don’t want to do the level of intense work traditional ceremonial magic requires. I get it. I am in traditions that do this form of magic and other ceremonial magic that are even more involved and complex. There are times when you don’t feel like doing all of that. And yet, other times, you don’t have the time or convenience for a long, drawn-out ritual.

When it comes to ceremonial magic, I understand that the level of intensity and complexity can be daunting. However, I've found a way to make it more accessible and efficient. By drawing on ceremonial magic’s historical connection to folk magical forms like Hoodoo, I've developed an adapted approach that allows for the same powerful magic in a more manageable and respectful way. This is not about making things up but about studying the historical relationship and finding ways to bring it into the present. I believe I've achieved this based on the positive feedback from my students.

There are a few great teachers who share what I am talking about. But even with an adapted approach, nothing I have found replaces the importance of having an established relationship with a spirit BEFORE asking it to do a bunch of stuff with or for you. This is the role of something like the Ruling Angel of the Shem system. Even though that angel comes from a particular decan, zodiacal period, etc., it is your lead activator and “crossroads” spirit. The solidity of your connection with them ensures that you can work with the energies of their angelic counterparts to achieve a specific goal that the secondary angel is adept at.

Another reason I think folx shy away from Angels is because they are not dark enough. There is an implication that so-called darker spirits are spirits with less restraint and more willingness to get things done by any means necessary. That may be true for some, maybe even many. But my experience with different spirits is that the more wild they are, the greater the chance of problems or blowback with them.

However, if you can’t do magic without a dark edge, have no fear! The Shem Angel system I teach and adapted actually understands the Angels in their Night aspect and evil angel side. The information about these things is not well spelled out, so it becomes a place of experimentation, an opportunity to bond and connect with these Angels more deeply to develop your practice.

Working with Shemhamforash Angels is different from working with other Angels. I invite you to join me and discover just what I mean.

The link to the course is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-names/.

See you in class!   

WORKING THE NAMES: SOME THOUGHTS ON SHEM ANGELS

My upcoming course on the Shemhamforash Angels is a unique opportunity! Unlike others, such as the seven planetary archangels, these angels offer a diverse and intriguing approach to their study and practice. Their names, which have multiple spellings, reflect this diversity and how they are perceived and worked with. While some traditions provide a primary method for approaching the Shem Angels, many must be further developed to be more practical. This aspect of the Shem Angels, their potential for practical magic, is what initially fascinated me.

What intrigued me about the Shem Angels was their practical nature, as evidenced by the correspondence list they come with. Unlike the common perception of angels dealing with significant picture issues, the Shem Angels are more practically minded. They have a historical connection to the older Decans system of magic, which was initially intended to address health and illness issues. However, the specific ceremonies or rituals to activate the Decan energy have only sometimes been passed down. This is where the Shem Angels come in, offering a potential bridge between ancient and Abrahamic spiritualities and a unique opportunity for practical magic.

Reviewing the old Decans systems, we can see that they were initially intended to address disorders in the body—many health and illness issues. Each Decan was also a spirit all its own, with zodiacal rulerships and materia correspondences. What has not always made it to our modern day is specific ceremonies or rituals to activate the Decan energy or infuse it into a particular talisman.

These impulses continued the shift of the Decans toward being what we know now as Shem Angels. I am still determining how and when this transformation happened from Decan to Shem. What I LOVE about it, though, is it is a point of intersection between ancient spiritualities and Abrahamic spiritualities—a place of dialogue and synergy. I can see enormous potential, for example, with working with the established Shem Angel correspondences and reconnecting them with their older Decan purpose of strengthening a person’s health and body’s healing properties. There is a lot of untapped potential with these Angels, the potential that rivals the current fixation on working with goetic demons to “get stuff done.”

My “Working the Names” course is not an in-depth exploration of the Shem Angels in its first iteration but offers a practical and tangible way to connect with these angels. You can generate tangible results by discovering your Ruling Angel and setting yourself on a path of practice. I invite you to join me in this unique opportunity to explore the Shem Angels and their potential for practical magic.

The link to the course is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-names/ .

See you in class!

SOMETIMES IT’S JUST THIS SIMPLE

I started listening to more 80s and 90s RnB and Soul music in my office at work. I do this more toward the end of the day when I finish my paperwork and sessions with bereavement clients. I noticed a little while ago that I wasn’t listening to this music like I used to. I was getting so busy and caught up with other life stuff that I moved away from doing it. But I know this music grounds me.

That was a mistake. See, I am one of those kids who grew up coming over to my grandma’s to the tunes of RnB groups playing from my aunt’s records in their basement. The sound, the beats, and the harmony of the groups instantly take me back to that time of hope and limitlessness. The kind of inspiration that changes when you grow up. But more importantly, the music also shows the emotional range of my people. It shows men being vulnerable. It shows women being strong. So many things.

Returning to this music also reminded me of the power of simplicity. Not everything in life, or spirituality, has to be complicated. As you know from other posts, some of my spirituality is complex and involved, while others parts are simpler. But sometimes spirituality or spiritual practice isn’t even any kind of formal ritual. Sometimes, it’s just tending to something in life that connects you to the bigger picture. Sometimes, spirituality reminds us to return to some part of ourselves that we lost sight of. The world we all live in can be hard. It can make US hard. We need reminders sometimes to soften our hard edges. To sit. To rest. To refresh. Spiritual practice can be part of that, but it shouldn’t be all of it. But music? Music is everywhere!

If you’re not thinking about it by now, I encourage you to consider simple places in your life that bring you to yourself. You’ll be glad you did.

PRAYER TO THE CASTAWAY AND SHIPWRECKED: A SLICE OF ESPIRITISMO

Turn your gaze towards this unworthy creature,

oh Lord, and do not let me die amongst the waves of the ocean.

Give me the strength and the will to overcome the abyss,

give me the grace altogether that your bounty does allow.

If I like a brittle twig, thinking myself strong and healthy,

have attempted to cross the sea of humanity, in search of human delights;

let me my Lord return to dry land, promising to be a soldier to your Son.

If I thinking myself steady, have challenged the darkness and void,

by walking the deck while the storm rages against my boat,

I promise for now on, not to be so bold; as to ignore the lament of those who suffer at sea.

If I as I follow my bliss, have been so bold as to ignore the lighthouse

that has saved me from crashing amongst the rocks.

I promise my Lord, never to laugh at the holy cross,

from which your beloved son was crucified.

Oh you, Father of my Soul. Who listens to the afflicted,

and can see my face ashamed, from what my life had been.

Save me, my Father, and give me the time required to correct the wrong

I have done, before the death of my flesh, and I implore you not to castaway my Soul.

Amen.

This prayer is a core one we who practice Espiritismo make use of. It is a prayer usually said at the beginning of a misa/séance or when one sits at your boveda to do spiritual work with your spirit guide. The word “boveda” originates from how graves used to be built, where they were shaped like tables. In a way, we continue that tradition when we set up our ancestral tables.

Back to the prayer! The Shipwreck prayer sounds a bit dreary, but several tenets and understandings about why we practice spiritism are encoded within it. For example, the world is understood to be a spiritually dark place. Yes, God is there and is Light and Intelligence (much how we articulate that entity within the writings of this coven). God’s spirits are also a big part of that Light. The hard part is ALSO understanding that we, too, are of that Light. Part of the premise of this prayer is that many things conspire against us not believing, seeing, or trusting that Light within ourselves. I know this to be true outside of myself because, as I counsel people, they often do not trust themselves. They are also hard on themselves because they cannot see their Light.

The practice of espiritismo is one of the ways a person can go about navigating this, discovering the Light within, and assisting Light of the spirits. They are all like a lighthouse through this life to the Source. This is why some Spiritism Houses usually have a picture of a lighthouse somewhere prominent in the centers where they do the work.

Espiritismo, as you often hear me say, is an open tradition. So, this prayer is NOT something only spiritists can use. I encourage you to try this prayer if you feel this struggle in your life or practice. Don’t get caught up in any of the Abrahamic language—it’s not really about that. I suggest lighting a candle, sitting in a quiet place, saying the prayer, and then meditating. See what happens over time.

Be gentle on yourselves out there. Light is always with you.

TRAINING THE SPIRITS: MORE THOUGHTS ON SPIRIT WORK

When Father Aaron and I had our occult jam session a couple of weeks ago, we said a few things like teasers, but we didn’t go deeper on the subject. One of them we talked a little about was the idea that spirits can only address issues in depth, as far as our knowledge takes us (something like that). Now, this is not to say that spirits sometimes don’t know more than us on certain things. They most certainly do. For example, there’s no way I could know more about Heaven than an angel who dwells there.

But I think it’s a different scenario when you talk about using magic to make things happen in our daily lives. If I don’t know how to do candle magic to get a job or a promotion, it will be much harder for a spirit to help me do that sort of work. Yes, they can and do teach many things to someone over a long-term relationship with them. But I have found in my development with spirits that my workings are much stronger when I have a substantial knowledge base that they can reference and embellish or adapt to make sure what I do is effective.

The other place I see this, routinely, as a diviner for others is in the problems people bring to me that relate to spirits. I had one recently where numerous New Age shamans and practitioners told someone that they had over 30 spirits possessing them. These same people also told them they had no idea what to do about those many spirits, wished them luck, and sent them on their way with no solution. Of course, they still took their money! When I looked, there were no spirits attached to the person. My own divining spirit confirmed this. What I saw, instead, was that whoever looked at them was unable to tell the difference between discrete spirits and negative energy that can behave like a spirit but is not. It's more like something that takes on a life of its own. Telling someone they have a biblical-level population of spirits in their body is also a bit of a stretch and so rare as to almost be unheard of.

I am bringing this up because a core tenet of Espiritismo is that we train our spirits. That sounds demeaning or derogatory, but it is not. It is the understanding that even elevated spirits are removed from their formerly human existence, sometimes for thousands of years. They do not automatically understand everything about human existence, technology, etc. They sometimes also don’t understand the boundaries of social conventions and other things, so it is the espiritista’s job to teach them that.

Similarly, our spiritist practice is active. We don’t just gawk at spirits and marvel at their manifestations. Espiritistas who are well trained know that they have to, to quote the Bible, “test the spirits” and insist that a spirit tell them details that give evidence of who they are and their purpose. If a spirit fails to observe those protocols, they get dismissed. A person cannot adequately develop with a spirit if that spirit is not clear about these things. The development can’t happen adequately because our relationship with our spirits is such that we understand why they are with us and their core mission by their area of focus for our life.

Finally, a considerable part of the development is discernment. Remember in my previous post I talked about how important the ability to see and perceive spirits is in Espiritismo. Spiritual sight is essential to see what is going on accurately. Without it, things get misdiagnosed, and worse, for those with actual attachments, it can prolong their suffering. This concept of training spirits is also not unique to Espiritismo. It is done in Solomonic magic and several other modalities I am aware of. It is also a way to build an authentic relationship with said spirit as you develop mutual understanding, much like in our intimate relationships when we navigate expectations, hopes, fears, and everything in between to deepen our bonds. In a sense, we train each other in our human relationships all the time. If you are reading this today, I hope you can find an authentic spirit relationship like this. The bonds of it will get you through many of life’s ups and downs.      

SPIRIT WORK, PART 2: GUARDIAN SPIRITS AND PATRONS

One of the topics Aaron and I discussed during our recent online session was the importance of having a chief spirit in place BEFORE engaging in a lot of other spirit work. Oddly, this is not a concept I see emphasized across the board of various spirit traditions. Some, like Quimbanda, are built differently in the way you work with the titular spirits, and yes, I am aware of that sort of difference. But I mean more, generally, that teachers and elders do not typically train a practitioner to attain that main spirit first. Like before, I will address this from the perspective of Espiritismo.

As open and light on doctrine and rules as Espiritismo is, it is a tradition with its own protocols. It is not chaos magic in the sense that things can be made up or changed as you go. There is a sense of order and progression in Espiritismo because you are building your own personal practice and approach to it. Your teacher is vital, yes, but more importantly is the spirits who walk with you. Your teacher can show you the tools and how espiritistas do their thing in different ways, but it is the bond you create with your spiritual court that runs the show. This is so much the case that you could even have a godparent who practices Espiritismo teach you something, only to have one of your spirits tell you what you were taught needs to be done differently because that works well for them the way they do it, but it won’t work as well for you. A teacher who understands this knows to keep their ego in check because they have had those experiences throughout their practice.

In Espiritismo, one first step you take is to work with a teacher or community to determine who your guiding spirits are. I can only go into some of the different ones they could because each would be a separate post and then some to explain! But foremost among those spirits is an ancestral guide called a Head spirit. That term is misleading a bit because those of us in initiatory traditions, when we hear that phrase, we think of something like a Holy Guardian Angel or Orisha crowned to a santera’s head. But Espiritismo has its own Head spirit that walks with each human being. This is a spirit you do not need any initiations to attain because they are with you the moment you are born (and really, before you’re born!).

This spirit is essential for many reasons. One is that they direct the traffic of your spiritual development and how other spirits walking with you work with you. Because of this, sometimes a Head spirit can feel distant or not present at all. But that’s not what’s going on. It is more like they are in an air traffic control tower, ensuring all the planes take off and land while you are at the gate to receive passengers. You aren’t both working the terminal gate, but you are working in concert together to keep things in order. Make sense?

In my relationship with my Head spirit, I usually experience them when something big is afoot or about to happen. I consistently feel the energy around me to remind me of the importance of staying grounded. To meditate and let things go that others around me are holding onto and creating misfortunes for themselves because they do. To have compassion when I would rather destroy someone. In essence, to take the high road as much as possible in this life. When they show up, it usually makes me stop what I am doing and pay attention. It doesn’t register like others of my spirits, who tend always to be around and talking and guiding.

All that said, Head spirits are also important because they will set boundaries. For example, I cannot tell you how many times I have gone to that spirit with an interest in trying a new spirituality, only to have the spirit say no. When I ask why, they respond with things like “Because it won’t work well for you” or “You don’t need to add anything else.” I have learned over the years of this work to listen to that no and roll with it. This aspect of the relationship can be challenging for some people who don’t like to be told they can’t or shouldn’t do something they think they want to do. But if we are honest with ourselves, we all know there have been times when we embark on some new spiritual path only to throw it away in short order. Head spirits can help you not waste time, money, and other valuable resources.

Finally, one of the most important reasons to have a Guardian is that they protect you. They protect you from other people and their pettiness. They protect you from wilder spirits who try to go sideways on you. I have heard Aaron talk about how the Solomonic tradition deals with entities like demons. The way that tradition forms its goetia, following the protocols should keep the demon in check. But honestly, there’s no guarantee of that. I have followed the protocols of a tradition and still gotten gunk on me. But the Head spirit can be the difference between spiritual oppression by an entity that you can’t get from under and the ability to chase that thing away when it decides to ignore your exorcism prayers and holy water. I have experienced this myself, where an entity I was trying to initiate a working with started to try to attach itself to me, and my Head Orisha rose up and put them in their place. I could see the whole thing happening in my mind’s eye and felt a great sense of gratitude to my Orisha. That happened a few years back. What fascinated me was that I was not doing any ATR work, nor had I called on Chango. But he was there and prepared to put that spirit down into the dust.

These are just some reasons you see teachers like Aaron and me encouraging people to attain a spirit like this before engaging in more intense spirit practices. They make the whole thing go much easier.    

COMMUNICATING WITH SPIRITS: SOME THOUGHTS

If you were not aware, I recently had a fantastic late-night discussion with Fr. Aaron Leitch. We talked about many subjects, but chief among them was our personal faith and how our two faith walks inform our magical practices. For all that is different between him and me, one reason I have always felt we vibe so strongly is that we both believe in the power of tradition but also have many branches of practice we work with to give our spiritual selves a sense of completeness.

One of the issues we discussed for some time was spirit communication. After our talk, we agreed to write about the subject and invite each other to comment and expound on whatever the other writes about it. That offer still stands for me, brother!

I could talk about how spirits communicate from many different angles, but the one I will primarily focus on is my years of practice of espiritismo. I share this practice with Aaron, whose teacher closely matches my spiritual upbringing. The part I will focus on in this post is the universality of Espiritismo. By that, I mean it is the most open spiritual system I know. Even in the ATRs, most of its systems are full of rules, restrictions, and absolutes about initiations needing to be taken to progress. But espiritismo or Spiritism is built differently. It does NOT require initiations to practice. LIKE other ATR traditions, it DOES require a consistent process of personal development with yourself first and then your spirits.

Espiritismo is grounded in a context, though. It came from somewhere, Europe, to be exact. In short, it came out of the desire of a university professor to use aspects of scientific method and academic inquiry to verify the existence of Spirit. The man pseudonymously known as Allan Kardec was called by the Good Spirits and began a wild journey that changed his life and birthed a spiritual system that went global.

Most people know that espiritismo works with ancestors and ancestral spirit guides. But many people do not understand that the system works with far more spirits than that. One spiritist can have ancestors, gods, nature spirits, and cosmic spirits in one spiritual court. This is why, during my discussion with Aaron, we started discussing how we are both aware that some gods/deities are divinized ancestors. I have met spirits just like that. I have also met ancestral spirits that are so elevated that you would not be able to distinguish them from a deity.

When you talk about spirit communication in this context, the universality of espiritismo practice allows us to connect to ANY spirit who walks with us. We don’t have to convert to and practice Buddhism to connect to a Buddhist monk spirit who walks with us. We don’t have to practice reconstructed Heathenry to bond with our Saxon spirit. We practice the tools of espiritismo, spend time at our spiritual table, and do work spiritual and mundane to work on our faults and imperfections.

The tools of espiritismo enable you to see, hear and otherwise perceive a spirit. You quickly come to understand that not every spirit talks with words. Some show you visions. Some come in your dreams. Others will touch your body a certain way, and you know that’s their signature. You understand that the more you practice at your table, the more precise the visions, messages, and perceptions come through for you to understand the spirit and the spirit to understand you.

Of course, there is also spirit possession. But contrary to popular belief and desire, possession is not the crowning jewel of the practice. It really is not. To boot, in an ironic act of divine humor, espiritistas who are horses for their spirits rarely remember what the spirit said or did. They have to rely on the people around them to tell them. So, if a person’s ability to pass spirits is legit, God built in an ego-destroyer in not allowing us even to remember what happened!

The last thing I will say for now is that the actual development of these abilities mentioned above takes time for most of us. Yes, I have met people who can sneeze and pass spirits. But the majority of people I have seen in Spiritist reunions—myself included—have to work hard and diligently to be able to perceive the spirits. Why? Because many of us have years of life conditioning that complicates and, in some cases, blocks our ability to perceive. That includes things like: life traumas, toxic family dynamics, abusive relationships, untreated mental illness, and much more. Working on these things, even with mundane means like therapy when needed, is also a part of that personal development I am talking about. It’s not just being some ethereal spiritual being. It is also working on the stuff in our lives that gets in our way of living more fully. This is why you will hear an increasing number of modern espiritistas encourage practitioners to get into therapy.

More on this subject will be forthcoming, and I know Aaron and I plan to talk again because we had a blast! Stay tuned…   

“When magick looks a lot like religion”

Hey Folx,

Faith is something that is important to me. My own faith has been a journey, fraught with ups and downs as I also seek to respond to the sense of call God placed on my life and had confirmed by communities I have served. Like it is for many of you, faith is also an intensely personal thing that I do not share with just anyone.

Equally rare is my connecting to another person, or community, where I feel a sense of being “kindred souls” on a faith journey. It may surprise some that what I mean by that has little to do with sharing the same faith/beliefs but more with the spirit of openness and willingness to teach and be taught. To educate and to learn. I am finding such spaces more and more rare, but I do see them.

One of these people is Fr. Aaron Leitch. When I heard him and his wife, Carrie, speak together on Glitch Bottle, I knew intuitively that they were the kind of kindred people I was talking about. As I have gotten to know them, I have not been wrong. What continues to move me about Aaron’s teaching is the level of vulnerability he shows, especially regarding his early years undergoing the Abramelin operation. Anyone who has undergone a major initiation knows that it changes everything. He is one of the few occultists I have listened to who describes what that means.

You can imagine how giddy I got when he suggested we do a Live together and talk about these things! Yes, we will be up to it tomorrow evening, so I encourage everyone reading this to join us and roll in the weekend with us! There is a nominal fee to hop onto the Patreon, but I assure you it will be worth every cent.

The link to join us is here: https://www.patreon.com/aaronleitch

See you tomorrow!

FIGHTING LIKE CATS AND DOGS: AN OLD-TIMEY INSPIRED HOODOO WORKING

Because of the modern popularity of hoodoo as a tradition, many people practicing occult things are now familiar with the Black Cat line of hoodoo products and workings. Black cats have a long and sordid history in occult practices generally, including the infamous Black Cat bone ritual to find the one bone in a cat’s body that can make you invisible and, in some lore, a bonafide witch. Thankfully, we do not practice that ritual as a standard anymore. However, the spiritual powers of luck and invisibility are still a part of the modern product line I have seen in different places.

It is also, in a way, a kind of “doctrine of signatures” thing in the sense that the products generally reflect the furtive nature of cats. Cats are fierce hunters. They can be whisper quiet, and you don’t see them coming until it’s too late. As a cat owner, I can’t tell you how many times I have stepped on cat tails because I didn’t even know the cat was right under my foot!

The idea of cats bringing luck is a bit ironic, though, especially when attributed to the black cat. As an African American, I grew up with elders regularly cussing out black cats when they crossed the street the wrong way as we were driving by. I used to always be tickled by that because I didn’t understand until many years later that the direction a black cat crosses your path determines whether the luck-power they bring is good or bad. I am sure this is likely one of those more European beliefs that crept into Hoodoo with the cultural interactions between them and those who were enslaved.

Then we have dogs. At some point in Hoodoo, rootworkers discovered that spiritually combining the black cat and black dog made for a potent mix of conflict and confusion. The whole idea of fighting like cats and dogs. We all have seen people fighting like this, especially where I am from. I have seen fights break out right on the streets where people do indeed fight like they are in a WWF Royal Rumble (yes, I am that old!)!

With this kind of work, a rootworker is not drawing on those more positive aspects of either animal, except maybe a little of the cat’s invisibility ability to keep the work from being seen by those in the conflict. Depending on how you work and deploy things, I will share a simple recipe that can be adapted for oil, water, or powder. What I mean by that is I can see this being done as candle work, a powder to lay down at a location, or water to spray onto objects people will touch.

The base of the recipe is to get the following: vetivert, marjoram, patchouli, guinea pepper, poppy seed, black mustard, red pepper, black cat hair, and black dog hair. If you will use this as an oil, putting it in olive oil or whatever oil you have is fine. If in water, you could also add essential oils of these ingredients in addition to the hair. If in a condition powder, use a base like arrow root and then add some dirt to it to mask the color of the base powder.

I would recipe Psalm 79 over the mixture, one of the few psalms designed for cursing. I would also have a good supply of hyssop on hand to make a hand-wash after creating and then again after deploying this in whatever form I make it, so I don’t risk having any spiritual gunk on myself. You can also take a hyssop tea bath afterward.  

WHAT ARE SPIRITS LIKE?

I wanted to write this post today and lift up a brilliant and insightful colleague-teacher of mine, Harper Feist. I had the privilege of recently hearing her podcast interview with Alex Eth on Glitch Bottle, and it is FANTASTIC. By the way, if you are not listening to Glitch Bottle, you are missing out on a substantial occult resource for your practice!

I will not discuss everything Harper spoke about because I think hearing her voice and perspective from her “horse’s mouth” is very important. Many people, students, and strangers, approach me and ask me about working with spirits. If it is something you’ve never done or had anyone teach you, it can be hard to get into. This is not because spirit work is overly complicated (it doesn’t have to be) but because we have so much social conditioning on us that all of that can create problems and challenges. Harper speaks directly to this, too, but from her life experiences and practices. Hearing her stories crystallizes many things, even for a worker such as myself who has also been at this for a while.

What also sets her apart from many is that she is a scientist and an occultist. That’s a perspective, publicly, that we rarely see. Her way of seeing things from both worlds and then tying that to her scrying spirit work is fascinating and a feast for the ears! It is the kind of thing that sparks inspiration and imagination. Both are important for any spirit work because they are the keys to opening our own spirits to do the work well.

The last thing I will say for now (besides, again, to subscribe to Glitch Bottle!) is that Harper also teaches her own course on how to experience spirits through scrying. I will write about scrying another time, but in short, it is the art of perceiving spirits through reflective mediums. From listening to Harper, I know, however, that her version of scrying is more extensive than this and has more to do with developing the spiritual muscles to perceive spirits. Every spirit-based practice I do stresses this part as essential to growth. The good news is that Harper did just that with her class!

The course is still open, and I warmly encourage you to take her course if you want to learn a sure-fire way of understanding what spirits are like. The link is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/scrying/.

Check the class out—you’ll be glad you did!    

TO OVERCOME FEAR WITH HOODOO

The more people I read and advise as a rootworker, the more I have seen that most of what bedevils our lives is not some complicated spiritual “throw” someone lobbed at us intending to destroy our lives. Yes, that can and does happen, and it too happens enough that I know to be on the lookout for signs of it with clients. But many times more than not, root issues have more to do with internal work that is still undone. When you add traumas and other very negative experiences, it is easy to see how someone gets stuck in life.

There is no panacea or cure-all for this. Our lives are different, and we live in various shades of joy, pain, suffering, and other challenges. But there are always little things we can do to start the energy and process of helping ourselves. It has been common for me that when I need the help of an elder to get through something difficult, sometimes they cannot drop what they are doing to intervene. Sometimes, I have had to wait a bit. In those times, the elder usually advises me on what needs to be done to fix the problem and tells me to do work in the interim that helps hold back whatever is going on. I have always appreciated that elders gently remind me that I have an agency of my own that does not go away just because I need help. That they are not saving me to the detriment of my own voice. This is a sign of a healthy leader in any scenario.

As the title suggests, this post is a simple way to address fear. I am borrowing again from the insights of the old-timey writer Mikhail Strabo. The first thing he suggests we do is find a quiet space amid our trial and sit and talk to God. Light a candle, then say the following words: “I am my own master. I have the power to do all things that God wills me to do.”

He does not say this, but I suggest saying those two sentences like a mantra rather than a one-time pronouncement. They are potent self-statements and can begin to shift our cognitions in subconscious ways.

The next and final step is to recite Psalm 23. This is one of my two favorite psalms in the Bible, aside from 139. However, I suggest that you also use the Shemhamforash Seal from the 6th and 7th Books of Moses when you get to this point. Part of this seal is in Strabo’s book, but not the whole thing. I would print this out, then cut it out and glue the front and back sides of the seal together.

Once you have the glued seal, hold it in your left hand while holding the “God candle” on your right. Recite the 23rd Psalm while you keep these two things. When the recitation is finished, talk to God about what you desire for the end of whatever fears you carry in your life. I would repeat this over several days until you feel the fear subside or go away.

I pray courage follows you all your days, today and forever!  

HERE COMES THE SUN: A HOODOO WORKING FOR SUCCESS

I happened across this little gem of a book by Mikhail Strabo on the power of prayer. It is written much like his other book on the “Guiding Light to Power and Success,” one of two traditional Hoodoo books on candle magic. However, Strabo’s book on prayer has a curious addition of using the seals and tables from the 6th and 7th Books of Moses. The only problem is he doesn’t tell readers how to use the seals from that grimoire. The prayer book reads like a Science of Mind text, with a dash of the Secret. But honestly, this book predates The Secret by some years!

What I LIKE about this book is how he has people think about prayer. When praying, it’s rare to read anything that makes you aware of your state of mind and spirit. Most of us teachers don’t talk about it either. We just assume a person has all of that worked out. But sometimes, I think some assumptions aren’t a great idea. I say that because even when we know how to pray, it may come from a tradition we no longer identify with. So we must learn a new way to do it, or at least substantially adapt what we were taught.

I am giving a sample from the book I intend to use in a new class. This sample is the kind of work I do, where I will draw upon the wisdom of the past to help shape practice in the present. This ritual is designed to conjure the energy of a spirit of the sun to assist you in any success magic you might do. It is NOT full or traditional Solomonic magic because, frankly, the point is to draw the energy to you, not push the spirit to any visible manifestation. The seal for these spirits is the image attached to this post.

To conjure the spirits of the Sun, you will need the following items:

·      A print-out of the Eighth Table of the Spirits of the Sun

·      A yellow taper, chime, or tealight candle

·      A quiet space from which to work

You conduct this conjuration in the following manner:

1.     Light the yellow candle.

2.     Hold the Table in your left hand and the candle in your right.

3.     Recite the following prayer:

I, [state your full name], conjure you, Wijch by Dalia + Jka, by Doluth + Auet, by Dilu + Veal, by Anub + Meho, by Igfa + Ymij by Eloij + that you appear before me so true Zebaoth, who Moses named, and all the rivers in Egypt were turned into blood.

4.     Follow this with Strabo’s prayer for success:

Because God is with me, I can do whatever I will.

Because it is right, I can.

Because I have decided, I can.

Because I think it is possible, I can.

No matter what it is, if I feel it is right, I can.

I have faith in myself.

I have confidence in myself.

I trust my own reason.

I rely upon myself.

I know what is best for me.

I know what is best for me to do.

I am strong enough to accomplish this.

I can.

5.     Continue with a final prayer, addressing God directly:

Because you are helping me, I cannot fail.

Because it is your work I am doing, I will

Because I know that it is right, I will

Because I can do it, I will

Because I am doing it in your Name, I will

Because I cannot fail, I will. Amen.

6.     Blow onto the Table in your hand, then place the Table Seal on a table with the candle burning on top of it. After this, you can begin whichever success work you choose.

Also, my most recent Intro to Rootwork course is closing its enrollment on Monday. If you are interested in taking it, come on in this weekend. It’s a friendly group of active folks engaging each other in their learning. The link is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-roots/.

May all of you find the success you seek!

CLEANSING WITH CANDLES

I am sure many people do not think about this because I have never read it anywhere, especially in Hoodoo, which is odd. There are plenty of books on hoodoo candle magic and fixing candles, but more is needed on using a candle as a cleansing tool. A lot of bathing and cleansing revolves around herbs, as it should. However, herbs are only one medium that can be used for this purpose. Candles and wax can be as well. Even in a tradition like Solomonic Magic, there are ways of working with candle wax to prepare special spirit seals where one prays over the wax and melts and remelts it, adding herbs and layer upon layer of prayer leading up to the finished product. There is a belief within practices like this that wax is very absorptive spiritually. In this case, we use that idea to turn a candle into a cleansing tool. This method is most effective if you have a preexisting devotional spirit relationship and an altar to said spirit, because that spirit is going to do the heavy lifting of purification.

Assuming you have such a spirit, you will need two stick candles of any size. Some use two white candles, while others will use a black one and a white one if they have both. Color is not immensely important to this, but it can be used to bring greater focus to the cleansing. A black candle is understood in many traditions to draw to itself. It is thus an ideal candle to draw something out of yourself or someone else. We do this in Hoodoo by swiping the candle from head to toe (and under your feet, moving OUT from heel to toe). You can do this cleansing motion a specific number of times or keep repeating it until you feel something being lifted off of you.

You will swipe the other candle, usually white, on your body in the opposite direction, from toe to head. As you wipe up on yourself, pray for the negativity to be removed and replaced by the blessings of that spirit you’re working with, good health, mental stability, and so on. This can also be repeated several times as needed.

You then place the two candles at opposite ends of that altar space. Light the black candle or cleansing candle first, then light the white candle. White is understood to reflect or send out.

Additional elements, such as psalm recitations, can be incorporated but are unnecessary. You can sit and meditate before the altar for a few minutes while the candles burn. Rest assured, these candles will work to relieve any negative energies.

If you’d like to learn more about this, check out my ongoing intro class on Hoodoo here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-roots/.

DREAMS IN HOODOO

Many spiritual traditions, occult and otherwise, place a lot of importance on the significance of dreams. Even the biblical traditions from the Old Testament to the New give us numerous stories of how people used dreams as revelations from God to know what to do. Figures like Joseph used his dreams to parlay and negotiate a better life for the Hebrews in Egypt. Like Jacob, who dreamed of the Angels’ Ladder and those spirits going up and down from heaven to earth. Prophesies talking about old people dreaming dreams during hopeless times. And perhaps most dramatic, the entire book of Revelation could be understood to be a waking dream (one greatly aided by hallucinogenic mushrooms on the island of Patmos!).

Hoodoo is one of these traditions as well. Between the indigenous African remnants, which always have dream interpretation as part of the spiritual practice, and the Abrahamic elements I just named, Hoodoo developed its way of working with dreams. Chief among them is the tool of the dream book. There are many of these things across the history of Hoodoo. They typically contain lucky numbers, basic astrology to orient how things like the lottery are best betted, and other related information. They also often have a correspondence key that tells you that, for example, a dream with dogs dying means a good friend may betray you.

As I understand this tool, only some people are good at prophetic dreaming. Some have the skill, while others do not. I think we also have the ability to varying degrees, shades, and means. For me, the biggest challenge in working with dreams is getting the accuracy of what they mean and not assuming every single dream I have is essential or has some profound spiritual message. That is an absolute, and I am suspicious of too many of those in my spirituality.

I don’t cover dreams specifically as a unit in my flagship courses. But it’s something I likely will at some point because I know we all DO dream and often have no idea what to make of them most times. In the meantime, I would love to have folks join me in my recent cohort of my Introduction to Hoodoo class. If you do, see you in class!

The link to join is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-roots/.

IS HOODOO CEREMONIAL MAGIC?

I am part of a group that is discussing ceremonial magic and, on some level, where it comes from. I am familiar with different forms, or what I call branches, of ceremonial magic. To me, its roots are ancient, but it has evolved and formed different traditions across cultures for thousands of years, if not longer. One group member was surprised at my words, equating Hoodoo with ceremonial magic.

I clarified to him that I did not say Hoodoo WAS ceremonial magic in the completist and most traditional sense. It just is not. At its core, Hoodoo is African-derived folk magic that has influences from numerous ethnic/spiritual cultures. Hoodoo is also continuing to evolve, incorporating newer cultural and spiritual forms. This fact freaks some people out, but others of us understand that the evolutionary impulse stems from the more profound impulse of Hoodoo to recognize power wherever it comes from and use it.

So, what exactly is the link between Hoodoo and ceremonial magic? The depth of this is too big to dive into entirely in a blog post, but suffice it to say that the main aspects of this connection relate to Hoodoo being influenced by a branch of ceremonial magic known as Solomonic Magic. Within Solomonic magic, there are many ways to practice it. The core of Solomonic magic is the basic instructions in books called grimoires that unpack how a practitioner starts spirit work to connect and establish formal relationships with spirits. The spirits are typically angels, demons, nature spirits, and spirits of the Dead.

What distinguishes Solomonic and ceremonial magic generally from other forms of magic is the formality of its protocols. To perform a traditional Solomonic ritual, you need to fast and purify yourself, wear certain clothing and jewelry, have certain preconsecrated tools and observe specific days and times according to astrology. I would say Solomonic magic is of moderate difficulty to learn and expensive to practice. Most of the hard work of its conjurations relates to the first instance of contacting a spirit. After this first contact, the practitioner should have negotiated a more straightforward method of calling the spirit forward, using the complete conjuration for more significant issues.

Hoodoo, on the other hand, has a system that has a flexible protocol about how and when the magic is practiced. Protocols are there, but they can vary wildly depending on who teaches you Hoodoo and how that teacher works. Some observe astrological considerations in their rootwork, but just as many do not. Like ceremonial magic, rootworkers do use tools and things of nature to create talismans, mojos and other things. Both traditions also conjure spirits, with Hoodoo using some of the Solomonic “pantheon” toward more practical aims like infusing a protection mojo with a prayed-over Pentacle of Mars.

Hoodoo also shares the parallel of using herbal materia, stones, and other natural objects, like the more folksy and practical aspects of ceremonial magic. Sometimes, the correspondences of stones, trees, and herbs line up, but sometimes they do not because Hoodoo has influences from cultures such as First Nation herbology that would overlay a different set of meanings and values.

The chief difference between these two beautiful traditions is that a Solomonic worker doing Solomonic magic alone might feel limited in their ability to handle urgent or emergent needs. In contrast, rootworkers use what they have when they need it without consideration for timing or only specific materials. Rootworkers always make the magic work for them, not vice versa.

That said, there is a historic synergy between Solomonic Magic and Hoodoo that cannot really be denied. You can do Hoodoo without Solomonic magic, and vice versa, but I wonder why a person would want to limit themselves and not avail themselves of the natural connection of the seven planetary archangels with their fixed candles for the blessings each of those angels brings into a person’s life. There are people besides myself doing just this sort of magic, and what they offer and teach is nothing short of amazing to me!

My flagship classes on Hoodoo dive into this, and by the end of them, you will have a definite sense of how the two go together. When practiced together in a thoughtful and meaningful way, a person has a freestanding method of spirit work that can sustain them for years.

If this interests you, please join me and a group of extraordinary people studying together in the current “Working the Roots” cohort. The link is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-roots/.

Come on in; you’ll be glad you did!