Stephanie Rose Bird is a hereditary intuitive, contemporary rootworker,
solitary green witch and visionary. She has been involved with mysticism,
symbology, spiritualism and the occult for thirty years. Bird is inspired by
her ancestors, in particular her grandmothers, one of which was a psychic and
the other a spiritualist minister and herbal healer. Her uncle, a Santeria
priest, Babalawo of Shango, taught her the Ifa traditions of the Yoruba
people. Bird studies healing, magical and divination traditions of indigenous
people around the world with a focus on Africa. Her passions include keeping
the ancient traditions alive and updating them so that they evolve with us,
suiting our current environment and lifestyles. She is a member of the
American Folklore Soceity, the Herb Research Foundation and the Handcrafted
Soap Maker's Guild.
Ashe
African shamans, warriors, hunters, and healers all employ the power of ashe
to accomplish the task at hand. There is a venerable history that is not very
prominent in general literature about the deft skill with which these
specialized members of the community combine sticks, stones, roots, bones,
and minerals to capture and direct power.
The names of these skilled professionals vary from culture to culture. The
goal is to capitalize off the synergy generated from bringing together
disparate parts together to create a single more powerful unit. The parts are
usually organic, but minerals, stones, and metals are also combined with
herbs, roots, and flowers to heal, protect, assure success, and attract
prosperity. This article is an excerpt from my new Llewellyn book, Sticks,
Stones, Roots and Bones: Hoodoo Rootwork for a New Age. This article focuses
on ways to harness the powers of the universe inherent in stone, metal, and
minerals called ashe. My approach is historical and folkloric with practical
applications. Remedies are treated as folklore and should never replace
professional help. Since magic is drawn from within, I can give no guarantee
concerning the efficacy of rituals or recipes presented. The missing
ingredients are your personal powers, focus, and intent.
"When a family comes to settle somewhere, this stone is the first object
placed on the new homesite. It symbolizes unity and reminds family members of
humility, of freedom from greed, and of their descent from the
ancestors." excerpt from The Healing Drum: African Wisdom Teaching by
Yaya Diallo
Minerals and stones play a very active role in African and African American
healing traditions. In Daryl Cumber Dance's comprehensive book From My
People: 400 Years of African American Folklore, she shares collected folklore
stating that, to identify a Hoodoo or Conjurer, see if the person is carrying
a beauty pebble (quartz crystal).
Stones seem to be inert, yet they are actually reservoirs of history, karma,
and energy. Each type of stone has its own frequency and unique ability to
aid the conjurer. First, though, the rock needs to be charged. There are
several ways of charging a rock; most employ the elements:
* Bury rock and dig up, until the stone feels more powerful and clear
* Place stone under the sun from three days to one week
* Soak stone in saltwater, rainwater, lightning water, or sweet water
Hoodoo's assessment of the powers of particular stones is assigned by the
color of the stone and the magical correspondence of the color. In this
regard, Conjurers, Witches, and Wiccans share common ground when working
stone or metal magic. So called "Voodoo Queen" Marie Laveau and her
daughter Phoebie were the first prominent African American seers to employ
the European-based tradition of lunar correspondences in their Hoodoo mojos.
Stones and their Magical Intent
Green stones -- believed to draw prosperity and in some cases health. These
include peridots, jade, turquoise, malachite, and aventurine. Emeralds make a
wonderful wedding stone.
Yellow stones -- citrine, amber, gold topaz (though a resin not a stone), are
thought to be uplifting, enlightening, empowering, energizing, and attractors
because they are symbolic of the sun
Pink stones -- rose quartz, tourmaline, and rhondochrosite are stones of the
heart, friendship, and attraction
Red stones -- carnelian, ruby, garnet are symbolic of life blood; they are
cleansers, used for healing, birthing, protection, sexuality, and vitality
Brown stones -- smoky topaz, certain jaspers, tiger eye are powerful
possessors of animal spirit and magnetism, useful for grounding and centering
Purple stones -- like amethyst, are thought of as spiritual stones, and they
are also used to generate peace or provide blessings.
Clear stones -- crystal or diamonds are sacred stones capable of protection,
healing, blessings, and many other purposes.
Stones with Special Features
Sodalite -- Improves health, aids sleep, clarifies sight
Obsidian -- focuses psychic intent, unhex, banishing negative, inner strength
Hematite -- Creativity, vitality, health -- strengthens heart and blood
Amethyst -- Strength during transformation, weight loss, and overcoming
addictions
Fluorite -- Helps institute "tough love" quality, loving detachment
separations; surviving incarceration of a loved one; affects health of bones
and teeth
Multicolored, striated, and dense stones like onyx, agate, jasper absorb
negativity
Fossils
Fossils are some of the most sacred gifts of the Great Mother. Fossils are
bones of sorts -- remnants of ancient life. To charge them, hold them in your
hands or put them on your altar. Fossils bring special energy to all of your
work. You can also burn incense on top of a fossil.
Amber
Amber is not a true rock; it is a resin. With its golden tone and sunny
appearance, it is compared to Sun Ra. This resin often has insects trapped
inside of it -- giving us a brief glimpse at ancient life, frozen in time.
Amber is always warm to the touch and is good for warming the sick; thus it
enjoys a reach relationship with healers. An amber necklace is an important
protective device when doing clearings and healing work.
Pebbles and Rocks
You don't have to run out and spend a lot of money to use stones magically.
In Jambalaya, author Luisah Teish reports having a collection of simple
stones collected from around the world, that she keeps on her altar in a
basket.
Malidoma Patrice Some, author of The Healing Wisdom of Africa (Tarcher/Putnam
NY), devotes a whole chapter to rocks and minerals. He is a member of the
Dagara tribe, and he reports that he and his people believe that rocks and
minerals are reservoirs of memory. Some recommends holding utilizing simple
rocks and pebbles during memory or remembrance healing rituals.
I like having the energy of Oshun near, so each year I mulch my garden with
river rocks.
Rock Bath Ritual
Choose the stone that offers the help that you need. Charge the stone by
putting it out in the Sun for three to seven days -- each day, caress it to
make it your own. When it feels lighter and clearer, bring it inside. Run a
bath. Light a white candle. Add half a cup each Epsom salt and Dead Sea
salts. Get in bath. Lay back. Place stone over your heart. Close your eyes.
Ask the stone softly and respectfully to draw to you what is needed to enrich
and empower your life. Wash the stone afterwards in the saltwater. Pat dry
and keep in a mojo bag or a piece of blue silk until needed.
Lodestones
I love feeding my "he" and my "she". What are these two
objects of my affection? A male and female pair of matched lodestones. The he
is typically masculine with his slightly pointed, phallic shape. The she is
rounded in the way of a woman's belly or full breasts. The two need to
matched up so that only one is male and the other female. They are also
paired by charge, so that one is negative and the other positive or
receptive.
The he and the she are central to the Art of Hoodoo. It is through the
magnetic power of these two stones and their powerful attraction to one
another that we are able to draw mystical energy from their attraction for a
variety of needs.
My little he and she are nestled inside a red flannel. They live there with a
pair of roots -- powerful protectress to women and children, sweet angelica
(Angelica archangelica) and the formidable High John the Conqueror root
(Ipomoea purga or I. jalapa), thus reiterating the male/female dynamic. A
delicate white seashell mounted on silver provides the aura of moon goddess
Isis and the Mothers of the Sea -- Yemoya-Ologun. A smattering of dried
patchouli and violet leaves bring further protection and powerful emanations.
My helping hand mojo has been gently spritzed with two of the most spiritual
flowers on earth, rosewater and lavender water, then left to dry. Once my
hand dried, I dressed her again with lodestone oil and a bit of Van Van. The
lodestone oil holds a tiny pair of the magnetic stones inside and it has a
musky earth scent, courtesy of patchouli. Lodestone oil reinforces my intent
for the hand -- it duty is to draw goodness, prosperity, and protective forces.
The Van Van oil contains magnetic dust (another attraction substance) and it
is scented with a combination of lemongrass and a tad of citronella essential
oils. A few cutting of actual lemongrass constantly imbues the oil with
positive vibrations and uplifting nature. Of course, this great accumulation
of sweet water, oil, and stone is a bit messy. To carry it safely on my
person, I sprinkled the contents with magnetic sand and tied it off with a
purple ribbon. Purple is the color of high spirituality and healing work.
Next, my drawing hand was submitted to fire. I smudge it with the following
handmade incense:
1 dried orange slice (Citrus sinesis)
1 teaspoon lavender bud (Lavendula officinale)
a couple of rose buds (Rosa spp.)
a few olive leaves (Olea europaea)
a pinch of patchouli leaves (Pogostemon cablin or P. patchouli)
4-5 copal resin balls (Bursera odorata)
5 frankincense tears (Boswellia carterii)
a pinch of sunflower petals (Helianthus annuus)
a pinch of calendula buds (Calendula officinalis)
Perfume
Five drops each clary sage, ylang/ylang, vetiver, and lime essential oils.
Grind first nine ingredients into a coarse powder. Cast a pinch of this
exquisite earth incense on a white-hot charcoal block. Smudge a Drawing Hand,
such as I described under the light of the waxing moon. The smoke is a
powerful cleanser.
Alchemy
Hoodoos use Drawin' Magic for a variety of practical needs, primarily love,
luck, and prosperity. Lodestones are magnetic stones made from magnetite. The
use of lodestone is traced back to European alchemist Albertus Magnus. The
alchemists sought to turn ordinary materials into extraordinary substances.
They created elaborate formulae and recipes to turn ordinary inexpensive
materials into gold.
Albertus Magnus wrote during the Middle Ages, but his work and pseudo-Magnus
work of his followers remain in circulation, especially at spiritual supply
stores in African American neighborhoods. The work of Magnus gripped the
African American community from the earliest days of hoodoo. My personal
introduction to Magnus was through a cousin who is a male witch. He presented
this to me as rare information to be treasured.
Of the two Magnus works still available in commercial distribution, Albertus
Magnus, Egyptian Secrets (or the White and Black Art for Man and Beast,
revealing the forbidden knowledge and mysteries of ancient philosophers) and
The Books of Secrets of Albertus Magnus of the Virtues of Herbs, Stones, and
Certain Beasts are most intriguing. Many of the magical attributes, including
those in his mineralia section ("The Virtues of Certain Stones"),
ascribed to lodestone (spelled loadstone in his text), are still respected.
It is useful to consider when delving into the Magnus texts that they were a
small part of the popular literature of the day -- the first printing of the
book was in 1559 and the last 1637.
Animism
William Gilbert described magnets or loadstone (magnetite; magnetic iron
oxide) in 1600 as being in the act of coitus -- this perception is echoed in
the magical use of lodestone in Hoodoo. Hoodoos employ an African animistic
view to lodestone, giving them a persona and story. The two stones, one male
and other female, are so attracted to each other that within the Hoodoo's
mojo bag, they are constantly locked together in a state of climatic
intercourse -- mojos capitalize off the lodestones' draw to one another. The
matched stones draw love, luck, and prosperity if they are well fed and
properly taken care of.
Lodestone, magnetic dust, and fool's gold (pyrite) draw money, love, luck,
and success. The attraction aspects of magnetic stones and their dust or sand
can also be enhanced by matching the color and the oils they are soaked in
with the purpose at hand. Oils, root powders, and charged magnetic dust is
sprinkled on mojos to recharge or feed their ability to draw.
Love Mojo Bag
One nutmeg (Myristica fragrans) for fidelity
A pinch of Balm in Gilead buds (Commiphora opobalsamum) to attract love
One male and one female (matched) lodestone
Three rose buds (Rosa spp) for fidelity and love
A chili pepper (Capsicum spp.) for sizzling passion
A pinch of magnetic sand (drawing power)
Three drops attar of roses (essence of love)
On the New Moon of a Friday eve, add first five ingredients to a red flannel
drawstring bag. Sprinkle rose oil onto magnetic sand. Spread this food over
the love mojo bag using your dominant hand. Feed periodically on the New Moon
or waxing moon on Friday, the day of Oshun.
Ogun, Orisha of Metal
In Christopher Ehret's book, An African Classical Age: Eastern and Southern
Africa in World History, 1000 B.C. to A.D. 400 (University of Virginia,
Charlottesville, and James Currey, Oxford, England), he presents a
comprehensive overview of the Bantu civilization through historical
linguistics and archaeology. Ehret's scholarship demonstrates how people from
northern Nigeria had begun smelting iron before 500 B.C. and as early as 900
B.C. ( by the Bantu of the Great Lakes region of East Africa). Not content to
stop there, Ehret dug deeper and discovered archaeological evidence
indicating that the rise of African ironwork dates back before 1000 B.C. He
feels certain that the development of ironwork in Africa was concurrent with
that of Europe but sparked independently of European influences. Christopher
Ehret's seminal research sets up a much lengthier history and more venerable
relationship between Black folks and ironwork than previously believed.
Ehrets research supports the thesis that African and African American
ironwork, metalsmithing, and its intending folklore are distinctly African
based.
A major angelic force of the Yoruban Ifa pantheon is the orisha Ogun. In Ifa,
this African brother of the Greek god Mars is Ogun. The two fire gods share
various correspondences. Ogun is the warrior orisha and not only is he
associated with fire, but with metals. Ogun is the orisha of iron.
In Hoodoo, Ogun is one of the Seven Powers of Africa, conjured up to help
with magical work. Hoodoo warriors invoke Ogun because hoodoo, metallurgy,
and metalsmithing are all dangerous and unpredictable activities. The Mande
people of Africa see blacksmiths and spirits as being colleagues. The Mande
credit blacksmiths with knowledge of healing, initiation, and sorcery.
Blacksmiths are intermediaries between the wilderness and civilized society.
As manipulators of nature, blacksmiths shape nature into useful form for the
people, through their craft.
Hoodoo warrior tools utilize iron and other metals -- thus they are imbued
with the powers of Ogun and the alchemy of the metalsmith. In the olden
times, anvil dust was used for tricks and jobs (spells and rituals). Today
iron fillings, magnetic dust, pyrite, rusted nails, ordinary nails, and
coffin nails are still used for hoodoo.
Ogun's number is three. His colors are green and black. Images of warriors
and hunters or their tools represent his spirit. Iron or metal objects
correspond with Ogun. He enjoys rum or pineapple offerings. His corresponding
Ewe (herbs) are parsley, hawthorn, and alfalfa. Spiritual baths in his honor
should include eucalyptus and tobacco. Use his correspondences and invite his
presence when you need strength, power, and resolve.
Metals are the "flesh of the gods and goddesses," the bones of the
Earth, manifestations of universal powers. Crystal, Gem and Metal Magic by
Scott Cunningham (Llewellyn)
Metallurgy for Conjur Craft
Brass -- is widely used in Africa. The magical qualities of brass are similar
to gold, without the implied vanity. Brass is a good metal for candleholders,
for incorporation into the altar, and for love draw.
Copper -- is a healing metal and a conduit of both spiritual and sexual
energy. Copper is also associated with goddesses: Ishtar, Astarte, Inanna,
and Isis. Copper coordinates well with quartz crystals. Copper-colored
pennies are tossed in the home by Hoodoos as a charm for luck, salute to the
ancestors, to draw luck and money. Trinidadians and other Black folk from the
Caribbean and parts of South America are especially fond of copper bracelets
and anklets as tools for healing bones. Copper is known to detoxify,
stabilize, and deal with blood flow.
Iron -- represents Ogun the warrior deity. Black folks in America have been
cooking soul food in cast iron skillets for hundreds of years. Since iron is
connected to Ogun, it carries some of protection into our food. Nails, rust,
and metal filings are some ways that iron is used to conjure. Metalsmithing
was an honorable traditional craft for Early African Americans. We continue
to revere it and tap its magic.
Lead -- Lead is used for its ability to hold and deliver intent. Lead pencils
used to write in specific written jobs and tricks on brown paper (Kraft
paper).
Quicksilver -- was widely used for luck spells, but since it is actually
mercury, it is extremely toxic. It is best to leave quicksilver to the hoodoo
history books.
Silver -- to the African mind, represents the sea, great mothers of the moon.
It is helpful for intuitive work, dream quest, fertility, and love tricks.
Songhai wise men believe that the third finger of the left hand is our
conduit of spirit power; therefore, a silver ring placed there enhances
spirituality.
Hoodoo Horseshoe Folklore
The transformative aspect of metalsmithing and its ephemera led to a wealth
of traditions within Hoodoo. Two of the objects steeped in the lore of metal
smith are horseshoes and nails. The elaborate etiquette for the acquisition
and magical use of horseshoes in hoodoo include:
* For a horseshoe to be lucky, the finder must pick it up and carry it with
the prongs upwards
* It should also be hung with the U-shape at the bottom, prongs at the top
* Hanging the horseshoe properly allows it to become a vessel that holds luck
* Traditionally, horseshoes are hung outdoors on the property, a fence, or
trees
When the horse was a primary form of transportation, you could walk around
and find horseshoes. Horseshoes with the nails still intact were thought to
be especially lucky.
Some practitioners would work with the nails themselves to draw good fortune,
but for the most part it was considered unlucky to remove the nails.
Nails were also important binders both in a practical since (carpentry) and
in a metaphysical one. It was believed that you could drive nails into
someone's tracks at the heel to make them stay close to you. To keep a lover
close by, his/her shoes were buried under the front step or porch and a
simple pine plank was nailed on top to keep the lover at home. In short,
nails are a binding tool that can lock your intentions. The ability of nails
results from the magical way in which they were created.
Nkisi Nkondi
Nkisi Nkondi is a type of figurative sculpture that has nails inserted into
its body to trap its power. Leaves and medicines combined with various
elements increases the strength of each. Each ingredient has as action of
humans -- the bringing together of various natural forces is the source of
healing.
Ne Kongo, a cultural hero, carried the first healing medicines (nkisi) with
him from heaven to earth. He prepared the medicines in a clay pot set on top
of three stones (or termite mounds). His actions were the foundation of the
Nganga or healer's method of dispensing medicine. The healer or shaman's
therapy most often involves the proper mixture of plants, elements, minerals,
and stones.
War Water
Cat Yronwode, hoodoo product manufacturer and author, discusses her personal
recollections of the "hoodoo wars" in Oakland, California, during
the 1960s on her website www.luckymojocurio.com Yronwode recalls Hoodoos
throwing and receiving tossed bottles, containing ominous visual messages.
The bottles contain various warrior waters. Yronwode sells her own brand of
War Water. These bottles were once hurled at an enemy's property, tree, or
front door of their business, leaving a foul-smelling, dangerous mess.
Tarostar speaks of putting black feathers, blood (blood substitutes cherry,
beet, or tomato juice, or apple cider vinegar, can be used) into bottles in
The Witch's Formulary and Spellbook (Las Vegas, NV). The real blood would
most like come from a freshly slaughtered black or white rooster. Black
feathers from crows or ravens are sometimes included in these bottles. The
emblematic coffin nail is an object so strong that it can hold down spirits,
and the broken glass suggests the transparent spirit world -- all come together
to deliver a powerful, dark warning.
Salt and Other Minerals
All life comes from the sea. We begin our lives as human fetuses submerged in
amniotic fluid. The deities, orishas, gods, and goddesses of Ancient Lore
vividly live out the importance of the sea.
According to Professor John Anenechukwa Umeh, author of After God is
Dibla-Igbo Ceremony, Divination and Sacred Science (Karnak House, London
England, 1999), salt is the solidified tears of God. God was so saddened by
the spiritual and physical pollution that populates the earth that his worry
and tears formed the great oceans and seas. Because salt is derived from the
emotion of God, a combination of water and salt are used by Dibla (Igbo
Wisemen/Healers) to clear all forms of negativity -- even hatred.
From a feminine perspective, goddesses of many cultures play a key role in
our conception of salt as being sacred; this may be because of the mystical
quality of our formation within amniotic fluid. For example, the Water Jar is
a symbol of Nut. Nut is of the sky -- sun, moon, and stars. She is also mother
to the gods. Her essence pours down rain from the heaven, thus assuring our
fruitful harvest. She is the milk-giving cow goddess; goddess of the serpents
of the primeval waters; fertile pig goddess; bird goddess and goddess of the
underworld. Isis is the Great Mother Goddess of Ancient Egypt -- the universe
and humanities spring from her womb, nourished by her amniotic fluids.
Yemoya and Ologun are the great mothers of the Yoruban Ifa cosmology. The duo
is considered compassionate and judicious -- givers and takers of life. The
two sea mothers represent the generosity of the universe.
Astarte of Mesopotamia is the light; guardian of ships; prayer goddess of the
sea, moon, morning and evening stars. She is the cosmic womb and goddess of
fertility. Venus is Aphrodite and Astarte's Roman counterpart. Her image has
been condensed into the goddess of love, but essentially she is a great
goddess of the sea -- with all of the ramifications of the sea, including
fertility, love, nurturing, cosmic womb, and the great mother.
Spiritual Cleansing with Salt
Cup coarse sea salt
Cup fine sea salt
Cup Dead Sea Salt
1/2 cup rosewater
On Friday of a full moon, mix salts with your dominant hand. Place salt into
the four corners of room. Spritz broom in rosewater. Sweep each room
beginning in the west, go counterclockwise. Spritz broom when needed. (Double
or triple recipe for larger spaces)
Additional minerals used in conjuration and hoodoo include baking soda,
brimstone, and saltpeter. Baking soda (sodium hydrogen carbonate or sodium
bicarbonate, NaHCO) is a wonderful addition to spirit washes and floor
washes. Brimstone is the ancient name for sulfur. Brimstone (sulfur, S) is
acrid and it is used to make Hot Foot Powder, a deterrent, protective powder,
and gunpowder. It is also used to make matches and fireworks, so it should be
used with caution. Sulfur combines well to make inorganic sulfides with just
about every metal except gold or platinum. A few such inorganic sulfides are
the ores discussed in this article, iron, copper, and lead. Saltpeter
(potassium nitrate or calcium nitrate) adds sparkle to charcoal fires and
incense, lending a mystical aura. Dr. Harry Hyatt records saltpeter as an
ingredient widely used in protection recipes including floor wash, baths, and
powders in his extensive five volumes of research into hoodoo and
conjuration. Today, we understand that saltpeter is toxic. Saltpeter is
corrosive, explosive, and a threat to the respiratory system. I advise
avoiding it. See article here:
http://www.scents-of-earth.com/makyourownna.html This site links to the MSDS
toxicity report on potassium nitrate.
Stones are plentiful, beautiful, and have a long history. The magical
qualities of stones, minerals, and metals can be used alone or in combination
with the elements to increase their ashe and efficacy. I hope that you will
try the recipes provided and create a few more ways of using stones,
minerals, and metals magically for your personal grimoire.
Ase!
Thanks to the ancestors,
Stephanie
RECOMMENDED TITLES BY THIS AND OTHER AUTHORS:
STICKS, STONES, ROOTS & BONES:
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CUNNINGHAM'S ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CRYSTAL, GEM & METAL MAGIC:
A best-seller which focuses on the spiritual and magical properties of stones, crystals, gems and metals.
LOVE IS IN THE EARTH:
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CRYSTAL ENCHANTMENTS:
You don't have to have extensive background in magic to make use of any stone.
CRYSTAL WISDOM: SPIRITUAL PROPERTIES OF CRYSTALS AND GEMSTONES:
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HEALING WITH GEMSTONES AND CRYSTALS:
A complete guide to healing the body, mind and spirit with the aid of gemstones and crystals.
These title and others can be found at Isis Books & Gifts! With over
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