July 2010 – New World Witchery – The Search for American Traditional Witchcraft

Blog Post 74 – Sassafras

While passing by the cemetery on campus one day, I noticed a few little sprouted saplings with very particularly-shaped leaves. I got very excited when I moved in closer and saw the definitive “mitten” shape of some of the leaves. I pinched one and sniffed, smelling a strong spicy aroma almost immediately. I knew at that point I was dealing with sassafras.

Sassafras is one of those herbs that you can’t avoid in the South. It grows in all sorts of adverse environments: roadsides, hedgerows, waste spaces, etc. It can be short and bushy in its early years of development, but becomes a full-sized tree given enough time. The roots and bark have long been used in culinary and medicinal applications. If you’ve ever had a root beer, there’s a chance that you have tasted this plant, as sassafras and sarsaparilla were the two primary flavors in that drink for a long time. In recent years (since 1960), active ingredient in sassafras, called safrole, has been officially banned by the USDA as potential carcinogen. So most of the root beer sold now uses artificial flavors to reproduce the sassafras and sarsaparilla taste. The leaves of sassafras also feature in Cajun cooking; dried and powdered, they become file powder, which is used to thicken stews like gumbo.

Medicinally, sassafras is a tricky root to use. According to botanical.com, “Oil of Sassafras is chiefly used for flavouring purposes, particularly to conceal the flavour of opium when given to children. In the United States of America it is employed for flavouring effervescing drinks…Aromatic, stimulant, diaphoretic, alterative. It is rarely given alone, but is often combined with guaiacum or sarsaparilla in chronic rheumatism, syphilis, and skin diseases.” It also seems to have a strong effect on women’s reproductive systems, easing menstrual pain, but also potentially causing abortions. Several health problems have been connected to consuming overdoses of safrole, including vomiting, collapse, pupil dilation, and cancer. WARNING! Consult a physician before taking ANY herb or root internally! Sassafras is NO EXCEPTION!

Sassafras bark and root have long been made into teas in the Appalachians. In Foxfire 4, informant Pearl Martin showed students Bit Carver and Annette Sutherland how to gather the herb and make the drink:

“Sassafras is a wild plant that grows in the Appalachians…The spicy, distinct flavor of sassafras makes the tea a popular beverage, served hot or cold…Pearl told us that she could gather roots any time of the year without affecting the taste of the tea. However, the roots should be gathered young, so they will be tender…She chops the roots from the plants, then washes the roots in cold water. Next she scrapes off the outer layer of bark and discards it. Either the roots or the bark can be used in making the tea, but Pearl prefers the roots. They can be used dried or green. She brings the roots to a boil in water. The longer they are boiled, the stronger the tea. To make a gallon of tea, she boils four average-sized roots [which appear to be about a foot long and an inch thick] in a gallon of water for fifteen to twenty minutes. She then strains it, and serves it either hot or iced, sweetened with either sugar or honey” ( p. 444).

While the safrole content of the tea is relatively low, again you should consult with a physician before drinking this tea.

Magically speaking, sassafras is a money root. It attracts business success and material wealth. Putting a little sassafras root in one’s wallet or purse keeps money from running out. Catherine Yronwode has several good charms in her Hoodoo Herb & Root Magic book, including a business attracting sidewalk scrub made from sassafras, allspice, and cinnamon (which has the added bonus of a pleasant aroma), and this powerful little Money-Stay-with-Me mojo hand:

“Jam a silver dime into an alligator foot [available from Lucky Mojo and other botanicas and curiosity shops] so that it looks like the ‘gator is grabbing the coin. Wrap it tightly with three windings around of red flannel, sprinkling sassafras root chips between each layer as you wind, and sew it tight. Just as the alligator foot holds the coin and won’t let go, so will you be able to save instead of spend” (p. 179).

Sounds like a pretty wonderful charm to know, in my opinion. I’ve not seen anything particularly about burning sassafras as incense, but I did find a book called A Collection of Folklore by Undergraduate Students of East Tennessee State University edited by Thomas G. Burton and Ambrose N. Manning which records a bit of superstition claiming that bad luck comes if you “burn sassafras wood” (p. 74). The lore in this particular collection is all from first-hand sources, so I tend to think it’s got some weight. A similar folklore collection from Kentucky elaborates on this point, saying, “If you burn sassafras wood or leaves, a horse or a mule of yours will die within a week” (from Kentucky Superstitions, #2993). I tend to think this refers to burning wood in a fire or fireplace as opposed to using a little bit of it as incense, but take your chances as you see fit. Particularly if your horses or mules are dear to you.

I hope this post has been of some use to you! Enjoy the slowly waning summer, and get out in the woods to find some sassafras and other plants!

Thanks for reading,

-Cory

Blog Post 73 – Book Review

I know, I know, two book reviews in a row may seem excessive, but I spent a lot of time reading over the past few weeks, so bear with me. Plus, you may find some new books to investigate!

Today’s book is Blue Roots by Roger Pinckney. It’s about rootwork, hoodoo, and conjure, but not the broad, general kind so often discussed in other books and on blogs and webpages (including this one). Instead, Pinckney focuses on the healing and magical traditions of one particular group: the Gullahs. Primarily associated with the Savannah, Georgia area, the Gullah people inhabit a large swathe of the lower Atlantic seaboard, especially the islands just off the coast of George and South Carolina. They are often referenced as an “untouched” enclave of African-American culture, and portrayed as a sort of quaint and folksy pocket of rural Americana.

Pinckney does little to disabuse the reader of those notions, creating a fairly warm, nostalgic book about folk healing practices (and a little bit of magic, too) found on the Southern Atlantic coast. The author also spends a good bit of time examining the spiritual practices of the Gullah, with an emphasis on spirits, the dead, ancestors, and African Diaspora remnants. From a section on the “haint blue” paint commonly found around doors, windows, and porches in the Southeast:

“Prior to the [American] Revolution when coastal plantations produced indigo dye for English cloth, planters gave their slaves the dregs from the boiling pots, which the slaves used to decorate window frames and porch posts, in the believe the blue color kept the plentiful spirits at bay. When indigo cultivation declined in the 1780s, Gullah slaves continued the custom with blue paint. It is a practice that survives to this day, perhaps no longer for a spiritual repellent, but as a tradition, nevertheless” (p. 72).

The book generally does a good job of highlighting some of the beliefs and practices associated with the Gullah, and also pays wider homage to the Southern incarnations of hoodoo and African religion. Pinckney sometimes seems uncomfortable with rootwork as a magical practice, and prefers to refer to those who use herbs, roots, and animal parts as “root doctors” rather than “conjurers.” His attitude in general is that of a journalist who does not believe most of what he’s told, but who really wants to. He explains a lot of rootwork’s more magical components as methods of psychological intimidation. In his chapter “The Power of the Root,” he describes an hypothetical visit to a root doctor in detail, then concludes with this sentiment:

“And will the root actually help him? Probably so. If rootwork were not effective, the practice would have died out centuries ago. Most likely, one of the man’s [the client] confidants will mention the conjuration to another, and the news will go whispering through the community until the rejected woman [the target] hears that she has been rooted. And since she knows in her heart that all her subversion was wrong in the first place, she will immediately desist her sundry annoyances” (p. 62).

This perspective is not one I particularly endorse, as I truly think rootwork has power in and of itself, and that the spiritual and magical components are far greater than the psychological ones, but it is certainly not an invalid point of view.

Some of the best chapters in this book are about Sherriff J. E. McTeer and his battles with the infamous Dr. Buzzard. I mentioned both of these famous conjure men in my post on Who’s Who in Hoodoo, Part II, and they both feature prominently in Jack Montgomery’s work, American Shamans. Pinckney spends a lot of time on their lore and their recorded history, which sometimes differ quite a bit. Actually, the lore he presents in most of his chapters is quite good, and he uses a journalist’s nose for facts to substantiate or repudiate certain points, while never discounting the broader nature of a story’s “truth.”

This is a book that I recommend to those interested in Southern rootwork, particularly its history and social relevance. It’s not one you can learn a lot of new tricks from, but you can certainly pick up a few things as you read. If nothing else, Pinckney has a deep love and reverence for the Gullah, the South, and rootworkers at large, so the book feels like a conversation with a good friend. If you think hoodoo, particularly the kind found in the Carolina/Georgia islands, is your thing, check out Blue Roots.

Blog Post 72 – Book Review

Hi everyone,

I’d like to recommend a book today which falls firmly into the “fiction” category, but which has an amazing amount of conjure-related material in it. It’s called Mojo: Conjure Stories, and is edited by Nalo Hopkinson. I say “edited by” because this is a collection of short stories, and every one revolves around some deep South magical topic. Some are okay, some are quite good, and many are superb. The book features authors like science-fiction maven Barbara Hambly, African-American author devorah major, and dark fantasy genius Neil Gaiman.

Here are just a sampling of the stories in this excellent tome:

“Daddy Mention and the Monday Skull” by Andy Duncan – An aged convict contacts an alligator swamp spirit in order to get a beautiful singing voice (and consequently a chance at freedom), but winds up biting off a good deal more than he can chew.

“Heartspace” by Steven Barnes – A man goes to visit his estranged and dying father, only to walk into the middle of a conflict between his fiery half-sister and his father’s new wife—a Gullah woman with some powerful tricks up her sleeve.

“The Skinned” by Jarla Tangh – An old man who knows the secret behind the terrifying monsters lurking in his neighborhood decides he will confront the beasts, only to endanger his very soul in doing so.

“Death’s Dreadlocks,” by Tobias S. Buckell – The children of an African village caught in the crossfire of several warlords turn to Old Ma, who teaches them to see the ropy strands of Death’s hair all around them and avoid fatality. The children decide to follow the hair back to its source and put an end to Death once and for all.

“The Horsemen and the Morning Star” by Barbara Hambly – The Old Gods from across the sea ride their “horses” (slave devotees) in order to battle a plantation owner and his sorcerous friend, who are conjuring up their own forces—Satan himself—using the slave children as sacrifices to do so.

“Cooking Creole” by A. M. Dellamonica – A man who’s tried his hand at gambling, guitar playing, and other “gifted” talents decides to go to the crossroads one last time. He thinks he’s finally found his calling: he wants to learn to be a Cajun cook. But he doesn’t know just what this cooking school will cost him.

“Shining through 24/7” by devorah major – This strange tale revolves around a woman who tries to steal from a hoodoo woman. A hoodoo woman who happens to live near a chemical storage facility. A radioactive chemical storage facility. A strange but delightful story.

And these are only about half of the wonderful tales collected in this book. I picked it up out of my local library and loved it. If you have any interest in Southern folk magic, African-American religious practices, fairy tales and fantasy, or just plain old good storytelling, I highly recommend getting this book.

Thanks for reading!

Cory

Blog Post 71 – How I Spent My Summer Vacation

Hello everyone!

We’re almost at the end of this hiatus, and I haven’t posted anything really since right before I went off to grad school for the summer. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been up to some witchy business in the meantime. Today I thought I’d share a few of the things I’ve been doing over the past six weeks (well, other than performing detailed exegeses of 18^th-century English poetry and seeing about 27 different versions of Shakespearean performances).

The first thing I should tell you is that I was living on campus, and this campus just happens to be a beautiful rural campus right at the edge of Appalachia. My access to folklore primary sources was much abetted, and my opportunities to get out in the woods increased a good bit. Secondly, my dorm was immediately across from a beautiful old cemetery. As you can probably guess, I spent a good bit of my time there. Here are some photos of the amazing graves and other funerary décor found in the old boneyard.The graves here date back to around the mid-nineteenth century, so they aren’t incredibly old, but many of them are gorgeous. And they are certainly older than lots of other cemeteries in the area.

This also happens to be a religious school, so there are plenty of beautiful crosses here, too. Since it’s as close to Appalachia as it is, the cemetery has a strong Celtic influence in the stonework.

The time I spent here mostly involved taking late night (or often midnight) walking tours of the area. Among all those graves and under a very starry sky, it was pretty amazing. If you’re wondering whether or not I encountered “anyone,” though, I have to say the answer is no. I did bring offerings of food and whiskey several times, leaving them near the small side gate rather than any specific grave (since I wasn’t trying to contact anyone in particular, that made sense to me). Wildlife abounds near this cemetery, so I often heard things wandering out in the dark just beyond the light’s cast. I even occasionally met other folks taking late night constitutionals among the headstones.

Since I wanted to do well in my schoolwork, I also made up a potent little mojo bag, which I carried in my pocket. I anointed it daily with either Crown of Success oil or some local whiskey, depending on what seemed appropriate for the day. As far as I can tell, it worked magnificently (though I’m still waiting to get final grades back…mojo don’t fail me now!). I may outline just how I made this specific mojo bag later this week in case there are other students looking for a little “oomf” in their studies.

Of course, a huge portion of my time was dedicated to reading completely non-magical texts (Paradise Lost, vast quantities of Shakespeare, a number of Restoration-era authors like Swift, Pope, and Dryden, etc.), but I also had time to work my way through a few magically inclined books as well. I’ll be posting some reviews of those as time permits this coming week, so stay tuned for those.

The beautiful natural surroundings of the school also afforded ample opportunities to get outdoors. Though the heat was stifling some days, trees always provided comforting shade and occasional mountain breezes helped cool me off, too. So many of the plants that grow in that area have magical connections: elder, sumac, sweet gum, passionflower, poke berries, and blackberries all grow wild. I did some harvesting, particularly a good bunch of sassafras, so I’ll try to get some info up on that at some point, too.

Last, but certainly not least, I also had long drives to and from school on the weekends, so I filled up my iPod with lots of witchy podcasts and caught up on some of my favorites. I also got to hear some new ones (at least new to me) that were excellent. If you haven’t checked out Pagan Hooligans yet, it’s a great show and the hosts are a lot of fun. They’re recording their adventures in paganism from day one, and it’s really a refreshing perspective! I’ve also started really listening to and enjoying Iron Powaqa Radio, which has a decidedly sassy side and always makes me smile.

So that was my summer in a nutshell, I suppose. I’m going to be trying to get back in the swing of regular posts as soon as possible, and hopefully there will be another podcast up fairly soon, too. Until then, thank you all for your patience and support! Feel free to post, email, discuss, and generally share your own New World Witchery here, and we’ll look forward to hearing from you! Thanks for reading!

All the best, and be well,

-Cory

Podcast Special – Spellcasting Greatest Hits

-SHOWNOTES FOR SPECIAL – SPELLCASTING GREATEST HITS-

Summary
This mid-hiatus special is all about successful spellcasting. We discuss our most effective spells, our favorite techniques, and some of the philosophy and mechanics of potent magical practice.

Play:

Download: New World Witchery – Podcast Special – Spellcasting Greatest Hits

-Sources-
*The Lucky Mojo page on “Honey Jars” contains great information on this lovely little family of spells.
*Here are a few pages on lost item spells, particularly the St. Anthony charm mentioned by Cory.
*John George Hohman’s Long Lost Friend contains the Pow-wow spells mentioned in this show.
*The Encyclopedia of 5000 Spells, by Judika Illes, contains many wonderful spells, and is a book we both turn to often.

Music
“Grifos Muertos” by Jeffery Luck Lucas, from his album What We Whisper, on Magnatune.com