Gris-Gris: A Voodoo Charm

Posted by kitperriman on August 11, 2022

A gris-gris is a voodoo fetish that was originally designed as a doll to protect the owner from evil or bad luck. Over time, the doll was replaced by a cloth bag that could be worn on the person. Gris-gris today are usually small pouches inscribed with verses from the Qur’an. They contain either 1,3,5,7,9, or 13 ritual objects such as animal bones, herbs, stones, hair, nail, or pieces of clothing.

Gris-gris are made on an altar containing the four elements: fire (candle flame), earth (salt), air (incense), and water. These charms are used to attract money or love, to prevent malicious gossip, to protect the home, and to bring good health and fortune.

Historians believe that the gris-gris tradition originated in Muslim Ghana. The slaves who arrived in Louisiana carried these amulets with them. They were quickly adapted to bring ill-fortune and bad-luck curses on their white masters. As they became part of the New Orleans voodoo culture, gris-gris were amalgamated into black magic rites to conjure up death and disaster. In this way they changed from being a protective charm into a vengeful curse.

Some African communities still use gris-gris as a form of contraception.

The Voodoo Queen, Marie Laveau marketed a particularly nasty version she called wangas. Made from the shroud of a person who had been dead for 9 days, they contained a witch-brew made from toad, lizard, bat, cat, owl, rooster – and a suicide’s little finger!

Sources

New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum.

Wikipedia, “Gris-gris,” at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gris-gris_(talisman).

“Voodoo Hoodoo Spell Book,” at http://voodoohoodoospellbook.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_19.html.

(Photo: Kit Perriman)

Love Potions

Posted by kitperriman on February 9, 2022

Night hearts

In the run-up to Valentine’s Day let’s talk love potions! What are they made from? Who uses them? Do they work?

In Wicked Enchantments, Joyce Froome describes an array of magical charms used throughout the ages and recorded in the Museum of Witchcraft in Cornwall, England. These include: sticking a certain number of pins into an apple or onion while chanting a rhyme; specific astrological symbols engraved on a box as a love talisman; carrying henbane root to make you appear more attractive; piercing knotted cords with pins; throwing salt on the fire while reciting a chant on three consecutive Fridays; melting a wax heart over a hot tile while casting a charm that will bind the lover to your will; and pushing pins in the sleeve with a prayer for each one so you will dream of your future spouse. And quoting from The Book of Secrets of Albertus Magnus, Froome explains that a typical magical drink contained items such as periwinkle, houseleek, and earthworms!

Over the centuries love potions have appealed to young women in search of a husband; those who’ve lost their sweethearts and wish to lure them back; lovers in search of willing bed partners; and insecure people needing outside support, especially when they’ve already been rebuffed. Cunning folks were happy to oblige and had a fifty-fifty chance of providing satisfaction, though of course they were conjuring up sexual allure and attraction, rather than genuine love.

There is some scientific research suggesting that modern-day “love potions” may actually affect human mood – for example, those based on odors containing jasmine, rose, and vanilla. Smells can trigger pheromones and create longing, attraction, or remind the person of happy erotic memories from their past. Several products on the market contain chemical pheromones which supposedly make the wearer sexually irresistible. Likewise, in the time before Viagra, certain herbs were used to increase the blood flow and stimulate arousal. But did they really work? What do you think?

Source:

Froome, Joyce. Wicked Enchantments: A History of the Pendle Witches and Their Magic (Lancaster: Carnegie, 2010)

(Photo: Public Domain)

The Wizard’s Wand

Posted by kitperriman on February 3, 2022

The Harry Potter book series made magic wands the must-have addition for any aspiring wizard. But what exactly are they? Do they work? And if so, how?

In J.K. Rowling’s world, wands are mystical tools made from a wide variety of wood. At the core is a magical talisman from some mythical creature such as a phoenix feather, dragon heartstring, or unicorn hair. And as Hermione tells Harry, you do not choose the wand – the wand chooses you. Rowling’s sticks contain supernatural powers that assist the youngsters in casting various spells and seem inspired by a few elements from European folklore and a good deal of literary license!

Traditionally, the wand was associated with wizard’s staff and the monarch’s scepter and may have first originated as a phallic symbol. It has also been suggested it derived from the shaman’s drumming sticks, which were widely used as pointers in magical ceremonies. The first literary reference appeared in Homer, when Circe used a wand to turn Odysseus’ men into wild pigs.

But how do the facts differ from the fiction?

* Wands are usually made from wood, but they can also be made of stone or metal depending on the type of spell required. For example, copper wands are used in healing.

* These rods are tools used to focus the power of the wizard, but they do not work magic by themselves. They guide and direct human energy to the proper, desired place.

* Wands are associated with the element of air (and sometimes fire).

* Spirals are sometimes incorporated into their design to represent the beginning and end of everything. They also create a vortex that harnesses energy.

* Each wand is unique. They are quasi-sentient – inanimate objects with animate characteristics.

* They can be used for protection, empowerment, healing, and love spells.

* Beginners should use flexible wands made from ash or willow. Experts may graduate to hard woods like ebony and oak.

* Wands need to be cleansed on a regular basis to keep their energy strong and pure.

* They can be recharged in sunlight or full moonlight.

* Power builds up in the handle and is released through the tip.

* Whatever you send out to others comes back three times stronger – therefore a magician should always send out blessings instead of curses!

But do they actually work? You tell me . . .

Sources:

“Wand” – Wikipedia. Accessed 4/2/2015.

http://www.magicwandsofwizardry.com. Accessed 4/2/2015.

(Photo: Public Domain)

Macbeth’s Weird Sisters: Reason or Treason?

Posted by kitperriman on January 31, 2022

Macbeth’s Weird Sisters

A Psychological Riddle:

Were Shakespeare’s weird sisters real evil hags who seduced the newly-appointed Thane of Cawdor with ambitious promises above his station? If so, could they have been the reason why the brave warrior Macbeth murdered King Duncan?

Points to consider:

* Superstitious Jacobeans believed in magic, and would have readily accepted that Macbeth was genuinely bewitched. Satan was stalking the land in search of souls and his coven of witches found a good, brave man who succumbed to their temptations because he was also human.

* If you were put under a spell, you had no control over your actions. Therefore, once Macbeth was in their power he could not prevent himself from killing the king.

* The Malleus Maleficarum claimed that wicked women have been responsible for the downfall of great men since the time of Eve in the Garden of Eden. Macbeth was following in a long tradition of doomed heroes.

* The three sisters first approach Macbeth. He does not initially seek them out. This implies that Macbeth was intentionally targeted by Satan, which makes him a hapless victim of evil.

* Banquo sees the women too. They were not just a figment of Macbeth’s imagination.

Painting by Henry Fuseli (Public Domain)

Or perhaps the witches were merely a convenient excuse? In other words, did they exist only in the mind/s of the central character/s – as a projection of ambition and desire – or as a psychological attempt to rationalize the ultimate treason?

Points to consider:

* If Macbeth was truly a good man he would not have been so readily tempted by evil. Satan picks targets who are easy to seduce. The witches were the excuse he used to explain away his actions.

* The ambition to be king may have been seeded in Macbeth’s mind even before the witches appeared. It was common to come across poor wise women, gypsies, or cunning folk, who made a living from fortune telling. After the murder they were fashionable targets to blame for the deeds that Macbeth was destined to do.

* Supernatural influences can be used to explain, excuse, and justify horrific acts on the grounds that they are outside of self control. In the same way that mass murderers claim to hear voices that make them commit their crimes, Macbeth blames the popular scapegoat of his (and Shakespeare’s) time.

* If Macbeth was genuinely bewitched he would have killed without deliberation. But he questions his actions, later wrestling with guilt and remorse. Is this because he knows he has done wrong and fears being found out?

* Banquo sees the weird women and also hears their prophecies, in which case he should also fall under their power. But he is content to let fate play out by itself and does not take part in any murders.

I have always been fascinated by Shakespeare’s skill as both a writer and early psychologist. His audience would have accepted these characters as real supernatural influences (which means Macbeth was an innocent man duped by evil). But the bard also knew the human mind. In today’s psychoanalytical society we understand how criminals sometimes project their crimes onto external influences to escape from blame (in which case Macbeth would have been guilty of murder and treason).

Magic Colors

Posted by kitperriman on January 13, 2022

(Photo: Public Domain)

Colors have always affected the human psyche. They create atmosphere, change moods, signal danger, hide flaws, disguise predators, indicate states of mind, and relieve stress. And because they trigger such potent reactions in people, many cultures have used them to influence, honor, or impress their gods.

Medieval cunning folk were no exception. They used sacred clothing, color-coded surroundings, or dyed candles for their rituals. But the meaning of certain colors can vary – for example, a black candle might be lit in a shape-shifting spell, while its partner stone (onyx) could be used for protection. Sorcery and alchemy were complicated arts.

Even today, the meanings associated with color are open to personal interpretation, for what is pleasing and soothing to one eye might be unpleasant and jarring to another. Yet within modern Wicca there appears to be a loose agreement on the following associations. Choose whichever works for you!

WHITE: purity, protection, peace, happiness, spirituality, balance

GREEN: health, money, luck, acceptance, growth, fertility, beauty, employment

ORANGE: attraction, success, creativity, fun, opportunity, celebration

YELLOW: pleasure, intellect, confidence, inspiration, wisdom, psychic power, divination

RED: strength, passion, survival, courage, good fortune, health, power, sexual potency

PINK: love, self-improvement, friendship, fidelity, compassion, nurturing, maturity

GRAY: peace, neutrality, contemplation, solitude

BROWN: health, home, healing, blessings, stability

BLUE: forgiveness, psychic awareness, healing, sincerity, peace, sleep, focus, organization

BLACK: banishing, the void, protection, shapeshifting

PURPLE: wisdom, healing, power, luck, scrying, reversing

SILVER: female energy, victory, stability, intuition

GOLD: masculine energy, attraction, justice, health, luxury

Sources:

“Llewellyn’s Witches’ Calendar” (Korea: Llewellyn, 2015)

“Understanding the Meaning of Colors in Color Psychology.” available at http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/meaning-of-colors.html (2/26/2015)

Kit Perriman

The Hill – A Historical Novel About Witches

Tag Archives: spells

Gris-Gris: A Voodoo Charm

Love Potions

The Wizard’s Wand

Macbeth’s Weird Sisters: Reason or Treason?

Magic Colors