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!
