New salt

Asafoetida

Light your candle while reciting Psalm 23 (see page 66), and light your incense while praying Psalm 141:1–2 (see page 95).

Take your piece of flannel and lay it flat. Over the top lay the piece of newspaper, which is used against witchcraft because whatever is being sent to you has to count every letter on it first. Yes, count. Roots contain small spirits or pieces of the witch, and that's what gives them life.

On the newspaper, add the hair and nail clippings, snuff, salt, and asafoetida while praying something along the lines of the following:

No water or fire, no weapon of any material may harm me. No accidents or illness can befall me, no ghostly things haunt me, and no witchcraft may claw me, for I have three persons over me. The first is the Father, the second is the Son, and the third is the Holy Ghost. Whoever or whatever is as strong as these may approach me and rip me to pieces. Until then, I am protected by the five wounds and a death shroud does not hug my shoulders.

Make the sign of the cross over the herbs, from top to bottom, then left to right. Place your hair or nails in the center of the small pile and bring up the corners of the newspaper and flannel to form a small bag. Tie the string around the neck of the poke and secure it with three knots, one for each person of the Trinity.

Now it is time to bring your bag to life. It is customary to name it something only you will know.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, wake up, [name]! Rise and do your work for me and only me.

State your name over the bag three times. Hold it over the candle, far enough away so as not to scorch or burn it, to “cook” the root. Pray that it comes to life, moves when trouble is near, and always protects you from all danger.

Smoke it in the incense or with tobacco smoke:

The same breath that filled Adam's lungs now fills you. Come to life, [name]. It's time to wake up now.

Sprinkle water over the bag, baptizing it in your name:

By the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, I baptize you in my name. Wake up now.

When you have completed this, hold the bag firmly in your left fist and “pump” it to the rhythm of a heartbeat. Boomboom. Boomboom. Boomboom.

Do this until your hand gets warm, then breathe three times into your fist against the bag.

It's alive and needs food. Feed it every Sunday by pouring a bit of whiskey on the bag. Then powder it with baby powder. Carry it as close to your skin as you can. Folks usually wear their bag around their neck and under their clothes.

Never let the conjure bag touch the ground or be handled by anyone but you. To do so may make the spirit in it leave. If such a thing occurs, with any kind of conjure bag, take it apart and bury the items in different places.

There are some occasions when your bag may disappear and reappear again in a place you never put it. I've had this happen usually when I forget to feed it. It wanders off on its own to get a drink, basically. Don't do this too many times, though. Not only will the bag die, but it may never come back to you.

If you follow these rules, your bag will last a while; and the longer you carry it, the stronger it gets! There will come a time that it begins to fall apart, at which point you just need to take another piece of flannel and newspaper and wrap it the same as before, tying it off at the neck and feeding it. When this happens, I let the bag rest for three days in a dark box before carrying it with me again.

PROTECTION LAMP

Everybody had kerosene lamps back in the day, so it's no wonder they made their way into this magic. They were often made of metal and glass or clear and colored glass, with the basin being colored, which meant the contents of the basin were hard to see aside from the oil levels. I have an old oil lamp that belonged to Mamaw Seagle, one that she always had going, sitting on my working space now. The old wick is hanging on a hook and has unreadable writing on it in either pen or marker.

While candles took time to be made and, for workings, needed to be burned back to back, the conjure lamp burned for a good month before needing to be refilled. And while candles are rolled in herbs and powders, or “loaded” from the bottom by hollowing out the bottom and putting the herbs in the candle and sealing it back, oil lamps are loaded simply by placing the ingredients in the basin, whether it be hair, roots, or bark wrapped in a small bundle. The petition or prayer is attached to the part of the wick that stays in the basin to fuel the flame or, in the case of Mamaw, it is written on the flat wick. For wicks that are a simple string nowadays, you can roll the paper around the wick and pin it in place by wrapping it with a paper clip. There will be more uses for both candles and lamps later on, but the following is a recipe for a protection lamp to keep burning to protect the home or family against witchcraft.

You will need:

New oil lamp

Vinegar

Baking soda

Your petition and personal concerns such as hair, nails, a strip of unwashed clothing

Red pepper

Black pepper

Snuff (we use Grizzly or Copenhagen)

Asafoetida

Dirt from a ditch

5-inch by 5-inch piece of brown paper bag

Red string

First cleanse your oil lamp by washing it in a solution of 1 cup water, ½ cup vinegar, and 1 tablespoon baking soda while praying Psalm 23 three times (see page 66).

Once it has dried, attach your petition to the wick or write it on it. Place your personal concerns in first or those of the one you wish to protect. These can be one thing from each member of the household as well.

Take the red and black pepper, snuff, asafoetida, and dirt from a ditch and wrap them in a bundle in the brown paper and tie it off with a red string.

Place the bundle inside on top of the concerns and fill the basin with oil. Once it is full, pray Psalm 44:1–7 three times as the hand of the clock goes down from 12 to 6, whether morning or night:

1 We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old.

2 How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and plantedst them; how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out.

3 For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them.

4 Thou art my King, O God: command deliverances for Jacob.

5 Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.

6 For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.

7 But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.

Once you have prayed over the herbs and concerns, blow your breath into the basin three times in the name of the Trinity and close the basin. Then light the flame and let it burn until 6 P.M. Never let the lamp run totally out of oil. Not only will this not be good for the work, but it also brings bad luck.

The body and the home aren't all that need protecting, though. There are threats that can affect your income as well, and the stability of the home itself. Let's turn now to stimulating or tying up money to gain or to cause loss.

7

A DIME, A DOLLAR