Hoodoo in the U.S. is said to be African American folklore or folk magick although folk magic was and is clearly practiced by blacks and whites in America, learned through their ancestors, grannies, mommas, etc. Folk magic is in all cultures, this must be understood clearly here. In what is being called Hoodoo in the U.S., it encompasses Protestant Christian influences with the use of prayers to God, use of the bible and the Psalms of the bible. It also incorporates the spiritual uses of Catholic Saints and imagery. It draws from Native American traditions such as the use of local folklore of the Natives, plant herbs and their roots, and the magical use of prayer bags or medicine bags, or dolls, all the same that other traditions were also doing, the whites and blacks in Americas of other countries, African, English, Scottish, French, the list goes on. In American history, we learned that the Native Americans taught the white folks here how to use local herbs and roots to cure and heal. We know from other practices in European countries, Scottish, Irish, German, etc. that folktales and folklore (read some original Grimm Tales) also had their own skills in magical forms which were brought here by our ancestors as well. African slaves working on the plantations alongside Native American and white slaves, also brought their traditions of working natural remedies and cures to a variety of physical ails and such. Dolls and Poppets in hoodoo can be seen as influenced by Africans, Witch's, Native's, and all over the world really, when you look into other folklore in parts of Asia or the Mediterranean. In general, you can find folk magic AND hoodoo across the world, there are so many different practices in hoodoo, that
one cannot say that one area of hoodoo is strictly one particular influence, because these traditions are each similar in practices like the wanga packets or dolls used in Vodou and the medicine bag used in Native American tradition or the corn dolls of witch's, or the hand made dolls by witch's in the 1600's, (tiresome list of evidence) each made and used differently, it still carries it's influence to what had become hoodoo in the US. The term hoodoo has so much debate of its origin that I won't even go into discussion at all about it, but it varies from mispronunciation of "voodoo", to an old Scottish term used in reference to meaning someone was cursed and outcast. A quick look at the word hoodoo in the dictionaries will give you about 3 or 4 definitions of the word and uses from the rock formations in the Badlands, to a curse thrown on an enemy or to heal an unknown sickness. I know I have read at least 6 different origins over the last few years. But I am not here to give you a history lesson, I encourage you to research it thoroughly on your own from researching cultures here to Greece, honestly... However, now the meaning is to refer to a trick, mojo, conjure, root work, magical act, to cure of a magical illness, and a variety of other terms. It isn't a new age practice, nor is it witchcraft, Wicca, Vodou, etc. In fact, I have clients who tell me that they want to buy products from me but they aren't doing a "spell" because "spells are witchcraft, and the bible says witchcraft is evil". This seems to be true for me especially with clients who were raised with a very superstitious family, but practiced folklore traditions in their homes. And recently I have noticed that other co-workers are speaking up about this as well. It makes sense to me, since the way I learned of spells was also a common witch's practice, hence why most of my writings I stick to terminology "working", "work", "spiritual" or in broader terms sometimes I say "magical work" (magic can throw them off as well, as meaning evil practices). Either way, it's not to offend or confuse others, but the newcomers to hoodoo need the transition of terminology or another explanation to start getting their minds moving in this direction to proper understanding of what traditional hoodoo is. So, onward, this can be simple remedies such as hanging a horseshoe upwards over the door to keep bad luck out away from the house, or throwing down beans in a new house for prosperity, setting up St. Joseph to protect the house, to washing your floors, laundry, etc. with borax to clean out and drive away negative energies and spirits. This is a very old tradition, said to have originally practiced in the southern states from southern California to up the east coast. The types of ingredients used in folk magic may have varied as well from
area to area and family to family, due to availability of the
ingredients or curios. Louisiana family traditions differed than the Carolina families when it came to how to keep a man faithful, or protect your loved ones, or to cure a fever with roots. I don't think I have heard of alligators being used in TN folk traditions, maybe so, but in Mississippi and Louisiana the gator claw and gator tooth is popular in money and gambling mojos. I have given examples of the different mix of cultural influences in traditional African American folk magic on my website, such as the mojo bag possibly being influenced by medicine bags of the Native Americans and the wanga packets of the African magickal traditions. There is no denying that hoodoo is a mix of cultures in old Amercia, that were from Africans, Native Americans, and different European folklore and religions such as traditional witch's and Christians. In hoodoo, a traditional worker will use the bible as a main component to work a trick, mojo, and so forth. Roots and herbs are used to heal, protect, bring blessings, and so on. Hoodoo encompasses such a large array of cultural practices there is not just one way only, to bring love, bring money, or uncross someone. Hoodoo is not Vodou, it's not a religion, many times a new customer will come to me ask me to teach them a "voodoo spell". I don't know any, but I can teach you a "hoodoo trick", lol. I try to make this clear that Voodoo is a term popular in New Orleans magickal folklore traditions, and Vodou is a religious practice in Haiti and African countries. In fact, I look at Vodou as a broad term to define the scope of many Vodou branches in certain parts of the world from Mexico, South America, Caribbean, and Africa. But to the real point here of the post, as I really didn't mean to ramble THIS much today... lol.
One of my favorite movies is called
Eve's Bayou. It was made in 1997 but set in the 60's in Louisiana. Samual L. Jackson is in this movie. Eve's aunt is a hoodoo woman, Eve is a young girl struggling with just coming of age. There are some other movies that have some hoodoo in it or hoodoo references in it, especially if you watch the old classic movies who focus on the eras of 40's to 60's. I love classic movies, a huge retro buff as any of my friends will tell you my obsession with especially the 50's era of house decor and vintage clothing, vintage movies, vintage books, music, anything vintage, really. Some movies like The Skeleton Key or Serpent and the Rainbow, make hoodoo and Vodou scarey, they are the classic Hollywood tearing down of these cultures, both decent movies, but much incorrect information of course. That's the other reason I like
Eve's Bayou so much the better, it has that hint of hoodoo in the culture in the background, it's not the theme of the movie, so it sets the aura better that was such an integrated part of the culture of older times. Check it out, I doubt you will be disappointed.
