The Spellcaster's Source Hoodoo and Voodoo Witchcraft Blog of Talia Felix

It's one of those expressions like "familiarity breeds contempt" and "lion's share" that no one uses correctly anymore. From time to time somebody even observes: "Why would you want luck o' the Irish? Historically the Irish have pretty terrible luck." That, friends, is actually key to the saying. Correctly, when someone talks of Irish luck or luck o' the Irish , it doesn't mean luck.  As one 1838 book put it, "Irish luck -- which means anything but chance." In other words, if you say someone got something through Irish luck, it means he got it through something other than being lucky. It might mean hard work, it might mean bribery, it might mean trickery, but not luck. Anything but luck is Irish luck.  Irish author Blindboy Boatclub relates on his podcast the local explanation for the phenomenon: In Limerick we just believe that bad luck happens to us all the time. Nothing can go right for Limerick, and anytime anything go...

  It is very common online and in books to see the claim that a "magic spell" is so called because you write, or spell, it out on paper. Contrary to popular belief, spells are not so called because you "spell" them out. It is in fact a branching out of  a now-obsolete Middle English word spel , meaning "an utterance, something said, a statement, remark; also, a conversation." It could also mean a fixed story or poem (that you memorize and recite) and then, by extension, a chant you recite. And, by extension, a spell in the magical incantation sense. In one Middle English to Latin glossary, spell is equated with "syllabicos."  Of interest, this word is also the second element in the term  gospel . Literacy was not the most normal of conditions until fairly recently. There are parts of the world even today where it is uncommon. It is therefore no surprise that in former times, things were communicated more often by speech than by writing. However,...

Let's start by acknowledging that the debate around cultural appropriation can be quite polarizing. Personally, I believe that some arguments against cultural appropriation can sometimes feel like a step backward toward segregation, albeit under the guise of "protecting cultural integrity." However, regardless of where you stand on the issue, it's important to address misconceptions that often arise. One such misconception involves smudging and smudge sticks. Some believe these practices are exclusive to Indigenous peoples of the Americas, and that others using them is a form of appropriation.   Some people have therefore expressed outrage at the notion that witchcraft or herbalists have "appropriated" smudging from Native Americans. Yet, anyone who is concerned about the matter must know this: -- "Smudge" is an English word. It is not the native term in any of the tribal languages for the so-called smudge ceremony . Rather, it is how the English ...

A while back on an occult books group, someone was looking for books in Latin about astral projection. Not any books that mentioned it, mind — books in Latin , presumably older than 18th century, on the topic. And I knew right away: they weren’t going to find it. That’s not because the concept doesn’t exist in older magical literature. You can certainly find accounts of soul flight, dream visions, bilocation, remote spirit-walking, or being “carried forth in ecstasy” — from the Pythagoreans all the way to 19th-century spiritualists. But you’re not going to find the phrase astral projection in Latin. You’re not even going to find it in English until fairly late in the game. That’s because astral projection isn’t an ancient concept. It’s an old idea in a new hat. And the hat, in this case, seems to date from somewhere around the 1880s. Using Google Books’ advanced search, you’ll find that the term barely shows up in print before the 1890s. The earliest reference I’ve been able to confi...

  I'm not a fan of pirates -- but I am a fan of old graveyards. In the last decade or so, I've noticed an increasingly prevalent belief that graves which include a skull and crossbones design are the graves of pirates. Below is a screencap demonstrating the issue. The too common mistake seems to come from a popular association of the skull and crossbones design with the pirate flag or "Jolly Roger." Yet, historical records of pirates suggest this exact flag might have never even been used. A 1724 account of a pirate attack states : About Eleven of the Clock one Night, after the whole Crew had been Some Time assembled in the great Cabbin, I heard three Huzza's, and then they all came upon Deck, and hoisted Jolly Roger, (for so they call their black Ensign, in the Middle of which is a large white Skeleton, with a Dart in one Hand, striking a bleeding Heart, and in the other an Hour Glass.) [...] When they fight under Jolly Roger, they give Quarter, which they do no...

A few months ago, I was quite bewildered to have Google autofill in for me the phrase "Is Hoodoo Scottish?" whilst I was searching for something else about hoodoo that started with an S. It seemed like such a totally bizarre idea that I could not imagine the origin of the question, but I brushed it off as just one of those weird Google Autocomplete moments,  and more or less went about my business. Recently, while looking for something else, I happened upon the explanation for it! EK's Star Log makes the argument that hoodoo is actually Scottish. FACT: The word Hoodoo originates from Pictish Scotland. Hoodoo by translation means “haunted, paranormal, or supernatural”. It dates back to around 300BC-300AD and was used by the Picts of Scotland. I don't at all agree with this person's reasoning -- anyone who seriously studies word origins knows it's pretty rare for a word to appear in 300 BC, then go undocumented for over 2,000 years before ...

So, I was looking up Mammon on Wikipedia to see what they had to say on that. For those unfamiliar, Mammon is often associated with greed or material wealth and is sometimes personified as a deity. The concept of Mammon has intrigued many over the centuries, appearing in various religious and literary contexts.  While reading about Mammon, I found myself falling down a rabbit hole of related topics. Wikipedia can be quite the maze of information, leading you from one intriguing topic to another with just a few clicks. Before I knew it, I had navigated my way to Dis Pater , the Roman god of the underworld and wealth.  Dis Pater, whose name means "Rich Father," was considered a chthonic deity, ruling over the dead and the riches found beneath the earth. This duality of death and wealth in ancient religions often symbolizes the human relationship with material possessions and the inevitable end of life. The Romans, much like many other ancient cultures, had a complex pantheon...