So, curses are definitely a controversial aspect of magic to a lot of witches. I grew up with a grandmother who cursed invasive species trees that would be on land needed for farming. Frankly, I see that type of “curse” as practical folk magic as practiced by rural farming communities for generations .
I don’t do “curses”; I will however defend myself if necessary. We’ve all had that “break glass in case of emergency “ moment. However, usually these are more mundane; someone stole from us, someone won’t respect our boundaries, someone is treating us poorly because they are jealous, etc.
The main thing I personally do is research and defense. I will tell you that if someone is attacking me and my family, I absolutely will use that Jezebel Root you see wrapped in the plastic on the table. That is a really nasty curse, but if someone is really looking to harm you, you don’t have to ignore them. I also use reversing candles that I sometimes use hoodoo oils to dress, or sometimes I make a rune bind on them. With the black and white reversing candle, I’m just sending someone else’s nasty magic and energy back to them; a witch return to sender if you will.
The book pictured by A. D. Mercer is full of folk curses that when you read it’s apparent this type of magic was used by people who felt helpless in untenable situations. We as witches still have a great need for that. Ultimately, we have to do what we can to protect ourselves and loved ones with the resources we HAVE; that’s something that hasn’t changed.
So, if you find yourself in one of these untenable situations, where everything non-magick has not been able to help the situation at all ( or someone else is using nasty magic); you do have options that really at their heart are part of our heritage and come from a place of wanting to return to sender if need be.
See: The Wicked Shall Decay by A.D. Mercer
Stick, Stones, Root, and Bones by Stephanie Rose Bird
Comments (1)
Loved this. The book looks interesting. Thanx for the post. :bouquet: