Browse:Magic of the Same (Volume 1, entries 2954–2956)
Magic of the Same
Volume 1, entries 2954–2956. Source context: THE DOCTORS AT WORK: REPORTS FROM LAYMEN → SHRINES: ALTARS - CANDLES - SAINTS; NEW ORLEANS AREA → (2) CANDLES. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 2954
If a person is burning a candle against you, the thing to do, if you find it out, is to burn the same kind of candle against him that you think he is burning against you, and that will stall his evil purpose against you, and that will stall your evil purpose against him; and burning the two candles on each other at the same time, it makes neither one of the candles do any harm. [For similar magic see Like Cures Like, p.394, and Similia Similibus in Index.]
Entry 2955
Well, the protection from that [spell] in hoodoo is to take and burn a black candle in [your] back shed, back out in the open where the air can hit it and [it can] go into the dark corners, and that [going into dark corners] drives the evil away from you anywhere. [Candles against a person are often burned in a dark corner, which in my note (p.797) I changed to hidden corner sought out by spiritual smoke. The smoke from my informant's candle is not quite so spiritual, because it needs open air to penetrate the four corners of the earth. This latter expression - deservedly prominent in hoodoo and frequently used in this book (p.751) - comes from the Bible: And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth - Rev. 7: i. My four winds and five waves (five seas) in note on page 797 come from a hoodoo source, title on page 752. See also 2870, p.827.]
The informant directs burning a black candle; the long bracketed discussion is editorial. The protective effects remain source claims.
Entry 2956
Someone trying to harm you, [you protect yourself] according to the way they are trying to harm you. There's several ways they can harm you, you know. Quite natural they got a way. They can get your name on a sheet of paper in nine different ways - they get it wrote. They can put it into a lamp and burn that lamp on you. Put a little sugar in there and burn that. And if you didn't want to go their way, when they burn that nine mornings, nine days, you gotta go their way. You gotta do what they Want you to do, regardless of what it is or whatever they want you to do. You got to do that. There ain't but one thing for you to do. Just get their name and - on a piece of paper, nine different ways on a piece of paper - and then you take it in the north corner of your house and get you a black candle and set a black candle on that, and burn a black candle on there for nine mornings. And that lamp where she got that sugar and your name in, it's going to bust. She can't hinder it from busting. You burning that candle on her and she burning that lamp on you. But that candle will put that lamp out. It'll bust that lamp.