Like most, if not all, Hoodoo spiritual practices, sachet powders can be traced back to the native traditions of West Central Africa. Among other beliefs, the people of this region brought to the New World the concept of sacred white earth called
in Yoruba. They believe this sacred substance, primarily collected in streambeds, termite mounds, or even from compounded shells, could protect an individual against evil as it is associated with the land of ancestors.
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| Traditional African Kaolin Clay. |
Kaolin clay is a naturally occurring material composed of shells and may contain relatively quartz crystal fragments. This type of clay is adaptable and contains unique mineral elements that have health benefits. Ritualistically, this white powder, along with red clays, was usually applied to the cheeks, temples, and attributes such as hats, bracelets, necklaces, and anklets, as well as the portion below the feet of the Kongo power figures called
"nkisi." In some tribes, they were used for ritual writings, marking bodies during ceremonies, as offerings to spirits, and as a powerful spiritual medicine. It is also known that this material is consumed in some West African countries for pleasure and by pregnant women as a cure for nausea. This practice is called 'geophagia' and has also been observed within a small population of African-American women in the Southern United States, especially Georgia.
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| White pigment on the face of the Dallas Museum's mangaaka. (Photo courtesy of Ellen Howe of the Metropolitan Museum of Art) |
In some offerings, rituals, and formalities, powder-like substances, commonly cornmeal, wheat flour, and wood ashes, are also used.
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| Cornmeal and cornstarch are presented as ebo to spirits and forces of nature in Yoruba and Igbo traditions. |
Enslaved Africans, however, were cut off from their ancestral lands, so they sought substitute materials that could achieve the same effects. This came in cascarilla or eggshell powder, chalk, vegetable starches, and talcum. The traditional kaolin clay was clearly transformed into the African-American use of talcum powder - a white clay mineral, often in combination with cornstarch, widely used as astringent powder.
The oldest of these Hoodoo powders are those that derived their power from powdered minerals, natural dust, and dried compounded herbs such as Hot Foot powder which is composed of sulfur powder, red ant's nest and red pepper flakes, and Goofer Dust which is made from graveyard dirt, dried snake skin, powdered animal bones and curios, and mullein. Peter the Doctor and Dinkie, Goopher King of Voudoos, were both known to have made magical powders for the slaves to be rubbed against their skin and on their garments for their protection and empowerment. Peter the Doctor was one of the prominent figures in the New York Slave Revolt of 1712, along with Peter the Porter and John Harris. Meanwhile, Dinkie was a slave on a plantation in Missouri. Although he had been many years in the Gaines family, he never worked like the other slaves. He would work, eat, rest, travel, and sleep as he pleased without any interference and objection from his masters as he was greatly feared and respected by both Whites and Blacks. This was because folks were aware that he was exceptionally skilled in voodooism, goopherism, devil-working, and fortune-telling.
On the other hand, the term sachet was borrowed from European herbal sachets. Perhaps the most common magical technique regularly used by European practitioners is that of herbal sachets or cushion bags. These consist of small pouches of herbs that center the power of the psyche or mind on a given outcome. Some earliest sachets were worn for scent and not magical purposes. Small herbal pouches were placed in bed and lingerie drawers to scent the sheets or underclothes with floral, fruity, or herbal aromas. In the old days, it was customary for women to wear a 'bosom sachet' - floral-scented packets between the breasts. There were sachets too that people used to carry to prevent diseases, such as the
"aseffitidy" (asafoetida) bags that were said to be efficient in warding off bubonic plague and other contagious diseases.
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| A European sachet cushion bag of the 16th century. |
Sachets could be any cloth bag, and according to my mentor, they were times when people made sachets with the cut-off feet of pantyhose or knee-high trouser socks; they just tied the tops or closed with rubber bands, and they were good to go. However, most people used muslin culinary bags or, if they were gifts, pretty mesh bags with ribbon ties.
One of the old-fashioned herbal sachets is the sleep pillow sachet which offers subtle support for better quality sleep. The recipe below was given to me by my mentor, but it could be adjusted to suit your individual preference. My mentor doesn't recommend adding essential oils to this particular sachet. The body's heat will release the sachet's gentle scent, which is enough for these purposes.
I use a base of mugwort in all my sleep sachets; mugwort promotes the remembrance of significant dreams and supports the body's journey into that deep, deep sleep where dreams occur - which is the best sleep the body can get. The following are some of the herbs I use in sachets and why they are included:
- Rosemary - although this herb has some stimulating properties, it's excellent in a pillow sachet for promoting restful sleep.
- Chamomile - most folks know how well chamomile supports sleep when taken as a tea, but add some to a pillow sachet, and it does the same thing. Do both (tea and sachet) as a remedy for insomnia.
- Rosebuds or petals (any type, organic) - particularly useful if the cause of sleeplessness is related to matters of the heart, such as worry over a loved one, difficulties in relationships, grief, etc.
- Lavender flowers (any type, organic) - soothing and calming when anxiety or nervous tension is the issue.
- Couch grass root - does not have a significant scent. This herb has wonderfully protective energy, so it's great for those who struggle with bad dreams, nightmares, or night terrors.
- Lemon balm - another good one for anxiety or nervous tension, this is also an excellent choice for folks who struggle in their sleep, tossing and turning. Lemon balm also has protective energy that can help the body relax from being 'on guard.'
During the 19th century, love powders became popular, as witnessed in the writings of the renowned African-American occultist and physician Paschal Beverly Randolph:
"More than that: in this matter of sympathetic art, I know that a pair of twin rings, containing each other's hair, one worn by the loved, the other by the lover, will blend the two in magnetic rapport to an astonishing degree. The whole thing is magnetic -- another word for magic. So it is also of the "love-powder" business, for although most of the charlatans who pretend to deal in them are conscienceless swindlers, it is possible to prepare and charge certain materials so that they will retain the nerve aura of one person, and impart it to another, kindling up magnetic love between them, just as a little yeast will leaven a whole barrel of flour."
The love powder business refers to the prevalence of Hoodoo sachet powders.
By the early 20th century, the Jewish-owned mail-order houses and some other pharmacies and cosmetic companies began manufacturing Hoodoo sachet powders like Kiss Me Now! and Look Me Over - products that conveyed the idea of Victorian bosom sachets. They usually put them in foil packs or small plastic pouch bags. Within a few years, order houses and some candle and occult shops started carrying a full line of Hoodoo talcum-based powders with names like Boss Fix, Attraction, Fiery Wall of Protection, and Money-Drawing.
Making Sachet Powders
Making sachet powders is the most challenging job in my working area. Here are some tips to make your work easier.
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| A Hoodoo practitioner compounding herbs, roots, and minerals. |
To make your own powders, you need to have some tools for grinding and compounding, such as:
- Hand-cracked or electric flour or grist mill
- Hand-cracked or electric coffee grinder
- Mortar and pestle
Buy two of the following - one for toxic herbs and minerals and one for edible herbs.
Ingredients for making sachet powders:
- Mineral powders and natural dust - talcum powder, red brick dust, salt, saltpeter, sulfur, laundry bluing, gunpowder, magnetic sand, pyrite grits, iron oxide (rust), ash, charcoal powder, graveyard dirt, crossroad dirt, dauber's nest dirt, etc.
- Zoological powders and particles - cascarilla or eggshell powder, black cat's hair, black dog's hair, crab shell powder, snail shell powder, snakeskin shed powder, bone powder, lizard head powder, etc.
- Botanical powders and vegetable compounds - starchy bases such as arrowroot powder, rice flour, cornstarch, and other powdered herbs and roots.
All the herbal associations in Conjure and Rootwork come into play and help to create a compelling way of reinforcing the will and achieving the desired result. Herbs do not work just because they have intrinsic magical value in themselves but because they are thought of as corresponding to certain areas of life. They are, in a way, symbols of things one may want to realize. By focusing on the symbol, you attune to its properties, creating powerful associations in the mind that reinforce the resolve to follow through on an intention.
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| Mixing an uncrossing powder. |
Most sachet powders are
made by grinding the ingredients like herbs, roots, minerals, and sometimes, animal curios together, mixed with talcum powder as the base and other vegetable starches such as corn, arrowroot, and rice powder, to produce a neutral-colored powder that
blends inconspicuously with almost anything. Other practitioners believe that it is not just the ingredients that have symbolic importance; the choice of the color of the dye for tinting the powder is also significant. They believe that different colors affect the mind, so they use very little dye so as not to stain clothing. Sometimes, I do this, but most of the time, I don't tint my powders anymore. Most practitioners use powdered synthetics, while others use cosmetic clays when making their powders.
To integrate essential and fragrance oils with your powder, you must put them in your chosen vegetable-based carrier compounds first, then fill them with your ground or powdered herbs and minerals before mixing them with the talcum. Slowly blend the scented mixture with talcum powder by stirring it with a spoon. (Always wear a face mask when mixing talcum!)
Of course, like in any other spiritual supply, blessings are spoken over the sachet powders and directed towards them as a sign of a cross. Other practitioners may bless them using saltwater, blessed water, or Church water. Entirely what is done is up to you, but it is important to do something, for it imprints in one's mind that the powder symbolizes something significant and valuable.
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| Tim + Neal Curio Co. Conjure powders. |
How to use Hoodoo sachet powders?
Here are the significant ways to deploy powers in Hoodoo and Rootwork:
- Sprinkling or laying out a line while walking backward for protection, cleansing, love, money, or luck drawing.
- Blowing to the four quarters for getting rid of evil and blessing.
- Blowing toward a person or place for blessing, cleansing, and luck-drawing.
- Drawing patterns on the ground or floor for crossing or enemy works (cross marks, crosses in circles, devils, and wavy snake lines), blessings, and protection (crosses or stars like pentagram or Star of David).
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| Wavy snake lines and a devil are drawn on the floor for the Inflammatory Confusion spell. |
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| Quincunx patterns and arrows are drawn using Hot Foot powder. |
- Drawing patterns on the altar for love-drawing (heart), banishing or hot foot (arrows), road-opening (triangle or cross mark), money drawing (dollar sign), success (crown), etc.
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| Talk to Me powder for Communication Spell. |
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| Crown of Success powder was used to draw a heart pattern for a successful love-drawing spell. |
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| Several conjure powders were laid down for Cut and Clear spellwork. |
- Dressing candles, petition papers, etc., for various conditions.
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| Boss Fix powder is sprinkled on the petition paper. |
- Dressing one's body
- Dusting target's things or possessions
- Dusting gifts, letters, etc., for sneaky tricks.
