Angelica Root ~ Filipino Conjure & Rootwork

angelica archangelica, angelica atropipurea, angelica heterocarpa, angelica officinalis, angelica sinensis, angelica sylvestris

Angelica root is a powerful guardian and healer, said to enhance female power, protect children, especially babies, ward off evil, and improve health and family.

During the Great Plague of London, the last major epidemic of the bubonic plague to occur in England, it was used to ward off the plague and evil. This employment was derived from a monk's dream in which St. Michael, the Archangel, appeared to him, telling him what herb to use to help the victims. When it was discovered that this herb helped protect and heal those with the disease, almost everyone in Europe kept a piece of angelica root in their mouth throughout the day to preserve themselves from the plague. According to the old calendar, it usually came into bloom around May 8, the feast day of the Archangel Michael, and is so named in his honor.

Many species of angelica plant have long been used in ancient traditional medicine systems, especially in the Far East, such as Chinese Angelica or Dong Quai, which has a history of more than 4000 years of use and is referred to as the 'female ginseng,' as women may find the most benefits from it after having a baby; during and after menstruation; and for issues like premenstrual syndrome, menopause, and cramps. Many herbal preparations of this plant are still sold over-the-counter at traditional Oriental pharmacies. Still, it is strongly advised that it should not be used by pregnant women as it encourages activity in the pelvic region and may cause miscarriage.

Due to its connection with soothing and curing female-related ailments, root doctors believed it may help to strengthen feminine power. Troubled women also use Angelica because of a former relationship with hurtful, reckless, or violent men. They are told to carry a whole angelica root, sulfur, and black salt in a cloth bag dressed with Fiery Wall of Protection oil to protect them from their hostility and prevent those endless litigations, custody battles, and unnecessary dramas from occurring over and over again. Women also used this to control their male partners by mixing equal parts of angelica and ginseng roots with a pair of Adam and Eve roots, compounding them all into powder, mixing with an equal amount of white flour or cornstarch, scorching this in a pan on the stove and finally using it to dust the house for nine days.

Because of its association with the angelic dream and its alleged medicinal use against plagues, the plant became linked in the spiritual and religious mind with some angelic beliefs and patronage. To bless the children or babies using the power and assistance of their guardian angels, rootworkers usually place a whole angelica root, althea root chips or leaves, a pinch of flax seeds, motherwort leaves, safety pin, blue knotted string, evil eye, or Hamsa charm, and some rosebuds in a white flannel bag. Some take the babies' umbilical cord, placenta, hair particles (taken during the first haircut), or nail clippings and bury them with angelica root and flowers in the front yard or backyard or under a myrtle tree to bless and protect the babies or toddlers.

The root can be added to baths and oils and designed to remove crossed conditions, curses, or evil spells, or they can be burned as incense to banish evil in an area. The Iroquoi people are known to brew angelica root into a tea and sprinkle it about their homes to make the poltergeists benign and quiet. A similar technique can be used in exorcism rites to conquer any kind of evil spirits. To prevent troublemakers or people with malicious intentions from entering the home, rootworkers instruct their clients to tie nine equal-length pieces of devil's shoestrings all around to a whole angelica root and neatly wrap them with white thread, knotting it 9 times before placing it at the top of the main door frame to guard the house.

Its tea is also helpful in providing relief from several stomach issues, including gas, colic, and bloating. As an added bonus, the root can also be used to help with occasional heartburn, nausea, and ulcers, and it can even relieve menstrual cramps. It is a good general tonic that strengthens the liver, supports bronchial and respiratory health, and improves general well-being, mental focus, and clarity. It is also suitable for chronic headaches, fevers, and fatigue, improving blood circulation and increasing energy.

See, What Our Path Is

Being immensely interested in African diaspora religions and Folk Catholicism, we primarily honor our ancestors, Church saints, angels, folk saints, and Afro-Caribbean spirits such as loas and orishas. If we absolutely have to put a label on ourselves, we prefer the label of “Folk Judeo-Christian” as we live according to the customs and traditions of conjure workers and root doctors from the Deep South and syncretic followers of Christ in various nations of the Caribbean and Latin America.

Our spirituality includes West African-based Caribbean-style tradition as well as Esoteric Christianity and Yoruba religion. Generally, we practice Gullah folk magic popularly known in the Deep South as Hoodoo or Lowcountry Voodoo; the ancient wisdom founded by Orunmila in Ile-Ife called Ifa, and a bit of Lihim na Karunungan (Filipino Esotericism or Philippine Mystery Tradition).

Respect, What Hoodoo Is

Despite visible evidence of Central West African, Islamic/Moorish, Native American, Judeo-Christian, European, and even a few East Indian/Hindu, Chinese, and Latino/Caribbean retentions, influences, and admixtures, this does not mean that Hoodoo is an open and unrestricted system of eclectic magic.

Conjure, and Rootwork is rooted in African-American culture and Folk Protestant Christianity. Any practitioners of Hoodoo who did not grow up within African-American culture should still have a fuller understanding and high regard for its origin.

In the beginning, the early conjure doctors were entirely Black. The students were all Black, the elders were Black, the teaching was Black, and they focused only on Blacks as their audience. But other races were accepted when they had also been brought into the Hoodoo community and learned the tradition. Even so, we should still acknowledge that Hoodoo, Conjure, or Rootwork is not ours but only belongs to the Black community. We are just believers who are grafted into their rich yet humble tradition and, by word and deed, embrace genuine African-American folk spirituality and magic. This is all we can do for all the blessings we received from God and our Black ancestors.

Hoodoo's lack of religious structure and hierarchical authority do not mean that any person or group can appropriate or redefine it. If one cannot respect Hoodoo as it is and for what it is, then please, do not play with it.

Learn, How Conjure Is Worked On

Authentic Conjure is not all about blending and selling oils and casting spells online to make money. Hoodoo has its own spiritual philosophy, theology, and a wide range of African-American folkways, customs, and practices which include, but are not limited to, veneration of the ancestors, Holy Ghost shouting, snake reverence, spirit possession, graveyard conjure, nkisi practices, Black hermeneutics, African-American church traditions, the ring shout, the Kongo cosmogram, ritual water immersions, crossroads magic, making conjure canes, animal sacrifices, Jewish scriptural magic, enemy works, Seekin' ritual, magical incorporation of bodily fluids, etc.

Unfortunately, they are currently missing in marketeered or commercial Hoodoo, as they are being removed, disregarded, or ignored by unknowing merchants who simply want to profit from an African-American spiritual tradition, thus reducing Hoodoo to just a plethora of recipes, spells, and tricks.

Tim and I are completely aware that we are not African-Americans, so we are doing our best to retain and preserve the customs and traditions of the slave ancestors to avoid unnecessary conflict with the larger Black-Belt Hoodoo community and prevent them from labeling us inauthentic outsiders and our practice as mere 'cultural misappropriation.'

Accept, Who We Are

The byproduct of eons of slave history, Black supremacists believe that only people with African or African-American blood are real Hoodoo practitioners and are often inclined to consider themselves as the elite of the Hoodoo community; a place in which they believed that Whites, Latinos, Asians or any other races who do not have Black ancestry do not belong. Black supremacists are prone to be very hostile towards both “outsiders” and those accepting of them, fearing that their promotion and acceptance would dilute or even negate the Black identity of Hoodoo.

Although we do understand why some Blacks hold this stance, since a lot of people nowadays are misappropriating many aspects of Hoodoo and teaching the spiritual path even without proper education and training (for purely monetary purposes), we would, however, want to say that not all non-Black Hoodoo practitioners are the same.

WE respect what Hoodoo is, and we never try to change it, claim it as our own, disregard its history, take unfair advantage of it, speak against the people who preserve it, and mix it with other cultures (like our own) and call it Filipino/Pinoy Hoodoo, Gypsy Hoodoo or Wiccan Hoodoo because there are no such things.