Conjuring Dirt

Right under your feet lies one of the best magickal tools a practitioner could use in their workings - dirt. Whether it comes from graveyards, footprints, crossroads, or elsewhere, the dirt from different places is a powerful aid in the magick to your workings. When we work with dirt, we’re working with one of the most fundamental elements of being human. From dust we appeared and to dust we shall return, the saying goes. Dirt creates a magickal, energetic link that heightens any endeavor. This element of earth brings a deep spiritual dynamic and connection to any working. Since it might be difficult to decide where to start - because dirt covers the planet, even under the oceans - author Taren S narrows the focus to specific magickal-spiritual locations, locations of merit and power, for you to collect your own dirt. Implementing dirt into magickal workings requires more skill than its availability would denote. Dirt workings involve the realms of light and dark magick, healing, curses, and death. This book will guide, help, and warn all those who wish to use dirt for magickal workings.

Right under your feet lies one of the best magickal tools a practitioner could use in their workings - dirt. Whether it comes from graveyards, footprints, crossroads, or elsewhere, the dirt from different places is a powerful aid in the magick to your workings. When we work with dirt, we're working with one of the most fundamental elements of being human. From dust we appeared and to dust we shall return, the saying goes. Dirt creates a magickal, energetic link that heightens any endeavor. This element of earth brings a deep spiritual dynamic and connection to any working. Since it might be difficult to decide where to start - because dirt covers the planet, even under the oceans - author Taren S narrows the focus to specific magickal-spiritual locations, locations of merit and power, for you to collect your own dirt. Implementing dirt into magickal workings requires more skill than its availability would denote. Dirt workings involve the realms of light and dark magick, healing, curses, and death. This book will guide, help, and warn all those who wish to use dirt for magickal workings.

This book provides a sophisticated new interdisciplinary interpretation of the formulation and evolution of African American religion and culture. Theophus Smith argues for the central importance of "conjure"--a magical means of transforming reality--in black spirituality and culture. Smith shows that the Bible, the sacred text of Western civilization, has in fact functioned as a magical formulary for African Americans. Going back to slave religion, and continuing in black folk practice and literature to the present day, the Bible has provided African Americans with ritual prescriptions for prophetically re-envisioning, and thereby transforming, their history and culture. In effect the Bible is a "conjure book" for prescribing cures and curses, and for invoking extraordinary and Divine powers to effect changes in the conditions of human existence--and to bring about justice and freedom. Biblical themes, symbols, and figures like Moses, the Exodus, the Promised Land, and the Suffering Servant, as deployed by African Americans, have crucially formed and reformed not only black culture, but American society as a whole. Smith examines not only the religious and political uses of conjure, but its influence on black aesthetics, in music, drama, folklore, and literature. The concept of conjure, he shows, is at the heart of an indigenous and still vital spirituality, with exciting implications for reformulating the next generation of black studies and black theology. Even more broadly, Smith proposes, "conjuring culture" can function as a new paradigm for understanding Western religious and cultural phenomena generally.

The saucer aliens are here. They're healing the planet. They've got to be stopped. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Featuring favorite authors Ellen Dugan, Mickie Mueller, Susan Pesznecker, Emily Carding, and dozens more! Inspiration For Your Magical Journey Filled with practical spells, rituals, and ideas for invoking the power of the elements, Llewellyn's Magical Almanac has been inspiring all levels of magical practitioners for over twenty years. Discover over three dozen fabulous articles, grouped by element. Organize your life with a convenient calendar section—shaded for easy "flip to" reference—featuring world festivals, holidays, and 2015 sabbats. You'll also find the Moon's sign and phase, plus each day's color and incense to help you maximize the power of your magical work. Published annually for over 20 years

Journey to where the fog never lifts… Libelle, a city by the sea. Those who venture into its fog are said never to make it back alive—a murderous phenomenon that’s another of the Four Major Human Errors that has ravaged the world. But for Menou, it just may be the solution she’s looking for. To fulfill her role as Executioner, she needs to find a way to murder Akari, the girl who seems to spring back to life whenever she’s killed. Maybe this time, Menou will be successful in carrying out her duty... but a calculated encounter with Manon, the daughter of Count Libelle, shifts all their fates in a direction that even Akari never could have predicted. Just what will become of the Executioner and her seemingly unkillable target...?

GODS MEDDLE AND MAGIC WILL BETRAY YOU, BUT THIS TIME JUSTICE WILL REIGN. Terry J. Benton-Walker's contemporary fantasy debut, Blood Debts, is "an extravaganza from start to finish" (Chloe Gong) with powerful magical families, intergenerational curses, and deadly drama in New Orleans. A National Indie Bestseller. A Publisher's Weekly Best Book of the Year. A Southern Book Prize Finalist. Featured on NPR Weekend Edition Sunday, Buzzfeed, BookPage, Nerd Daily, POPSUGAR, and more. “A conjuring of magnificence.” —NIC STONE • “A force.” —ROSEANNE A. BROWN • “An extravaganza.” —CHLOE GONG • “Powerful.” —AYANA GRAY • “Sings with hope and rage.” —TJ KLUNE • “An unforgettable thrill ride.” —J. ELLE • “Steeped in magic.” —ALEXIS HENDERSON • “Crackles with mystery and ferocity.” —MARK OSHIRO Thirty years ago, a young woman was murdered, a family was lynched, and New Orleans saw the greatest magical massacre in its history. In the days that followed, a throne was stolen from a queen. On the anniversary of these brutal events, Clement and Cristina Trudeau—the sixteen-year-old twin heirs to the powerful, magical, dethroned family—are mourning their father and caring for their sick mother. Until, by chance, they discover their mother isn’t sick—she’s cursed. Cursed by someone on the very magic council their family used to rule. Someone who will come for them next. Cristina, once a talented and dedicated practitioner of Generational magic, has given up magic for good. An ancient spell is what killed their father and she was the one who cast it. For Clement, magic is his lifeline. A distraction from his anger and pain. Even better than the random guys he hooks up with. Cristina and Clement used to be each other’s most trusted confidant and friend, now they barely speak. But if they have any hope of discovering who is coming after their family, they’ll have to find a way to trust each other and their family's magic, all while solving the decades-old murder that sparked the still-rising tensions between the city’s magical and non-magical communities. And if they don't succeed, New Orleans may see another massacre. Or worse. ★ “Riveting and relevant.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

African American culture has a rich tradition of folktales. Written for students and general readers, this volume gathers a sampling of the most important African American folktales. Included are nearly 50 tales grouped in thematic chapters on origins; heroes, heroines, villains, and fools; society and conflict; and the supernatural. Each tale begins with an introductory headnote, and the book closes with a selected, general bibliography. Students learning about literature and language will gain a greater understanding of African American oral traditions, while social studies students will learn more about African American culture. African American culture has long been recognized for its richness and breadth. Central to that tradition is a large body of folklore, which continues to figure prominently in literature, film, and popular culture. Written for students and general readers, this book conveniently gathers and comments on nearly 50 African American folktales. Included are fictional tales, legends, myths, and personal experience narratives. These exemplify the vast diversity of African American culture and language. The tales are grouped in thematic sections on origins; heroes, heroines, villains, and fools; society and conflict; and the supernatural. Each tale is introduced by a brief headnote, and the volume closes with a selected, general bibliography. Students learning about literature and language will gain a greater understanding of African American oral traditions, while students of history will learn more about African American culture.

In 1989, 1998, and 2005, fifteen Gullah speakers went to Sierra Leone and other parts of West Africa to trace their origins and ancestry. Their journey frames this exploration of the extraordinary history of the Gullah culture-characterized by strong African cultural retention and a direct influence on American culture, particularly in the South-described in this fascinating book. Since long before the Revolution, America has had hidden pockets of a bygone African culture with a language of its own, and long endowed with traditions, language, design, medicine, agriculture, fishing, hunting, weaving, and the arts. This book explores the Gullah culture's direct link to Africa, via the sea islands of the American southeast. The first published evidence of Gullah went almost unrecorded until the 1860s, when missionaries from Philadelphia made their way, even as the Civil War was at its height, to St. Helena Island, South Carolina, to establish a small institution called Penn School to help freed slaves learn how to read and write and make a living in a world of upheaval and distress. There they noticed that most of the islanders spoke a language that was only part English, tempered with expressions and idioms, often spoken in a melodious, euphonic manner, accompanied by distinctive practices in religion, work, dancing, greetings, and the arts. The homogeneity, richness, and consistency of this culture was possible because the sea-islanders were isolated. Even today, there are more than 300,000 Gullah people, many of whom speak little or no English, living in the remoter areas of the sea islands of St. Helena, Edisto, Coosay, Ossabaw, Sapelo, Daufuskie, and Cumberland. Gullah Culture in America explores not only the history of Gullah, but takes the reader behind the scenes of Gullah culture today to show what it's like to grow up, live, and celebrate in this remarkable and uniquely American community.

"This book is about Black girl magick, queer girl magick, straight girl magick, trans magick, bisexual magick. It's about giving yourself the power to be fierce...Black women are Hierophants, Magicians, Empresses, and High Priestesses."—Mawiyah Kai El-Jamah Bomani Authentic and unapologetic, this guide to magical spirituality empowers you to take back the power to heal and shine under your own strength. Written by an accomplished Hoodoo practitioner, Conjuring the Calabash features spells, recipes, and rituals that help you rise out of the constrictions around you. Mawiyah Kai El-Jamah Bomani shows you how to bless your calabash (sacred womb) with love and reawaken your fullest potential through folk traditions, personal stories, and her favorite songs and pop stars. An inclusive and intersectional voice in contemporary Hoodoo, Mawiyah will help you become your fiercest self.