A Note on Powders by John Bertrum Ford

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

So this is my last post for today and I figured since we convered a variety of subjects today I would end today with powders. Everyone in any magical practices that I have seen and witnessed utilizes the power of powders. In hoodoo, the deployment of tricks more often than not is in the fashion of powders.

 

In hoodoo, there are two distinct types of powders used:

 

The first is sometimes just known as powders and sometimes known as loose powders. These powders are usually simply ground up herbs into powders and other objects such as zoological curios. and minerals. These powders are used to feed a mojo bag through the mouth, is used to sprinkle the corners of the room, to dress glass in-cased candles, placed at thresholds (drawing lines) and other variations. The most distinctive usages of these powders and most noticeable difference between this powder and sachet powder is that it is used to dress candles that are glass in-cased. These herbs are often placed into mojo bags as well, and lastly it is placed at thresholds to draw lines.These types of powders are also added to bath mixtures and are used to make tinctures and oils.

 

The second type of powder utilized in hoodoo are sachet powders. Sachet powders are important for dusting (feeding a mojo bag by powdering the bag or dusting your clothing or oneself), used in foot-track magic and deployment of spells through drawings and blowing. Sachet powders are often made by adding regular powdered herbs to a combination of baking soda, corn starch and sometimes baby powder to get it that airy, light powdery form. For this reason, although other powders can also be deployed this way, sachet powders are very commonly used in blowing the powder towards an enemy, at the corners and so forth. Also because of its appearance, light color, powdery form the sachet powder is often deployed through spells that revolve around designing a portrait of lines and figures on a sidewalk for foot track magic, these powders are soldemnly used in the art for thresholds because of its noticibility. Sachet powders are distinctively different in the sense they are meant to be airy rather than solid, they are used to help dress candles, dust your body lightly with its fregrance and most commonly used in spells that involving blowing the powder in a specific way.

 

THIS FOR EXAMPLE IS A LOOSE POWDER. THE HERBS WILL BE CRUSHED INTO A FINE POWDER BUT WILL NOT RETAIN ANY REAL LIGHT, POWDERY FORM.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WHERE AS THIS IS A SACHET POWDER THAT IS VERY COMMONLY USED IN HOODOO PRACTICES. NOTICE HOW IT IS VERY POWDERY, AND LIGHT. SACHET POWDERS AMONG THE MOST POPULAR FORMS OF POWDERS AND MOST WELL KNOWN IN HOODOO TRADITIONS.