In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Glossary This glossary is by no means comprehensive; rather, it is both an overview of and an introduction to some Hoodoo terminology and concepts. Born with a veil—Children who are born with a caul or a piece of amniotic sack covering their faces are said to be born with the veil and are believed to have heightened spiritual power and were often recruited into the root worker tradition. Bottle tree—A dead tree on which numerous colored bottles (some people prefer blue or blue-green bottles, but all colors are used) have been placed on the ends of branches or hung from the branches. It is believed that the brightly colored bottles, gleaming as the sun shines through them, attract potentially evil spirits and keep them from getting into the house and causing problems. Burn bread on—Essentially this phrase has a meaning similar to the expression “put the bad mouth on.” When and how it entered the Hoodoo phraseology and lexicon is uncertain. It is not widely used but heard occasionally. The more frequently heard phrase “burn a candle on” is more widely known. Called—Being “called” is one way to legitimately enter Hoodoo practice. The ritual of being called involves some unusual or supernatural event that signals the God-given ordination of a potential conjure doctor. The unusual event attending the calling may be at birth, such as being born with a veil, or it may happen later in life, signaled by some unusual event, like the clapping of thunder or lightening striking a tree. Or it may be signaled by the appearance of a birthmark or any unusual aspect of the called person’s life. Chew the root—Term used to refer to part of the once well-known “court case ritual” in which a conjurer, after other ritual preparations, attends the court hearing of his client and chews galanga root (chewing John), recites secret words of power, and spits in the courtroom, spreading the spiritual protection of the root and turning the entire court proceeding in favor of his client. In some cases, the client can chew the root on his own behalf. Hazzard_Text.indd 205 10/10/12 8:44 AM 206 Glossary Conja (conjure)—Another name for either the Hoodoo tradition or a conjurer/ root worker. Cross—Means the same as “to trick,” “to gopher,” “to hoodoo,” or “to root” someone . May refer to the sacredness of crossed or intersecting places, such as the crossroads, or the sacred cross of the Kongo cosmogram. Dancing dime—A Hoodoo divination device used to diagnose a malady caused by Hoodoo. A root doctor usually boils a silver dime in water; if the coin moves around, jiggling and flipping, it has a meaning, which is read by the root doctor. This ritual has been performed with coins or metal slugs resembling coins or even with metal buttons as a substitute for the silver dime. Silver dimes were difficult for slaves to acquire, so the ritual substituted other coins or coinlike objects. Doctor—Usually meaning a “root doctor.” Dodywood—A powdery substance taken from the stump of dead or decaying pine trees. This dust was used to treat cuts and was used by midwives to seal and heal the umbilicus. Dress—In the context of Hoodoo, this simply means “to prepare.” To dress a candle means to prepare it to be burned for a specific purpose. This term also means to put a certain type of Hoodoo on someone. A woman, for example, can dress a man so that he cannot achieve an erection, so that he will lose his job, or so that he will have a long streak of bad luck. The same can be done to a woman to prevent her from leaving or for any other purpose. Oftentimes when protective powders are spread around a room, such as a courtroom, that room is said to be dressed. Almost anything can be dressed, such as beds, pillows, articles of clothing, as well as locations. Feed the hand—This phrase refers to the practices necessary to refresh and maintain the power and potency of the amulet/mojo. This is usually done with some kind of alcohol, such as corn liquor, gin, whisky, or perfume or cologne. When ingestible liquid such as wine or liquor is used, it is taken into the mouth and sprayed onto the mojo bag. When perfume or cologne is used, it is simply dripped or sprayed from an atomizer onto the mojo...

Share