Herbal Magick: A Guide to Herbal Enchantments, Folklore, and Divination
256
Herbal Magick: A Guide to Herbal Enchantments, Folklore, and Divination
256Hardcover
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Overview
The art and practice of herbal magick is an ancient tradition, rooted in pagan lore and tradition. In Herbal Magick, Gerina Dunwich—the author of dozens of books on Wicca and witchcraft—shows how to use the roots, flowers, leaves, and bark of common plants for practical magick. It reveals the well-guarded secrets of herbal enchantments and the history of herbal folklore, along with a satisfying easy-to-follow guide to herbal spells for many purposes. Both an herbal and a grimoire, Herbal Magick is an invaluable reference for beginner and advanced students of the magickal arts.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781578636853 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Red Wheel/Weiser |
| Publication date: | 09/01/2019 |
| Pages: | 256 |
| Sales rank: | 1,033,839 |
| Product dimensions: | 6.10(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.90(d) |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
PAGAN HERB LORE
My beloved Grandma Rose came to the United States from Italy when she was but a young woman. After living in New York for many years, she relocated with her husband and grown children to the quaint village of Riverside, Illinois. She lived the remainder of her 85 years there in a magnificent red brick house that had been built in the Colonial Revival style with a stately semicircular entrance porch flanked by white Ionic columns.
From its cobwebbed attic filled with dusty old trunks and restless spirits, to its white and black tiled 1940's-styled kitchen that was ever filled with the sweet aroma of Italian seasonings and butter cookies, Grandma Rose's house grew to be a very special place for me as I was growing up. It was there that I attended my first séance, had my first psychic experience, learned about Witchcraft, and was initiated into the Craft by my older cousin Carol, who was a White Witch.
Grandma Rose's Magickal Garden
Grandma Rose enjoyed gardening and had a special way with plants. Her talent was what some would call a "green thumb." The grounds behind her house hosted a beautiful garden filled with roses, vegetables, fruit trees, and herbs.
I have many fond childhood memories of my grandmother's garden, and to me it was quite an enchanted place. Sometimes it seems as though it was only yesterday that I walked barefoot upon its dew-kissed violets and clover on a misty summer morning or smelled the scent of its parsley, basil, and oregano plants, as I lay upon a hammock reading omens in the clouds drifting lazily above.
Fairies and other nature spirits were said to have inhabited Grandma Rose's fragrant and secluded garden. I never actually saw them, but I could always sense their nearby presence whenever I spent time there. Sometimes I would catch a glimpse of some tiny sparkling thing moving in my peripheral vision, but as soon as I would turn to look, it would always be gone.
I also remember an old tree near the garden that my friends and I felt was inhabited by some unseen elfin creature (for lack of a better word). They feared that tree and always kept their distance from its grotesquely twisted trunk and branches whenever we'd play in the yard. But, for some reason, I always felt strangely drawn to it and would often tell my secrets to it or place flowers or some of my toys at its base as gifts for the elemental spirit dwelling within.
Grandma's Home Remedies
My grandmother was a wise woman. She knew of the healing powers that herbs possessed and often applied them in her home remedies. Garlic was revered for treating infections, homemade apple cider vinegar for the itching caused by poison ivy, and witch hazel for swellings and inflammations. When my mother was a young girl and was stricken with rheumatic fever, Grandma Rose treated her with a mustard poultice that she called a plaster.
I later learned that mustard seeds possessed not only medicinal value, but magickal ones as well. In the rural regions of the "old country," as my grandmother often called her homeland of Italy, it was a common folk custom to sprinkle black mustard seeds on the windowsills and thresholds of dwellings in order to prevent restless ghosts and evil spirits from gaining entrance.
I was very close to my Grandma Rose when I was growing up. Nearly every afternoon after school let out for the day, my mother would pick me up and we'd drive over to my grandmother's house in Riverside to visit her and help her out with her grocery shopping, household chores, and the preparation of dinner. Crippling arthritis had immobilized both of Grandma Rose's legs, making it both painful and difficult for her to walk or stand for any long length of time. She appreciated the help and greatly enjoyed the company.
The Evil Eye
Grandma Rose would spend hours upon end talking to my mother about such things as old family recipes, folk remedies, and the "good old days" of her youth spent in far away Italy. Every so often I would overhear her speak of the mal occhio (the evil eye), especially whenever a certain woman who had a reputation as being the neighborhood gossip became the topic of conversation.
I don't know whether or not Grandma Rose actually believed in the powers of the evil eye, but it was a subject that she enjoyed talking about and appeared to be quite well versed in. She said there were people known in Italy as jettatore (individuals who possessed the mal occhio). To cast their curse upon another, all they needed to do was gaze enviously upon that person, often while praising them. In some cases, an angry, venomous stare would be the only thing needed to work the magick.
However, not every jettatore was aware of the fact that he or she possessed the evil eye, and they would often cast it upon their victims involuntarily and without a deliberate malicious intent behind it. There was no explanation why certain people were born with it and others were not, but it was clear that not all persons who were capable of casting it were evil by nature.
Such was the case of Pope Pius IX, who many Italians believed was a jettatore. Although he was not considered to be a malevolent man, the curious fact that unexplained disasters befell a great number of the persons and places blessed by him led many folks to believe that such a thing could not be a mere coincidence. The only acceptable explanation for them was that he possessed the mal occhio.
"The glances of envy and malice do shoot also subtilly; the eye of the malicious person does really infect and make sick the spirit of the other."
— JOHN AUBREY, 1696
The Italians have many methods of combating the evil eye. Most are simple ones, such as spitting on the ground, wearing red ribbons, reciting certain passages from the Bible, and making phallic hand gestures. The wearing of a golden charm shaped like a horn and filled with a pinch of sage is another method that is said to be highly effective against the evil eye, and one that continues to remain popular among many Italians. In fact, I have two male relatives on the Italian side of my family who frequently wear such a charm on a gold necklace. While neither of them will readily admit to believing in the power of the evil eye, they evidently feel that it is far better to be safe than to be sorry. And I couldn't agree with them more.
Some methods involve the use of herbs, many of which Grandma Rose grew in her garden and kept in mason jars in her walk-in pantry. Anise seeds could ward off the evil eye by being burned or strewn around the home. The ancient Romans believed that eating rue could give them immunity against the evil eye, while bathing one's eyes with water in which rue had been steeped was supposedly effective in curing those who had already fallen victim to a jettatore's evil glance.
The ritual burning of frankincense, myrrh, and sandalwood was, at one time, believed by many magickally-minded individuals to be a highly effective method for diverting the evil eye. These, and other fragrant botanicals, would also be strewn around the home to prevent persons who possessed the evil eye from gaining entry and causing harm. This method was also thought to be a preventative against the evil eye, as well as a means of inducing second sight.
To protect yourself against the malevolent power of the evil eye, wear or carry a mojo bag filled with one or more of the following herbs: angelica, betony leaves, anise (also known as aniseed), castor beans, henna, lady's slipper, lavender (nicknamed "elf leaf" by Pagan folk of centuries past), lime tree twigs, pennyroyal, periwinkle, rue, sage.
Olde Wives' Tales
The numbers of superstitious beliefs concerning herbs and trees abound, and there are probably enough of them to fill several large volumes. These "olde wives' tales" (as some like to call them) can be found in just about every part of the world, and they have been with us practically since the dawn of humankind.
In my younger years, I knew a very religious Christian girl who held firmly onto the belief that the Almighty Lord had cursed the soil of the earth with weeds as punishment to Adam and Eve for failing to obey His command. I am also acquainted with several people who believe that the more weeds a person has growing in her yard, the worse off her luck will be!
I learned about herbal superstitions and the reading of plant omens early in life. My mother once told me that it is not uncommon for a houseplant to wither and lose its leaves should its owner become seriously ill or pass away. She also believed that the sudden death of a healthy, well cared for houseplant was a very bad sign, indicating that a grave illness or even a death in the family was in the offing.
Someone once told me that a lightning-struck tree also presages ill health or, in some cases, death for a member of the household upon whose land the tree stands. Cutting down a healthy tree, especially if it is an oak (sacred to the ancient Druid priests), has long been regarded by many folks as a most unlucky thing to do.
I remember a very old oak tree that once stood behind my childhood home, and how I adored the radiant colors of its leaves each year when autumn came to the Midwest. One afternoon, a tree trimming crew armed with their chainsaws was working their way down the street where my family and I lived, cutting all the tree branches that had grown into the telephone and power lines. One of the tree trimmers came to our front door and inquired if my mother was interested in having the old oak tree in our backyard removed. Her reply was a firm "no," but this man was persistent and attempted to convince her that the tree should be cut down because it was so old and overgrown. Angrily, my feisty Taurean mother told him that it would be bad luck to harm that tree and that a curse would befall anyone who dared to cut it down while it was still alive. She then bid him good afternoon and shut the door.
Years later, we sold our house to a family who wasted no time in cutting down our beloved oak tree so that a wooden fence could be put up around the backyard for their dog. It saddened me to learn of the dreadful fate that had befallen the mighty oak that once towered so majestically outside my bedroom window, and since then I've wondered from time to time if the old superstition of the oak tree's curse ever came to be.
Lucky and Unlucky Herbs
The following plants, according to Scott Cunningham, possess the power to attract good luck: allspice, aloe vera, bamboo, banyan, be-still, bluebell, cabbage, calamus, Chinaberry, cinchona, cotton, daffodil, devil's-bit, ferns, grains of paradise, hazel, holly, houseleek, huckleberry, Irish moss, Job's tears, linden, lucky hand root, moss, nutmeg, oak, orange, persimmon, pineapple, pomegranate, poppy, purslane, rose, snakeroot, star anise, straw, strawberry, sumbul, vetivert, violet, and wood rose.
Additionally, rosemary and St. John's wort are said to bring good luck to a home, as well as to drive out demons and ghosts. But the two luckiest plants to bring indoors, according to English herb lore, are white heather and rowan tree.
"Superstitions are instinctive, and all that is instinctive is founded in the very nature of things, to which fact the skeptics of all times have given insufficient attention."
— Eliphas Levi, The Dogma and Ritual of High Magic
In the Welsh countryside, as well as in other parts of the world, it is believed that bad luck will befall any person who dares to pick a leaf or flower growing atop a grave.
It was once widely believed among country folk that it was unlucky to bring into the house a bunch of primroses or daffodils totaling any number less than 13. Doing so was said to have an adverse effect upon the fertility of chickens and geese, causing them to lay fewer eggs.
It is extremely unlucky to bring blackthorn into the house. A blossoming branch from this plant is believed by some folks to precipitate an illness or death in the family when brought indoors.
Hydrangea planted near the house or brought indoors will curse your daughters with spinsterhood, and parsley (if it is given as a gift) will impart the worst of luck to both the giver and the recipient.
"Hawthorn blooms and elder flowers, Fill a house with evil powers."
— An Old English saying.
Other plants said to invite bad luck when brought into a house include broom (especially if brought in during the month of May), dog rose, elder, gorse (also known as furze flower), hawthorn, heather (unless it is white), ivy, lilac, lily-of-the-valley, pussy willow, snowdrops, and the flowers of any plant, shrub, or tree (especially fruit-bearing ones) that bloom out of season.
The speedwell was once thought to be an unlucky flower. So unlucky, in fact, many young children were often warned not to gather it lest their mothers would die before the year was done. In some parts of England, it is still believed by some that picking speedwell (also known as "bird's-eye") will cause one's eyes to be pecked out by birds!
Bringing any type of white flowers into the house will result in a death in the family, according to an old superstition. To avoid bad luck, white flowers should never be given to the ill or brought into hospitals.
Bringing yew into one's home is also said to be a very unlucky thing to do. Some folks believe that if it is brought indoors at Christmas, a family member will meet his or her demise within the next 12 months.
Herbs of the Devil
As any contemporary Witch, Neo-Pagan, or educated occult historian can tell you, worship of the Christian's devil was never an element of the Old Religion or the Witches' Craft. However, the vast majority of Christians in the Middle Ages believed otherwise. They viewed all Witches as being in league with the Prince of Darkness, and were convinced that it was from him that the Witches received their evil powers. This had a big impact in the area of herbal folklore, as many of the plants used both magickally and medicinally by Witches became forever linked to the devil and branded with diabolical nicknames that reflected this.
The following is a list of plants, beginning with their common names or botanical names (in italics) and followed by their nicknames relating to the devil:
Alaskan ginseng: devil's club
Alstonia scholaris: devil's tree
Asafoetida: devil's dung
Bachelor's buttons: devil's flower
Belladonna: devil's cherries
Bindweed: devil's guts
Cassytha spp: devil's twine
Celandine: devil's milk
Colicroot: devil's-bit
Datura: devil's apple
Dill: devil-away
Dodder: devil's guts; devil's hair; hellweed
Elder: devil's eye
Elephant's foot: devil's grandmother
Fairywand: devil's bit
False (or white) hellebore: devil's bite; devil's tobacco
Fern: devil's bush
Field convolvulus: devil's weed
Grapple plant: devil's claw root
Hedge bindweed: devil's vine
Henbane: devil's eye
Hieracium aurantiacum: devil's paintbrush
Indigo berry: devil's pumpkin
Jimsonweed: devil's-apple; devil's trumpet
Lambertia formosa: mountain devil
Mandrake: Satan's apple
Mayapple: devil's-apple
Mexican poppy: devil's fig
Mistletoe: devil's fuge
Parsley: devil's oatmeal
Periwinkle: devil's eye
Pothos: devil's ivy
Pricklypear cactus: devil's-tongue
Puffball fungus: devil's snuffbox
Queen Anne's lace: devil's plague
Viper's bugloss: bluedevil
Wild yam: devil's-bones
Yarrow: devil's nettle
There is a rather curious legend, which dates back to medieval times, about how the plant known as the devil's-bit (Succisa pratensis) came to receive its devilish name. It holds that when humankind discovered this plant's thick, tapered root was effective in treating many of the ailments that the devil and his minions took great delight in afflicting upon the mortal race, the devil became so infuriated that he took an angry bite out of the plant's root. This resulted in the root's gnashed appearance, which in turn led to its name. A similar legend about the devil is connected to the colicroot (Aletris farinosa), which is also known as devil's-bit (in addition to numerous other folk names).
In medieval Europe, oregano was believed to be highly effective in warding off sorcerers, demons, snakes, and venomous animals. Any person who carried oregano as an herbal amulet could neither be harmed nor tempted by the devil.
During the Burning Times, it was a common practice for many inquisitors to burn oregano twigs during the torture sessions of accused Witches. It was believed that the smoke generated by burning oregano effectively kept the devil from aiding his servants.
Parsley was another plant associated with the devil in centuries past. Notorious for its incredibly slow germination, parsley seed was said by some to have to go seven times to hell to obtain the devil's permission before it could grow. Others believed that it had to go to the devil nine times before coming up. According to a related superstition, if parsley seeds failed to germinate, the unfortunate individual who planted them would meet with death sometime within the coming year.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Herbal Magick"
by .
Copyright © 2019 Gerina Dunwich.
Excerpted by permission of Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Foreword, by Arin Murphy-Hiscock,
Introduction,
Chapter 1 Pagan Herb Lore,
Chapter 2 Herbal Superstitions A to Z,
Chapter 3 Herbal Divination,
Chapter 4 Tasseography,
Chapter 5 Healing by Root and Flower,
Chapter 6 Herbs of the Ancient Sorcerers,
Chapter 7 Hoodoo Herbs,
Chapter 8 Gypsy Herb Magick,
Chapter 9 Magick in Bloom,
Chapter 10 A Garden of Dreams,
Chapter 11 Herbal Correspondences,
Chapter 12 Gods and Goddesses,
Appendix A A Calendar of Magickal Herb Lore,
Appendix B Where to Buy Magickal Herbs,
Bibliography,