Santa Muerte: The History, Rituals, and Magic of Our Lady of the Holy Death

by Tracey Rollin

Overview

Santa Muerte is a complete ritual guide to working with this famous and beloved Mexican folk saint.

Death welcomes everyone. This is the foundation for the veneration of Santa Muerte, or "Holy Death." Considered to be the female personification of death, she is associated with protection and safe passage to the afterlife. She is also the patron saint of people who live on the fringes of society and often face violence and death. In recent years her constituency has expanded to include the LGBT community and people who are marginalized or whose jobs put them at significant risk of death such as military and police personnel. Santa Muerte is hailed as their potent and powerful protector, capable of delivering them from harm and even granting miracles.

Santa Muerte is a complete ritual guide to working with this famous—and infamous!—Mexican folk saint. It takes us beyond the sensational headlines to reveal the truth about why Santa Muerte is so beloved by so many. Author Tracey Rollin presents simple, straightforward methods for working with Holy Death that may be used alone or easily incorporated into your own magical practice.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781578636211
Publisher:	Red Wheel/Weiser
Publication date:	10/01/2017
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	100,783
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Tracey Rollin is the administrator of the Bone Mother Facebook group, a 65-thousand-member community of Santa Muerte devotees. She has been a practitioner of chaos magic and witchcraft for over 20 years, dedicating herself to the advancement of consciousness, spiritual understanding, and personal power. Tracey is also a registered nurse with years of emergency room and trauma experience. Visit her at www.traceyrollin.com.

Editorial Reviews

08/14/2017
This is a comprehensive and well-researched guide to the Mexican folk saint Santa Muerte, the “female personification of death... associated with protection and safe passage to the afterlife.” Rollin begins by citing the beliefs and practices of religions and cultures across the world that may have influenced or been influenced by Santa Muerte. In particular, she addresses the qualities, powers, and influences of Santa Muerte and discusses many “spells,” or prayers, that allegedly help to heal relationships, cure illnesses, bring good luck, and increase sexual pleasure, among other things. Rollin also explores the Aztec origins and other “parent religions” from which the veneration of Santa Muerte arose, as well as the factors that may contribute to the unofficial folk saint’s growing popularity in current times, which she attributes to a mix of folk status and subversive appeal. While the book focuses specifically on one saint, Rollin’s understanding of a variety of religions grounds the book in a broad and inclusive understanding of the world’s many mystical beliefs. At times, the work can be so straightforward that it takes on a textbook quality, but the wealth of information contained here will appeal to those seeking a studied and historical understanding of Santa Muerte. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"Do you have a friend in Death? You should and you can with Rollin's new book. Rollin does an amazing, non-judgmental job of relating the stories of Santa Muerte, but also gives the reader the practical goods on how to work with this powerful folk saint combining both traditional and modern ways of working with her. Her personal stories and experiences with St. Death are more often than not entertaining, and the book would give you more than a solid foundation to work with Santa Muerte. The only question you should have is how fast do you want your results?"

Andrieh Vitimus

"Tracey Rollin does an excellent job of laying out and explaining Santa Muerte. I particularly appreciate how she explores the history and beliefs of Santa Muerte, while balancing the theory with practical magic and suggestions for how people an integrate Santa Muerte into their existing spiritual paths. Her instructions are clear and easy to follow, but also encourage people to discover how to develop their own relationship with Santa Muerte. If you want the authoritative book on Santa Muerte, this is the book to read."

Taylor Ellwood

"Tracey Rollin's very well written book Santa Muerte: The History, Rituals, and Magic of Our Lady of the Holy Death avoids a dogmatic approach to Santa Muerte. The author, who hails from New Mexico, where Doña Sebastiana, Lady Death, presaged Santa Muerte, incorporates more research on Santa Muerte than other books aimed at devotees."

Professor R. Andrew Chesnut

"Tracey Rollin's Santa Muerte: The History, Rituals and Magic of Our Lady of the Holy Death is a serious work dedicated to providing historical insight combined with spiritual application in the ways of the Holy Death. Rollin's book provides sound research and a unique inside perspective into the customs and rituals associated with one of the fastest growing religions in the world. This book brings together two important perspectives of both a historical and magico-religious worldview without alienating either one. A valuable contribution to this area of study."

Tony Kail

"This is a comprehensive and well-researched guide to the Mexican folk saint Santa Muerte, the "female personification of death... associated with protection and safe passage to the afterlife." Rollin begins by citing the beliefs and practices of religions and cultures across the world that may have influenced or been influenced by Santa Muerte. In particular, she addresses the qualities, powers, and influences of Santa Muerte and discusses many "spells," or prayers, that allegedly help to heal relationships, cure illnesses, bring good luck, and increase sexual pleasure, among other things. Rollin also explores the Aztec origins and other "parent religions" from which the veneration of Santa Muerte arose, as well as the factors that may contribute to the unofficial folk saint's growing popularity in current times, which she attributes to a mix of folk status and subversive appeal. While the book focuses specifically on one saint, Rollin's understanding of a variety of religions grounds the book in a broad and inclusive understanding of the world's many mystical beliefs. At times, the work can be so straightforward that it takes on a textbook quality, but the wealth of information contained here will appeal to those seeking a studied and historical understanding of Santa Muerte. (Oct.)"

From the Publisher

"Tracey Rollin does an excellent job of laying out and explaining Santa Muerte. I particularly appreciate how she explores the history and beliefs of Santa Muerte, while balancing the theory with practical magic and suggestions for how people an integrate Santa Muerte into their existing spiritual paths. Her instructions are clear and easy to follow, but also encourage people to discover how to develop their own relationship with Santa Muerte. If you want the authoritative book on Santa Muerte, this is the book to read." --Taylor Ellwood, author of Pop Culture Magic Systems

Reviews