What is Southern Conjure and Southern Folk Magic? Brief overview of a tradition born from the people

Introduction

Magic is seen in many different ways and structures, combined with the cosmology of the world itself. The earth, sky, ocean, and everything in between has a spirit that ties everyone together in a cycle of life and death. 

In Southern Conjure and Southern Folk Magic, these titles intertwine within each other, but have their distinctions. One is more encompassing all of the cultural aspects of the South, but also European-influences and different kinds of magic, whereas Southern Conjure is more towards the African-American culture, heavily infused with ancestral veneration traditions of West Africa by the Transatlantic Slave Trade. 

Southern Folk Magic 

Southern Folk Magic stretches about the Southern landscape of the United States, having influences from many peoples from around the world in this area and the Indigenous of the Americas. The Scotch-Irish influences in the coastal states of Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, while the states of the Gulf of Mexico including Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi with an influx of French and Cajun influences in the area. This would blend Protestant and Catholic psalms and bible magic based practices. Then English and German influences, handling the grimoire introductions to the practitioners living in the area. However, one who had a grimoire was considered “higher class” versus someone who didn’t, causing envy among practitioners. Then there are the African influences of how to use the herbs and which herbs work with the land. However, ancestor veneration is a vital part of Southern Folk Magic. Remembering the ones who came before, and hiding the African spirits in the saints in Catholicism or the Holy Spirit in Protestantism. Lastly, the Indigenous influences of this practice and tradition of the native land spirits and the way of spiritual cleansing which involves smoke and sacred tobacco. The root and emphasis of this practice is to understand the results of the magics done under this umbrella, but also learning and reflecting on the paths that brought the practitioner to now.

Southern Conjure

Southern Conjure is a way of life for people who are of this tradition. Southern Conjure is another name for Hoodoo in some spaces, and rootwork. African-American based, this is also a cultural lineage and familial lineage. Relaying on the ancestors and the spirits brought from Africa in the form of Vodou or Ifa or Akan religions, allowed for a tradition that worked for the oppressed, and not just to survive. Throughout United States history, the African-American community has been through one of the most, if not THE most, horrific treatment of human consciousness physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, in the world’s history. Through the brutalment of slavery, Jim Crow, and many other discriminations and outward and inward racism towards their community, Southern Conjure, Hoodoo, made sure that they had a say in what was happening and caused it to stop. In this, these lineages and traditions have been passed down from family to family to the one that could “see”.

Conclusion 

The similarities and differences of Southern Folk Magic and Southern Conjure are spoken in discussions during spiritual conferences and in the seclusion and safety of lineage-based homes. The techniques and artistry of these traditions and practices hold a deep resonance in the Southern states and the cultural evolution of the United States. In other blog posts, I will go deeper into certain aspects, but for right now, it will be an overview. Not all secrets or thoughts should be given all at once.