- Sales Rank: #73236 in Books
- Published on: 2013-04-04
- Binding: Paperback
- 96 pages
Within these pages you will find a treasure-trove of accurate, traditional, and easy-to-follow instructions that teach you how to work with candles and lamps in hoodoo folk magic and Spiritual Church services. Learn about Down-home Candle Magic for the Private Practitioner; How to Select and Prepare Candles for Personal Use; Auspicious Timing for Effective Spell-Casting; Candle Conjure for Love, Money, and Protection; How to Create, Craft, and Cast Your Own Candle Spells; How to Read Divination Signs from Candles; Spiritual Ministries, Altar Work, and Prayers; How to Establish a Private Vigil Candle Ministry; and How to Conduct a Public Candle Light Service.
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
23 of 26 people found the following review helpful.
Not just another candle magic book!
By Larisa Rivera
In review of The Art of Hoodoo Candle Magic in Rootwork, Conjure, and Spiritual Church Services, by cathrine yronwode and Mikhail Strabo.Unlike the wiccan and pagan movements, the hoodoo community has a very limited library of educational spell books. Thanks to Lucky Mojo, my personal hoodoo library is respectable, boasting 3 volumes of Harry Hyatt and a large selection of texts written before I was born. However, of that library, only a few books are in constant use and reference for my practice. Two of those books are The Magic Candle by Charmaine Dey and The Master Book of Candle Burning by Henri Gamache. So the question on a book review of another candle book must be, “Do I need another one?”I could simply say; “When its written by cathrine yronwode, how could the answer be other then … yes!”. But, as much as I deeply respect my mentor, I do not give a review on a book based soley on personal relationships. For me, a book must stand on its own and be worthy of its place on my bookshelf.To begin, the book opens with a history of candle magic. Not a light vague marketing introduction, but a clear and concise history of candle magic in the hoodoo tradition. Miss cat, known for her spectacular ability to retell the history of our tradition, made sure that the opening was a testimony to those who wrote before her. In addition, it pulls together and makes clear, that there was a strong Jewish influence on the hoodoo tradition from the very beginning of the 20th century.Then, in one page, Miss cat proves to us how utterly clueless we all once were when we prepared to do our first candle magic, by providing an exhaustive list of materials. I literally laughed outloud to see the list and remember thinking, “Goodness, do I have all these?”. No, I forgot the fire extinguisher!What continues is an excellent introduction to the other types of candles, of great interest to someone new to using candles for hoodoo. To the old hand, the history provided along with the explanation is very interesting. I learned something new on how to fix reversing candles. Its only a shame that more pictures couldn’t have been added, for the very new practitioner. We then move on to the ways in which lights can be used; from set, to fixed, to moving. I especially loved the attention given to the helper lights. I’m now only on page 25 of 96 and am learning something again. Please understand, I consider myself a reasonably accomplished practitioner of candle magic. The section on burning candles in a triangle, star, cross, etc, I had known and used, but the organization of the content, and the clear way it was presented, gave me a dozen new ideas!The next section of the book provides eighteen new spells, that range from the simple to the complex, over a wide range of conditions. I will admit to having heard many of these spells from Miss cat herself, however unlike the other candle books available, this book is really jam packed with actually spells and examples that can be used as is, or adapted for other conditions.Trying to explain how to do candle divination, is without a doubt, one of the most difficult if not nearly impossible tasks. The section in The Art of Hoodoo Candle Magic is about as explanatory as could be possible. While, the author does acknowledge that a large portion of the divination is about skill, experience and psychic insight, she makes a serious effort to give as many examples by condition as possible. All the major issues, such as should you `work’ the candle spell or just let it burn and what to do when things crack are addressed. In addition, much to my embarrassment, she reviewed what happens when you set your house on fire. *cough* At least she didn’t name names!And, there are still two more sections! What doesn’t this little 96 page book talk about?! Well, it doesn’t mention how to fix your kitchen sink, but it does provide the actual candle ministry operation manual for Missionary Independent Church! So if you were just SURE you knew how to do all the candle stuff, but were wondering how to organize the business side of it, this book has an actual working model from which to plan your own.And then last, and certainly not least, the reprinted monograph of How to Conduct a Candle Light Service by Mikhail Strabo. I missed a copy of this myself, by only a month, and am delighted to finally have it. Thank you Miss cat for the wonderful hoodoo guide, and just as importantly, thank you for your continued preservation of our Hoodoo traditions and literature.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
A very good guide to the Magical Art of Candle Burning
By John M Hansen
There are at least a dozen books on candle magic, most of which are interesting but uneventful reads. In this book the author, who practices this art, explains candle magic step by step and guides the reader along the path in a very collected and calculated manner. Assuming the reader is seriously interested in using candle magic, this book will train them as effectively as any lessons from the hand of an instructor might.I happen to very much like the authors writings, as she is respectful of the arts she is dealing with and doesn’t cover any of her instruction with nonsense or mystic garbage. This book rises to the standard of her other books, and is an excellent guide to the art of candle magic.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
A Must Have !
By P. D. Harris Jr.
At the outset, I just have to comment on the beautiful artwork that adorns the cover. As I mentioned in a previous review of a similar title, you can tell that a great deal of thought and planning went into the cover design. Everything from the color-scheme, font-choices, and the artwork really catches one’s attention and really make you want to pick up this book and take it home!The contents of the book are no less satisfying. Cat draws on her years of working candle-magic in the Hoodoo Tradition and shares her wealth of knowledge with her readers in this step by step guide that begins with a history of candle-magic and then transitions into more practical matters such as assembling the tools you need to burn your own candles. The next portion of the book covers everything from choosing the right candle for you, the symbolism of colors, marking candles with your petition, dressing them with condition oils, and even various methods of burning them (all at once vs a little each day, moving candle spells, etc..). From here, Cat offers several examples of proven candle spells from her repertoire before finally delving into the area of divination by candles and wax remains. Finally, the book ends with a how-to manual for conducting your own Candle-Light service.As you can see Cat has packed a great deal of information in the 96 page tome that makes up The Art of Hoodoo Candle Magic. This is a great reference book for beginners just starting out with their own magical endeavors. I personally don’t know of any spiritualist, rootworker, magician, etc… that does not strive to expand their knowledge of their art and improve their skills and so this grimoire would make an excellent guide for the seasoned practitioner to review his or her own ideas, beliefs, and practices regarding candle-magic as well.Some reviewers have complained that a large portion of the information found in The Art of Hoodoo Candle Magic can be found online at lucky mojo or even on sites which have pilfered the author’s original works. However, what these folks don’t understand is that there is a certain segment of the population who actually loves books (not thin electronic tablets and readers), who appreciate and respect the efforts of our elders to pass on their knowledge and wisdom of these arts to us, and who will actually show that respect by purchasing something that yes we can probably get somewhere else (in whole or in part) for free.
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