MIPC: Banishing Spell

 MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and it is a series of posts in which I take a spell, ritual, tradition, or belief from a work of fiction such as television, a book, movies, or a comic book and analyze it against real world magical theory and practices.

The Spell or Belief 

"On re or re ickery Ann, Phillison, follison, Nicholas John, Queevy Quavy English navy, Stickum Stackum, Buck. B-U-C-K spells Buck, and OUT goes you!" 

Bewitched Season 1 Episode 1 I, Darren, Take this Witch Samantha  9/17/1964

Commentary 

Within the context of the show, the Banishing Spell is used by Samantha in attempt to get her mother, Endora, to go away when Endora is being meddlesome and refuses to leave. Unfortunately for Samantha, Endora is too powerful and so the spell doesn't work. 

This little rhyme, or variations of it, actually date back to England in circa 1888 - which would have been in Samantha's lifetime considering the extended lifespan of witches in the Bewitched universe. The original purpose of the rhyme was that it was used as a "counting out" rhyme in the same day children in the modern age use (eeny meeny miny moe). 

Given this knowledge, I think the words are appropriate for use in a banishing spell as you wish to count someone "out" of your presence, your space, or your life. I might chant this spell over a candle on which I have etched their name and dressed with banishing oil or hot foot oil. In fact, you could prepare the candle and drive a pin between the letters in their name and then light the candle each night burning one letter away as the moon wanes pinching out the flame between days. 

To be honest I have adapted the eeny meeny miny moe incantation into a spell on occasaion. Whenever someone is around me that I need to get away from me, I simply focus on the person's face and chant:

Eeny meeny miny moe I cast this spell & away you go!

Your milage may vary. 

- Carolina Dean