MIPC: Bone Reading

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, Belief, or Ritual 

"This is the most reliable method of telling your fortune. The Bones never lie. Pick a bone and throw it on the fire. The heat makes cracks in the bone and I read the bone cracks to tell your destiny. " - Madame Wu 

Avatar The Last Airbender Book 1 Ep. 14 The Fortune Teller 3/23/2005

Commentary 

According to my research, this is a fairly accurate - albeit dramatized - depiction of ancient Chinese Oracle Bone Reading. I believe that the above ritual is the original form of bone reading and that throwing the bones came later. Bone Reading was a form of divination that sought guidance and direction from deities, but also more commonly from the ancestors. A description of the divination ritual can be read at Wikipedia.

Many oracle bones were discovered in the 1800s prompting research into this ancient practice. The most common bone is that of the shoulder blade or the bone of a turtle shell. Many of the bones are inscribed with the details of the reading such as who is asking the question, what is their question, who is reading the bone, what is the answer, and in some cases the eventual outcome. Even today scientist and researchers are still trying to decode the many symbols that appear on the bones in order to learn more about the past. 

Links

• Chinese Bone Burning  
• How to Read the Bones 

- Carolina Dean

MIPC: To Cleanse a Room

 Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a magical belief or practice from a work of fiction such as movies, books, comic books, or tv shows and analyze them against real-world magical beliefs and practices.

The Ritual or Belief 

Starting at the back of the room and moving towards the front, sprinkle Holy Water about the place while reciting the Lord's Prayer 

Irene Lazlo The Accidental Santera (2000)       

Commentary            

Although it is not entirely autobiographical, this book is inspired by the author's own life as she, a scientist as a large university, seeks a spiritual solution to her infertility issues. Over the course of the book, the author learns about Santeria from members of her extended family and the above remedy is one such piece of advice that she is given. 

In the Hoodoo tradition, we are taught that when we are cleansing a house or room you start from the top and work towards the bottom (in the case of a multi-level dwelling) and then from the back towards the front and out the front door. This is to drive the evil, the unclean, the unwanted energy out of the house. That being said, I actually like this ritual as I can tell you from experience that it is quite effective! 

- Carolina Dean                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

MIPC: How to Conduct a Rune Reading

 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

 

Runes are very spiritual stones. They are all beautiful and have metaphysical powers. You reach into the bag and take out a rune. They tell you where you are spiritually. They're not against God or anything. 

This is Strength, the rune of replacement and renewal suggesting that the time has come to change the life you're living. 

I Love You to Death (1990)

Commentary

I am not going to get into the history and development of Runes. Suffice it to say that Runes are 24 symbols that originated in Norse culture that have been (arguably) used as a system of divination and magic. 

This is a fairly straight forward and mostly correct instruction in how to conduct a Rune Reading. As divination tools, the Runes started out as symbols painted on stones or burnt onto small pieces of wood and in the modern era Rune Card Decks have been developed that added tarot-like imagery to the system of divination and magic reflecting their meanings and uses. 

However, you don't have to limit yourself to simply one Rune.  Many Rune readers use tarot spreads as a basis for their Rune readings. A very basic spread consists of thinking about a question or issue in our lives (or the lives of others) and drawing three runes (or cards) and putting them down before you in a line. 

• The first Rune represents the past. 
• The second Rune represents the present. 
• The third Rune represents the future. 

Another form of Rune Reading consists of holding the 24 Runes in your hands, thinking of a question or issue and then tossing the runes on a cloth before you. The Runes which fall face up and read in relation to their distance from you and each other. The Runes which are closest to you represent the past, those in the middle represent the present, and those furthest way represent the future. 

- Carolina Dean 

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 

MIPC: The Zener Oracle!

Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a magical belief or practice from a work of fiction such as movies, books, comic books, or tv shows and analyze them against real-world magical beliefs and practices.

The Spell, Belief, or Practice 

 

Annie Wilson, a young widow and mother of three boys makes her living giving readings in exchange for donations. Reluctantly, she gets involved in a local missing person's case, which turns out to be a murder. When the wrong man is sent to prison for the crime, she must summon all her abilities to bring the real culprit to justice - even if it means putting herself in harm's way. 

Commentary

According to the trivia section at the IMDB Annie is based on the mother of screenwriter Billy Bob Thornton who is alleged to have psychic gifts.  Annie uses the vehicle of the Zener Cards in her readings. However, she often has visions of the past and future and communicates with at least three spirits during the course of the movie. Annie is said to have inherited her gift from her grandmother and there is one scene which suggests that at least one of her sons have inherited Annie's gift for seeing spirits. 

It is interesting that the writer / director chose to use Zener Cards rather than the more traditional Tarot Cards or even Playing Cards with which most viewers would be more familiar. Although there is a Zener Deck currently on the market which was made for the purpose of divination, it was unheard of in the year 2000 for anyone to use Zener Cards for divination or fortune telling. 

In fact, Zener Cards were created in 1930's to test individuals for extra sensory perception (ESP). The deck consists of five set of five symbols for a total of 25 cards. To test for ESP, one person shuffles the deck and turns over each card unseen by a second person who attempts to psychically intuit which symbol is on the card. Their answer is recorded for each card in the 25-card deck. Afterwards, their answers are analyzed for accuracy. 

 

The methods used by Karl Zener and his colleague J. B. Rhine were criticized as their methods to keep the subject from figuring out the cards by other means were deemed inadequate. After taking more precautions, they could not find a subject who scored as high as earlier test subjects. You can see a comedic take on the Zener Test in this scene from the 1984 film Ghostbusters.

I recently watched the Gift to re-familiarize myself with the plot and characters as well as to closely watch Annie give her readings. Annie typically lays the card out in a 3X3 pattern, that is three rows of three cards each. She looks at the cards, but it also seems that she does not seem them but rather is looking to her inner eye. I personally believe that the Zener cards are a means by which Annie distracts her conscious mind to allow her psychic impressions to come through. This is similar to some crystal gazers who see images in their head instead of actually in the crystal before them. 

 Is it possible to tell fortunes with Zener Cards? Of course, anything is possible! But is it probable? I think it depends on the person and their unique gift. If I were to read fortunes, I would have to compile a list of associations for the cards and then use those meanings as a springboard for my own intuition and psychic faculties. 

- Carolina Dean 

MIPC: Madam DeGaulle's Tarot Ritual

Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a magical belief or practice from a work of fiction such as movies, books, comic books, or tv shows and analyze them against real-world magical beliefs and practices.

The Belief or Ritual

The ritual begins when Madam DeGaulle takes a seat at her reading table where a green glass encased candle is burning next to a small, clear glass of water. She dips what appears to be her middle finger in the glass of water and flicks her finger in the air. 

She then passes her right hand over the flame of the candle. Her querent (the person receiving the reading) offers her right hand to Madama DeGaulle, who strokes her client's palm twice and then physically closes the hand. The client pulls her hand close to herself as if holding on to something. 

Madame DeGaulle offers the cards to her clients stating, "one question only". The client then cuts the cards into three stacks using the hand that Madame DeGaulle previously stroked while verbally stating her question. Madame DeGaulle then puts the cards back together and reads them according to a spread. 

Trade Winds (1993)

Mini-Series 

Commentary

First of all, I have had this scene in my head for YEARS but could not remember the name of the tv show or movie that it came from. The only thing I could remember was that I thought it took place at a hotel or resort on an island and one of the main character's names was also Ocean. Recently, I was scrolling through Instagram and saw the opening title for this mini-series that aired on NBC in 1993. What is interesting is that at the time this occurred I was reading a book which instructed the reader to pay attention to coincidences in their lives and write them down. This is the first exercise in consciously manifesting your destiny. 

Now to the matter at hand. You can view this scene at the link provided at the top of this entry. It begins at the 1:14:17 mark. 

I want to point out that, and maybe you noticed it too, the cards were never actually shuffled. The client cut the cards into three stacks and Madame DeGaulle picked them back up in such a way that whatever order the cards were in before they were cut they were put back together in the exact same order. In addition, Madame DeGaulle isn't using a full deck of cards. In the scene you can clearly see the rest of the deck sitting next to the candle and glass of water. They are partially hidden in the rest of the scene by a white cloth which presumably she wraps her cards in when not in use. 

I also want to point out that the during the reading, the cards which appeared on screen were as follows 

• Death (this is evident by the skeletal figure shown on screen)
• The Tower 
• The 10 of Swords 
• Unknown, possibly the 8 of Swords or the 8 of Wands 

Finally, the last card is verbally described on screen as the Death Card, however it looks visually similar to images of the Hanged Man and according to the art on the card it is called l'expiation which means atonement. 

We can assume that this ritual is something that Madame DeGaulle regularly performs for her clients as the client in this scene needed no instruction to perform her part in the ritual. I also vaguely recall there are other scenes in which Madame DeGaulle read the cards for others prior to which she performs some version of this ritual. 

Tarot Rituals act as triggers, which are words or actions which quickly shift your consciousness into a state conducive to reading the cards. Rituals accumulate power and the more times a ritual is perform the more powerful it becomes. This is one of the reasons why we are told not to change a spell or ritual when it is performed because it can diminish its power. 

Tarot Rituals can be as simple or as complex as you like. However, in order to be effective, they should also be meaningful. Speaking strictly symbolically, I would venture to say that the candle and water used by Madame DeGaulle represents focus and clarity respectfully. I am not exactly sure of the purpose of stroking the client's palm, however, my intuition tells me that it may serve two purposes. They are 1) it helps the reader connect with the client through physical touch and 2) it reminds the client that the future is in their hands. However, this is my own speculation. 

My Tarot Ritual

Even after 30 years of reading the cards, I have a Tarot Ritual. I keep a clear quartz crystal near my reading area for clarity. Before the reading, I say the following prayer:

"Heavenly Father, please provide me with information for my client that is both truthful and will be of assistance to them. I ask that we not only be able to know but also to understand. Amen."

I then anoint my 3rd Eye chakra and my hands with Clarity Oil. Next, I shuffle the cards while I am waiting for my client to come online. I often cut the cards and use this card as the clients significator for the reading. This card usually gives me an idea of what the clients' question or issue is going to be and their perspective regarding their issue or condition. 

- Carolina Dean 

MIPC: The Perfect 10 Love Spell

 Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a magical belief or practice from a work of fiction such as movies, books, comic books, or tv shows and analyze them against real-world magical beliefs and practices.

The Spell or Belief 

This Wiccan spell should be performed in a cemetery at midnight on Friday the 13th. Preliminary to performing this spell, you should spend some time in meditation for the purpose of writing a list of ten things that you desire most in the perfect lover.

For example

• sexy
• talented
• style
• nice eyes
• thick hair
• sense of humor
• attractive
• ambitious
• fun
• good taste

Form a circle of candles using a candle that is larger than the other to indicate North. Light the candles and smoke yourself with incense. Next, step inside the circle with your list. Invoke the Goddess and wait for a sign of Her presence. 

When you are ready, take a few hairs from your head and fold them in your perfect ten list towards you three times then burn the paper in the North candle and recite a spell [incantation] which you have written yourself such as:

"Venus, find for me a perfect fit,
a boy of beauty, talent and wit;
someone to love and to love me,
as you will, sop mote it be!"

Source:

The Perfect Ten (2017)
L. Philips 

Commentary

I would like to begin this commentary by stating that I found this book in my local dollar tree for (not surprisingly) a dollar! As soon as I saw it involved a gay boy looking for love and witchcraft was involved, I purchased it without another thought. Incidentally, this is the second gay-centric book that I found at the Dollar Tree, the other book being Love and Other Curses. I highly recommend both books. 

Let's begin our dissection of this spell by looking at the prescribed timing for the spell. The book advises the witch to perform the spell in a cemetery at midnight on Friday the 13th. 

• The Date - Fridays are good for love work. However, Friday the 13th is traditionally believed to be an unlucky day. 
• The Time - Midnight is a good time to cast a spell in Wicca or witchcraft. I was taught to perform spells at true midnight - a process which requires taking into account the times for sunrise and sunset on a particular day and performing your spell at the exact midpoint between them. 
• The Place - Cemetaries are places where the dead are buried, where you go to bury things and leave negativity behind.  I personally would never perform a love spell in a cemetery - unless I was petitioning an ancestor or other spirit buried there. The cemetery in this story was attached to a church so the teenagers probably thought of it as a holy place or a place of power where they can perform their spell without getting caught. 

Wiccans often smudge themselves with incense or sage or anoint themselves with holy water or oil prior to entering a magic circle. This is done to cleanse themselves. In this case, I would say that smudging yourself with incense prior to this spell is to cleanse yourself of your past relationships. 

Wiccans usually cast a circle prior to ritual in this case, the circle of candles represents the circle, but no actual circle casting is performed. 

The book does not give words for invoking the Goddess. If I were to cast this spell, I would tailor my invocation to the work at hand. For example 

Oh beautiful Venus, Lady of Delight,
I invoke your name tonight;
shower me with your magnetic beams
that I may find the man of my dreams! 

It's a good idea to write a list of what you are looking for and you can make it as long or as short as you like. However, keeping it to ten qualities gives you the opportunity to think about what you really want, or what is really important to you. The list also represents your intention. Burning your list sends your intention out into the universe so that it came come back to you in another form - your perfect ten! 

Folding the paper towards yourself is symbolic of drawing the person to you and adding your own hair is akin to letting a hound dog get your scent - that is, so your magically conjured lover cand find his (or her) way to you.  

Finally, spells (incantations) are often recited to support framing your intention. It is the "things said" that works with the "things done" - you are essentially putting your intention out into the universe in two languages. 

A good formula for writing your incantation is to keep it to four lines. The first two lines represent the issue or condition, and the second two lines describe what is needed or wanted to address your issue. For example, if I were to cast this spell, I might say

I call upon Venus above me,
to bring me a man who will love me.
a perfect ten who fits this bill,
so mote it be just as I will. 

and there you have it! 

- Carolina Dean 

MIPC: Removing the Curse of Avezuba

Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a spell, ritual, belief, etc... from a work of fiction such as a book, movie, comic book, or tv show and analyze it against real world magical beliefs and practices. 

The Spell or Belief 

Place 36 pins in a glass jar of water with holes poked into the metal lid. Place the jar upon a fire. As the water heats and boils chant: 

"Pastoo veedoo agrimente

Strike Avezuba and lift the hex!

Lama Samana Quana

Give me the sign!

Lama Samana Quana

Give me the sign!"

If the jar breaks, the curse is broken 

Gidget Season 1, Episode 18

'Like Voodoo' 1/13/1966 

Commentary 

First of all, we need to put this spell into context. At the beginning of the episode, Gidget finds that her new surfboard is missing. She walks along the beach looking for it only to find it leaning against a Gypsy's trailer with a for sale sign on it. Gidget tries to explain to the Gypsy woman that the surfboard is hers (her name is painted on the board) and that it was stolen. When the Gypsy refuses to return the surfboard, Gidget grabs it and runs away with her surfboard. 

The Gypsy woman then reaches down and grabs a handful of sand which she allows to slowly fall through her fingers as she invokes Avezuba saying...

"Avezuba!

Devil Wing. Master.  

Overturn her her head!

All fortune bad

No Peace, No Sucess

Until she bring it back.

Avezuba,

Curse she as I curse she

& give no place to hide! 

At first Gidget dismisses the curse but then she has a run of bad luck. She then looks through her father's anthropology books and find the above ritual to break the curse, which she dutifully performs. 

Who is Avezuba?

When I first began looking deeper into this ritual, I initially thought that Avezuba would turn out to be some made-up Devil like name for the show. However, during the curse of my research, I discovered that Avezuba is actually the Romanian name for Lillith, who according to legend was Adam's first wife and mother of demons. Therefore, the gypsy woman was invoking the name of Lillith to curse Gidget with bad luck, failure, and unrest. 

I attempted to learn more about Pastoo veedoo agrimente, however, I wasn't able to find any more information about the meaning of these words. Since I wrote the words as they sounded to me when I watched the episode, I may not have spelled them correctly. Since Avezuba is Lillith, I would suspect that Pastoo veedoo agrimente is one of the many, many names of God (Agla, Adonai, Yahweh, Tetragrammaton, etc...) used to counter her black magic. 

That being said, I also think that the above curse removal spell may be a (cleaner) adaptation of an old ritual that called for boiling the cursed person's urine in a pot into which has been places several bent pins. Supposedly when the urine evaporates the curse will be gone. In this case, the fire heats up the water, it begins to boil and breaks the glass thus breaking the spell. 

- Carolina Dean 

MIPC: Secret Chants for Love, Money, Health, & Happiness

 Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a magical belief or practice from a work of fiction such as movies, books, comic books, or tv shows and analyze them against real-world magical beliefs and practices.

The Spell or Belief

Your dreams can come true simply by chanting a few magic words to bring you money, love, health, and happiness. These chants were found in the ruins of an ancient Tibetan monastery by an archeologist from Nang Chang, China in the late 1980's. The chants had been handed down for generations long before the monastery was abandoned in 1011. 

The chants are short and easy to learn. they must be spoken after a period of meditation for maximum effect. These chants were tested on 2300 students in Nang Chang of which 1867 people reported the chants to have changed their lives. 

The Chants 

* To Bring Happiness - Repeat the words "Lo An An Ta Fa Ri" once a day for seven days. 

* To Bring Love- Sit quietly, open your heart to love and chant "To Do Si Ro An Wat Mono Ran" four times. 

* For Lasting Good Health- Chant "Chung Do Ama Rung Ning" and think happy thoughts for three days afterward. 

* To Bring Money- Cast out all selfish thoughts and think about all the god you will accomplish with your wealth. Repeat "Kung No Ro Ama Ni Lo Ta Wong" then times. 

The Weekly World News
April 11th 1989 

Commentary 

I first read about these chants around 1990. I was sitting in Mrs. Boulware's study hall and there were several of these tabloid magazines in the room to look through if we didn't have any homework or anything else to do. I've made no secret that I was a shy teenager who was often bullied throughout school. I was also interested in any form of magic because I thought it was the key to happiness in my life - so when I read of these chants I eagerly wrote them down in my notebook hoping to use them to improve my life. 

I began with the Chant to Bring Happiness. I started on a Monday. When I woke up in the morning, I tried to summon a positive attitude and would chant the mantra before school. I recall that they was one of the worst week's of my life. I vividly recall how one day that week I was standing by my locker minding my own business when a group of boys began throwing candy at me. I honestly just stood there and let it happen without fighting back or saying anything to them. At that point in my life I was so defeated and was contemplating suicide. 

However, I persisted. I dutifully chanted the mantra to bring happiness every day and completed the ritual after seven days. I wasn't sure what would happen or how it would happen. Would I simply wake up on the 8th morning and be happy or would circumstances change bringing about my happiness? Either way, I was confident in my belief that something would happen. 

Happiness did come to me, but it did not come all at once. It happened in small ways over time. My situation improved. The bullies started leaving me alone. I grew more confident. I made friends. Before I knew it, I was happy! 

Now considering the source of these "chants", I don't believe that they have any real magic in them but rather that my belief in their power actually allowed me to manifest a positive change in my life. I honestly do credit this ritual with changing the course of my life because had my condition not improved, I would have eventually attempted suicide. In fact, I am so superstitious about the mantra to bring happiness that I will not repeat the chant again out loud out of a fear that speaking the chant again would unravel all of the happiness it gave me in the first place. 

I have not tried the other chants, however, were I to perform them I would likely chant the mantra as part of a ritual that includes a period of meditation followed by the lighting of a candle under which I have placed my wish written on paper and then chanting the mantra to make it so. 

I present to you these chants now on the last day of the year in hopes that you will find some value in them and are able to draw love, money, success, abundance, and happiness into your life in 2021! 

- Carolina Dean 

MIPC: On the Virtue of Spices

Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a magical belief or practice from a work of fiction such as movies, books, comic books, or tv shows and analyze them against real-world magical beliefs and practices.

The Spell or Belief 

For each person who comes into the shop there is a special spice for that one person. “It is called mahamul, the root spice, and for each person it is different. Mahamul is to enhance fortune, to bring success or joy, to avert ill luck.”

The Mistress of Spices (1998)
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Commentary

Within the context of the story, Tilo is of Indian descent and has gained the status of a Mistress of Spices (one of many). She has been charged to go to LA and run a spice shop out of which she uses various spices to assist other Indian immigrants who come into her shop. 

For instance, there is a young man who barely speaks English who is being bullied by his classmates so she wraps some cinnamon in newspaper and tucks it in his turban to help him make friends. In another instance, she gives fennel to a woman who is being abused by her husband because it is believed that fennel will help take power from one person and give it to another when they both eat it at the same time. 

As you can see Tilo is effectively the Indian equivalent of a Rootworker. Whereas Rootworkers work with roots and herbs, Tilo works with the spices native to India. In fact, Tilo has a special relationship with the spices in that she speask to them and they speak to her in return. Again, rootworkers and other magical practitioners  often develop relationships not with the roots and herbs per se but with the spirit within them. In my personal practices, I often meet with the spirit of any number of plant spirits in the dream time to learn how to use them for any number of purposes. 

Tilo and the spices have a working relationship - that is - so long as she obeys the rules of her tradition. For example, she is not allowed to leave the shop for any reason. Nor is she allowed to use the spices for personal gain. Finally, she is not allowed to fall in love with anyone. However, this being a work of fiction I don't have to tell you that Tilo eventually breaks all of these rules. 

The author drew upon the rich traditions of India and the relationship they have with their spices to craft this wonderful, magical story.  After all no Indian kitchen is complete without a Masala Dabba. The Mistress of Spices gives us a Sister-Tradition to Rootwork and Witchcraft albeit a fictional one and the novice rootworker can learn a lot of how the relationship with the plant spirits and the human from this novel. 

- Carolina Dean 

MIPC: Love Potion

Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of entries in which I take a spell, belief, ritual, or tradition and analyze it again real-world theory and practices.

The Spell or Belief 

"Take a spider off its web and shut him up in two sides of a nut. Boil the nut in oil, into which has been placed several strands of the web. Put two drops of the oil into water. He who drinks the water will be in love with the first person he sees so long as the spider is shut in the shell or one day goes by, whichever comes first."

Supergirl (1984) 

Commentary

First let me say that although some elements in this move such as the spell for invisibility and the ritual for immortality were taken from actual grimoires, I have never been able to find this potion or anything similar in any occult reference or grimoire in all the years I have studied magic. That being said, I believe that this potion was made up by the writers of this film. However, it does have some interesting symbolism. 

Let me state at the outset that, I believe, this is definitely woman's magic in that this is a potion that women would use on men and I do not think it would be as effective if a man choosing to use it on a woman.  Then again, in this age of gender fluidity, I may be getting behind the times in that regard. 

Spiders are endeared as hunters who lay their trap (the web) and devour their prey. In this regard, the spider represents the man in question. The tables have turned and now the hunter is the hunter. The fact that the spider is trapped inside a nutshell represents that mean being a victim to his own sexual urges that the potion will stir. Boiling the nut in oil (with the web) puts heat on the situation and get the man hot for you - trapping him in his own web. 

The silver spoon represents the female powers of the moon, receptivity, and persuasion that is intended to ensnare the man. Finally water represents emotions and in this case the man is encouraged by the power of the potion to fully experience his emotions (specifically the emotion of love) and not suppress his desires. 

While I have never attempted this potion myself (how do you keep the nut from separating inside the boiling oil?)  I have no doubts that with the right concentration and power, the skilled witch can find some success with it. 

- Carolina Dean 

MIPC: The Witch's Ladder

 Note: MIPC stands for Magic in Popular Culture and this is a series of posts in which I take a magical belief or practice from a work of fiction such as movies, books, comic books, or tv shows and analyze them against real-world magical beliefs and practices. 

The Spell or Belief 

Staring at the sky, Beatrice thought, Thirteen sleeps before my departure. How lucky am I? “Luck,” of course, according to her aunt, “is what happens when preparation and opportunity collide.” What then of magic, Beatrice wondered, of destiny, of kismet?

She’d recently read an account of a strange charm being found by a farmhand in the rafters of a run-down cottage outside of Tarrytown where a witch was supposed to have lived. It’d been fashioned from the simplest of things—a length of string, a few ratty feathers and six stray hairs (probably from the witch’s head). Nine knots had been tied along it, to secure the feathers and hair. When a farmer’s wife from the next house over had been asked by a newspaper reporter if she’d ever seen the likes of such a thing before, she’d eagerly replied, “Yes, indeed I have! ’Tis a witch’s ladder, for healin’ the sick, protectin’ loved ones, cursin’ yer enemies or gettin’ what you wish. It contains some of the strongest magic there is. Once the spell’s complete, its magic will be stored in the charm forever. So long as the ladder remains whole, so too will the magic. There’s a rhyme that goes along with it, to help the spell set. Would ye like to hear it?”

Taking three black feathers, a length of string and six strands of red hair from her own head, Beatrice began tying knots to secure her wish, reciting the farmwoman’s verse as she went.

By knot of one, my spell’s begun.

By knot of two, it will come true.

By knot of three, so may it be.

By knot of four, this power I store.

By knot of five, my spell is alive.

By knot of six, the spell I fix.

By knot of seven, the future I’ll leaven.

By knot of eight, my will be fate.

By knot of nine, what’s done is mine!

She hoped the farmer’s wife was right. She hoped the magic would prove true. She wanted to believe—in miracles, in fate and in witches too.

Twelve days. (Thirteen sleeps.)

Those averse to magic need not apply.

The time between first and second sleep is neither slumber nor waking. Too much dark and your mind will stay at rest, too much light and your dreams will surely flee. Use this time wisely—for writing spells, summoning spirits, and most importantly, remembering your dreams. Queens have been crowned, schemes hatched, fortunes gained, demons defeated, lovers found—all from visions born in the stillness of the night. In dreams, our souls are given the eyes of Fate. Dreams must be encouraged by all possible means.

The Witches of New York
by Ami McKay 

Commentary 

The is actually a fairly precise and accurate description of how a witch's ladder is made and used. A Witch's ladder can be made for any purpose that you desire. In my own personal practices, however, I am always sure to use nine knots total. I also use the same color symbolism as that of candles. For example, a love ladder will be made with red cord; a money ladder will be made with yellow or green cord. In addition to the knots and feathers tied into the knots, I also include items that vibrate on the same frequency as my desire. 

I once made a love ladder to bind a man to me. For this purpose I used a cord that was the same length as his height, plus the length of his erect penis. I tied that consisted of nine turkey bones tied along the length of the cord with nine knots. I tied five turkey bones and 4 licorice roots in the cord - alternating the bones and roots - and dressed each knot with Lavender Love Oil. Finally I smoked the entire thing in incense smoke while making my prayer. When I was done I laid the cord between the mattress and boxsprings on his side of the bed so that he would always return to my bed (and me). 

I like the use of the witch's ladder because it allows me to draw on my creativity and make something unique, beautiful, and magical. 

- Carolina Dean