(Spellwork at the end of this article.)
On the surface, folks said Hoodoo was evil. White Christian authorities called it “devil’s work.” Later on, some of our own Black church leaders, even with good intentions, echoed that same BULLSHYT! And, that same bullshyt is on REPEAT today! They called it superstition, backwoods foolishness and whatever regurgitated lies we were fed.
As I see it, Hoodoo in its true form is about BLACK SOVEREIGNTY and LIBERATION!

Hoodoo (SHE) gave our ancestors healing because white doctors… LEMME GET ON MY SOAPBOX FOR A MINUTE…
During slavery, Black folks were treated like livestock. White doctors were not sent to care for the enslaved unless it benefited the enslaver’s profits. Many times, when sickness struck the quarters, it was left to the elders, midwives, rootworkers, and conjurefolk to tend to the sick because nobody else would.
And when they did send a doctor, it was often more dangerous than helpful because administering treatments without understanding African physiology, herbal tolerance, or spiritual wellness was often a death sentence for our community. SHIIIIID some of that still exists in the medical industry now…. That’s why IONT TRUST SUMMA DEY AZZEZ! I digress!
Let me get back on point…
She provided protection when the law was against us and justice when the courts didn’t see us … still true TADAY!
Also, she gave POWER without begging the PREACHERS for prayer, help or blessings. Keep in mind that many folks practiced silently in the pews and some from the pulpit like Bishop C.H. Mason. Even though the Black church has been a pillar of strength, refuge, and community for our people, it was also, at times, a place that shamed and condemned Hoodoo. Once Christianity was adopted and adapted, many leaders viewed conjure, rootwork, and ancestral practices as “backwards” or “of the devil.”

So, if you were a dreamer, a seer, a rootworker, or someone who “knew things” beyond Sunday sermons, you had to hide. You had to pray outside the building, burn candles in private, and keep your mojo hand close but unseen.
Hoodoo was then and still is today, a direct line to our ancestors where no permission is needed. One of the most sacred truths in Hoodoo is that your blood is your passport, your lineage is your authority, and your relationship to the dead is not mediated by any religion, priest, or institution.
The powers that be weren’t just afraid of roots, drums, and candles, they were afraid of US. Because if we could be erased, then the crimes against humanity could be denied.
In an effort to hide their savagery and escape culpability, one of their primary goals was to destroy our ancestral lineage and to strip us of our birthright.
To sever our communion with the dead was to deny our identity. To rip justice from our hands was to silence our voices. To colonize and then attempt to harmonize the very soul of Black people was to dilute the essence and nature of our power. I SAID WTF I SAID!
Hoodoo survived, y’all! She made it from whispered prayers and hideaways to flipping the bird in your face like, “And what?!”

She lived in cooking pots and Grandmama’s greens on Sunday. She endured through backroom baths, hideaways and porch prayers. And now she shows up at Ring Shout conventions, workshops, retreats, and public community gatherings.
She survived in the gifted hands of hairdressers and rootworkers.
She was tucked in the corners of tattered Bibles. And today, she’s alive and well on social media LIVES and virtual classes across the globe.
Today, reclaiming Hoodoo ain’t just a spiritual practice, it’s REPARATIVE JUSTICE! It’s RESISTANCE! It’s REMEMBRANCE! It’s RESTORATION! So every time you light that candle, dress that mojo hand, call your ancestors’ names, you’re part of a sacred, unbroken line of power they tried to erase.
And sweetie pookie doos, don’t let NOBODY shame you out of your roots… NOBODY!
SPELLWORK: Reclaim Your Roots, Reclaim Your Power
Purpose:
To restore ancestral connection, spiritual authority, and ignite the power of Hoodoo in your bloodline—unapologetically.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- A black candle (for ancestral power and protection)
- A red candle (for life-force, fire, and strength)
- Dried herbs: rosemary (remembrance), mugwort (ancestral sight), and bay leaf (power)
- A pinch of graveyard dirt or dirt from your family home (ancestral grounding)
- Small bowl of water (reflective truth and clarity)
- Bible (opened to Psalm 68:1 for ancestral calling)
- Paper and pen
- White cloth
- Optional: Your mojo hand, or make one after this rite
STEP-BY-STEP RITUAL:
1. Prepare Your Altar or Sacred Space
Lay down the white cloth. Place the Bible open, with the candles on either side.
Set your bowl of water in the center and sprinkle your herbs and dirt around it in a circle.
2. Write Your Declaration
On a piece of paper, write:
“I reclaim my ancestral wisdom. I restore the Hoodoo power in my blood. I break the chains of fear, shame, and suppression. I am the living root of my people.”
Fold it toward you (to draw in power) and place it under the bowl of water.
3. Pray and Call In Your People
Speak this aloud (or from the heart):
“Ancestors known and unknown, rootworkers and conjurefolk, those who laid hands, made teas, worked roots, and whispered power through the veil.
I call you forth. I honor your memory. I reclaim what they tried to destroy.
Walk with me. Speak to me. Work through me.
By my blood, I have the right. By your power, I am whole.”
Read Psalm 68:1:
“Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him.”
4. Light the Candles
Light the black candle first, then the red. Say:
“This flame is the light of restoration. This fire burns through suppression. This light is my liberation.”
5. Anoint Yourself
Dip your fingers in the water and touch your forehead, heart, and the soles of your feet.
Say:
“I awaken the memory. I ignite the gift. I walk in my full power.”
6. Let It Burn + Close with Gratitude
Let the candles burn down safely.
Keep the prayer paper and herbs in a white cloth or use it to create a mojo hand. Carry it on your body for 7 days.
Give thanks to your ancestors and spirits with a small offering of food or drink you know they loved.
Final Words from Mama SunFiyahh:
Sweetie pookie doo, don’t let nobody shame you outta your gifts. You carry the medicine. You are the prayer of your ancestors made flesh. Walk like it. Work like it. Burn like it.