The Element Encyclopedia of 1000 Spells: A Concise Reference Book for the Magical Arts. Judika Illes
means she was Aphrodite), but Anahita also had a martial aspect, driving a chariot, leading men to war. Therefore she must be Athena, too.
Identification therefore attempts to identify one spirit within another. Syncretism takes this a step further. One spirit wears the mask of another. When one pantheon is outlawed, the only way to continue devotion to now-banned spirits is to pretend that you’re worshipping others. This is precisely what happened to enslaved Africans in the Western hemisphere. Forbidden to practice their own faith, they accommodated it to another. Syncretism permits forbidden spirits to wear acceptable masks. Syncretism also means that acceptable saints are incorporated into magic spells in surprising ways because, in essence, they are fronting for that forbidden someone else. How else can one reconcile the conventional and devout “official ” Saint Anthony of Padua with the witch-doctor persona he displays so powerfully and benevolently in a multitude of magic spells?
Spirits, like magic in general, are fluid in nature. Shape-shifting isn’t hard for them, even without conscious syncretism. Hence India’s Durga is an aspect of Parvati. In a moment of terrible stress, Durga unleashed her alter ego, Kali. All three are aspects of one, but all three are distinct beings, too. Confused? Well, you should be, it is confusing.
The realm of the spirits is like a journey through a dream landscape. Syncretism only increases the confusion.
Because the syncretism of the African slaves was born of desperation, quick, frequently visual identifications were made. Slaves were forbidden to practice their own religions but were permitted Roman Catholic chromolithographs of saints. They scoured them, looking for coded references to the orisha and lwa. Sometimes these identifications really work: Ogun, spirit of iron, was syncretized with the archangel Michael because in his most famous image Michael wields a sword. Yet they genuinely have much in common: both are tireless workers and warriors on behalf of human safety. Michael even has his own associations with iron. Sometimes syncretism is surreal: Chango, that most virile spirit of fire and lightning, is syncretized to the virgin martyr Saint Barbara, because her chromolithograph depicts a lightning bolt.
The first generation to engage in syncretization is conscious of what they’re doing. After that, though, all bets are off. At what point, if any, do these spirits genuinely fuse? Perhaps Saint Peter, syncretized to road-opener Elegba because of his keys, really is Elegba or vice-versa. And if you’re invoking Saint Peter in a magic spell, are you really invoking the saint or Elegba, hiding within, even if, after three generations, the orisha is no longer remembered?
Santeria earned its name, “religion of the saints,” because of syncretism. Those who emphasize Roman Catholic ties prefer to emphasize the saints or perhaps a combination. Those who emphasize African roots prefer to emphasize the orisha or perhaps a combination. Others can no longer separate saint from orisha; true fusion has occurred for them. In Brazil, there have been calls to end syncretism as it is no longer necessary.
Were authorities truly unaware of the slaves’ subterfuge? It’s hard to say. This system of identifying and syncretizing spirits is present whenever one faith demands that another abandon and deny its spirits. Sometimes religious authorities presented syncretism to a population to make the new religion palatable. Hence, Goddess Aine becomes a Fairy Queen. She remains accessible to old devotees in that role, if not in her old one, which was perceived as dangerous to the new religious authority. Celtic spirit Brigid, the Druid’s daughter, becomes identified with Saint Brigid. They merge; where one stops and the other starts becomes very difficult to determine.
Sometimes, however, this process backfires. In the case of Maximon, also known as Brother Simon, missionaries’ attempts to assimilate the Guatemalan spirit Maam with Saint Simon backfired. Maximon, spirit of male primal energy, defied boundaries and took on a life of his own. The Church then attempted to syncretize him with Judas Iscariot or even with the devil. This only enhanced Maximon’s outlaw image, making his devotees love him even more. Although intended to merge, to syncretize, with an “official ” saint, Maximon instead has emerged as a powerful “unofficial ” saint.
Sometimes syncretism occurred so long ago that the original spirit hiding underneath is completely forgotten. The only way to recognize that syncretism may have occurred is the observation that the saint behaves in a strangely un-saint-like manner. This applies particularly to the Big Three of magical Catholic saints, Saint Anthony, Saint George, and John the Baptist. Although perhaps completely forgotten spirits lurk within, many believe that under their respective masks lie Hermes, Baal, and Adonis.
Spell-casting with Words
Working magical practitioners tend to have a loose definition of what constitutes a magic spell. Once one becomes truly involved with magic and spell-casting, every action of the day can become transformed into a magic spell. Scholars of magic, particularly those who study a topic that fascinates them but in which they don’t actually believe, may have more rigid definitions. For many, verbal spells are the strictest definition of what constitutes a spell.
Technically, the use of the word “charm” to indicate a “lucky charm” is a misnomer. Lucky charms are talismans, amulets or magically empowered items. “Charm” derives from the same source as “Carmen” or “carol,” as in a Christmas song, and indeed charm at its most archaic means a song. To be en-chanted literally means to be under the magical influence of a chant. By the strictest, most scholarly definition of a magic spell, every spell should have a verbal component, preferably sung, and perhaps only a verbal component. Certain magical traditions do emphasize this verbal component, particularly traditional Russian magic and modern Pow-Wow. However, this strict definition can only be used in an abstract, theoretical scholarly setting; it doesn’t take into account either the realities of magic or the needs of many spell-casters.
Great, renowned systems of magic, such as those belonging to the Finn and Saami traditions, are under-represented in this book. Their magical systems were traditionally based on each individual practitioner’s unique repertoire of songs and thus cannot be reproduced in book form. Legendary practitioners were able to sing magic into fruition; any practitioner worth his or her salt, for instance, allegedly possessed a song that could stop a wound from bleeding.
This desire to insist upon a verbal component to every spell is very Eurocentric. This emphasis on the magic power of words doesn’t necessarily exist, or at least not to the same extent, in traditions from Asia and Africa. That said, the power of words in magic spells is profound. Words convey power and intent, and can be used to create realities where none existed previously, which is, after all, the goal of many magic spells. Words, sounds, and syllables may possess their own inherent power in the same fashion that minerals and botanicals do. Zora Neale Hurston, the author and scholar/practitioner of magic, on considering the origins of magic and magic spells, suggested that God was the original Hoodoo Doctor, having spoken the world into creation with magic words.
Verbal components, like spiritual petition, may be incorporated into any spell. However, words are tricky and subject to individual taste. The classic is abracadabra: some perceive it as a word of power, others as an old joke. The verbal component of the spell has to suit the spell-caster’s taste, otherwise it can derail the whole spell.
Some tips on spell-casting language:
Repeating the words of a magic spell should never make you feel foolish, stupid, self-conscious, or uncomfortable. Change the words to suit your taste and temperament. It will undoubtedly not be the first or last time they are changed
The majority of the spells in this book are traditional. Not every traditional spell has a verbal component, however where traditional verbal components of spells exist they have been retained. Many spells feature archaic language—language as it’s no longer spoken and perhaps never was. An attempt to enhance magical ambience often means resorting to pseudo-archaic language. Some enjoy throwing “thees,” “thous,” and “forsooths” into spells. This author isn’t among them. In general, except where archaic language was somehow intrinsic to the spell or to conveying its specific character, I’ve used modern language, updating and adjusting