How to Use Figural Candles for Magic Spell Success

Figural candles, also called image candles or iconic candles, are like a halfway point between a candle and a so-called Voodoo Doll or poppet. Some people even use the wax candles in place of dolls for certain workings, since they come easily available and already shaped.

Interestingly, I have found that when using figural candles for magic spell casting -- after having prepared them according to the method in Denise Alvarado's Voodoo Doll Book -- they behave differently from other candles. They take on personality, and are uncommonly good for predicting the future outcome of the spell based on the behavior of the wax. Once I did a spell using a figural candle on a person who had been using some other magic of their own. It was a multi-day spellcast, but after a few days the target became aware that I was working on her. The candle on that day exploded, went out, and shot a lump of wax at me that looked like a hand making a particular rude gesture.

Another time I was doing a spell on a girl who was making a lot of trouble for my client. I used a figural candle to represent the troublemaker -- but she kept on making trouble, as her candle would drip with wax uncontrollably, making huge messes all over my altar and room. This was a sign that the girl was going to keep trying to make trouble and "messes" for the client.

hoodoo love doll candle burning with pin

Another interesting eventum with figural candles was while I was doing a breakup spell using a couples candle. One side of the candle -- the female -- was burning up much hotter and more rapidly than the other, so I decided to put it out early and give the other side time to catch up. I snuffed the female candle.... then about 20 or 30 seconds later the candle, on its own, re-ignited. Physically this was probably just the result of the traveling flame trick put to inadvertent use, but magically I took it to represent that the girl was going to be very hard to influence to follow my directions.

Figural candles are some of my favorite candles to use when doing spellcasts for clients because of the abundance of information they can allow.

Here is an example of a candle with a split flame -- since it was part of a breakup magic spell, this could be perceived as a favorable omen. Why? Split flames usually indicate the duplicity or that the subject is being drawn in two directions. Of course, the same thing on a love candle would be a bad sign for these reasons.

Paper-in-Shoe Spells

A popular and very traditional hoodoo spell, often used for any situation where you need to control someone with magic , is the namepaper-in-shoe spell. It's very easy: you write the target's name 3, 7, or 9 times on a paper (depending on intent and who's giving instruction) then fold it up, sometimes after dressing it with oils or powders, then put it in your shoe. This "keeps the person underfoot" or "stomps out the trouble" or any other number of metaphors. I had this work several times over the years. In one instance, I was working for a very unpleasant boss, on a short-term job. It was the last day, and I only had about 3 hours of work left on the project; and I wanted him to up my pay for the day since it almost wasn't worth the trip across town for the amount he was paying me, for only 3 hours. He was very reluctant. So I wrote his name 3 times on a 5-dollar bill he'd given me, and dusted it with Bend Over powder. He paid me what I ...

Ammonia - A Spiritual Cleansing Agent for Magick

Ammonia is a strong cleansing agent in hoodoo magick, both physically and spiritually. In Edwardian times it was advised as an old home remedy for a nerve tonic (see recipe below.) "Household ammonia" or "ammonium hydroxide" is a solution of NH3 in water. Household ammonia ranges in concentration from 5 to 10 weight percent ammonia. The Romans called the ammonium chloride deposits they collected from near the Temple of Amun (Greek Ἄμμων Ammon) in ancient Libya 'sal ammoniacus' (salt of Amun) because of proximity to the nearby temple of Amun, the chief god of ancient Thebes. Salts of ammonia have been known from very early times; thus the term Hammoniacus sal appears in the writings of Pliny, although it is not known whether the term is identical with the more modern sal-ammoniac (ammonium chloride). In the form of sal-ammoniac (nushadir) ammonia was important to the Muslim alchemists as early as the 8th century, first mentioned by the arab chemist...

Spiritual Use of Turpentine in Hoodoo and Witchcraft

I have posted in the past about the use of giving one's bedding a spiritual cleansing from time to time. I recently was laundering my pillows in the same load of laundry as some turpentine-soaked rags, with the result that the pillows emerged from the wash reeking of turpentine. From a magical perspective, this may not be a bad thing. Turpentine is used in old-time hoodoo rituals for purposes such as uncrossing, protection and sometimes as a feed for mojo bags. Its solvent powers and strong odor do indeed suggest a powerful spiritual cleansing agent, and it is still used in some modern day cleaning products on a purely practical level for these same reasons. Old time medicines sometimes included turpentine as a thing to drink, in small doses. A book from the 1850s, The Domestic Medicine Chest , recommends giving it to children in a dose of one teaspoon for killing tapeworm. Relatedly, in old time hoodoo cures for "live things" turpentine might be made into a tea...

The Spellcaster's Source Hoodoo and Voodoo Witchcraft Blog of Talia Felix

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