Sweeten 'Em Up With a Honey Jar

Sweeteners are used in hoodoo to help "sweeten" someone's disposition to you, make you appear favorable in their eyes and make you attractive to them. The type of sweetener isn't as important as the application thereof. The most common type of spell is either a honey jar spell or a sugar box spell, but rootworkers in the past have even used corn syrup, maple syrup or molasses in their work.

Honey Jar Spells
The typical honey jar spell is a very gentle but effective working to get someone to think favorably toward you. Basically it consists of taking someone's personal concerns, putting them in a honey jar along with any herbs or items to influence what you desire, capping off the jar and then (optionally) burning candles on top of the jar to bring light to the situation.

Finding honey in an actual glass jar with a metal lid is almost impossible now a days. I've found the best solution is to buy the honey in the typical plastic container and transfer it to a glass mason jar for spell work. Below are a few sample honey jar spells for you to try out.

Honey Jar to Attract a Man's Affections
On a Monday, take a strand of your hair, and a strand of hair from the man you want to get, tie them around a Queen Elizabeth Root that has been dressed with Love me Now! Oil (available from http://conjuredoctor.com). As you push the root down into the honey, and you pull your honey soaked finger out, suck the honey off of your finger stating "As this honey is sweet on my tongue, I am always sweet on your mind and your heart!" To the jar add in some rose petals and some Bo' Hog Root. Cap off the jar, praying over it for the man to find you sweet in everything that you do, for him to be stuck by your side, for his passion for you to taste sweet in his mouth and for him to Love you NOW!

Take a red offertory candle (6" tall) dress it with Love me Now! Oil stroking the oil toward you. Melt the butt of the candle a little bit and quickly stick it to the top of the honey jar. Now light the candle and allow it to burn all the way down bringing light (and heat) to your honey jar spell. You can interpret the way the candle burns and the way the wax melts for further signs into your working. Burn 7 red candles total on top of the jar - 1 per day.

After that, you can then burn candles to keep "working that jar" until you have his affections. Once you have him as a lover, you can bury the honey jar in your backyard to keep him in your home.

Honey Jar to Win a Court Case
Obtain either a photo of the judge that will be ruling your case or a business card that he has personally handed to you. On the back of it write the judge's name 7 times. Turn it 90 degrees clockwise and write your name across his 7 times. Around this block of text write "Rule in my favor" in one continual line (never lifting your pen from the paper) forming an unbroken circle around your crossed names. Dress the photo with a 5-spot pattern (like the 5 on the side of a die) with Court Case Oil. Fold the photo in half toward you, turn it 1/4 turn clockwise and fold it in half again, and repeat that action one more time.

Obtain a honey jar, and push the dressed photo (or business card) into the honey. When you withdraw your honey covered finger state "As this honey tastes sweet to me, so shall you find me sweet and rule in my favor!" Add in a piece of Little John to Chew (Court Case Root), some Sage and a pinch of tobacco. Cap off the honey jar and pray hard over it for the judge to rule in your favor. Call out to him, to his spirit, and claim by the righteous name of God that you be vindicated in court and that the judge's gavel will fall in favor of your case.

Dress a brown offertory candle with Court Case Oil and affix it to the top of the honey jar. Allow that to burn all the way down, letting the wax drip all over the jar. Interpret the behavior of the flame and the wax as signs for how your work is going. Burn a total of 7 candles on that jar to start. You can burn more of varying colors to affect the court and the judge as needed.

Saint Expedite

Occasionally in hoodoo, conjurers will call upon the aid of a saint to help them do their work. One of the most popular is Saint Expedite. Saint Expedite is the patron saint of folks who need fast and immediate help for their problems - usually financial in nature. He is depicted as a Roman soldier with a crow under his foot holding a ribbon in its mouth that reads "cras" (Latin for tomorrow). In his hand he holds a cross that reads "hodie" (Latin for today). The symbolism is clear. He gets stuff done TODAY, not tomorrow. He teaches us to let go of the bad habit of proCRAStination and to attend to the things immediately.

Saint Expedite can be called upon for fast results when you desperately need hope. He can only be called upon for positive and constructive magical work: getting money to pay your rent, getting a job quickly, getting assistance when you really need it. Like any good Roman solider, he works for pay, and as part of the deal you make with Saint Expedite, you must IMMEDIATELY pay him his due when you receive your results. The standard payment for his help is a piece of pound cake offered to him on a plate (Sara Lee sells a poundcake that's typically used in this working), along with a glass of water, fresh flowers (they can be from your garden, just make sure they are real) and a typically a red candle as this is his color. You can use a green candle if the nature of your work is financial, but I've always used red. I also like to dress the candle with a little Saint Expedite Oil to add some magical energy to the work.

These offerings are arranged such that the glass of water is on the left, the statue or image of the saint is on the right, and the candle is placed behind and between them (like the tip of a triangle). The pound cake can be left as an offering in front of this arrangement in thanks. I usually leave the pound cake there until the candle has burned itself out. Afterward, the glass from the candle can be recycled and the pound cake and water can be left outside on the ground for the critters to eat.

Tips
Always ask for assistance from Saint Expedite politely, and when you truly need it. Do not ask for frivolous things. And most importantly, ALWAYS give him his due. Never ask him for help unless you are prepared to give him his payment immediately - he works FAST folks! Also, spread the word about him. Like any good working soldier, word-0f-mouth is one of the best ways he can get more contracts. Saint Expedite's saint day is April 19th. A great site to learn more about Saint Expedite is http://saintexpedite.org.

Setting Lights for Magical Goals

Setting lights is actually one of the more recent additions to conjure work and yet is one of the easiest, most reliable and popular forms of working magic. Candle shops can be found all across the south where folks can come in, talk to the rootworker behind the counter and explain what they want to "set a light for" and lickety-split, they are handed a slip of paper to write their intent on, the worker grabs the needed candles off of the shelf and sets it to burn on the spot. This time-honored tradition is so popular because it is convenient and consistent in its results.

The Master Book of Candle Burning

Burning candles for magic really grew into popularity with the publishing of Henry Gamache's book The Master Book of Candle Burning (available from Amazon.com.) In his book, he described using candles alone, or in multiples, along with reading of psalms, burning incense and the use of hoodoo condition oils to work spells for love, money, getting rid of an enemy, protection and more. I still highly recommend this book to give one a good foundation for how creatively candles can be used in conjure.

Light Setting Basics

When setting a light, there are a few things to consider. First, consider what it is you want to accomplish. Certain color candles are used for certain spells. Typical examples include using red candles for love, green candles for money, black candles for cursing, white candles for blessing or protection, pink candles for reconciliation of relationships, etc.

Secondly you need to consider the magnitude of the spell and what your working will consist of. For example, if you are simply needing a little fast luck, then you might want to use a smaller, quicker burning candle to get quicker results. By contrast, if you have a long term goal, like a Secure Finances spell, you would want to use a large jar candle that would burn for a long period of time. If your spell requires you to watch the candle burn, then you wouldn't want a jumbo candle that could take most of the day to burn, you'd want a quick burning smaller option.

Third, think about the kinds of imagery you could incorporate into your candle spell. If you are doing a love spell to attract a mate to you, you could use two separate candles, one for you and one for your perfect mate. You could dress them with Perfect Mate Oil, and slowly over the course of 7 days move the candles closer and closer to one another until they are burning right up against each other, and their wax drippings merge. Or, what if you're doing a spell to shut up an enemy? You could use a black candle with your enemy's name enscribed in the wax with a nail, and dressed with STFU! Oil. Allow the candle to burn half way down then snuff out the candle in a plate of Slippery Elm to shut her mouth.

Figural candles are another fun option in spells. You can get male or female candles, or even couple candles and use them where appropriate. There are also genital shaped candles for love spells, or spells to tie up a man's nature. And there are even cat shaped candles for luck spells! Let your creativity go wild!

Preparing a Candle

It's not simply a matter of grabbing a candle off of the shelf and burning it when it comes to setting lights. The simple and mundane candle needs to be made into something sublime and powerful.

First, make a name paper for your magical intent. Take a 3x3" square of paper and write your magical goal across it either 3, 7, 9, 11 or 13 times (depending on your goal). Then turn your paper 1/4 turn and write your name across it the same number of times - thus making you stand on that goal or dominate it. Anoint the corners of your paper with a Hoodoo Condition Oil that is appropriate for your goal. Then fold the paper in half, turn it 1/4 turn, fold it in half again, and repeat one more time. If you are attracting something, fold the paper TOWARD you. If you are repelling something, fold the paper away from you. Place the paper under the candle holder while the candle burns.

Next, take your candle and inscribe your magical goal in the wax with a nail. For example, on one side of the candle you could write "Money Comes to Me!" and on the other side you would inscribe your full name. Similarly if you were working with multiple candles you could inscribe the names of those they represent on the candles.

Then dress your candle with a Hoodoo Condition Oil that is appropriate for your goal. Put a few drops on your fingers and stroke the oil on the candle TOWARD you to attract things, or AWAY from you to repel things.

Finally, hold the candle in your hands, visualize what you want to happen and pray with great conviction and increasing intensity, what it is that you desire to occur. Push all of that conviction and power into your candle. Place it in the holder on top of the name paper and light it. You have just set a light!

There are many more workings of varying complexities, but I wanted to cover some of the basics. So many folks want to perform these kinds of spells for themselves, but are unwilling to give it a shot. If you are unable to set a light in your own home for whatever reason, or simply want me to do it for you, I also provide a service where I will set a light for your magical goal, dress and prepare the name paper and the candle and watch it burn. I then provide a report of the way the candle burned and interpret its behavior or candle drippings for signs - in the traditional way they've done it in candle shops for years.