Bottle and container spells have their origins in the African Congo and Europe. Witch bottles, common in Europe, were used for a variety of reasons including healing from illness or injury believed to be caused by bewitchment (Manning 2014). Witch bottles were also used for more nefarious purposes, such as controlling someone, compelling them to a specific action, or to harm. For example, inserting a personal effect such as target’s fingernail clippings or hair in a bottle along with pins and broken glass would cause a sympathetic link to the target, causing them to suffer. In addition, witch bottles were used as apotropaic devices and were buried or concealed in the walls or fireplaces of homes to ward off evil and protect the home and its inhabitants.
The Marie Laveau tradition is filled with workings deployed via bottles, jars and other containers such as cans and fruit. Unlike the European witch bottle that was often deployed for health reasons, bottle spells in southern conjure are mostly deployed in coercive and defensive magick. Bottle spells were reportedly among Marie Laveau’s favorite types of conjure; she’d toss them in the river or bayou, or bury them in strategic locations, including one of New Orleans’ many Cities of the Dead. She is also said to have left them at the doorsteps of enemies, breaking open bottles that contained asafetida, sulfur, and other smelly ingredients on the front porch to force the target to inhale her gris gris. This would create a panic in the person, as these strong smells stay “stuck” in the nose for some time and linger at the stoop. This surreptitious yet clever technique uses a type of magick called “contagious magick” and is a brilliant tactic in magickal psychological warfare.
The smart conjure worker takes advantage of strong symbolism; whether or not a person believes in Voudou, society has conditioned people to fear material objects identified as such. Take the following example of the psychological effects of conjure caused by a vial of personal effects:
The Marie Laveau tradition is filled with workings deployed via bottles, jars and other containers such as cans and fruit. Unlike the European witch bottle that was often deployed for health reasons, bottle spells in southern conjure are mostly deployed in coercive and defensive magick. Bottle spells were reportedly among Marie Laveau’s favorite types of conjure; she’d toss them in the river or bayou, or bury them in strategic locations, including one of New Orleans’ many Cities of the Dead. She is also said to have left them at the doorsteps of enemies, breaking open bottles that contained asafetida, sulfur, and other smelly ingredients on the front porch to force the target to inhale her gris gris. This would create a panic in the person, as these strong smells stay “stuck” in the nose for some time and linger at the stoop. This surreptitious yet clever technique uses a type of magick called “contagious magick” and is a brilliant tactic in magickal psychological warfare.
The smart conjure worker takes advantage of strong symbolism; whether or not a person believes in Voudou, society has conditioned people to fear material objects identified as such. Take the following example of the psychological effects of conjure caused by a vial of personal effects:
The Morgan City Review reports a recent case of voudouism in that place which strikingly illustrates the influence of mind over matter, and the boundless reach of human credulity. The wife of a colored man named Brown had been confined to bed for ten months, suffering during that time excruciating pain. Believing that she was voodooed, her husband began searching for the “charm” and found a small four-ounce vial under the house, directly under the floor where the sick woman lay. Brown uncorked the vial; and it contained some of his wife’s hair, a piece of her skirt, some new pins and needles, and a small quantity of fine earth. On the north side of a willow tree growing in the yard was cut the shape of a coffin, and a tack had been driven at the head, on each side, and at the foot, of the coffin. Brown cut away the mark from the tree and destroyed the vial and its contents. In a few hours his wife was much better, free from pain, and the following morning she got out of bed and says she is about well. For months she had taken medicine, but it gave no relief, and the finding of the bottle and coffin mark had broken the voudou “charm” that had caused her severe suffering for so long a time (Meridional 1885).
Nowadays, sweet jars, sugar jars, honey jars, and vinegar jars are all the rage. In the olden days, the color of the sweetener used matched the race of the target. For example, brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup would be used to represent the hue of the individual’s complexion. White sugar or clear Karo syrup would be used to represent white folks. This color symbolism is a form of sympathetic magick, providing a magickal link to the target by symbolically representing them in some fashion.
Sweet jars are used for any number of conditions in which you wish to have the edge: favorable court case outcomes, drawing a love interest, getting a job. On the other hand, vinegar jars are used to sour a situation, because vinegar is sour. In recent years vinegar jars have been renamed by internet conjure workers and witches as sour jars. As this is not the traditionally used name in New Orleans, I refer to them as my foremothers did, as vinegar jars.
SUGAR JAR TO GET A JOB
The Sacred Heart of Jesus
Sugar and sweet jars aren’t just for attracting love interests. They can be used for any situation or condition in which you wish to draw something near, get a raise, receive a favorable court rendering, get paid time off, and even get a job. This sugar jar is based on a working described by a New Orleans Spiritual worker in Hyatt’s Hoodoo-Conjuration-Witchcraft- Rootwork in the 1930s (Hyatt 1970, 2:950). For this sugar jar you need the following ingredients:
Write your petition paper stating explicitly what you want. If it is a specific position with a specific company, name it. Write down all the benefits and hours you want, and write down personality characteristics of your potential boss. Fold the paper three times toward you. Fill the jar with the powdered sugar, cloves, and allspice, then add your petition. Close the jar and shake it up. Set the jar in front of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and set a white candle on top. Say something like, “Please soften the heart of (name of company or hiring manager), that he or she will offer me my ideal job with benefits and an agreeable supervisor.” Allow the candle to burn down. Repeat this procedure for eight more days, burning a white candle on top of the jar each day, repeating your prayer. On the ninth day, bury the jar under your front porch or in a front garden or yard along with a handful of bird seed.
- Clear mason jar
- Powdered sugar
- Cloves
- Allspice
- Nine white candles
- Image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Paper and pen or pencil
Write your petition paper stating explicitly what you want. If it is a specific position with a specific company, name it. Write down all the benefits and hours you want, and write down personality characteristics of your potential boss. Fold the paper three times toward you. Fill the jar with the powdered sugar, cloves, and allspice, then add your petition. Close the jar and shake it up. Set the jar in front of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and set a white candle on top. Say something like, “Please soften the heart of (name of company or hiring manager), that he or she will offer me my ideal job with benefits and an agreeable supervisor.” Allow the candle to burn down. Repeat this procedure for eight more days, burning a white candle on top of the jar each day, repeating your prayer. On the ninth day, bury the jar under your front porch or in a front garden or yard along with a handful of bird seed.
SWEET JAR TO KEEP A LOVER CLOSE
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This working is an example of a sweet jar to keep a lover close provided by a New Orleans spiritual worker in Hyatt’s Hoodoo-Conjuration-Witchcraft-Rootwork in the 1930s (Hyatt 1970, 2:949). It uses two containers: an apple and a jar. As a sweet jar, it is designed to literally sweeten a person to you—make them agreeable to you, attracted to you, loving toward you, or physically closer to you. This work can also be used to bring two people together in a romantic relationship. This working should begin on a Monday. To make this sweet jar, you need the following:
First, write the name of your target three times, once on three separate lines. Next, turn the paper 90 degrees and write your own name on top of the target’s name three times. Fold the paper three times toward you. Fill your wide-mouth jar with the appropriate sweetener halfway full.
Next, take a large red delicious apple and core it. Place the name paper inside the core, and then add some rock candy. Place the stuffed apple into the jar and fill the remainder of the jar with the sweetener. Leave a space of about an inch from the top. Close the jar.
Set a pink candle on top of the jar and burn it on Monday. Say the Lord’s Prayer and ask God’s power that this individual be kept close with peace, success, and happiness. Allow the candle to burn all the way down. Repeat two more times with pink candles on Wednesday and Friday. Repeat monthly at the full moon until the desired results are achieved. Keep the jar wrapped in red fabric under your bed or in another secure place in the bedroom.
- Wide-mouth jar (the jar you use requires a large, open mouth because you need to fit an apple inside it)
- Red delicious apple
- Karo syrup (the color used is determined by the complexion of the target individuals)
- Rock candy
- Pink candles
- Paper and pen
First, write the name of your target three times, once on three separate lines. Next, turn the paper 90 degrees and write your own name on top of the target’s name three times. Fold the paper three times toward you. Fill your wide-mouth jar with the appropriate sweetener halfway full.
Next, take a large red delicious apple and core it. Place the name paper inside the core, and then add some rock candy. Place the stuffed apple into the jar and fill the remainder of the jar with the sweetener. Leave a space of about an inch from the top. Close the jar.
Set a pink candle on top of the jar and burn it on Monday. Say the Lord’s Prayer and ask God’s power that this individual be kept close with peace, success, and happiness. Allow the candle to burn all the way down. Repeat two more times with pink candles on Wednesday and Friday. Repeat monthly at the full moon until the desired results are achieved. Keep the jar wrapped in red fabric under your bed or in another secure place in the bedroom.
VINEGAR JAR FOR JUSTICE
This vinegar jar is from the same New Orleans spiritual worker as the previous two sweet jars (Hyatt 1970, 2:953). It is designed to separate two people who are together but shouldn’t be and who are going to court. This work is ideal for domestic violence cases where one partner would be better off leaving but has not left yet. It can also be used for a couple seeking a divorce. For this working you will need the following:
Write a name paper similar to the previous work, only this time write their last name first. For example, Lucious Lyon would be Lyon Lucious and Cookie Lyon would be Lyon Cookie. The woman’s name would be on top of the man’s name in this case. In the case of same-sex/other gendered couples, the person who is seeking victory based on righteous retribution would go on top of their partner’s name. Fold the petition away from you three times.
Cut the onion into four quarters, but don’t slice the onion all the way through. Stick the name paper into the onion along with the copper penny. Place the onion in the jar and pour the vinegar—which has been heated to a warm temperature—over the onion. Fill the jar with the warm vinegar, leaving an inch or two of space at the top. Close the jar and shake it up while praying, “If it is the will of God, then by the will of God may justice be served, and may this couple be put asunder.” Keep the jar wrapped in a black cloth in a dark place, like a closet, where it will not be discovered by others. Every day it should be shaken and spoken to until the desired outcome is achieved. Once the issue is resolved, bury the jar in a cemetery.
- Mason jar
- Red onion
- Paper and pen or pencil
- Copper penny
- Vinegar, warmed
Write a name paper similar to the previous work, only this time write their last name first. For example, Lucious Lyon would be Lyon Lucious and Cookie Lyon would be Lyon Cookie. The woman’s name would be on top of the man’s name in this case. In the case of same-sex/other gendered couples, the person who is seeking victory based on righteous retribution would go on top of their partner’s name. Fold the petition away from you three times.
Cut the onion into four quarters, but don’t slice the onion all the way through. Stick the name paper into the onion along with the copper penny. Place the onion in the jar and pour the vinegar—which has been heated to a warm temperature—over the onion. Fill the jar with the warm vinegar, leaving an inch or two of space at the top. Close the jar and shake it up while praying, “If it is the will of God, then by the will of God may justice be served, and may this couple be put asunder.” Keep the jar wrapped in a black cloth in a dark place, like a closet, where it will not be discovered by others. Every day it should be shaken and spoken to until the desired outcome is achieved. Once the issue is resolved, bury the jar in a cemetery.
