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Firstly, I just want to say thank you—truly—for standing beside me, believing in my work, and holding faith in a vision long before it could take form in your hands. Many have come and gone, but you have stayed. Your patience, trust, and steadfast presence have been a deep solace throughout this entire process, and I do not take that lightly.

S…

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I think it’s apt for what I have to share today.

“As many people there are in the world, there is an equal or greater number of religions, because everyone has their own interpretation of the teachings they come across.”

What is “Liturgy”?

In basic, non-Christian terms, a liturgy is like a script for a religious service, the official set of rules for performing a religious ceremony, order of worship, and all processes that make up that infrastructure.

Technically, the word comes from Greek, originally Leitourgia, and according to Nicholas Wolterstorff it can also mean: “In classical Greek the word was used to refer to a service performed by an individual for the benefit of the public, usually at his own expense.[—] Etymologically the word leitourgia comes from two Greek words, leitos and ergon, meaning, respectively, “of the people” and “action.” It meant action for the benefit of the people. A liturgy was a type of public service. [—] In the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament, the word leitourgia was regularly borrowed from its Greek civic use and applied, by metaphorical extension, to the kind of service rendered by the priests in the temple.”1

And when I speak of a ‘personal liturgy’ I mean just that: A personal set of organized rules for which one governs spiritual or religious services for one’s own spirits, prescribed by them, for them, for mutual benefit of the steward and the congregation of spirits that walk with them.

Today I saw a note from Jay Versace here on Substack, and a quote from that piece that struck me is as follows: “constantly thinking about how being a black african American may sometimes feel like ur spiritually homeless w no spiritual identity. religion is nothing more than the deification and glorification of a group of peoples history. meaning deities that represent a specific region or group. [—] the idea of having to fly out to visit the “holy land” makes me never feel grounded in the soil im in.”

For many people descended from forced displacement, diaspora, or mixed heritage, the question of “what tradition do I belong to?” rarely has a simple answer. The threads have often been intentionally cut, tangled, or colonized beyond recognition. Some find themselves with fragments; an ancestor’s plight remembered in a grandmother’s song, a dream that shows symbols no one around them can name. Others collect many threads, each from a different origin, none of which feel whole on their own.

In these cases, one cannot simply return to a singular tradition. Instead, one must build a home within the spirits in their line. This creates a spiritual architecture designed in cooperation with the spirits who walk with them. This is what I mean by a “personal liturgy”: not simply an eclectic collage of inherited rites, (I call that nonsense crazy quilting) but a deliberate, living framework of worship and responsibility, formed through direct relationship with one’s ancestral intelligences directly.

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Revelation is usually dismissed as “subconscious noise” among the practical.

People often distance themselves from the voice of the Divine by believing that everything worthy of revelation has already been written. They convince themselves that prophecy ended when the ink dried on animal skin paper anywhere from 400 to 6000+ years ago. Any fresh insight, any word received in the night or through intuition, vision, or trance, must therefore be a by-product of stress, auto-suggestion, or an overactive mind.

That assumption is both false and spiritually stifling. It mutes communion with the very intelligences our ancestors understood as the living court of spirit. Communication evolves just as we do; evolution never stopped. One of those forms, I would like to highlight is dreams. Hell, even modern research is beginning to catch up with what ancient traditions and esoteric lineages already knew to be the case: the dream state is an active field of communication between human consciousness and the unseen world.

A 2023 multi-national qualitative survey on dreams and the spiritual life reported that participants across diverse cultures frequently described dreams as a genuine source of spiritual instruction and relational contact with the Divine.1 In occult terms, this is the psyche functioning as a temple gate: the perimeter creates a entrance, and beings with their own agency, ethics, and agendas step through.

From an African Diaspora perspective, dream activity is rarely individualistic. It functions as a social and metaphysical network: messages that are received can span subjects for the self as well as for family or community, to correct imbalances or warn of danger.23Dreams can be diagnostic, divinatory, or punitive, carrying notices from Ancestors, Divine entities, and other forces about vows broken, offerings owed, events to come, or paths that need to be taken and/or closed.45Traditional priests, seers, and prophets historically served as interpreters of these dream communications, confirming the messages’ authenticity through oracular means—whether through themselves or a physical tool.6 In this worldview, to disregard such a vision is to disrespect the hierarchy of beings through which order is maintained.

Consider just a few famous Seers whose visions and trance communications helped change the course of Black and global spirituality:

- Mother Leafy Anderson, African American medium and founder within the Black Spiritual churches of New Orleans, whose work with spirit guides and trance became a living system of mediumship, dreamwork, and healing altars.7

- Bishop Charles Harrison Mason, Pentecostal leader whose emphasis on Spirit-baptism normalized prophetic dreams, glossolalia, and visions as signs of a current, not a closed canon.8

- Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita Nsimba, Kongo mystic who, possessed by St. Anthony, received visions that fused Christian symbols with Kongo cosmology and nearly reconfigured an entire kingdom’s spiritual order.910

- Mother Catherine Seals, Spiritualist Mother of the Temple of the Innocent Blood, whose trance, healing rites, and vision of the “Manger” turned New Orleans land into charged ritual territory.1112

They, among many others, only strengthen the point. The Divine did not stop talking; people just came up with reasons to stop listening.

“The spirit you dialed is unavailable to take your call.” - Folks in the world.

Indigenous and Afrocentric theorists describe dreams as “transcendental meetings”—spaces where the human spirit convenes with divine entities, ancestors, and guiding intelligences. In African and diaspora frameworks, the dream body travels, receives instructions, is corrected, blessed, and sometimes marked, returning with assignments that become new doctrines, healing practices, and reforms inside living traditions.

The cost of skepticism

When someone receives a message inside a dream, a ritual, or a crystallized moment of intuition, and then dismisses it as “subconscious gibberish,” they effectively place a muzzle on the mouths of their spirits. The dialogue does not stop; it only slips deeper into the underworld of the psyche, resurfacing as disquiet, misalignment, repeating omens, or creative frustration.13

To re-enter relationship with the Divine is to unlearn that dismissal. Revelation did not cease; people simply agreed to a contract of uninterest, treating older religious or spiritual systems as vaulted sigils that disconnect man from the spiritual realm for the rest of time.

I remember I once heard a Hindu devotee say “As many people there are in the world, there is an equal or greater number of religions, because everyone has their own interpretation of the teachings they come across.” So basically no matter how much one attempts to explain a doctrine, their mind fills in the gaps of what that doctrine is suppose to convey in their specific circumstance and creates something new.

I said all that to say, dreams remain one of the oldest, most democratic mediums of divine speech. Your spirit court may still speak through this language each time you lay down to rest, and provided you have the wherewithal to take their words seriously, record them, and subject them to divinatory confirmation.

Divine communication is dynamic, ongoing, and only silenced when human belief demands finality.

Y’all be blessed,

Lolu

You’re going to have to open your mind on this one, as the place I am taking you in this article, will require a bit of pondering/reflection of past experiences on your part.

Okay, let’s go into the Swamp.

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I straightened my back and said “Sure, I promise I will do that and I will circle back to let you know how it went”. Time passed, the logistics of how I’d do that had not dawned on me just yet, but I’d see him every so often and say “it’s gonna happen, ain’t figured it out yet but it will!”

I then found out he had cancer — and not long thereafter he passed away. He knew his time would be cut short, however, the divination pertaining to his destiny said as much. Didn’t quell the sting of loss found in the hearts of everyone who knew him.

The promise still remained.

Though, this is a painful reminder I can be slow to complete things, as a person with ADHD and OCD I do consider myself a person of my word.

I will lay out what I have found in the many years since that promise was forged, and how I came to truly understand what he meant. I will also impart on you, how this can help you in your spoken works. See, a prayer, is more than something one memorizes and recites without feeling, without conviction. If you truly understand what it is you are saying (Re: Hermeneutics), and you then place repetition behind it, as well as know which parts suit your purpose or convey what you’re trying to accomplish, even the use of one particularly versatile monologue can bless or destroy.

1) The Analysis of what is being said

I want to use Psalm 23 for this example.

In the context of using this prayer to connect with certain Christian-identified ancestors, as well as with those previously enslaved ancestors who utilized the doctrines within the bible to covertly express their ancestral connection.

The first line - The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

If I am speaking to the ancestors who recognize this passage, I am opening this supplication by stating “The Lord (and my ancestors) are in a relationship with me, and so long as I follow the guidance therein (Shepard), I shall be provided for in my needs (Shall not want)” in the context of spiritual work I am already stating that so long as I follow the guidelines of the work provided via specified Divination means (Shepard), the work will follow through (I shall not want).

The Second Line - He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

In context, this can references a few things. One, it can reference rest and resting in the security of the bond set henceforth, and the knowing that your collaborative efforts with your ancestors prepares a space where you can live in peace (lie down in green pastures, not barren wastelands). Secondly, the importance of water in ADTR in general, as a liminal space where birth and death reside as well as a channel for divine connection (ex. baptisms, river initiatory rites, etc). Thirdly, I find this scripture reminds me of the Seeking rite, “maketh me to lie down in green pastures”. As well as the insurance of emotional stability and cool mind (still waters).

The Third line - He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

One could say, in the context using this passage for ancestor veneration, that which restores one’s soul, is the connection to Ancestral wisdom and using that to find one’s spiritual identity. No more are you wandering in the dark. It is the water for the soul that is thirsty, that has lived in lack or gone without. But it also speaks of healing, to restore one’s soul can then bring about physical healing as well. (Ex. “Let the weak say I am strong” Joel 3:10, but that can speak to other things too.) For his namesake, begets a purpose for the prayer. As we know there are many names of God and many names of our Ancestors, if I am working with a particular spirit, and this petition is in their namesake, the path to success (righteousness) will be made plain.

The Fourth line - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

This one reminds me of the post I did called, A time to Heal, because at first thought, it suggests that even in the midst of evil, when I want to do what I want to do, I will not because the Rod and Staff (Divine insight, ancestral guidance) will see to it that I am invoking their protection and am kept out of harm’s way (I will fear no evil). It also acknowledges that in this plight, I may face some tests (the shadow of Death) to see if it is really for my betterment and I accept that in some cases, it may not. I can then rest in the knowing and faith (because faith without works is what?) that I have not strayed from the path through the valley so long as I have remained disciplined and listen to the advice of the spirits who govern the work or life in general (thy rod and thy staff they comfort me).

The fifth line - Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

Sidebar: A little funny tidbit is I remember waking up to oily crosses on my forehead as a kid, when my mother spiritually cleansed the house of malevolent forces, and I know she got that from her mother and grandmother, so I utilize that part to pause and exercise remembrance of traditions both maintained and lost to time within my own family.

This line also reminds me of the fact that our ancestors can, many times, set things up to get the last laugh. He who laughs last, laughs best amiright? I kid, I kid (or do I?) But on a lighter note, its saying with your voice that in this relationship you have outlined so far, above, that in your stewardship, you know that no one can take your place, or see to it that you lose what is divinely set aside for you. To then be anointed, on your head, which holds your mind, soul and spirit, is to be consecrated — this is where in a working you can consecrate yourself, a tool or give to it libations to bring life. The cup running over, speaks of not only abundance, but having more than you need or wanted, because in the end, the ancestors that have your best interests at heart want to see to it that you be cared for in all the ways they had gone without. This line is especially good in terms of utilizing that spiritual relationship to heal from childhood wounds.

The last line - Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

This to my understanding is where personal conviction shows up full force, as SURELY goodness (blessings) and mercy (Grace) shall follow the speaker all the days of their life. This is an affirmation that in all shared in that prayer, the results are assured, sign, sealed and delivered. And to secure that, it ends with the proclamation of dwelling in the house (pact, oath or relationship with the Ancestors) and allowing oneself to truly become one with one’s ancestors taking on a concrete role as an active participant in the betterment of the lineage.

Repetition of what is being said

I’d mentioned in another post why repetition in traditions is important, and I’ll reiterate that here: “In many religious practices, globally, repetition in an act gives it more light, power, and continued thought, which spans time and space, which then impacts the subconscious mind, which exists without physical limitation.” seen in my post “That’s a Low Vibrational Plate”

Many people have recited these prayers, whether you practice Hoodoo, Vodou, Ocha/Ifa or what have you, those words that left the mouths of hundreds of thousands of practitioners across time are woven into those refrains. So couple that inherited repetition, with your own, you’re going to be cooking with gas. And don’t let it be a specific prayer a spirit in your court specifically asked you for — well, now you know how to call that spirit. Neat!

“Did you pray today?” — Young Thug

As I stated before, I was tasked with this promise a long time ago, and my first attempt, I failed. I prayed, made and consecrated a travel shrine to pop up in my hotel rooms, everything, I had the keys to the kingdom. But after 256 long days, I failed.

Why?

Because I realized half that time I was doing it to technically fulfill a promise, but I wasn’t doing it in earnest. Secondly, I had gone through a period of a few months that were absolutely brutal on my mental health due to some disrespect I could not easily get over and stopped. Which is something I should note: When you feel bad, that’s when you need your practice of communion with your ancestors the MOST. Do not fall into the trap of “Oh I feel bad, so I’m not going to bother them with that bad energy hooplah! Go sit down and TALK! Thirdly, I had lost the plot yall. He wanted me to do it to offer me the opportunity he’d experienced when he did it — not as some game or some badge carrying accomplishment. It wasn’t really about the number of days, nor was it something to half-ass recite just to say I hit that day, it was about what is built and realized over a sustained period of time and building the habit long enough to see the changes. When I failed, I realized I could not do it hinging on a promise. He actually never asked me to promise him anything, he just asked me to do it. To try.

And, well, technically I did. However I started back, and I will never go back to praying when ‘technically required’ ever again. Because now, it’s a daily thing— for life. I can’t sleep if I don’t— gots to check in with my peoples. The development I received as a medium after that first attempt alone was unbelievable. The connection I felt to certain prayers, incantations or phrases across languages to serve various spirits from different cultures that once felt strange to my tongue at the beginning became tools that were battle worn and actually invoked them to visit me daily. Yes, it may feel strange at first, and you may find times where it appears to be a chore, but stick with it for a time and the revelations soon come. The magic in repetition doesn’t get the shine it deserves, because that is how to go from picking up a psalm book every once in a while to jug some money out of desperation, versus simply reciting a age-worn verse with your spirits directly (it may not even be a Psalm if we being real) and the need is resolved sans panic or utilizing dubious spells from dubious sources.

Also, this prayer practice will impact your dreams, by the way. Some of these prayers became much like that of a Curandero’s master plant (a plant whose spirit communicated to them how it is to be used, and in many times, can be used in a wide variety of ways), or an old Church Mother’s favorite prayer warrior verse in all times, good or bad. I was even able to use them to distinguish a method of nightly astral communications with my spirits. When I say nightly, I mean every. single. night.

It built a dwelling filled with communion and ease of access to knowledge from the other side, versus a home with a spiritual space I maintained out of duty. There is a difference, believe you me!

A little bit about my prayer selection that you might find interesting, is that my folks requested all daily prayers MUST include a pause to reflect on and share vocally all the blessings of that day or in general. I asked them why one night before bed and had a dream where an old man told me “we have to remind you that there is still much to live for”. Divination cosigned that the next day and added, ‘girl you have OCD, and you ruminate— you need a lil positivity to forcefully break that cycle of thought each and every day’.

May Jay’s request help you, like it helped me.

Rest In peace Awo Irete Yero.

Y’all be blessed,

Lolu

To start, Ignore any typos, I am working off of very little sleep. :D Anywho, it’s been a nice lil minute since I found the time to write— you’ll have to forgive me as I was in the stu’, working on projects for the masses, and also this meme.

Which brings me to today’s topic of soapbox dialogue.

What I like to call “The Hustle Man’s Guide to Spiritual Materialism”.

This post was inspired by an interesting trend we (yesm, you and I, because I knooooow you see it *Yung Joc voice*) have noticed in recent years, which is this curious admixture of religious titles across practices woven into a screen name, think “ManboBokorHoodooTataDibiaObeahman priest of Mami Wata, Nganga, Low Country Conjure, Shango Baptist at your service”, but the only thing being taught is some hodge-podge amalgam of neo-spiritual, pinterest inspired, hoodoo-presenting (yes, presenting, more on that later lmao), superiority complex laden, i-got-whatcha-want-i-got-whatcha-need magic.

Or,

Alternatively, those who ran to “legitimize” themselves as priests in one tradition from abroad their domicile, only to use that title to retroactively suggest their hoodoo or conjure products are more ‘authentic’ than others. Despite, almost never mentioning anything about the practice they found themselves a priest of. But that title comes in handy for the uninitiated, no? Excuse the pun.

Or,

Those that collected initiations like a PokémonGo leaderboard so that they can INSURE they rank higher than you across the board and feel that oh so sweet air of authority in every discussion there is to be had about any spiritual concept.

Before we really get into it, I want to discuss what I mean by Spiritual Materialism, but first, disclaimer:

I know there are a great many people who are tasked with serving ‘many lands’ so to speak, in their spiritual journey, and sometimes, with that comes a multitude of different ceremonial obligations, initiations, et al, due to the admixture of our lineages, and who walks with them. Some folks got a score to settle with a whole lotta spirits, both of blood and of the divine. This post, however, is not about the folks just doing their job(s). It’s about the folks who need the titles to feel important, gain a loyal (cult) following, and sell spiritually void artifacts— not those who need them to literally fulfill their destiny.

Anywho, Spiritual materialism a term popularized by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, a Tibetan Buddhist teacher, in his book "Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism, is the concept of using spiritual practices, beliefs, or experiences to serve ego-driven desires rather than genuine spiritual growth. It often involves using spirituality as a means to gain power, status, validation, or personal satisfaction, rather than engaging in authentic self-transformation or service to others.

I think there is something to be said about all three of those instances and I believe there is room for a bit of empathy for those who were genuinely seeking ‘truth’ and walked many fruitless paths to arrive where they are, but there is also room for a lil’ jokey jokes for those who did it for thinly-veiled motives.

Orisha Franklin and the battle of the Beautiful [Beads]

I talk about this theme with some frequency amongst my friends when it comes to the topic of Hoodoo. So we’re gonna focus on how that looks in this context. We all have seen folks run to various other lands/practices to get a couple rites done, and come back suited and booted, utilizing that new ritual name to its absolute limits as the credibility hitchpost towards their goal of being regarded as Hoodoo savants and merchants of Hoodoo in Gucci flip-flops. As if it’s something to hang a proverbial hat of authority on in that realm. A Tata, Amengansie, Bokor, or Iya does not an instant Hoodoo Conjure Doctor make. You could obtain ‘expertise’ before or after attaining the designation, absolutely. But said designation, and I mean this with utmost respect, makes them a priest of that particular tradition only. The ritual and magical knowledge birthed in that tradition, is relevant to that tradition. There may be a piece of a distant cross-over of concepts but the point stands. Especially, when people seldom talk about the very rich regional expressions of Hoodoo, and how mind-meltingly complex the system can be if you devote time to truly understanding it and all its faces. Heck, me and Emanuel from just did a nearly 4 hour-long live on the topic a week ago, covering JUST the History. For free. And we plan on doing it again, because the good folks deserve to know!

Secondly, in this new frontier of the intersection between the quest for religious atavism, social media and ‘influencing’ the sale of physical goods, we can see the face of Hoodoo look a lot like Orishas, Lwas, beads, ritual names, conveniently obscure phrases, with the odd video about how to make a ‘honey jar’, $3000 how to burn a candle course, a Hoodoo get-together (usually the only Hoodoo present is in the name of the function which reminds me of that Katt Williams scene “Just cause you call him Darren doesn’t mean he belong to Darren” lmao), or a name paper tutorial sitting neatly behind those beautiful things. But it often just comes off as a ‘covering all bases’ tactic to keep the dollars in-house, so to speak. I’ll also wager, that those product placements serve to subtly suggest if you ain’t got it, then you aint got it. Thus the title of this post, lol.

Again, one can practice both, or many, but there is a specific picture of an archetype I’m trying to paint for you here, see the memes I painstakingly made for this article lmao.

Sidenote: I saw a video of someone giving a lady elekes in a barbershop in Atlanta. Y’all…he put them on the FLOOR (correction, barber mat) then tossed them on her forehead in unison. Nary an Orisha pot to be seen or heard from in that entire video. And as many folks found the video funny, all I could feel was sadness; for the lady, for her folks and for the Orisha. Because they were all made a mockery of in that instance and I’m sure that woman was hoping for real guidance in her spiritual path. Alas, no, something she likely thought was special, is circulating the internet in a flurry of anger and jokes— all for a few dollars the man gained from a scam.

Thirdly, we also see folks use priestly titles as a ‘gotcha’ moment when trying to assert themselves in other non-related traditions or traditions they don’t practice. That plainly obvious need to be at the top of the spiritual food chain. Them the kind that be quick to issue threats, so be careful round’ them parts.

If Priest A is speaking on practice-A, why then does Priest B from Practice-B interject on religious secrets/rituals/comings and goings in practice-A posing as an equivalent religious authority when Priest B has made it known they have no involvement is said system? Because they won’t let you live without acknowledging an irrelevant-to-the-practice-in-question title that holds absolutely no water in that system. An ego-bruiser, sure, for those who need it to uphold theirs. And I know this talking point is a touchy one, because folks paid good money to lord their spiritual enlightenment over the folks back home, but it has to be said. Part of respecting all the ATR/ADTRs is knowing when to defer to the folks who actually practice that tradition. Everyone is deserving of the same amount of respect they give others.

A Plot Twist

With Hoodoo’s huge resurgence in terms of popularity and interest, previously Orisha-centric accounts became Hoodoo school houses, almost like…magic? Again, excuse the pun. I’m on a roll. And while we know a lot of it was for the earning potential, I and many of my friends have all agreed that there were a few who skipped over Hoodoo thinking it didn’t have the pomp and circumstance of its contemporaries only to find out that it does. Then the fear of missing out, or also possibly a sense of shame set in over not knowing and the pivot into a Hoodoo-boots-down-the-house rebrand that followed was biblical. However, that priestly identifier is often used as a trigger word to subconsciously suggest credibility in non-relevant practices or as a means to justify extortionate pricing.

Then, naturally, came the invention of Orisha-Hoodoo, yes, that is something that currently exists, for the low low price of, still, thousands of dollars to initiate, and while technically something adjacent to that began in the 80s/90s, it’s not brand new, however it is extremely modern by most ADTR standards. And to be completely fair, I know a lot of the original intention behind that was to create a organized meeting/religious space of acceptance and integration of various practices based on the fact that the lineages are mixed, and they wanted to find common ground without the very real hindrance that language barriers (Spanish, Kreyol, Yoruba, Igbo, Portuguese, Gullah, etc) and xenophobia posed to furthering religio-spiritual education. So they took one for the team and racked up a few high-status coronations abroad and came back and sold a 10 for 1 deal to the community. Nuance aside, I also think a lil part of it is that folks love to give the girls something new to buy. However, with empathy fully seated, the temptation of acquiring a quilted initiation for a fraction of the sum of its parts + English, is a deal too hard to pass up for folks truly trying to make sense of their spiritual identity from folks they can relate to culturally. So, I get it, I really do. It’s hard out here and it is only getting hazier for anyone truly new to the fold.

But seriously, High John the Konkah iddeses? Nzambi mojos? Kathak Ghungroo Hoodoo anklets? The possibilities are truly endless from what I’ve seen.

You’re going to hear a lot of folks say not to mix practices. And that goes double for priests of said practices, they are to remain their own thing entirely. Usually, they leave it at that but there is a reason, it’s not to cramp anyone’s style, or make your life difficult, it’s baseline, about respect, and broadline a sure fire way you’re not offending your OWN ancestors, let alone primordial entities. Because many of us know that due to force proximity during the Transatlantic Slave Trade, many of our ancestors had to just deal the hand they’d been dealt, for others, it was a beef never settled, even in death. For example, one of my friends is crowned in Lucumi, and a Yaya in Palo, and her Palo spirits don’t even want to hear DIALOGUE about Ocha in the room where they reside. They don’t recognize it. I know another who has strong Christian ancestors who ain’t trying to hear nothing about no conjuring. So imagine mixing those practices, ancestors and divinities be damned? Yea…

It’s a detriment to the beauty of each individual practice, and the politics that have always existed within those groups and traditions. It also is funny business to mix a bunch of titles like a grab bag game show host.

An initiation, title or status is not the only signifier to distinguish spiritual legitimacy. Especially not as a lateral authority in conversation about other practices. There are many spiritualists throughout the history of the diaspora who couldn’t even assert themselves as believers of any ATR, under extreme religious scrutiny, let alone proclaim themselves priests of 30 traditions, but were known for their spiritual work and religious contributions all the same. Their reputations for getting shit done did far more than a title could.

Y’all be blessed,

Lolu

Even if it did not come from my hands but was enacted by some force of divine justice, I felt retaliation against perpetrators was required. It was law.

I remember being a little girl sitting in the den of my grandparents' home, and some movie, far too grown for my adolescent understanding, would always be playing on the big back TV. Be it Kasi Lemmon's Eve's Bayou, Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven (my grandfather, much like many men of the generation, was an avid western film fanatic), Frank Darabont's Shawshank Redemption, or one of my personal favorites, Alice Walker's The Color Purple.

I didn't realize it then, but these movies shaped an intrinsic belief in my young mind that the 'righteous' always come out on top, and the 'wicked' pay the price dearly. It may not come quickly, as was the case with Andy Dufresne of Shawshank, nor for Celie of The Color Purple, but it came, and it was viciously unforgiving. Satisfying, even.

However, one movie that genuinely rattled my cage, a phrase I have adopted from a dear loved one who uses it to speak about the intensity of discomfort something can evoke in the soul, was A Time to Kill by John Grisham.

My 8-year-old behind should NOT have been watching that— but if there is one thing childhood neglect can teach you, it is abject horror found in the very real world. For years, that movie haunted me as a reminder that while retribution may come— sometimes much can be lost in the interim or thereafter. So much so that you must ask if the ends justify the means.

If you have not seen A Time to Kill and plan to do so, trigger warning: it is grim.

Now, as a person who walks on the side of the light and the dark, you won't see me arguing against any actions of Mr. Hailey, as, to me, they were wholly justified. Did he "come out on top"? Technically, yes, but not without much litigation and at the hands of someone he did not trust initially. Much time and safety were sacrificed to win, so to speak. While the movie leaves the audience with a sense of justice being "served," it doesn't really expound on what is usually waiting for a black man who kills a Klan member or so much as complains about a murderous crime they have committed. Having been raised with elders who let me know how the real world operates, it both scared and angered me as a wee lil bit of a thing to think, "Could I be harmed for righting a wrong?" and, well, as a practitioner of both magic and spiritual ways of living, the answer I have been given many years later would be simple.

To my spirits and guiding divinities, that answer is a resounding "Yes."

To the old me, that was a swift kick in the chest. What in the entire hell do you mean, ‘yes’? Do you mean to tell me I and my loved ones are supposed to be the mule of the world and just sit there being kicked, prodded, assaulted, and, God forbid, killed? The Devil is a lie.

But it took me much time and a lot of patience to see what they actually meant.

Of course, now I see that The Dead and The Divine can see all that was, is, and ever shall be— across all decisions made and considered. That is 4th or 5th dimensional vision, or the ability to see things across time, all at once, and how those realities can interact with each other. So when they give any answer that we may not want to hear, especially regarding retribution as payment for wrongdoing, we can assume it’s for our own good.

Sidebar: That reminds me of Paul Atreides in Frank Herbert’s Dune, or what I like to call Space Jesus and the Alaskan Bull Worm. Space Jesus could see all possible outcomes of a decision through some divine ancestral sight he inherited from his grandmama nem and had to choose just the right one, or the show was over, and everyone perished to the forces of evil. Groovy.

So, in considering that, one can realize that while our rage feels soothed by the prospect of “The Payback™” (cue, James Brown), the ends that await could mean our jumping from the frying pan into the fire.

In fact, I have a not-so-funny anecdote about that—one my best friend gave me permission to share. She has a homegirl whose first instinct at even the slightest hint of disrespect is to turn to left-handed magic. This friend had a falling out with another friend who, oddly enough, stole her car, so naturally, she put a root on the car (which was still in her name). As a result, the now ex-friend got into an accident and abandoned the car on the side of the road. Feeling pleased with this successful act of retribution, she got the cursed car back. She won, right?

However, she soon had a new problem, she, too, started getting into car accidents. And not just once, but repeatedly. It never occurred to her that in seeking her "get back" against her ex-friend, she had inadvertently cursed her own property in a fit of retaliation. After multiple breakdowns and roadside accidents, she eventually had to get a new car, only to continue getting into accidents to this day. Why? Because she put a curse on something that belonged to her. She cursed herself. The ex-friend got a good scare out of the ordeal but otherwise got off scot-free.

I've heard countless stories of this person’s revenge schemes backfiring in similar ways. In the case of the car, she could have used a particularly forceful domination working to compel the ex-friend to return it if she did not want to get cops involved but I suppose the catharsis of retaliation felt a tad sweeter.

---

Now, I am not saying the ancestors or divinities are pacifists. Not at all; just about every time they have told me to ‘sit this one out’, it is because they have a handle on it, and anything I could do, they can do much better. When that happens, I make my peace mentally and move on; believe me, it is a conscious decision every time. They’re playing quantum-level chess with our lives, and we use rocks to play checkers on a board carved in the dirt. I am saying that sometimes, they tell us to let it go because it isn’t worth what can be lost in the long run. Remember what I said about Space Jesus!

“You don’t have to like it; you may not even agree, but you will listen.” —the ancestral forces, probably.

The second reason:

They do not want us mentally bound or spiritually enslaved by something that is causing us pain. It’s also about having control over your own mind, and self. You need only to make sure you have done what they asked so that any blowback or ‘judgment’ for the situation in question does not fall on you. Contrary to popular memes online, burning the bridge while you stand on it really only works when you have nothing, and I mean, absolutely nothing to lose, and you are fully prepared to meet your maker if it comes down to it. Few people experience that kind of desperation, and it’s nothing to joke about. Revenge or seeking to up the ante in terms of meeting evil with more evil only serves to increase the level of wickedness one is willing to subject oneself to. It is an act that prohibits forward progression, as it is a being whose head is permanently twisted backward (yikes, what a mental image) to be assured that the person they left behind received their comeuppance, sufficiently, that is. Sometimes, that punishment takes a long, long, LONG while to find its owner, and waiting to witness it seems like a punishment within itself, no?

By the way, I am not referencing “3-fold law”— I don’t subscribe to that belief. I am not a Wiccan, nor a Neo-Pagan. I’ve seen plenty of tried and true ATR/ADTR practitioners do some absolutely grisly left-handed work, and not so much as a scratch came back on them after doing so. But in those instances, the work had all ‘t’s crossed and ‘i’s dotted by way of: (1) It was justified, (2) confirmed via divination, (3) the method of work was prescribed by the forces that stood in aid for said work, and in some cases, (4) they were also (including the first 3 rules) hired to do it. Big differences to note there.

Anywho.

So as to say, seeking retribution for every slight— barring extreme circumstances, keeps you bound to the past, unable to progress. It’s like a leash that binds your spirit to a specific point in time, kind of like debt. One feels something is owed to rectify the situation, and if it is not paid in the way and amount that they deem adequate, they cannot move forward. Except, they pay the interest in accruing anger, stress, and despair. Don’t even get me started on the fact that prolonged stress creates disease in the body. And I get it, in a world that constantly disempowers us, when we feel we have the methods to clip their wings in the same way they have done us, many of us may feel it is only fair. But, a code of conduct I learned from an old-timer a long time ago that in serious left-handed works, the following rules apply:

• Evil cannot be guided; it is only unleashed. It does not answer to anyone, nor is it loyal. It will always strike the weakest point. There is no such thing as a ‘little evil’ if you intend to use it; you must accept all that comes with it. This is why many ATRs tell parents to spiritually clean their children FIRST before themselves because all that leaves the parents goes to the child. Malevolent magic/forces do not care.

• You cannot produce good while producing evil; both must be respected as individual processes. Those forces do not mix. They have their own jurisdictions. The effort to cleanse and restore after an act of evil, makes it a long and arduous task.

• Nothing is allowed in so as to form a barricade. Some methods or tools of spiritual cleaning/protection wipe out EVERYTHING, both good and bad. And it stays that way until the work is over.

• Retribution work or retaliation should ideally be reserved for times when your or your loved ones’ lives are threatened, or, when someone has committed irreconcilable harm, but in my opinion, seek divination when this kind of work is considered.

• You don’t know what kind of spirits that person has doing their bidding or encouraging them to behave that way, so know who and what you’re dealing with first. People you perceive as malicious can still be formidable forces magically. Not every person with spiritual gifts is a decent person; don’t be fooled by that line of thinking.

Like the young woman in the anecdote I shared above, there is always more to be seen after that act of revenge, spiritually speaking, is delivered. Who’s to say her ancestors even wanted her to do what she’d done? My money would be on ‘no,’ but hindsight informed that bet (and the sheer ludicrousness of hexing a car that she wanted back in her possession, but that is neither here nor there). More trouble may be around the corner if all angles have not been considered beforehand. Like Mr.Hailey, we all got the feel-good moment of his vindication, but that movie was just that— a movie. Real life tells a different story of what end he might have met when everyone left the courthouse.

There is more that can be done instead of turning to magical acts of revenge. There are defensive works that achieve similar results and keep us out of harm’s way. For example, I personally always try to stop and take a look at a situation to see what the real intent is behind someone’s desire for retaliation. Let’s look at a few scenarios:

• Do they want revenge because someone stole something, or do they simply want the money/item back? (they also want to punish them for the audacity, but eh…leave it) Practical Solution: Do domination works to get them to return it, or if divination says that money/item is long gone, do prosperity work to bring more money than was lost via other pathways. The person who stole will get far more than they bargained for; believe me, I speak from personal experience, lol.

• Do they want revenge because someone hurt them emotionally, or do they want an apology and the other party to see the error of their ways? Practical Solution: Do remorse works to allow the other party the space to see what they have done wrong, and the guilt will do the rest. Hell, leave them to stew in it. Move on.

• Do they want revenge because someone spoke ill of them or gave them a hard time, or do they want the other party to just leave them alone? First, they must clean spiritually for any incurred intentional/unintentional juju. Do tranquilizing works to tranquilize their mouths, words, and the will to commit any harmful action. Also, ‘cool down’ a heated situation and/or drain that person of the energy needed to be hateful/weird. I’ve seen these works actually remove the person in question via non-violent pathways. (Ex. A rude coworker finds a different job elsewhere and leaves.) Sidenote, gotta be careful with work that “drains,” however, as it can be overdone and be made a “turnin’ work,” which then makes it baneful.

These are only a few ways to transmute the need for retribution into something practical and avoid allowing that anger to consume you. It’s easy in a world like ours to be angered by everything; knowing when and how to react is like using an exceptionally sharp blade; you have to be precise, or you could cut yourself.

I remember a conversation I had a long time ago with an old-timer about the art of keeping a cool head. They remarked that I shouldn’t dye my hair red anymore. Naturally, I was indignant—what of it? Having been criticized for my eccentric style since childhood, I could feel my blood pressure rising.

“Be cool, mama,” they chuckled. “It’s a color of passion, of rage. You should avoid rage. You shouldn’t wear red or black as much as you do—though it does look nice on you.” They sat there, looking ahead, amusement sunk into the wrinkles of their face. It was a beautiful spring day, there was calm rustling in the leaves of the trees that shaded the porch where we sat.

I was deflated. They could see right through me. Especially since, earlier that week—the same night I dyed it—I’d had a dream. In it, a mess of old hands held me underwater, forcefully washing the color from my hair.

“That’s just my style. I love the color.” I did. Dark red was, and still is, one of my favorites.

“That’s how I know your anger is somethin’ else. Though you try not to show it, your peoples are showin’ me. I can see that.”

When I was growing up, I was made to bottle the feelings of anger, the kind created from disrespect. So as a newly minted adult, I pushed back. I wasn’t interested in being cool about shit. If you wronged me, despite my efforts to always do right by people, you were going to have to see me. But they were right, and I was ill-prepared for this impromptu read from my ancestors through them.

“I try my best.” I wanted to defend whatever it was my folks were saying, but I didn’t have the words. What I did have was rage. They were right about that. I wasn’t quick-tempered by any stretch, but when the last straw finally broke the camel’s back, my anger was something else.

“Give that up. Heal it. Anger only seeks to kill you. Fast or slow—it’ll do it.”

Easy for them to say, I thought. Older folks swear they have all the answers. Give that up. Heal it. Just like that huh? ‘I’m cured,’ I wish I could have said, but I was raised with manners.

“Not everything is worth a response,” they continued.

That afternoon, I received more mediumship advice—words I still try to live by to this day.

“Sometimes, when you’re faced with decisions; when something tempts you to act in ways unnatural to your path, your values, your true spirit…when you feel pulled down to that level… that right there is the power and persuasion of negative spirits at work. You must then decide: will you allow them to keep whispering their will into your ear? Give that up. Don’t give them an inch.”

I don’t know about you, but that spooked the ever-living shit out of me when I first considered the implications. That day, I finally understood the meaning of “The Devil is a lie!” Because hell naw, you not about to coax me out of character so I can be Donkey of the Day or, God forbid, a cautionary tale of when “Keeping it real goes wrong.” No ma’am, no ham, no turkey! I will not be apart of a game designed to see who will lose more.

My usual caveat: Of course, sometimes your ancestors do want you to complete a work against the perpetrator in question, and that’s between you and them, and also not what I’m talking about. What I’m talking about is the intrinsic need for bad things to never go unpunished, sans advice from the divine forces. And why they might actually be against retaliative works in certain circumstances— something worse may be around the corner, waiting for you to knock over that first domino to really get the hellish party started.

This is how those older practitioners maintain a cool temper. Giving that need for vengeance up to the forces. Knowing when and how to react delivers precision and removes guessing games.

It’s freedom, in a way. Despite, at times, feeling much like bondage.

It is frustrating, sure, but sometimes it’s literally to keep us moving forward so we won’t be led off the path or bound to the past. And if all else fails to calm you, cry! Cry to your ancestors, vent, lose it - go for broke and tell on them folk who did you bad. Your tears and earnest feelings about the thing could move things brute strength cannot. You may not see the outcome, but I’ll tell you what my folks told me sometimes: “Their consequence is of no importance to your growth.”

Proceed in life and leave that mess behind.

Y’all be blessed,

-Lolu

That subtitle was a mouthful wa’nit? lol.

Apologies in advance if this essay is a lil on the lengthy side. It couldn’t be helped.

Today, I want to discuss divination and its often overlooked or outright refuted foundational utility in Black Culture. We’re taking a break from social critique, but fret not, my concrete soapbox will be back on occasion.

What about it?

Divination is often superficially regarded as baseless games of chance or fanatical superstition. A great many of the old anthropological research efforts written to account for divination systems in a global sense, but especially in the context of African/African Diaspora divination systems, are/were written by agnostic researchers seeking the study of religious systems to purport these functions as un-objective evidence to the illegitimacy of the Christian Church.

Philip M. Peek of African Divination Systems cites from Nuer Religion by Anthropologist EE. Evans-Pritchard that “Most anthropologists were raised in strongly religious homes, but as adults they became atheists or agnostics for whom religion was an illusion( Evans-Pritchard 1965:15) Why then would they study religion?

They sought, and found in primitive religions a weapon which could, they thought, be used with deadly effect against Christianity. If primitive religion could be explained away as an intellectual aberration, as a mirage induced by emotional stress, or its social function, it was implied that the higher religions could be discredited and disposed of in the same way. (Evans-Pritchard 1967:15)”1

So we start right out of the gate with— color us surprised— personal bias-informed, institutionally-supported research by academics who supposedly only wanted objective, fact-based accounts of these systems and their functions within their work. We see that to this day; We can’t escape YouTube thumbnails of “investigative journalists” with a camera and a t-shirt microphone, documenting the religious or magic-using faction of a tribe or homogenized society in a distant land (that they freely traveled to, with sustained disdain masked as skepticism, might I add), with which their pretentious derision drips throughout the exposé (okay, I lied, put your clothes back on, there will be some social critique). Unfortunately, this cultural insensitivity is the case much of the time; however, in their academically-funded crusade against their upbringing (because let’s keep it a buck here and call it what it is — Evans-Pritchard did), they failed to recognize (or more so intentionally rejected) the way divination has played a part in the development and social structure of the world as we know it. Divination informs familial, societal, and cultural structure in ways easily overlooked due to connotative meaning. I want to focus on its impact, support, and influence on the Black community.

And…well, how it has kept us alive.

Let’s talk about some key elements that substantiate the point before we get to it.

Read more

One thing I will never not find absolutely hilarious was the ‘low vibrational plate’ era on social media. In fact, I periodically burst into fits of laughter while writing this post. As ludicrous as the concept of a ‘low vibrational plate’ or ‘hood rat plate’ sounded then, to the black collective, to shame someone for eating a plate of barbeque wings, grilled burgers, shrimp, and corn on the cob, the same can be said about how ludicrous it sounds to dictate which foods one’s spiritual court are allowed to enjoy.

I have heard all manner of “I’m eating [xyz diet], so therefore my ancestors will get what I give them. They don’t need that low-vibrational food anyway - we are free now!”

Setting the extreme condescension and incalculable anti-blackness aside, the same folks espousing that logic are often the same ones running to their cards (or from one religion to another) asking for clarification on why their petitions have fallen short, or in some cases go unanswered completely. While I have seen a few cases of people who have been able to finagle a compromise with their ancestors (people who don’t give alcohol in offering to maintain integrity in their sobriety journey, for example), for the most part, denying ancestral forces their food preferences is strange behavior.

What a shame to be ashamed of the ancestors who have our backs, regardless.

I have devised a few equations for this:

Ancestors + what they asked for = You getting what you asked for, realistically speaking.

Ancestors + What they did not ask for = You getting what you did not ask for.

Ancestors + the gall to dictate to them what they will or will not get for something as simple as a plate of food they specifically requested = Tricky circumstances.

Ancestors + Ignoring their requests ≠ A strong relationship or mutual assistance.

I would even go so far as to say one should reevaluate if this practice is suited for them if they start it out in strong opposition of the simplest aspects.

We can investigate how this aspect of spiritual bypassing works against effective ancestral veneration and building the lives we seek to improve and secure.

"Why is the type of food important if they can't actually eat it?"

I will answer that with another few questions for my hoodoo practitioners who may be reading: Did not Isaac offer a lamb to God? Secondly, did not the God of the Christian bible request a male goat in sacrifice for Passover? Of what use is a lamb to a God who owns everything? Why a goat specifically?

To be fair, the intent behind the food offering is just as important as the food itself, re: Cain and Abel, but we can get into that another day.

Anyway, let's get into various reasons why.

First, what does food mean to the living?

What does the act of breaking bread with someone symbolize intrinsically for us? It is a means of connection, hospitality, bonding, and setting aside a part of one's day to enjoy a home-cooked meal that nourishes the body in many ways. For many people, the only time they see their extended family communally is through a shared meal at an event such as a birthday, baby shower (Hello, baby shower meatballs and freshly starched Burberry short set!), holiday, family reunion, or funeral. Hell, even in business, partners forged and cemented agreements over a mid-afternoon lunch or end-of-day dinner engagement. Food and what it means is essential to us collectively; take, for instance, the following photo; what does it mean to you, and where would you typically see these foods?

Keep that meaning in mind— I want to explain a few collective meanings of each food depicted here, why they have been assigned those meanings, and what that created as a result.

1. Cornbread, for many, represents gold and prosperity as corn kernels, previously, have represented gold coins.

2. Pork has represented progression and good fortune.

3. Black eyed peas represent coins, good luck, resilience, and the community's resourcefulness in hard times.

4. Greens represent financial wealth, such as in the fact that they are like "folded dollar bills," but for many, they also represent the blessing of good health, given the widely touted health benefits of pot liquor.

Fun fact: On the first day, many don't eat seafood such as lobsters, crab, or shrimp because they don't want to eat things that 'move backward' or walk sideways since they want to progress or move forward into the year.

Metaphysical meanings aside, we must also acknowledge the origin of this meal which dates back to Watch night, The National museum of African American History and Culture writes, ” The Watch Night service typically begins around 7pm on December 31 and lasts through midnight, as faith leaders guide congregants in praise and worship. Many congregants across the nation bow in prayer minutes before the midnight hour as they sing out “Watchman, watchman please tell me the hour of the night.” In return the minister replies “it is three minutes to midnight”; “it is one minute before the new year”; and “it is now midnight, freedom has come,” to bless their transition into the new year. — The occasion is customarily marked by celebrations of fellowship and a worship service, followed by a fortuitous meal on New Year’s Day. Celebratory foods include a diverse collection of culinary traditions that can be traced back to Southern superstition, influenced by beliefs across West Africa. Chief among these foodways is the practice of eating collard greens, representing the promise of prosperity, and eating black-eyed peas with rice, also known as Hoppin’ John. Traditionally, Hoppin’ John consists of black-eyed peas, rice, red peppers, and salt pork, and it is believed to bring good fortune to those who eat it.”1 Additionally, Alexandra Foster of the Food Network writes, “Indeed, historically, black-eyed peas were seen as a throwaway food for enslaved people and livestock. The crop was brought by enslaved Africans in the 1600s as they were transported to the Americas. West Africans have long considered black-eyed peas a good luck charm that warded off evil spirits, and they are often served on holidays and birthdays.” 2

“Well, pork was a throwaway food that slave owners didn’t want to eat and neither is it a staple food in West Africa, so why should we eat it?” is an argument I have heard in various online circles as well.

First, I feel it is important to clarify that pork is not a staple food in the Muslim population of West Africa. Considering Islam was practiced pre-slave trade (dates back to 800 C.E.) as well as the role of The Nation of Islam within the black community, which played a significant role in civil rights efforts, , as well as the Rastafari I-tal belief system that prohibits pork and shellfish (dietary laws outlined in the Book of Leviticus) you will find a great many black people across the diaspora who do not eat pork as a result. Pigs, however, have been an offering in rituals regarding the dead (including funerals) both in the Diaspora and in some ethnic groups native to continental West Africa, such as the Arada and Nago-Yoruba people. Hell, the Voodoo ceremony at Bois Caiman on August 14, 1791, that began the Haitian Revolution, saw a black pig sacrificed, and with its blood, a commitment to freedom was signed, sealed, and delivered.

Additionally, about 20% of enslaved Africans were brought from the Bight of Benin Region and were transported to the United States, Brazil, and Haiti, and with them brought an cultural appreciation for pigs, “Regarding ancestral practices, the pig, in particular the local breed, has great importance in tradition in Benin. Thus, pig breeding in Benin is not only intended to produce to feed the population but also for homage to the dead through funeral ceremonies, and to deities through offerings and libation sacrifices as a worship in Southern Benin. These results confirmed those observed in Cameroon, more precisely in High Relief of Western where the pig plays a predominant social role in the tradition [17]. The authors reported also that pigs were used for offering to deities through funerals and various social events such as nuptials and baptisms. In Congo Brazzaville, pigs had long been used as an exchange for men between the Beembe and other ethnic groups including Kaamba, Doondo, and Suundi, but also more and more among the Beembe themselves, with other uses later [18]. The same author reported that the pig was currently included in matrimonial compensations, conflict settlements, funeral meals, and religious rituals. In Benin, the use of pigs in traditional ceremonies has already been mentioned by Djimènou et al. [19] in the Southern region. For certain ethnic groups in Southern and central Benin, the pig was considered a sacred animal, a god worshipped by a certain fringe of the population.” 3

With the forced cultural immersion and admixture of that time that created the creolization of the African Diaspora as we know it today, it is safe to say many descendants of enslaved African peoples may have an ancestor or two who dig on swine (and very likely some who do not, but that is for the ancestors in question to determine). I should also note that there are many things the ancestral forces can and will eat that we personally will not (or can’t) eat. My folks like oranges, but I can’t eat them— but I still purchase them when they ask for it.

Back to the point.

These New Year foods specifically were seen as guaranteed sustenance because they traveled well, re: Great Migration, and they brought with them comfort and flavors that reminded the people of “home,” allowing the traditions/memories of the past and symbols of black resilience to come with them when they moved to a new place. This repetition, in turn, created an easily recognized tradition for both the living and the dead. Such is the case for many cultures with traditional foods to mark a special occasion.

What is a tradition?

Sociologists say that three things are necessary to make something a tradition:

• A large group of people participating in the activity

• The activity being passed from one generation to another,

• And honor, respect, or acknowledgment of the past.

The foundation of many African Diaspora religious traditions is in following the protocols set forth by our ancestors because not only does it show respect to those who came before us, but it also respects the requests of the spirits in the specific way they requested to be venerated, and is the most effective in terms of receiving a response.

Giving your ancestors the food they asked for, in straightforward terms, is showing respect. Just as you would not want to be disrespected for your faith or spiritual beliefs, do not, in turn, disrespect their requests and the preferences they developed as a result of their upbringing.

I know when I am made an ancestor, my holiday plate bet not lack a fried catfish sandwich, fried hard, or there will be hell to pay! I kid, I kid or do I.

A collective meaning.

This is a term I’ve been developing in my mind, theoretically, for a while. My personal definition is that collective meanings derive from traditions or perpetuated beliefs that have been repeated and venerated in one form or another and are then imprinted into the collective consciousness of that community or family lineage as symbols for that meaning; which is why even if you have never physically heard of a specific concept or symbol and it’s meaning before, it can pop up in your spiritual investigations, dreams, divination. An example would be dream meanings; in my studies, they appear to be specific to communities and are thus made egregores in their own right, making appearances when their purpose is necessary or marked as an omen. An example of this is the black community’s understanding of dreaming about fish. This almost universally signifies pregnancy to us, so collectively, if the ancestral forces would like to impart a message about someone being pregnant, they may deliver an astral message vis-à-vis in the dreamscape. This doesn’t mean fish can’t mean something different to you and your family specifically, but in terms of collective meaning and understanding, it is widely respected as a general meaning. More on this later. (Can you tell I have a lot to say by how often I say that lol.)

What about repetition?

In many religious practices, globally, repetition in an act gives it more light, power, and continued thought, which spans time and space, which then impacts the subconscious mind, which exists without physical limitation. The subconscious mind, in my opinion from studying the New Thought Movement of the early 19th century (though the central point of this phenomenon can be traced to the inception of the majority of known religious practices), is the place where you can effectively communicate with the source of creation, i.e., God, and by extension, your ancestors, such as through all the clair-cognitive senses, or astral travel.

With this basic understanding of repetition, coupled with a few common meanings of the aforementioned foods, we can reasonably draw the conclusion that:

The act of giving the ancestral forces the food they ask for, which they have recognized, traditionally eaten while living (no matter the circumstance or time period), and maintained through multiple generations as a call back to memory, events, or comfort, serves a specific purpose identified in the meaning of each food, such as the process of doing any kind of spiritual work.

Lord, am I making even a lick of sense here?

In practice, let’s say they request a bowl of greens with pork as payment for a petition you made about needing to improve your finances because, to them, that food offering holds the energetic properties and meaning towards manifesting that specific goal in your physical reality. Now, I don’t eat pork myself (it is a taboo for me, though I was previously known to get down on a pork chop sammich with a piece of white bread and hot sauce), but you can bet your last dolla that I will be divvying up a bowl of greens with a ham hock when they ask for it if it means my ass ain’t living on the street!

The spiritual or energetic meaning, such as the meaning of the color of a candle, or the meaning behind giving water instead of alcohol, cannot be discounted here. It is not a haphazard choice. Everything they do, ultimately means something.

Take Buddhism for example, Buddhists give oranges on the shrine of Buddha, why? Because the color represents Buddha Ratnasambhava, who represents the wisdom of equality and equanimity. It also represents spiritual enlightenment, illumination or the highest state of perfection, purity, prosperity, renunciation of the outside world (for Tibetan monks), and the orange tree itself represents a spiritual concept in Tibetan Buddhism, known as Maitreya, who represents the alleviation of conflicting emotions. All of this meaning belongs to the simple orange fruit in their tradition, well, also the color, but still!

And our foods, no matter what respectability politics people have assigned to them, have significant meaning in our collective and individual tradition(s).

More common examples found amongst ATR/ADTR practices:

• Hot peppers and/or extremely spicy food given to heat up a spirit (who requested it, mind you, don’t go giving hot peppers to a spirit who doesn’t like hot things) to do ‘hot’ workings that require more force.

• Cool water given to ‘cool’ a spirit down or foster clarity, depending on the form given, to the recipient or the spirit that is caught in confusion or the messages are obscured.

• Sweet herbs, candy, syrups or specially prepared treats given to sweeten a spirit or give them the food needed to bring sweetness to a situation.

• Specified preparations identified to serve a purpose, for example, let’s say hypothetically, one of your folks asks for a cup of coffee to be put to them when you are to complete divination because this gives them energy, then you will put it. Or, alternatively, they ask for a slice of cake, some sweet tea and a piece of hard candy on Sundays to represent rest and peaceful times for the week, that’s what they need to do that for you — so you do it.

• Watermelons, or melons in general, have commonly been associated with water/agriculture related spirits. Watermelons are a symbol of fertility, industriousness, resilience, financial abundance, prosperity, harvest, and much more, but bigotry both internal and external would have many shy away from this perfectly normal (and delicious!) fruit for fear of being maligned.

Each spirit has their tools, rules, protocols and sustenance to manifest the way they see fit. I wrote this piece, in part because the concept of ‘low vibrational’ food is funny to me in a sardonic way, but also because I wanted to clearly illustrate why using this pejorative rhetoric, in the same conversation of service to ancestral forces, is counter-intuitive (and in many ways a form of self-sabotage on the basis of a false sense of moral high ground), to creating a strong and reliable relationship. That kind of thinking is not founded in any kind of logic. Yes, I know spirituality can appear outside the realm of materialistic logic, but the history of why we do what we do is there. Just because one might change the verbiage to something more ‘woowoo’ doesn’t make it any-less rooted in white supremacy.

The ancestors are not ‘low-vibrational’ for requesting pork, chitlins, or any other food they have come to enjoy or recognize as useful, just because it gets a racially charged bad rep, or inherited resentment.

They are dead, they died for us, and at that point, they deserve what they asked for— barring the tricky, negative or afflicted spirits (another convo for another day, I know y’all tired of hearing that lmao), just give them the food they asked for.

Y’all be blessed,

-Lolu

Okay, let’s be honest. I have been a quiet onlooker online for millennia, but I’ve always wanted to discuss something fairly pressing with y’all.

Walk with me.

Many forums showcasing spiritual and religious traditions created and maintained by the Black/African Diaspora have been perverted with a painfully ironic spirit of exploitation. A spirit born well before 2025, but we will get to that.

And I have noticed, over a reasonably prolific time on the internet and within this previously niche community, that the consequences that follow a career of seemingly untouchable hubris have always been extreme. Why? Find out on today’s episode of “Checks the ass can’t cash”.

But first, let me explain:

To preface - this post is not about black spiritualists or black-owned spiritual shops as a whole. This concerns the growing phenomena I and others have seen in recent years.

I am referencing the businesses that sell exorbitantly priced candles, oils, beads, spells, a hope, and a dream at prohibitive costs to the ordinary person with monthly responsibilities, kids, or relentless earthly foils. Those folks that answer earnest requests for knowledge in their comment sections with non sequitur advertisements of products and “iykyk” or desperate pleas for help with “nothing in life is free!” I mean the businesses that posture their chosen path of ATR/ADTR as uniquely better than the next. (Sidebar: It makes me chuckle to think the ancestors are continuing the diaspora war on the other side. I mean, they could be, who knows, but they put that shit to the side when work needs to be done. I know that.) And lastly, folks who harness legitimate abilities to exploit and harm others.

These brands are taking pages out of the classic televangelist playbook:

• My Deities are better and more powerful than any other.

• My ancestors/entities/spirit will hurt you if you even so much as piss me off.

• I have the key to save you from everything, including yourself because you don’t know what I know, nor will I teach you.

• I will perform acts of miracle in your life for a cost no less than a house down payment. Broke folks need not inquire.

This concern is typically written off by statements such as “Well, spiritualists deserve to be paid for their labor,” and I would agree at face value. Absolutely everyone should be given adequate compensation for the work that they do. Hell, I’ve met people who have taboos against working for free for a good reason. But I think these discussions have been halted at face value too often, which allows abusers of the black spiritual sphere to abuse them further because, in most situations, pushing back against that perfectly legitimate qualifier sounds absurd. But I am an absurdist, and it needs to be discussed. So, get comfortable because this is a long one, and let us press forward.

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So this is my first newsletter here on Substack! Here we go.

Let me preface this by saying it was an extreme blessing to have my work received by the black spiritual community the way it had been over the last 6 years. Now, Akamara Tarot is not a household name amongst black spiritualists by any stretch. Still, I did cultivate a community that, by my estimation, was large and keenly aware of what I was doing. That, in itself, was a feat I never dreamed of being capable of. Hell, they are the reason I didn't hang this shit up a long time ago. However, I considered giving up a time or two — a decision they brought me back from even when I had not publicly expressed it.

Now, I wanted to dig into why I have a bit of a reputation for disappearing acts.

First, I never set out to be the Black Llewellyn Worldwide or US Games. I made a joke, ONE TIME, years ago, about being the Black Doreen Virtue. Singularly, because I made and had many ideas for deck creation, not the part about siphoning money from the spiritual community only to turn around and denounce my work and anyone else who uses it as devil worship—side eye.

Let’s start with the first reason:

I am beholden to my principles. To an annoying fault.

It isn't lost on me how pretentious it may sound to say, "I create for the ancestors and their purposes." *Tucks bangs behind my ear* Believe me, if you knew me personally, I have a strong disdain for spiritual bypassing and virtue-signaling jargon. However, if you knew me personally, you would also know I've gone through hell and high water with these humorless spirits I call 'my folks' and just how militant they can be about 'their purposes'. These tools are theirs y'all. They give me the requirements and I fulfill them in order to create something for the collective black ancestry. I report to them about every change or artistic choice I make. I'm not getting regulated on by them in a ploy to stay ‘relevant’. (Alexa, play 'Regulate by Warren G') Funny story, the first deck for this brand, Akamara, I never intended to offer to the public. I thought the idea they gave me was just something I should create for myself, like other decks I’d made for my own use previously. How selfish that would have been looking back.

But back to my main point, the last time I took some business advice on what I 'need to do for my business,' I ended up with $60,000 in the hole, getting my bank account raided for $300-$800 a day to pay it back. All because I decided to try to heed advice to make this a big business rather than keep it an obligation to spirit that ebbs and flows. The constant unwarranted opinions made me feel foolish for wanting to remain a small fries operation. Like my dream was not big enough to fulfill the potential other’s thought I had. A principle (the small fries operation part) that at the beginning that worked very well, until I started receiving a lot of criticism for not carrying every item I’ve ever made all at once. Well I tried it, hated it, and almost lost everything I had worked for as a result. Contrary to popular belief, fulfilling 1000 orders, alone, was extremely difficult when I design the cards, edit the cards, pack the cards, ship the cards, and do the business-y things (emails with customers and manufacturers, invoices for vendors, accounting, marketing, etc) solo. When I was sobbing, apologizing to these spirits for being a dunce-hat-wearing clown, they dropped every cent I owed in my lap to pay that bold red bill off in one swift, embarrassment-laden payment. As if to say “bet you won’t do that shit again huh?” chuckling as they receded into the shadows. That was a blow I did not easily shake off.

You see how I played myself doing some shit my folks didn't explicitly ask me to do?

Yea. Couldn’t be me— again.

Second Reason:

Money.

Money has never been a bargaining chip for me to stick around if I am not feeling it. Money, currency, and financial wealth are gifts from an entity that takes offerings in the suffering of the living. Somebody or something somewhere died, cried or lied for it. I know that's wild to hear, considering my decks weren't cheap, and we live in a fugue constantly bombarding us with the need to keep purchasing oils, candles, and "work." If my 'following' takes a dip because I'm not pumping out cash-grab products in the long interims between legitimate strokes of divine insight in an attempt to keep the attention of folks who would otherwise leave, then that's how it has to be. It filters out what shouldn’t be there in the first place. That’s why my Instagram has been private for years. Folks who hate-watched, inspiration farmed, or otherwise stuck around for some nefarious reason got what they needed for their next project, felt triumphant at my silence, or simply got bored and left. Aside from that, folks know a cash-grab or non-original product when they see one, especially in this realm.

The funny thing is that my decks, despite how expensive they seemed to be, had razor-thin margins (paper is mad expensive, btw), so when it was all said and done - I made nothing. I would have been okay with that if I had not gone into the aforementioned debt. It wasn't uncommon for me to give them away for free to those who did not and likely would not have the means to afford a $55-$125 deck. Money shouldn't be a barrier to entry - but money, and much of it out of my own pocket, paid for those decks to be birthed. The reason I kept going was about the fact that people told me how much my work resonated with them and aided them in their ancestral communication. That’s the goal. The blessing I have received from refusing to participate in a society that pushes net gains and algorithmic popularity contests so heavily is that my needs are always met, at least generally. If it takes me 2.5 years to create something according to their will, that is 2.5 years that I am not making any moolah, but the bills are still paid - dig? All I gotta do is what they ask, the seldom times that they do. That is a hell of a deal in my book.

When I share this anecdote I am usually met with some argument that I should be charging more, diversifying my income, making more products, doing this, doing that, and when the reality of my goals doesn’t reflect that, people are stunned, indignant even, that I don’t subscribe to a machiavellian “rise and grind” modus operandi. Then the appeals to ethos follow, “but folks were taken care of by the village”. I got a lot to say about that - but it deserves a longer conversation.

And if that isn’t convincing enough:

I’ve seen such biblical-level blowback, on the lives of the long time ‘spiritual’ grifters, in the last year alone that has me thanking my lucky stars I stuck to my principles. Remember that bit about suffering I mentioned before? Laugh now, cry later.

But again, more on that phenomena later. I have a hell of a lot more to say about this topic, but it likely won’t be publicly available. I have a doozy of a theory on that. That one is a religious theory essay for the closed community here on Substack where we can have some candid, and private discussions about exploitation and consequence (and all things spirituality to be perfectly honest) without being imposed upon.

Sidebar: I’m so geeked Substack has a feature for protecting our discussions from the public algorhythm - Glory be!

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Third, but arguably the most important reason:

I was put here to create tools for people in various stages of my and their lives. Each cycle has a different duration. That is the basis of all divinations pertaining to my destiny. I am a diviner. I am a tool maker. New tools are birthed from a need to complete a new task that other tools aren't suited for. Some of those tasks require tools too complex to make in a week, month, or year. Each tool has a purpose.

Akamara and Okana original was my start; it was at a time when our community was getting in the trenches and digging the poison out collectively. When many of us were sitting in the unknown trying to communicate in the dark. We were tired of a lack of representation and having to "make do" with things that didn't quite sit right. Asotele was for the studious and academic bend we all experience when we get into our groove. Those fresh white clothes and when the world behind the veil seemed to open up a little more. Tongues of the Mother was for those Sunday morning refreshments with the old spirits who speak firm but in a gentle tone. The next project is for something new and more complicated. To dig deeper into a path that twists, turns, returns and presses forward on the way to the otherside. Something to really test the limits of a diviner and blows past them. It’s time.

To further prove this to myself, I began on my newest work during a 2.5-year hiatus and asked the community what they collectively wanted to see; almost everyone communicated some aspect of the work I am currently working on. They wanted a new tool for fairly complex tasks. A tool that took me quite a while to make, and still is. Proving to myself that when I am struck with an idea, it's something the collective needs one way or another. It proved that I was still on track, even if this stretch took twice as long.

This is also why I chose to return to a foundational rule of Akamara that I once had: Once something is out of print, it’s gone. Nor do I really market my work in a way to try and captivate everyone. I leave it up to the Ethers to put it in the path of those whose homes it wishes to reside in for as long as my folks say I should. Once the moment has passed, it has passed. We move on. We transform.

Lastly,

I am here for the love of the game.

I love the hustle when it's time to hustle, that is.

Y’all be blessed.

I woke up from my travels at 2:17 am.

With a vision of a woman who was the early morning where even swampy water turns blue.

She glittered in shiny blackened jewels and sung an unknown song, that even I knew the words to.

She laughed as she descended like a shade on the great big body of a great big man.

He swirled and swayed, tall and tame, but her image remained the same.

“I see you woman.” even my voice wasn’t my own.

And there I was, at 2:17 am, back from my travels struggling with one eye shut closed trying to remember her song, her tone.