Are Voodoo Spells Real?

In these days of uncertainty, many people are turning to avenues outside the norm to get things done. How else to explain the recent resurgence in the popularity of voodoo, the Afro-American religious practice based in equal parts Catholic symbology and West African cultural traditions. Many people are looking to make a quick buck selling Voodoo spells and rituals, promised to do everything from bring back lost loves to curse enemies with unbearable afflictions. But do these so-called voodoo spells really work? Science would say no, but in this article I will examine voodoo throughout history and see if I can find an explanation for some of its mysteries.

First, a brief history. Voodoo was brought to Louisiana in the early 1700s due to the slave trade. The vast majority of slaves imported to the territory in that period were from the West African region that would become known as Benin. They brought with them a ritual tradition that centered around the preparation of herbs, potions and amulets that were purported to have a number of effects. These items would become the root of what we now refer to as Voodoo spells. Originally, the spirits invoked in the rituals to create these items were referred to by their African names, but gradually the names of Catholic saints began to be used. Voodoo in its traditional form is rarely practiced today, but the name lives on in a commercial enterprise.

Modern-day voodoo spells can be divided into two main groups. The first is the obviously false hokum sold to tourists and credulous yokels in New Orleans backstreets and the classified sections of tabloid magazines. These mass-produced amulets and potions obviously have no spiritual potency and exist only to part a fool and his money. Investigating their efficacy is a pointless task.

The second, however, is much more interesting. Throughout Louisiana, there exist a small group of individuals purported to practice traditional Voodoo in the way their African ancestors did. Their practice is a curious blend of traditional herbal medicine, hypnotism, and what for lack of a better word I will call channeling, where priests and priestesses are seized by a loa, or spirit. These rites and rituals can be extremely terrifying to watch, and the charms and tinctures produced as a result have been said to have real power. Whether the effects of these modern-day voodoo spells are due to the power of suggestion, some herbal or chemical action, or actual spiritual intervention remains to be seen.