The changing of the seasons can feel magical-greens changing to browns and golds, snow melting to show fresh buds. We all recognize these tell-tale signs, but few are aware of the powerful impact each season has on our spiritual lives. Four Seasons of Mojo infuses ancient techniques, rituals, and methods from around the world to use each season's inherent energies to supplement body, mind, and soul.
Designed to further spiritual practices by learning from neighboring cultures, this book provides readers with useful ideas unrestricted by geographic borders, ethnicity, religion, or magical path. Included are recipes and concepts from the Caribbean, African American soul food, Buddhist Meditation practices, sacred Hindu rites, Old European traditions, Australian Aboriginal dreaming lessons, and Native American wisdom.
Stephanie Rose Bird is a hereditary intuitive, contemporary rootworker, solitary green witch and visionary. She has been involved with mysticism, symbology, spiritualism and the occult for thirty years. Bird is inspired by her ancestors, in particular her grandmothers, one of which was a psychic and the other a spiritualist minister and herbal healer. Her uncle, a Santeria priest, Babalawo of Shango, taught her the Ifa traditions of the Yoruba people. Bird studies healing, magical and divination traditions of indigenous people around the world with a focus on Africa. Her passions include keeping the ancient traditions alive and updating them so that they evolve with us, suiting our current environment and lifestyles. She is a member of the American Folklore Soceity, the Herb Research Foundation and the Handcrafted Soap Maker's Guild.
Bird holds a BFA cum laude from Temple University and an MFA from UC San Diego, and has received multiple academic awards. Bird was an assistant professor at the School of the Art Institute of the Art Institute of Chicago from 1986-2002. Bird is active advising masters' and doctoral candidates, giving lectures, conducting goddess rituals, and writing for numerous publications.
Stephanie Rose Bird, is the author of five books: The Big Book of Soul: the Ultimate Guide to the African American Spirit: Legends and Lore, Music and Mysticism and Recipes and Rituals, (2010, Hampton Road Publishers), A Healing Grove: African Tree Medicine, Remedies and Rituals ( 2009, Chicago Review Press), Light, Bright, Damn Near White: Biracial and Triracial Culture in America and Beyond (2009, Praeger Press) Sticks, Stones, Roots and Bones Hoodoo, Mojo and Conjuring with Herbs (June 2004, by Llewellyn Worldwide Publishers) and "Four Seasons of Mojo: An Herbal Guide to Natural Living (Llewellyn, 2006). She holds a BFA cum laude from Temple University, Tyler School of Art and a MFA from University of California at San Diego where she was a San Diego Opportunity Fellow. She was a professor of fine art at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for over fifteen years. She has also taught at the Illinois Institute of Art, Chicago Botanic Gardens and Garfield Conservatory. Bird works as an herbalist, aromatherapist and sole proprietor of Almost Edible Natural Products. Her product line features herbal soap, incense, potpourri, bath salts, sachets and dream pillows. Bird writes regularly for www.naturallycurly.com as resident herbalist specializing in ingredient descriptions. She has been a professional member of the Handcrafted Soap Maker's Guild, for whom she wrote a column "Soap Worts: Useful Herbs for Soap Makers. Bird is a member of: the American Botanical Council's Herb Research Foundation; the National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy and the International Center for Traditional Childrearing. Her writing on herbalism, natural healing, complimentary therapies, herbal lore, goddesses, rituals and ceremonies are featured in "Sage Woman Magazine" "The Beltane Papers," WitchVox.com, DivineCaroline.com, "International Journal of Aromatherapy," "Aromatherapy Today," "The Oracle," "Herb Quarterly," "Herb Companion," "The Llewellyn Magical Almanac," "The Llewellyn Herbal Almanac" "Enlightened Practice," E-pregnancy and "Spell-a-Day." As a Fulbright Senior Scholar, Bird studied the art, rituals and ceremonies of Australian Aborigines in the outback of the Northern Territory. Bird's fine art is held in several important national and international art collections, she has exhibited in numerous galleries, museums, universities and public spaces. Stephanie Bird is a hereditary intuitive and healer specializing in positive energy work and spiritual cleansing using African plant wisdom.
This review is from: Four Seasons of Mojo: An Herbal Guide to Natural Living (Paperback)
I will start by saying that I am not a hardcore hoodoo expert. I will say that I am very informed of many similar traditions. I found that this book was well written even though I am not crazy about the Llewellyn publishing format. Ms. Bird does a great job of bringing many traditions into mainstream and there is nothing wrong with that. Her audience is everyone--not hardcore hoodoo folks.
This is a great book to gift to a female family member or dear friend and should be a part of every woman's bookshelf. It is inspiring to follow some of the recipes, advice and ruminations and I could care less if every single piece of advice is authentic, especially if something works well for you. Traditions vary from one family to the next and this book is a mixture of Ms. Bird's family traditions and research. She doesn't claim to be an anthropologist publishing a dissertation on historic hoodoo traditions so I don't know why some people here have gotten so up in arms. There's is plenty of hardcore Hoodoo books out there and there is a time and place for those publications--they may bore some people to tears.
If you want to clean house, feel good about yourself, energize your household and feel connected with the earth again, this book is great. Considering how ignorant new generations are of simple home remedies, recipes and natural health, this book is unpretentious and true to its subtitle : Everyday HooDoo-Natural Living and Simple Magic. The book is clearly categorized New Age/Herbalism/Alternative Health, so please do not act so misled if you are not into New Age works.
I found the seasonal organization very nice and I was reminded of many forgotten traditions. The book contains more than Hoodoo and I consider that a bonus so enjoy it and gift a copy to someone you love. It is very unpretentious, poetic at times and also very useful to people on a budget. I applaud Ms. Bird for being true to herself.
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This review is from: Four Seasons of Mojo: An Herbal Guide to Natural Living (Paperback)
I could sit at the foot of this women and listen to her for hours. You know how we have all met that special, "magickal", person who can blend history, hoodoo, magick,and the realization of dreams into a story that feels so at home that you can live it through their eyes. Reading Stephanie's books takes me there. I have actually met Stephanie and attended a ritual she gave and she brings hoodoo home and ignites the connection inside you. She relays the information in such a way that you naturally connect to it. I appreciate the way she makes the history and relevancy of hooodoo come alive for me! She is a beautiful, intelligent woman who knows what she can disperse in knowledge, responsibly, to a mass population. Unless you are training in the hoodoo arts there is no reason for her to go into depths that the unpracticed layman cannot handle, but we all are divine and have intuitions that can help us to manifest a better world for ourselves and others and Stephanie shares enough knowledge for even the layman to feel comfortable and responsible doing this.
I salute the intelligent way she handles dispensing mass media information about her spirituality path.
I always feel Yemaya and Oya walking with Stephanie and she is a true Blessing to those who connect with them as well.
Thank you, Stephanie, for another wonderful experience and I can't wait to receive your next book.
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This review is from: Four Seasons of Mojo: An Herbal Guide to Natural Living (Paperback)
I only need to say that this book is a beautiful expression of the lifestyle and heritage that goes into living mojo filled life. It is packed with rituals, recipes, and a love of "roots" in every sense...
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