Hoodoo Mysteries: Folk Magic, Mysticism & Rituals [Paperback]

Rev Ray T. Malbrough (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 8, 2003

Ray T. Malbrough is one of the few hereditary folk magicians raised in Louisiana. In his latest book, he presents a living history of the magico-religious practices of Louisiana Hoodoo, the American cousin of traditional Haitian Voudoo. Learn how this religious belief survived as it developed within American shores. Explore the different types of divinatory and magical practices still in use today.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ray T. Malbrough was born in New Orleans and was raised in the "Pays des Cajuns" Region of southeastern Louisiana. He learned the basics of hoodoo in his early teens with the permission and encouragement of his mother. At age 19, he started working in a New Orleans tearoom as a reader/advisor, and has since earned a good reputation as a Hoodoo worker all over the region surrounding his hometown of Houma. He is a 1982 graduate of the Seax-Wica Seminary founded and directed by Dr. Raymond Buckland. The author is active in the parapsychology Association in Thibodeaux, Louisiana. Today, Ray is a full time reader/advisor and hoodoo worker in his home in Houma.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications (November 8, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738703508
• ISBN-13: 978-0738703503
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #861,440 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Should have stuck to the chapbook about baths, January 7, 2004

By 

"latzoni" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hoodoo Mysteries: Folk Magic, Mysticism & Rituals (Paperback)

I was not impressed with Ray Marlbrough's _Hoodoo Mysteries_; I understand it's an "expansion" of a chapbook about spiritual baths which Marlbrough originally wrote in 1999. If that's the case, he should have stuck to his original subject, as that's easily the best part of the book.

The rest is poorly written and organized. For instance, Marlbrough mentions that the [Vodou] lwa are not served in hoodoo -- rather, the practitioners serve the Catholic saints instead. Then, literally a few paragraphs later, he gives an example and diagram of a traditional hoodoo altar with an egg in the middle to symbolize Damballah [who's a lwa of Haitian Vodou, not a Catholic saint, naturally]. Huh?!?!??

As earlier reviewers mentioned, there are many more sections of the book where Marlbrough seems to get hoodoo confused with other African diasporic paths: he mentions making a "hoodoo pot tete" [from the pot tet of Haitian Vodou], a "spirit pot" [clearly modeled after the prenda of Las Reglas de Congo] and a bunch of "medium's necklaces" [very similar to the elekes one receives in the Yoruba tradition]. To my knowledge -- and I checked with friends who grew up in New Orleans -- NONE of these are part of traditional Louisiana hoodoo practice...

It's all right for Marlbrough to mix elements from different paths into a blend which gets results *for him*. But I think he should be honest about what he's doing, rather than claiming that his system is "traditional hoodoo".
Also, there are several much better writers who've combined African-diasporic traditions with European magic in far more interesting ways; why don't you go out and buy a book by Stephanie Rose Bird, Sallie Ann Glassman or Draja Mickaharic instead??? Or, read Catherine Yronwode's "Hoodoo Herb and Root Magic", for a very detailed and scholarly account of African-American folk magic practices.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars This is a -3 on the scale: Just the facts, please ..., November 22, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Hoodoo Mysteries: Folk Magic, Mysticism & Rituals (Paperback)

It is such a shame that Llewellyn does not take the care to verify facts before publishing something as full of fallcies as this.

The right reverend takes cultural artifacts from Haitian Vodou and attributes them to South Louisiana Hoodoo. He claims there is a S. Louisiana head pot, the equivalent of a Haitian Vodou "Pot tet." He claims there is a necklace like the Haitian Collares. He even claims a fais dos dos is a Hoodoo ceremony. This books is full of complete fabrications.

"Step inside a world of magic and intrigue you never knew existed-enter the hidden world of the Hoodoo."

You never knew this existed because it doesn't except in Rev. Ray's own mind. Please bear in mind if you chose to spend your hard earned money on this, that it is 97% fiction.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Scandalous!, December 14, 2003

By 

"don_g" (New Orleans, LA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hoodoo Mysteries: Folk Magic, Mysticism & Rituals (Paperback)

I don't think they fact checked it at all. It's not just bad - it verges on offensive. It's hard to find one correct, factual statement in the entire text. This is no exaggeration! The content is a joke. As I read it, I couldn't believe the audacity of the author. You can literally go line by line and refute each statement with documentation.

There is nothing about Hoodoo in the book. The first quarter is a convoluted mess of contrived Haitian Vodou, Cajun and New Orleans history. Then an already published section on Santeria Baths. Followed by a lengthy section on contrived Hoodoo Initiations including the importance of the "Hoodoo Pot Tet" or head pot and the "Hoodoo Collares" or sacred initiatory beads. Plus you get instructions on how to make a Hoodoo prenda and finally a lengthy listing of State universities that offer Religious Studies in their curriculum.

If you are looking for well researched Hoodoo material stick to Cat Yronwode's book!

After finishing the book, the only reason I could conceive for writing such bogus material was an underlying intention or master plan to use the Haitian Vodou Initiation process he underwent in Haiti as a framework for doing "Hoodoo Initiations" in the US.