Customer Reviews

Urban Voodoo: A Beginners Guide to Afro-Caribbean Magic

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

No one owns the term "Voodoo" because it is a mixed set of beliefs and folks practices from an indigenous cultural place called Haiti. The African beliefs that made it with the slaves to Haiti were inter-mixed with the Native American Taino culture who lived there prior to the African slaves.

AND let's not forget that New Orleans Voodoo is mixed with RootWork, Conjuring, some Native American Shamanism, Appalachian folks practices, Deutch Pow-Wow, Catholicism and the Gods know what else! So why not stop with all the slanderous crap by screaming that it's not real Voodoo and realize your argument holds no weight? As Louis Martinae, author of New Orleans Voodoo Tarot book and a drummer for the Rampart Street Voodoo Temple in NO, LA, said, "Voodoo is inclusive not exclusive".

Hyatt and Black have done an excellent job with helping one to cut thru the miasma of theory to get you a lot of HOW-TO material. I personally have used the "Invocation to Eshu" on page 147 & invoked Exu Tranca-Ruas as explained on pages 152-153 as well as invoked Oshun as explained on pages 160-161 both with AWESOME results! My clients have been astounded at the level of work that this Exu has performed for them.

Since I am a practitioner of Sorcery and a Spiritual Worker, I have many clients who I do RootWork and Conjure-Sorcery work for and often I've found that Exu Tranca-Ruas to be just the help they need to break thru blockages that are stopping up their lives.

Go ahead and argue what you will about the origins of Hyatt and Black's material but RESULTS speak loudest!

Voodoo-Sorcery is the realm of the Bokor the Vodu Sorcerer and NOT under the thumb of the Vodu Priesthood thus none of you have ANY right to point fingers and complain. And it doesn't matter if you're a Santero/a, Babalawo, Houngan, Manbo, whatever, you do NOT have any say about what Sorcerers do and don't do! I don't see any of you telling a RootWorker what is authentic or what isn't.

The fact is that this system works. It just upsets many of you that the author's came out of the closet to explain material that was "supposed" to be kept hidden. Well too bad. It's now out in the open. And besides, the majority of this material is mere "surface knowledge" anyway. The real deep stuff is still hidden because one has to do the work to uncover it for themselves. Spoon fed info from your god-parents is mere surface knowledge to help get you to a level where - IF you do the work - then you will uncover the DEEPER aspects of Spirituality, Magic and Occultism.

I just finished reading "Urban Voodoo" by S. Jason Black and Christopher Hyatt. Subtitled "A beginners guide to Afro-Carribean Magic". Not really about "Voodoo" but more an overview of Santeria/Lucumi traditions from a Euro-magic tradition. The authors insist on calling it "Voodoo" when it's really not. Not terribly well written. Poorly edited, even though it lists two editors in the credits. Also they talk as if no white people in Los Angeles know what a botanica is. I live in the much smaller SF and people are pretty aware of Santeria, Vodou, and Voodoo. Maybe my experiences in the SF/Oakland area and New Orleans have given me more contact? Seems hard to believe...

The book is VERY oriented towards a Western magic "grab" of African and Carribean traditions and symbols. It seems that the authors are very anti-Christian and let that bias affect their outlook on Santeria/Voodoo/Vodou, etc. and allows them to make a very tedious connection between the cult of Dionysius and "Voodoo". The authors also bring lots of euro-magic into the mix and try to simplify things like Ifa divination. Another example is possession. They suggest sitting in a straight-backed chair and focusing on a crystal while listening to Tibetan chants. (for contrast, see the excellent Mama Lola for a book that's really about Vodou in an urban setting).

Overall, the book is an interesting read, but think of it as entertainment. Yes, there are sections that have useful information and make logical and probably correct deductions, but overall, not the best book to get if you're interested in truly learning the Afro-Carribean traditions.

--Len @ The New Orleans Cemetery & Voodoo pages

The book is great, but not for everyone. If you're looking for a scholarly work on Voodoo, you've come to the wrong place. If you're a Waldenbooks Wiccan, looking to absorb yet another pagan practice into the mishmash you call a religion, you, again, do not want this book.

If you *do* want to adopt the "black magic" practices of Voodoo into your own Western-style beliefs, this *is* the book for you. This is not happy fluffbunny magic.

The authors also have a very explicit warning about how this is not "real" voodoo. Don't make the mistake of reading this book and then going to your local Haitian community and saying you're a bocor. You won't like what happens. :)

If you're interested in Western magic, and you want to expand your horizons a bit, get this book. You'll love it.

I believe many occultists may find this book offensive. Black's and Hyatt's approach to the occult borders on black magic. Their comments about people in other occult groups can at times be cruel. Nevertheless, they raise may interesting points. Western Magic has created too many armchair magicians who rarely practice the art and spend too much time moralizing. What I liked about the book, is that the authors share with the reader actual, personal , experiences that they have had with voodooo. As a guide to voodoo practice, however, it is a bit too sketchy and limited for my tastes.

I'm quite a fan of Hyatt and Black. These two write a lot more between the lines than in the actual text. Granted, this book has nothing to do whatsoever with voodoo except the terms (and, as the reviews from voodoo pracitioners seem to inform, those used incorrectly), like New Age has nothing to do with Tibet, et cetera. But as a book of magic it is very good. Personal accounts are valuable, and very interesting. It is an account of Western American magic, not of African-American magic, that's all.

This isn't the best book you could buy on the subject. The book lumps, santeria, quimbanda (pomba gira), and New orleans/Hatian voodoo altogether. They chide the public for their lack of knowledge on the subject, but they really don't seem to know all that much themselves (for instance, they say La Santisma Muerte figures are used in Black Magic, when actually they are used in Love and Money spells in Mexican Brujaria). The book spends a great deal of time on the authors (not so mystical) expierences, and one encounter with a hooker who lectures one of the authors on the hypocrisy of Christianity (which sounds phony). The authors are Satanists, and spend a good deal of time ranting against Chrisitanity, which gets old pretty quick. There are some harsh truths about Wiccans, Crowleyites, and LaVeyians which are,well...true, heh heh. I always wondered if anyone would ever point these things out in a book someday.In a way the book is worth the read just for that. Points out the difference between doing a ritual for the sake of doing a ritual and doing a ritual for results. I'd say 90% of occultists fail to see this point, but these boys did. There is a small section on Quimbanda/Santeria/Voodoo spells all lumped together at the end. A better book would be "The VooDoo in New Orleans" by Robert Talant and "Famous Voodoo Spells and Rituals" by H.U. Lampe. A good mini-dictionary of voodoo is "The Handbook of VooDoo Cult Secrets" by Anna Riva. In summary, if you want a book about some guys and there expierences in the occult, with a few sharp observations thrown in, this is a good book for that (if you don't mind the anti Christian rants). As far as a book on VooDoo goes, this ain't it.

I don't have a firm handle on the distinctions between voodoo-magic, and voodoo-religion. It seems to me they're not necessarily separable. In any case, unless you're born into a culture where voodoo, or santeria, or the other "sister religions" are predominant, it's virtually impossible to be initiated into these systems. What if you want to learn?

I agree for the most part with the author's criticisms of scholarly texts on the subject. Though helpful in some respects, the overwhelming tone of the anthropological and ethnographic work done on voodoo culture (and many others) paints it as a primitive remnant. Whether "primitive" or some other buzz word is used, that tends to be the implication in the works of Western academics who - though swearing agnosticism - are the product of a Western Christian world.

Whether interested in practicing voodoo magick, or just in getting acquainted with a world-view radically different from your own, this book serves as a wonderful outsider's introduction, as advertised. The authors are aware that the pillars of the western world have no home in certain cultures, and they don't attempt to justify unfamiliar beliefs and practices with familiar analogues. This can be jarring for some, but in my opinion it marks a positive trend that sets the standard of New Falcon Publications. None of the works of Chris Hyatt or S. Jason Black have disappointed me.

Black and Hyatt go way off on tangents concerning magick in general, which was a little disappointing, since we can get that stuff from their other books, or from other books on western, non-African-oriented magick. However, the last several chapters of the book ultimately prove useful, and it is certainly possible to begin a voodoo practice based on the practical information they present.

I was sort of put off by this book. To begin with it's not really about VooDoo but Santeria which is different from VooDoo in many many ways. These authros are very negative when speaking about pretty much anyone other than themselves and while I do agree with their views concerning some things most of it is pretty silly. The authors also make a lot of claims about prostitutes using VooDoo to demand more cash from their clients. The authors are certainly mysogynistic in many of their views. I gave this book 2 stars only because I enjoyed the many pictures they included of botanicas in New york. If you are looking for books which are truly in the VooDoo spirit then read MAMA LOLA, JAMBALAYA by Luisha Teish, and SECRETS OF VOODOO by Milo Rigaud.
Incidently, the authors claim to have used many methods not even associated with voodoo in their supposed "voodoo" practices which is the readers first clue that this book is questionable. In closing I will relate the authors claim that this book was written for the Bokor, the sorcerer, not the Houngan or village priest. It was intended to be used more on an individual basis and the initiation ritual presented, if you can call it that is some sort of ceremonial magic prayer which also has nothing to do with VooDoo. If you are going to spend the cash on this one then get it used.

I am a Babalorisha in the Santeria/Lukumi religion. I entered the religion over 20 years ago in Los Angeles and founded my own house of Orisha in 1990. I have made more than 20 heads and have grandchildren, and great-grandchildren in the religion (meaning my godchildren have initiated priests, as have their godchildren). I have participated in and/or led ceremonies in all of the major Lukumi communities in the US and have also worked with some of the most well-known Vodou priests in the country.

All of this is NOT to blow my own horn. Indeed, I have retired as a priest and have no interest in functioning as a Babalorisha in any capacity other than my own private worship. The only reason I am writing this review is in hopes that I can convince a single person to refrain from putting any money in the pocket of the gentleman who wrote this book. It has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with Santeria or Vodou and resembles NO FORM OF LEGITIMATE PRACTICE of those religions WHATSOEVER -- "solitary," "eclectic," or otherwise.

Indeed, there is no such thing as a "solitary" or an "eclectic" form of Santeria and Vodou. By their very nature Afro-diasporic religions depend on community. This is not to say that one cannot worship the Orishas on their own, but this is limited in how far it can go, and is still bound by specific etiquette and protocol. Perhaps it's unfortunate, perhaps it's not, but eventually one will have to seek the guidance of a priest in these religions in order to have any kind of deep relationship with Orisha or Lwa.

The author makes ridiculous and bizarre claims about his prowess and expertise that it is painfully obvious have no basis in reality whatsoever. If you wish to practice these religions, find a legitimate Iyalorisha, Babalorisha, Houngan, or Mambo to help you. Mashing up Orisha, Lwa, Crowley, and delusions of gradeur like this author has will get you absolutely nowhere. If you own this book, line your catbox with it.

Postscript: If you are interested in these religions, may I suggest, for Orisha, the works of (in no particular order) John Mason, Ruth Landes, David Brown, Joseph Murphy, and Judith Gleason. For information on Vodou, the works of Donald Consentino, Maya Deren, Karen McCarthy Brown, Racine Sans Bout (online), Phyllis Galembo, Elizabeth McAlister, and Leslie Desmangles.