Some years ago I received a phone call from a graduate student at a university in the Northeast. She was referred to me by a colleague who was aware of my research into African-American hoodoo practices and thought I might be able to assist them in deciding how to deal with something that they believed was hoodoo-related. Then she told me the following story: About six months previously, one of the academic buildings on campus was renovated. In some offices, drop-down ceilings were installed. When one of the new ceiling panels recently was removed for repair, workmen found three figures wrapped in white cloth, stuck with pins and nailed to crosses. The figures were examined by students, who concluded that the figures were voodoo dolls (called "poppets") and asked if I could give them some advice about what to do with them. They were afraid that if they did not take proper precautions, someone (perhaps including themselves) might be harmed.

I suggested that they leave the poppets undisturbed in a dark, out-of-the-way place until I could do some research and get back to them with more specific instructions. A couple of days later I advised them to proceed by taking the following steps to disarm the poppets:

1. "Dress" (sprinkle) each poppet with at least one (preferably three) of the following ingredients: salt, lye, ammonia, vinegar, bluestone, sulfur, garlic, urine.

2. "Airtight" the poppets (sealing them tightly in jar will work). Allow the poppets to remain airtight and undisturbed in a quiet, dark place for nine days.

3. Arrange the performance so that the ninth day falls during the decreasing phase of the moon (any time after the full moon and before the new moon).

4. Take the poppets (still airtight) to a running stream of water (a river will do, but find a spot where the current is moving). This last part of the performance must be undertaken at (or just before) sunset.

5. Turn your back to the water and, while removing the poppets from their container(s), recite the following verbal charm: "In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost remove the spell from these afflicted people."

6. With your right hand, throw each poppet over your left shoulder into the water.

7. Walk away.

8. DON'T LOOK BACK!

I also noted that they should not remove the pins or take the poppets off of the crosses. Since intention is very important, I instructed them to keep their good intentions of removing the spell set firmly in their minds as they performed these tasks.

About a year passed before I heard back from the graduate student. She wrote that they followed my prescription to the letter, EXCEPT one of the students in the department where the poppets were found greatly wanted to examine the contents of the poppets. Since one of them already had been partially unwrapped, he completed its dismantling. She was sorry for this violation, but, she continued, no ill fortune had befallen anyone that they knew who was involved in the discovery, study or disposal of the poppets. She added that she hoped that nothing bad happened to anyone for whom they may have been intended in the first place. In her letter, she included the photos you see.   

 Contact Voodoo Doc: Here     Text©Michael Bell 2005