Cat’s Rants: Confessions of an Occult Mastermind

Hey Occulties,

Recently I spoke to a reader regarding a romantic matter wherein the two parties of a romantic relationship were not parted but were having serious relationship problems. Since it has been a bit "trendy" (not surprising, given the amount of demon movies in the last several years) to use spirits, I was basically asked about if that is an effective solution in this case. I will try to answer this in Q&A form, but it will be clumsy at best. 😉

Q: In a situation where a couple is having severe relationship problems, would it be better to call a spirit (conjuration) or to use something like traditional Hoodoo if seeking to make the relationship more functional/happy? 

A: I would be speaking in error to say that spirits could not be called in a case of a relationship falling apart. If we use traditional spirits of the Lesser Key of Solomon, Furfur is actually a spirit who mends problems between "husband and wife" (however, we could also apply this to any serious long term relationship, heterosexual or homosexual, – so he reconciles your life partner.) So, yes, you could call a spirit (not just Furfur,) to reconcile two parties who are fussing with each other or finding their romantic partnership dissolving. 

However as a caveat, I will say what I said to the reader who asked – keep in mind that spirit work tends to manifest in such a way as to make the target/situation change rapidly and that can sometimes create a problem in itself. 

I call this the Volvo/Ferrari theory, so by this I mean, the difference between a "thought out and considered decision," vs a decision one makes on impulse. The one with more strength, and the one people are more apt to stick with is the decision they came to after serious thought. So, while the Volvo might not be a sexy car, in this example it gets great mileage, it has fabulous safety features, and it will last a long time – the Ferrari is just fucking cool. Which one will you be able to dissaude me from buying easier? The Ferrari. Which one will I be more apt to regret later? That Ferrari. 

This also applies to relationships. So, let's say the target of a spell all of the sudden, for no discernible reason, is so in love with me, he feels like he could just explode. He's showing up at my house. He's calling and texting me every 45 seconds. All the time he's thinking "CAT IS AMAZING!!!!" and as much as I'd like to think everyone thinks that all the time, the reality is, this probably came upon him all of the sudden.  Unsurprisingly, after awhile this target will want to figure what is it when he first realized he was in love with me and fell so hard…what did that to him? 

Now, in my experience, this is often attributed to an event by the target. This can be good, or it can be…temporary. Remember, you're an "impulse buy," because this SUPER STRONG IMPULSE FROM NOWHERE said you were the best and the target is so in love. And the spirit isn't in any way causing you disrespect. Presumably any spirit you use for love is bringing to you the best outcome using your stipulations for what that outcome should be. Without wanting to be critical, I've seen a few situations tank – an example might be "Martha loves Phil all of the sudden because he's so positive and always smiling!" and then the "Phil" (petitioner here,) in this example loses his job and has his dog run away and mopes for weeks and doesn't smile. As soon as Phil becomes grim, Martha's interest is gone. 

Look, spirit work is awesome. It can work SO FAST. But that can also be it's downfall. The spirit brought you want you wanted, and if it was because of a behavior or event, at some point, it's up to you to keep up whatever it was that attracted this person in the first place. And if we're being fair, if someone starts loving your other traits, that's going to be largely a permanent solution. 

Now, on the other hand, if you use something gentle and slower working to fix a failing relationship, that has it's positives and negatives as well. On the "plus side," the spell will make the target trust their instincts more. They didn't just suddenly become crazy in love all over again for no discernible reason. Instead, they began to see their own faults, and what they did to push you away. They realize how much they care, how tender their feelings are for you, and remember the good times and the things which brought you together in the first place. They see your beauty more clearly. They act more kindly. It isn't overnight, but more like a wound which is being healed until your relationship is whole again.

It's also A LOT easier to use most Hoodoo than it is to call a spirit. The average joe who has never cast a spell can be successful with Hoodoo, but is a lot less likely to get much response from many spirits. To them, speaking to you is a bit like me getting an audience with a world leader just on a whim. It might happen, but most of the time there are so many layers between who you can speak with to that person that you are never going to speak directly to that person. Spirits don't view many unpracticed magicians as being worthy of their time or attention, and sometimes when they do give you their attention, you have absolutely no idea how to behave and what to do…and the outcome becomes bad very quickly. With Hoodoo, you aren't really apt to piss anyone off with a great deal of reconciliation spells made for "existing couples in damaged relationships." 

And also on the downside…so many people wait until something is more or less irretrievably broken to even start working. This might mean that your partner is feeling so dark and angry with you that you will have to tolerate difficult and unhelpful behaviors from them which may in turn cause you (or the petitioner) to engage in your own harmful behaviors, which can delay the desired outcome. It can be very difficult for a petitioner to exercise self control and engage with a reconciliation target in a meaningful and helpful way at times. 

With all that said (and hopefully I made sense,) one is not necessarily better than the other. It's a matter of what you are working with and how good at the work the person who is doing said work is which determines that answer. 

Don't get me wrong, kids, I LOVE working with spirits. It's great! But it's also not an easy thing to master, and, even for many of us who are relatively practiced, traditional spells where one doesn't need to call a spirit out of the ether is usually more than enough to help you through and to fix what you feel needs fixing. 

Hope that was enlightening,

~Cat