Hyssop, The Holy Herb and Its Uses

Creole Moon’s Conjure Club Publications for the Observation and Preservation of Southern Folk Folk Magic and Culture

Hyssop: The holy herb and its uses by Denise Alvarado Alvarado

Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

Introduction The above passage is probably the most referenced statement relating to hyssop since the word was originally written in the Bible. Talk to any rootworker and ask them to name the best herb to use for cleansing and uncrossings and their response is likely to be, or at least include: Hyssop. This makes sense given the heavy influence of the Bible on modern conjure, and in particular, the influence of Catholicism and the use of the Psalms (specifically Psalm 51) in conjure work in New Orleans. Although well known for its association with the Bible, the hyssop we know today as Hyssopus officinalis officinalis is disputed as the plant referred to in the Bible. Biblical hyssop is often called the “unidentified plant” of the Bible. Some maintain that hyssop is actually a type of marjoram (Origanum ( Origanum maru), maru), while others posit it is the caper-bush (Capperis (Capperis spinosa). spinosa). Despite the question of its true identity, Hyssop officinalis is the one used in both perfumery and conjure today. Hyssop (Hyssopus (Hyssopus officinalis) officinalis) is a decorative herbaceous plant in the mint family that is native to Southern Europe, the Middle East, and the region surrounding the Caspian Sea.(1) Hyssop is believed to have come to North America with the early European colonists as it is listed among the seeds John Win -throp, Jr. brought to the New World in 1631.(2) 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyssopus_officinalis 2. Mother Earth Living, http://www.motherearth http://www.motherearthliving.com/mother-earth-living/an-herb-to living.com/mother-earth-living/an-herb-to -know-hyssop.aspx


Figure 1. Hyssop officionalis


Over the years, it has escaped from gardens and is now naturalized at roadsides and in waste places here and there in North America from Quebec to North Carolina. When it blooms, hyssop displays spikes of fragrant blue, pink, or white flowers.

Hyssop has been used in a variety of ways since Classical Antiquity. The classical age was a time in which Greek and Roman society flourished and wielded great influence throughout Europe and the Middle East. During this time, hyssop was widely used for its medicinal properties. Historically, hyssop has been used medicinally as an antibacterial, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, astringent, carminative, digestive, diuretic, emmenagogue, expectorant, febrifuge, hypertensive, nervine, sedative, and tonic, among other things. It has been shown to be effective in the treatment of bruises, colds, cough, fatigue, fevers, flatulence, indigestion, inflammation, loss of appetite, nervous tension, sore throat, stress related conditions, and wounds. Hyssop should be avoided by those with epilepsy and those who are pregnant. Hyssop also has culinary uses, although it is considered a bitter herb. It can be finely chopped and sprinkled on salads and game meats, and in soups and stews as an aromatic condiment. The leaves have a slightly bitter taste due to its tannins, and an intense minty aroma. Due to its intensity, it is used moderately in cooking. The herb is also used to flavor liqueur, and is part of the official formulation of Chartreuse. Hyssop is most commonly associated with cleanliness and sacrifice from a religiomagical sense. It is known to have been used in the ritual cleansing of holy places. Bundles of the herb were dipped in sacrificial blood and water and touched upon Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

Figure 2 Hyssop oficinalis. Photo copyright 2009, H. Zell, published under a GNU Documentation License.

doorways and other areas in need of cleansing. The dried herb was used in bouquets and burned to fumigate areas in an effort to ward off plagues. Beekeepers were known to rub the fragrant Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

flowers on beehives to encourage bees to stay. In Hoodoo and Rootwork, hyssop maintains its biblical associations with cleansing, uncrossing and getting rid of negative conditions.

Hyssop, According to the Catholic Encyclopedia (Septuagint hyssopos). The following is an excerpt about hyssop from the Catholic Encyclopedia. It makes several references to the mention of hyssop and its uses in the Bible. A plant which is referred to in a few passages of Holy Writ, and which cannot be identified with certainty at the present day. Its existence in Egypt is proved by Exodus 12:22, wherein Moses is represented as bidding the elders of Israel to take a bunch of hyssop and to sprinkle with it the blood of the paschal lamb upon the lintel and the side posts of the doors of their dwellings. In the wilderness hyssop was also ready at hand, as can be inferred from Exodus 24:8, completed by Hebrews 9:19, according to which Israel's great lawgiver sprinkled the Hebrews with hyssop dipped in the blood of victims, at the sealing of the old covenant between Yahweh and His people. The references to hyssop contained in the Mosaic ritual show clearly that it was a common plant in the peninsula of Sinai and in the land of Chanaan, and disclose its principal uses among the Hebrews. Thus, it is with hyssop that the blood of a bird offered in sacrifice is to be sprinkled for the cleansing of a man or a house affected with leprosy Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

(Leviticus 14:4-7, 49-51); it is with it, too, that the sprinkling of the water of purification must be made at the cleansing of a tent, a person, or a vessel polluted by the touch of a dead body (Numbers 19:8). Besides being thus used as an instrument in the act of sprinkling, hyssop was employed as one of the elements to be burned in the preparation of the water of purification itself (Numbers 19:6). It is not therefore surprising to find that this manifold and intimate connexion of hyssop with the various purifications of the Old Law led the Psalmist (Ps. 1 [Hebrew li] 9) to regard the sprinkling with hyssop as symbolical of a thorough purification of the heart, a view which the Catholic Church has made her own in the ceremony of the Asperges which usually begins the solemn offering of Holy Mass. Nor is it surprising to find that this same connexion of hyssop with the various cleansings of the Mosaic Law suggested to many writers the identification of that plant with the Hyssopus officinalis, or common hyssop, with which they were particularly acquainted, and the detergent properties of which they not unnaturally thought had induced the Hebrew legislator to select it as especially fit for the purificatory services in Israel. However widely received in the past, such identification is now commonly rejected for this reason, among others, that the Hyssopus officinalis appears to have been unknown in ancient Syria and Egypt. The plant, which at the present day, is considered as more probably the hyssop of the Mosaic ritual, is the Origanum maru. Like the Hyssopus officinalis it belongs to the family of the labiatæ, has aromatic and detergent properties, and can be easily made into a bunch for purposes of sprinkling. The following are some of its particular claims to be considered as the hyssop spoken of in the Old Testament. In Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

the first place, it is to the Origanum--not to the Hyssopus officinalis--that all ancient tradition points when referring to the hyssop of the Scriptures. In the next place, its Egyptian name of supho, is clearly allied to the Aramaic zufo and the Hebrew equivalent. Lastly, the Origanum maru grows on the walls of all the terraces throughout Palestine and Syria. This last claim in favour of the identification of the hyssop of the Old Testament with the Origanum maru, is in distinct harmony with 1 Kings 4:33 (Hebrew 1 Samuel 4:33) where we read that Solomon "treated about trees from the cedar that is in Libanus, unto the hyssop that cometh out of the wall". The chief difficulty in the way of this identification is drawn from John 19:29, where it is stated that some of those present at Christ's Passion "putting a sponge full of vinegar about (or rather: upon) hyssop, put it in his mouth". It is oftentimes supposed that the stalk of the Origanum maru would be too short and too slender for the purposes described in this passage, and that another plant with a longer and firmer stem, for instance, the caper-plant (capparis spinosa) is the one meant by the Fourth Evangelist. This supposition, however, does not appear necessary to many commentators. They think that the cross whereon Jesus lay was not such a lofty object as is assumed by the opponents of the identification, and that in consequence the Origanum maru, some 40 or 50 centimetres in length, and undoubtedly near at hand on Calvary, was used either alone, or together with a reed (cf. Matthew 26:29; Mark 15:36) to carry the sponge dipped in vinegar to the lips of the Savior. Numerous other plants, more or less akin to the Origanum maru are also regarded, and indeed with some probability, as the hyssop spoken of in Holy Writ (Gigot, 1919). Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

FORMULAS 1. Aromatic Medicinal Bath For the treatment of rheumatism, boil several handfuls of hyssop leaves and flowers along with a handful each of thyme, marjoram, lavender, mint and rosemary in two gallons of spring water. Allow to cool until warm, then strain out the herbs and add the tea to a warm bath. Soak for fifteen minutes.

2. Recipe for Hyssop Tea Infuse a quarter of an ounce of dried hyssop flowers in a pint of boiling water for ten minutes; sweeten with honey, and take a wineglassful three times a day. This tea is said to be good for rheumatism and upset stomach and can be drunk in conjunction with the above aromatic bath.

3. Aromatic Cleansing Bath Boil a handful of hyssop leaves and flowers along with a handful of rue in a gallon of spring water. Allow to cool and strain out the herbs and set aside. Add the herbal infusion to a warm bath. Light a white candle and anoint with hyssop spiritual oil and set on the edge of the tub. Tea lights or votive candles are ideal for baths because they burn quickly. Get in the tub and pour the water over your head seven times, and recite Psalm 51. Allow Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

the water to drain and the candle to burn all the way down. This cleansing is good to do whenever you feel heavy at heart, guilty about having done something wrong, or as a preventative after doing some sort of left -handed work, an uncrossing or handling cursed ob jects.

4. Formula for Holy Hyssop Oil Holy Hyssop Oil is ideal for times when you are in need of comfort, hope, and spiritual relief. It is useful in times of grief and when you are facing despair, a sense of hopelessness and would benefit from the reassurance of Divine intervention. Holy Hyssop Oil is made in a base of the purest Olive Oil you can get. Olive oil from Israel is ideal for this formula. Add the dried herbs of hyssop, lavender and rosemary in a pan with enough oil to cover the herbs. Simmer for thirty minutes. Allow to cool and strain into smaller bottles, adding a pinch of hyssop in each bottle. You can repeat the simmering process if you want a stronger fragrance by straining the oil and adding fresh herbs and boiling for another thirty minutes. Note that this is my personal recipe and name for the oil; you may find others calling it simply Hyssop Oil, which for me would be simply the hyssop herb steeped in olive oil.


5. Formula for Holy Hyssop Powder Burn the leaves and flower tops of hyssop along with some red cedar and save the ashes. Mix the ashes with aloes wood powder for a powerful blessing powder that can be used as a floor sprinkle, as a dusting powder, or used as a barrier to keep in the good and keep out the bad. This powder is also ideal for the consecration of talismans.

6. Formula for Holy Hyssop Incense To make a very aromatic cleansing and blessing incense, combine sage, thyme and hyssop and blend well. You can either powder each of the herbs for a powdered herbal incense, or leave the herbs in tact and simply mix them together and burn on a piece of charcoal.

7. Mano Poderosa (Powerful Helping Hand) Mojo For a powerful protection and blessing mojo, you can make a Mano Poderosa or Poderosa or Powerful Helping Hand Mojo. Mojo . To make this mojo, you will need the following:

•

White candle

•

Red flannel bag

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Hyssop

•

Rue

•

Angelica root


•

Balm of Gilead

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Sage

•

Holy Hyssop Powder

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Holy Hyssop Oil

•

Dove’s blood Ink

•

Parchment paper

Before you begin, pour a few drops of Holy Hyssop Oil onto the palms of your hands and rub them briskly together until they feel warm and electric. Touch your forehead, your heart, and your gut with you’re your hands. Then, anoint the white candle with Holy Hyssop Oil and pray Psalm 51. Take each ingredient one by one and hold in your hand and breathe just a very light puff of air onto the herb. Tell it what you want it to do for you. For example, “Holy Hyssop, you embody the power of the Divine. Purge my spirit of all evil and negative energy. In the name of the Holy Trinity, Amen.” Once the herbs are inside the bag, add a few drops of Holy Hyssop Oil. Next, take a small piece of parchment paper and write a petition on the paper, specifying in as few words as possible your needs. Anoint the paper on each corner and in the middle (five spot) with Holy Hyssop Oil. Add a personal concern of your own such as a fingernail or some hair and place in the center of the petition paper. Fold the paper closed and wrap with red thread and tie it. Place another drop of Holy Hyssop Oil on the tied petition and place the wrapped petition into the HelpCopyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

ing Hand. Hold the bag up to your mouth and pray or talk to the bag and tell it what you need. Gently breathe into the bag to give it your essence. Tie the bag closed by pulling the drawstring closed, wrapping the string around the bag a couple of times and tying it. You may tie an evil eye bead or a cross to the outside of the hand for added protection. A mojo hand is a living entity comprised of all the spirits of the little herbs and ingredients placed inside and can develop its own personality and fully developed spirit. To be most effective, you should talk to your hand and interact with it often. It is said that the live mojo hand will often communicate with its owner in its own voice.

8. Formula for Holy Hyssop Floor Wash To purge your home of evil and negativity try this floor wash. Add to a gallon of spring water handfuls of hyssop, rue and lavender herbs and boil together on the stove for 15 minutes. Add the entire solution to a bucket of hot soapy water. You can use any floor wash for the soapy water in the bucket, but for this formula, I like to use Dr. Bronner’s pure lavender castile soap because it works good and smells even better. Proceed to wash your floors with the solution, moving from the back of your home to out the front door. You can pray Psalm 51 while doing this or afterwards or simply say a heartfelt prayer of your own. Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

Psalm 51 (King James Version) 1

Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. 4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be jus fied when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. 5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. 7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8 Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. 9 Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniqui es. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salva on; and uphold me with thy free spirit. 13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee. 14 Deliver me from bloodguilness, O God, thou God of my salvaon: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. 15 O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. 16 For thou desirest not sacri fice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt o ff ering. ering. Copyright 2013 Denise Alvarado, All rights reserved. www.creolemoon.com www.creolemoon.com

17

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. 18 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem. 19 Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacri fices of righteousness, with burnt off ering ering and whole burnt off ering: ering: then shall they off er er bullocks upon thine altar.

SOURCES Gigot, F. (1910). Hyssop. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved April 1, 2013 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.o http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07612a.htm rg/cathen/07612a.htm Grieve, M. (1931). A Modern Herbal. mountainroseherbs.com _____________________________________________________________________ Disclaimer The information in this article is for educational purposes only, it is not intended to treat, cure, prevent or, diagnose any disease or condition, nor is it intended to prescribe in any way. Always seek the advice of a medical professional if you suspect a serious serious medical condition. ____________________________________________________________________ Learn More If you like learning about herbs and their medicinal properties, history and folkloric associations, you may be interested in several courses offered through Crossroads University: Folk Magic Formulary 1: Making Magical Oils and Potions and How to Use Them; Spiritual Baths and Cleansings; and Foundations in Southern Rootwork 1. Please visit www.crossroadsuniversity.com for more informaon.


Hyssop, The Holy Herb and Its Uses

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