Monthly Archives: January 2017

Urgent Money Spell

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The Romanies say that when money is urgently needed by a certain date, this spell works wonders. One thing to remember: it must be performed at the witching hour of midnight.

Take one white votive (or tea light) candle to represent each $100 or $1,000 that you critically need. Stand them on a plate you often eat from.

At a quarter to midnight, sit in a room with no electric lights. Light a gold or silver, green or white candle (not one of those representing the needed money). This is the candle that will give power to the “money” votive candles and will enable you to see what you are doing.

Now work your magic. Pray for a circle of gold light to be placed around you for protection and for a circle of blue light to be placed around you for healing.

Pick up a votive candle and light it from the main candle flame. As you do so, say that the votive you are lighting represents the $100 or $1000 you need. Place on the plate to begin a circle of “money” candles.

Light each votive, and say the same words for each, until the circle is complete.

Say a prayer explaining that you are not being greedy; that the money is necessary. Leave the candles to burn out of their own accord. The money will soon start winging its way to you.

Found in:
The Good Spell Book

Romani Realities


It is easy to find images of the gypsy portrayed in vibrant colors, airy skirts and head scarves, but this is a personification of the abstract. This post serves as a grim reminder of what is all too often the harsh reality of Romani life in today’s world.

Approximately one million Roma lived in Europe before the second World War. The largest community which totaled about 300,000, was actually in Romania. This population was known for leading a nomadic life, and their employment included trading, wood and other crafting, merchants, laborers, and of course, musicians. Today, there are “officially” 620,000 Roma living in Romania; however, this is a controversial estimate, as leaders indicate their may be between 1 to 3 million in population. It is believed that the controversy in numbers exist from discrimination, as the gypsies often do not acknowledge their actual ethnicity.

The Roma have existed through a long and sometimes violent history which has kept this population as largely misunderstood. They have been characterized as social outcasts and through the existence of extreme poverty, they have been known as thieves and beggars. This has forced the majority of Roma Gypsies to live in very harsh conditions – has affected them mentally, spiritually, physically and economically – for generations. The reality for these folks today, particularly in northern Romania, is that they are living in make-shift houses constructed of old boards and plywood, and there are apparently political and cultural clashing and extenuating ramifications for which there has been no solution.

Romania is not the only country which hold disdain for this population, as the gypsy culture is steeped ‘twixt and ‘tween all of Europe, (Great Britain, Italy, Spain, France are currently “problem areas”), Russia and pretty much around the world.

According to Spain’s Guardia, no less than 95% of thievery crime is committed by gypsy children who are under 14 years of age, and due to this minor status, they are forced to release them back into the community, at large.

As depicted in the photos below, dailymail.uk gives the story of a mayor building a wall around an area where the gypsies live, along with many pictures of current living conditions in which the Roma exist today.

Craica has no sewerage, indoor water or power supplies, and ramshackle huts lie between heaps of rubbish. Some residents admit to drawing electricity cables from nearby blocks. Even so, there are many who want to stay and are resisting being moved.

‘I lived here for the last 20 years. My woman died here and I want to also die here,’ said 59-year-old Trandafir Varga, one of the oldest residents and a community leader, surrounded by younger Roma who nodded their head in approval.

‘There, we would be isolated. Here, we have horses, pigs,’ Varga said. ‘It’s like a concentration camp there at Cuprom, we aren’t going there. We want to stay outdoors and cannot stay in blocks.’

According to Catalin Chereches, this was part of a grand scheme to improve the lives of deeply impoverished families in the northern Romanian town who have been struggling to survive for generations.

About 980 Roma lived in Craica before the rehousing started in June. Some 100 families have so far been relocated to three administrative buildings of the former plant.

However, human rights groups claim that the 33-year-old Vienna-educated economist is racist. They have accused him of imprisoning the population in a ghetto and making their plight even worse.

‘This is completely wrong. We need to find solutions that integrate, not segregate,’ said Dezideriu Gergely of the European Roma Rights Centre. ‘There is a danger because dealing in such a manner with Roma issues only triggers the resentment and prejudices that already exist.’

Craica is a sharp contrast to the rest of the city, which has a well-preserved medieval center generously dotted with gothic churches, cafes and artisan shops.

Some Roma from Craica work as garbage collectors for the municipality and some at a furniture plant. Most are jobless, seasonal laborers or eke out a living from selling scrap metal.

Living conditions are so grim that many of those who have been moved say they are thankful to Mr Chereches, even though their new housing at the Cuprom offices leaves much to be desired, with only two bathrooms on each floor of several apartments.

‘I lived in a single room with six children and my wife at Craica,’ said 40-year-old Sandu, a seasonal construction worker rehoused to a small apartment with wooden furniture and an LCD television, bought with his own money. ‘My wife is jobless. I thank the mayor for giving me this place.’

 

Photographs shot in the heart of the slum – and at a dilapidated communist-era blocks where some of the families have been rehoused – show scenes of appalling poverty with families struggling to survive in temperatures which can plummet to -26C.

The concrete wall measures 1.8 metres high – built on an embankment, it appears much higher when you are inside the slum.

It is constructed on one side of a Roma neighborhood of crumbling apartment blocks, but because it links with other buildings and walls, it encloses the area with few access points. Mr Chereches says it was built to keep children safe from a main road.

He claims living conditions have improved by moving families away from a slum where naked children play in the dust with stray dogs and cats. But it still keeps Roma separate from other people and lacks space and bathrooms.

‘It’s clear, conditions there are not similar to the Hilton or Marriott. But this doesn’t mean this is not a step forward towards their civilization and emancipation,’ Mr Chereche explained in his tidy and modest office.

Faced with such conditions, it is hardly surprising that many Romanians say they would like to move to Britain in January 2014 when they gain the right to live and work unrestricted under European ‘freedom of movement’ rules.

 

Sources: Vermont Deadline and Daily Mail

Flush Those Bills Away

early decorated stoneware bath- britainHere is something easy and simple. It’s probably not an “authentic” gypsy magic spell, but I think it’s worth doing. Here’s how it goes:

  • List your bills separately on toilet paper.
  • And flush the toilet paper down the toilet.

As you are doing this, remember that what comes in must also go out. And that’s OK. Because you are in the flow. Prosperity flows through you just as easily as the water that you see swirling down and out.

As soon as that tank fills up, you will be able to flush again. As soon as your check book fills up you will be able to pay bills again. No worries.. no fears..

It’s a flow.. money comes in.. money goes out..

Paying The Doctor

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Before the introduction of the National Health Service in England, it was sometimes considered unlucky to pay a doctor’s bill in full. To do so implied a dangerous confidence in restored and continuing health that could only bring misfortune, and would probably result in his services being needed again very soon. Some patients, therefore, made it a rule to hold back a token sum, perhaps a shilling, from the total amount due.

On the other hand, gypsies always paid their bills punctually and in full, because they believed that unpaid for medicine would not work.

Source: The Encyclopedia of Superstitions

It’s About Thyme

Thyme

Thyme is another herb the Romanies made good use of. It’s very good for the nerves! Also it has antiseptic properties. Did those of you who have gargled with a thymol preparation realize that it was made from thyme? It is good, too. as a general tonic.

Thyme, especially wild thyme, is known by the gypsies as Mother`s thyme, because a tea made from it gives relief to the cough that sometimes troubles expectant mothers. Make it with fresh or dried thyme – for each ounce of fresh herb, substitute just one teaspoonful of the dried.

Thyme tea helps any chest complaint that causes any difficulty with breathing- asthma sufferers would find it useful. In fact, thyme tea mixed with linseed and honey is a wonderful medicament for coughs and catarrh. It`s also good for headaches and giddiness – particularly if the headache is one of those that grips you on the morning after the night before!

And if nightmares are your trouble, try drinking it before you go to sleep because it soothes the nerves and induces peaceful rest..

Thyme is one of the handiest herbs you can keep in your kitchen because it can be used as part of a bouquet garni, in soups, with baked eggs, egg salad, with roast chicken, mussels, scallops, lamb stew, roast veal and in creamed cheese dishes. Try sprinkling a little thyme over a cabbage salad or in a plate of potato or tomato soup. Thyme is also very good in pancakes.

 

Gypsy Cures for Coughs and Colds

Gypsy Cures For Coughs And ColdsThe Romany culture was rich in cures for coughs and cold. Some suited one, and some suited another. Here are some authentic Gypsy cures for the common cold. (As always, use common sense when trying the remedies, and consult your doctor if you are seriously ill. Remember these cures are from times long past.)

First, some of the simplest remedies which are easy to try. Did you know, for instance, that the vinegar from a jar of pickled walnuts is a very good gargle for sore throats? Do not throw it away, keep it in an airtight jar until it is needed. If you have a hard cough, beat the white of an egg to a froth, then add a tablespoonful each of vinegar and sugar. Drink this at bedtime, and the cough will not trouble you during the night.

If you have a dry cold, drink peppermint tea and it will almost immediately ease your symptoms. And if your friends are scared of catching it from you, or you wish to keep your family free from infection, tell them to rub a little peppermint oil under the nose and round the throat, and to take a small dose as well, it is an antiseptic and a strong preventative of disease.

Try drinking a glass of hot milk at night with a crushed clove of garlic in it. This is very good for both coughs and colds, and will give some relief asthma sufferers.

Horseradish is another good remedy for sore throats and coughs-even whooping cough. Scrape a half a teacupful of horseradish, add a little vinegar to thoroughly soak it. Keep pressing it down so that the horseradish is always just covered by the vinegar. Leave for the day. Then add one tablespoonful of glycerin and mix. take a half of a teaspoonful in a wineglass of hot water. Incidentally, horseradish will also help to alleviate that annoying catarrhal deafness that can come with a cold. Take one ounce of the grated root, pour one pint of boiling water over it and let it stand for 15 minutes. Strain, and take 4 tablespoonfuls twice a day. If you don`t like the flavor, mix it with syrup of ginger or caraway.

If you want to stop a cold in the early stages, make an infusion of the herb basil in the proportion of 1 teaspoonful of the dried herb to 1 cupful of boiling water. This will promote perspiration and drive out the cold.

If you have access to an elderberry tree, its berries and flowers will quickly help to dispel your discomfort. Store elderflowers after drying them out in the sun, and you can make a healing beverage at any time by pouring boiling water over them and adding a little sugar. The Romanies claim that it puts paid to a head cold if taken immediately the first signs are noticed. This infusion is also soothing and will help to give a good night`s sleep. It will also calm the nerves.

For more Elderberry remedies for colds and flu check out the following at Folk Medicine Remedies and Cures:

The Romanies also found Borage a very good plant for medicinal purposes. An infusion helps coughs, a poultice of Borage leaves is good for inflammation, and if you are suffering from the slight fever that sometimes accompanies a cold or flu germ, put a sliced lemon and about six sprigs of the herb in a jug and cover with boiling water. Drink when cold, it will reduce the feverish symptoms.

Another cold preventative is feverfew. Make the leaves into a tea and it will not only guard against colds, but also flatulence and hysteria.

If you stew barberry berries with a little water until they are soft, then squeeze them through a strainer, pressing out all the juice with a wooden spoon and add three pints of water to one of juice, you will have an excellent drink which, if taken hot at night, will induce the perspiration that drives out a cold

If you are not sure whether it`s a cold or flu coming on, don`t hesitate, infuse 1 oz of fresh or dried balm with a pint of boiling water and take it very hot, last thing at night. It will drive out a cold and arrest an attack of influenza – but you should take it in good time when you feel the first symptoms coming.

Red clover is one of Nature`s best remedies for sore throats and chest troubles. It will also help a bad cough that sometimes accompanies a cold. It grows in fields and by waysides up to a foot in height, and even larger when cultivated. As an infusion it is good for sufferers with bronchitis and asthma. For a bad cough, prepare this syrup. Make a syrup of loaf sugar and water, add fresh red clover leaves in the proportion of an ounce to a pint of syrup. Boil and strain, Bottle and cork the bottle tightly, and take a teaspoonful twice or three times a day.

Ground ivy is a plant that grows on waste ground and in hedgerows everywhere, the leaves are dark and kidney shaped and the flowers bright dark blue. The Romanies made a tea from ground ivy flowers and wood sage as a cure for fevers and colds. The herb is used by herbalists in the treatment of blood and kidney disorders.

In Victorian times, children ate horehound candy as a cure for sore throats and coughs. The plant has a vine-like scent. It is a good remedy for diseases of the chest and lungs and has the added advantage of being a good tonic. If your cold brings on bronchitis, make a brew of horehound tea and you will find that a wine glassful three times a day is a great relief. If you mix it with a little honey, it is more pleasant to take. Black horehound is not used much in herbal practice, but it was once used as a tonic tea by country workers. Horehound, in fact, is often used by herbalists as a remedy when combined with hyssop.

Oil of hyssop is sweet scented and used in the making of some eau de colognes. It was also used by the monks when they made Chartreuse Liqueur.The plant originated in Italy, but can easily be grown in English gardens and it is a very useful plant to have handy as it is a good remedy for coughs and lung complaints. Make an infusion of 1 oz of leaves to 1 pint of water and take frequently.

Comfrey is a well known remedy for lung disorders. Put half an ounce of the crushed root in a saucepan with a pint and a half of milk and water mixed in equal parts and simmer for 20 minutes. A wine glassful will quickly ease an irritating cough. If you use only one pint of milk and water mixture the remedy will form into a jelly which also eases coughs. Grow comfrey in your garden, the root can be boiled as a vegetable and the young shoots blanched and cooked like celery.

The coltsfoot is another wonderful remedy for coughs and colds, whooping cough and shortness of breath. It has a little yellow flower that smells of honey and blooms in February, long before the leaves which grow to enormous size. Coltsfoot grows nearly everywhere, on rubble heaps, by the side of newly-made roads, on railway banks and on coal mine tips. In fact there is a very old gypsy saying that wherever coltsfoot grows freely, coal will be found. Once it was so revered in France that a painting of a coltsfoot flower appeared on the doors of all doctors as a sign that the art of healing was practiced there. The Romanies praise this herb very highly.

A decoction of the leaves of the herb coltsfoot to a pint of boiling water is very good for colds, coughs and asthma. If you haven`t time to make a decoction when a cough is bad, use an infusion of coltsfoot and take in teacupful dose.It can be sweetened to taste with honey.

Another old Romany recipe to soothe any cough is made with liquorice root, coltsfoot and lemon. Simmer 1 oz of liquorice root in 3 pints of water till it is reduced to 1 pint. Put 1 oz of coltsfoot and a sliced lemon into a jug and add the decoction. Stir well, sweeten with honey,allow to get cold, then drink as required.

If you have the hacking cough of a heavy smoker this remedy will disguise your weakness. Put two ounces of sunflower seeds into a saucepan with a quart of water, and an inch or so of whole ginger. Simmer until reduced to a pint and a half. Add sugar or honey to taste. When cold, strain. A tablespoon of whisky will help the drink to stay fresh; if it is not added, it should be made fresh every two or three days. This is an excellent decoction to relieve bronchitis or a hacking cough.

Disclaimer: The author of this site is not Doctor or medical certified professional, the information presented here is for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice.

Money Drawing Oil

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Many Romanies roll their bills rather than keeping them flat. Smearing the outside bill with Money Drawing Oil is believed to attract cash.

Here’s a recipe:

  • 3 drops Wood Marjoram oil
  • 2 drops Lemon oil
  • 2 drops Eucalyptus oil
  • sweet Almond oil

Fill a small bottle (1 dram) half full of sweet almond oil. Add the essential oils and mix well. Store in a cool dry place.

Note: Wood Marjoram, Thymus mastichina,  is also known as Spanish Marjoram, White Thyme, Wild Marjoram or Mastic Thyme. It might be a little bit hard to find. Rosemary can be substituted.

A Gypsy Medicine Bag

Mojo

Here is a Medicine Bag to be carried or worn to facilitate healing. Gather the following ingredients:

  • A sprig each of St. John’s wort, woundwort, and self-heal
  • Twig or leaf from an oak tree
  • Tiny water-worn pebble, which should be round or disc-shaped and preferably have a reddish or orange hue
  • Light downy feather
  • Scrap of red flannel or woolen cloth.
  • Red, orange, and light blue thread
  • Red drawstring bag
  • Sandalwood or Myrrh essential oil

Bind the herbs and feather round with a cord made from plaiting (braiding) red, orange, and light blue thread together. Wrap the herbs together with the pebble in the red cloth and tie with another length of the plaited cord. Put in a red drawstring bag, and perfume with the sandalwood or myrrh oil.

From Gypsy Magic

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