#mekhashepha

[localhollerhaint]

Soluwa, Sacred Moon Spirit.

[juliekjohnsonwrites]

Back from my Lent social media hiatus! I’ve been playing with Procreate a lot lately and decided to do these drawings of Melungeon spirits; first is Soluwa, spirit of the moon 🌙 and second is Solu, spirit of the sun ☀️. Soluwa keeps spirits of ancestors as fireflies, and they become the stars during new moon nights. Solu is a spirit of war, but also of renewal and healing in guise of spring and summer. In stories, they are lovers despite being separated eternally by day and night.

[appalachianwarlock]

Glass Bottle Tree in Southern Appalachia

The belief that blue glass and blue paints give the illusion of water and haints cannot cross moving water, is also seen among the beliefs of our African ancestors. This combined with the Indigenous tradition of dreamcatchers, a likely origin to the Melungeon tradition of using suncatchers, also known as dreamfalls, to ward off nightmare causing haints. Meanwhile, traditions like sin eating and grave houses were likely brought to our communities from our European ancestry. Unlike many would have believed, Mekhashepha was not devil worship or witchcraft, but merely a means of survival and a way to connect with and make sense of the world around us while keeping remnants of our ancestors alive.

(From C.L. Johnson Melungeon author and Folklorist.)

[melungeonculture]

Mekhashepha in Melungeon Culture: Breaking it Down

In order to understand Mekhashepha and its ties to Melungeoninity you must first understand some history.  In recent years there has been a lot of push back against cultural Melungeons sharing their traditional culture and practices, with new age Melungeons demonizing and invalidating Melungeon culture in search of something more “mystical” in the form of appropriating Indigenous tribes form which they have no proof of claim. It is no secret that this denial and invalidation is rooted in antisemitism, and denial of Hebrew Melungeons.  It is undeniable that Melungeon (and Appalachian) people have Hebrew influence, whether this influence is ethnic, cultural, religious, or both varies per family.  This can be substantiated by looking at many common Melungeon names (and old Appalachian names), surnames, dialect, and traditions. Examples can be seen in the common Melungeon surname Cohen>Cowen>Gowen>Goin/Goins as well as common Melungeon given names such as Mahala, Nehemiah, Keziah, Hezekiah, Uzziah, Etc.  Melungeon people also have undeniable ties to Spain/Portugal this can also be substantiated by things like surnames (chavis/chavez), traditions, dialect, Oral History, and DNA. Mekhashepha is an ancient Hebrew word, it has been in use since before we existed as Melungeon people, however in the early 1900′s a man named Eliezer Ben Yeuhda, a lexicographer, created the first Hebrew English dictionary, becoming a driving force in the revival of the Hebrew Language, giving terms like Mekhashepha a resurgence, even if temporary at best. Many words coined by Yehuda became part of everyday Hebrew language while others died out or never caught on. The ancient origins of Melungeon people remains unconfirmed today, but it was once a common rumor among colonizers that Melungeon people were born of an affair between The Devil and an Indigenous Woman. This is important to note because this is likely in part why the term Mekhashepha was weaponized against our people. Though Melungeon people are not specifically mentioned, the book “ Religious Authority in the Spanish Renaissance “ by LuAnn Homza notes Nicholas De Lyra’s use of the Onkelos Targum when translating the term Mekhashepha to refer to a female soothsayer, sorceress, or witch, with carnal ties to the Devil.  Mekhashepha originally tended to refer to a title, usually that of a female, and not the name of their religious or spiritual practice, though today, following Yehuda’s dictionary, it seems to be used interchangeably. In the Torah and the Old Testament, the Mekhashepha are also included with "necromancers", "those who cast spells", "those who summon spirits" etc., as "an abomination to Yahweh" in Deuteronomy 18:9-10.  Mekhashepha does however have controversial translations as many scholars debate it may refer to an herbalist, healer, poisoner, or even pharmacist.  In some translations it is said Mekhashepha may be relied on to heal the sick, foretell the future, and predict agricultural outcomes. These are all things that were tied to Melungeon folk and traditional beliefs as well and can be seen still today in practices like faith healing, the man of signs, reading cards, using blood beads, folk remedies, etc. Due to the negative associations between Mekhashepha and Satan, many Melungeon people were not enthusiastic about identifying with the term, however neither were they about identifying as Melungeon.  In recent, with the rise of popularity in witchcraft, natural healing, cultural acceptance, and feminism, many Melungeons have made the decision to reclaim these terms and wear them and identify with them proudly, while others still feel uncomfortably with these terms. For further reading on Mekhashepha: https://history.stackexchange.com/questions/39828/what-was-the-churchs-attitude-to-magic-prior-to-the-15th-century

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eliezer_Ben-Yehuda

https://www.academia.edu/33078425/When_a_single_word_matters_The_role_of_Bible_translations_in_the_witch_hunt_in_the_Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania

https://archive.org/stream/AbrahamAbulafiaAStarterKit/AncientJewishMagic_djvu.txt

[nanshe-of-nina]

Why were witchcraft and poisoning linked?

Poisoning and witchcraft have been linked together in a lot of Middle Eastern and European cultures, because... Well, OK, let me start again. It was known from Antiquity that Arsenic, Deadly Nightshade, Hemlock, and Mandrake were poisonous, but nobody really knew why. Modern chemistry didn't exist, so there was no way to say, "Oh, well, deadly nightshade contains tropane alkaloids that causes changes in our brains and bodies!"

What made things even more frightening is that poisoning from such substances could often mimic deaths from disease and lack of reliable toxicological testing meant that it would be very uncertain whether someone was poisoned or they just died from dysentery. (This is one reason why everyone who died of a somewhat mysterious illness in the past, from the Emperor Claudius to Jeanne III of Navarre, is rumored to have been poisoned.)

Since it wasn't really understood how poisons worked, they were often considered "occult" in the since of being hidden or secret knowledge and were thus linked with magic. Now, perhaps you've heard it said before that "poison is a woman's weapon." This is due to the assumption that a man who wanted to confront or an eliminate an enemy would do so directly with physical violence while women would have to resort to less overt methods.

Because of cultural assumptions of women being the weaker sex, you also often see the assumption in Middle Eastern and European cultures, therefore, that most types of magic are also women's weapons, particularly magic meant to cause harm. It seems, for instance, that the practice of Seiðr among the pagan Norse was considered feminine (though Seiðr could be both good, bad, or neutral); Mesopotamian law codes usually assume that evil spell-casters are female; most figures in Greek mythology who work destructive magic are female (e.g. Circe and Medea) and this is reflected in other Greek literature; etc. It is worth noting that most Late Medieval and Early Modern writers of witch-hunting manuals enthusiastically cited ancient Greek and Roman writers to "prove" the inferiority of women and that they are more likely to use evil magic.

In any case, the linkage between poison and magic in ancient European and Middle Eastern minds that influenced later developments about witch lore is most overt in that Venefica in Latin, Mekhashepha (מְכַשֵּׁפָה‎) in Hebrew, and Pharmakís (φαρμακίς) in Ancient Greek can all be translated as either "witch" or "poisoner".

Source:

Hutton, R. (2018). The Witch: A History of Fear, from Ancient Times to the Present. Yale University Press.

[diaryofamelungeon]

Melungeon Spiritual practices and Machisaba (Mekhashepha)

I won’t be answering anon questions here, but I have had a small influx of people asking about traditional Melungeon beliefs and more spicifically Machisaba.  This is a practice that is incredibly hard to research, but many Melungeons and Melungeon descendants have been looking into reconstructing and reconnecting with. Due to the relentless efforts to remain hidden and pass in a world of discrimmination much of these oral histories and practices have been lost to many descendants.  From what I have found many Melungeon families assimilated into more socially accepted belief systems like Chritianity, including my own family. However, there are a few families that I’ve spoken with that practice more traditional beliefs or other non-christian religions that they carried on from before assimilation. It seems many melungeon communites practiced a variety of different folk magic practices and religions likely deriving from the different cultures we descended from (we are a heavily mixed race community), one of these practices is known as Machisaba, believed to have evolved from European folk lore, African spiritual practices, and Indigenous beliefs brought together by the communities history of heavy endogamous mixing among the three groups. Machisaba is the only practice that appears to be unique to Melungeon communities and likely was born in the 1700′s in Melungeon communities in the backwoods of Southern Appalachia. (some other spiritual practices found in melungeon families include Hoodoo, Brauchrei, and Curanderismo). It is important to make a note here that most or all of these practices are viewed as closed by those within the communities that practice them and should be respected as closed practice. 

Machisaba is a mix of faith and holistic healing practices, conjure, and folk lore. It is a polytheistic belief system that recognizes multiple dieties known as Alma. Machisaba is centered heavily on Ancestor veneration, reincarnation, and animism. Many Machisaba practitioners are known as Vavo(a)’s or Broxo(a)’s and are considered sacred healers and conjure people in their communities. They were historically referred to as cursed souls, witches, and demons by outside communities for their traditions surrounding spiritual events such as death like “sin eating”, or birth ceremonies that invlove painting infants red in ochre. Due to their continued discrimination, many of these practices were held and taught in secret, and kept hidden to protect families from people like Walter Plecker.  It is most likely that Machisaba was influenced by our need to survive off the land and mountains we were forced into and being heavily outcast by all white christian communities. Today, most Melungeon people identify spiritually with some branch of Christianity, most commonly Southern Baptism, with mere remnants of Machisaba appearing in passing. Machisaba is by all means, a dying practice, but in recent years the shame that came with being Melungeon has began to lift and Melungeons today are beginning to speak openly about who they are, their history, and their heritage, with many lost Melungeons trying to reconnect and honor their heritage and ancestors while decolonizing their spiritual practices. For the first time in history Melungeons are finally starting to get comfortable learning, reconnecting and practicing our traditional beliefs, and being able to do so openly without losing our homes or rights.  Most people who practice Machisaba today are reconstructionists, trying to rebuild what little was left behind by ancestors, and breathe new life into a nearly dead culture.

[too-cool-for-facebook]

If you hadn’t mistranslated the word mekhashepha as “witch,” a lot of people, especially women, would have been spared from crazy-ass witch-hunts!

The word might mean, “poisoners,” “herbalists,” “pharmacists,” or “people who used magic for evil.”

There were/are good witches, and we don’t deserve this shit!

[manutarot]

Brujería o Hechicería, Entendiendo los conceptos

Para poder entender qué signfican estos conceptos, debemos ir a las palabras hebreas utilizadas en la Biblia y entender los orígenes.

Primeramente, debemos tener claro que la palabra BRUJA está teñida por las connotaciones de Cristianos que durante siglos presenciaron múltiples prácticas “paganas” y es primordial recordar que los que escribieron el Pentateuco hicieron usos de palabras para describir personas y sus prácticas religiosas. Debemos mantener muy claro que los Israelitas, después de salir de Egipto y Babilonia, pasaron por una reforma religiosa cuyo objetivo era establecer Yahveh (YHWH) como su único dios.

La palabra BRUJA es una traducción de la palabra MEKHASHEPHAH. Esta palabra fue traducida como bruja por Eliezeer Ben Yehuda y  Merrill F Unger aunque la raíz de la palabra, KASHAPH, significa murmurar, farfullar, barbotear y nos muestra que la palabra “bruja” realmente se refiere a personas que usaban encantamientos o invocaciones intelegibles. También, la raiz “kashaph” ha sido traducida como cortar, haciendo referencia a aquellas personas que usan plantas. La Septuaginta traduce “mekhashepha” como “pharmakeia” lo cual nos indica que estas personas, a las cuales hoy día se les llama brujas, en el pasado eran personas que hacían uso de plantas en sus encantamientos o invocaciones a sus dioses o espíritus.

Dentro de lo que los Cristianos llaman Antiguo Testamento se reportan varias prácticas. Una de ellas es la de comunicarse con el espíritu de alguien fallecido. En el tiempo que se escribieron Levítico, Deuteronomio, Samuel, Crónicas, Reyes, e Isaías la práctica se reportaba. Al espíritu del fenecido se le conocia como OB, y la mujer que se comunicaba con los muertos hablando en forma de susurro nasal se le llamaba entre los Israelitas como Dama de Ob (Baalt Ob) y otra palabra utilizada para los espíritus de los fallecidos era Yide’oni. Se cree que la mujer de Endor contactó Saúl haciendo uso de su espíritu personal. Osea, ella hizo uso de lo que se conoce como espíritu guía en el espiritismo Puertorriqueño.

Lahash, es una palabra hebrea que hace referencia a presagios ya sea en las nubes, pájaros, etc. La palabra Nahash parece estar relacionada con lo que hoy se conoce como lectura del café o del té. Es una interpretación de algún líquido que se estaba ingiriendo y se procedía a leer el recipiente que contenía el mismo.

Otra palabra hebrea es Kesem. La misma alude a un tipo de oráculo que consistía de palitos, algo así  como el I Ching. Esta práctica era común entre los Israelitas. Cuando Josue 14:2 RVR, dice “Por suerte se les dio su heredad, como Jehová había mandado a Moisés que se diera a las nueve tribus y a la media tribu.“ Esa suerte que se menciona no es nada más y nada menos que Kesem. Osea, se hizo uso de un oráculo para preguntar a dios. El Urim y Tumim utilizado por el Sumo Sacerdote de Israel también era un oráculo.

Para concluir, quiero mencionar Toltosh. ¿Por qué? Porque en el mundo Europeo, Toltosh, es denominado brujo o bruja aunque es una especie de Shaman que nace con dones y puede accesar las 3 divisiones espirituales. ¿Qué es Toltosh? Toltosh pertenece a las tribus Fino-Ugarica osea las partes septentrional y orientales Europea. Toltosh, es una persona que nace con dones de sanación, influenciar el tiempo, profecía, y muchas otros dones. La persona nace o con un dedo extra o un hueso extra. La persona, cuando entra en tiempo, es llamada por dios y la misma desaparece por 3 días. Al regresar, el individuo manifiesta dones increíbles. También, se cree que estos dones son accesados al ser invocados en un árbol. Debemos recordar que cuando los “Cristianos” llegaron a America y entraron en contacto con los Incas, Aztecas, etc a todos esos individuos (sacerdotes y médicos) que oficiaban a sus dioses los colonizadores los llamaron brujos o hechiceros. Por lo tanto, todo aquello que los “cristianos” llaman brujos y hechiceros son nada mas y nada menos que Reyes, Reinas, Médicos y/o Sacerdotes que oficiaban la liturgia de sus dioses o hacían oraciones mientras usaban plantas para sanar. ¿Sabía usted que todos los brujos, hechiceros, y médiums a los cuales la Biblia menciona eran Reinas, Reyes, o Sacerdotes? Este detalle muestra que los términos brujo y hechicero fueron palabras sombrillas para agrupar a personas que practicaban algún tipo de lo que hoy en día se conoce como shamanismo. Así como los “Cristianos’ utilizaron la palabra pagano para hacer referencia a cualquiera que no era “cristiano” así mismo hicieron uso de brujo y hechicero.

En resumen, hechicería y brujería son palabras forjadas por la cristiandad para demonizar todas aquellas personas (Shamanes, Sacerdotes, o Médicos) practicando religiones que no son cristianas.

Referencias: 

1) Thou Shalt Not Suffer a Witch to Live: A Murderous Mistranslation? By Elizabeth Sloane. HAARETZ. 17 Agosto 2017. 

2) Witchcraft. Jewish Encyclopedia. Emil G Hirsh y George A Barton. 

3) Witches & Witchcraft by Rabbi Geoffrey Dennis. My Jewish Learning. Magic and the Supernatural. 

4) La brujería y la adivinación en la Biblia de acuerdo con el Adviento. Nueva Enciclopedia Católica. 

5) Corona Tejada, Luis. Brujos y Hechiceros: Dos Actitudes.

6) https://mek.oszk.hu/02700/02790/html/176.html

[juliekjohnsonwrites]

Two more newspaper articles for the end Melungeon Heritage Month! I don’t know the original publication names or the exact dates, but these articles come from two separate newspapers. The first discusses the use of blood beads and grave houses. 🩸 📿 If you’ve read #themooneyedones you’ll know I got the description of blood beads hella wrong 😂. Blood beads are rosary-like strings of yellow-green or amber glass beads believed to cure blood borne illness as they are chanted or prayed over. It was a common practice among Melungeon communities where doctoring was scarce. The second discusses elder Melungeon women speaking in an unknown language while going to pray to the moon in cemeteries at midnight. 🌕 While society generally depicted Melungeons as “witchy,” we did indeed have practices that may have seemed odd or foreign to outsiders. #melungeon #mekhashepha #machisaba #genealogy #appalachia (at Indianapolis, Indiana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CkO1TboPpEZ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[localhollerhaint]

Welcome to Mamie Clyde's Apothecary ⚖️

[localhollerhaint]

Everyone is so hype on white sage for smoke cleansing that they don't even know about sweet fern, which I personally find to be the superior smoke cleansing herb.

[localhollerhaint]

Mamie Clyde's has been doing quite well. There's nothing I enjoy more than witchcraft and folkhealing. This is in my blood, granny women, conjure people, and yarb drs freckle my Ancestry and it is so satisfying to carry that on.

[melungeonculture]

Welcome to the world of Mekhashepha.

This is a spiritual path practised by a small Melungeon community known as Ridgeminites and other Melungeon communities with heavy Jewish influence, it is not practised by all Melungeon communities, but it is not found outside them.  More commonly spelled Mekhashepha or Machisaba, it is a folkhealing and conjure craft brought to the Appalachian region by Melungeon peoples. It is historically spelled Mekhashepha or Machashabah, roughly translated from Hebrew, it means witchcraft or cunning work. This blog is for educational purposes only, I do not offer any goods, services, or medical advice.  Machisaba should not be used as a replacement for professional health advice. 

[melungeonculture]

Contrary to popular belief Mekhashepha =\= Witchcraft. You can be a witch and practice Mekhashepha, you can be not a witch and practice Mekhashepha. It is not a religion, there's no contracts or covenants. In my experience it's just learning to work with the energy of things and the environment around you. Calm down. Quit demonizing your kin just because you don't understand. A lot of us are Christians no less, and are against the witch terminology.  

This belief was born in the same sense that the word Melungeon is a slur was born. As Melungeon people we did not call ourselves Melungeon, we called ourselves Ridgemanites and other names denoting where we resided. We did not call out practices Mekheshepha (Machisaba), this is the OT word for a witch or a female sorceress. We were demonized as mixed race and demonized as witches and had our own dialect stripped from us, so we adopted what was given to us.  Machashabah similarly is the biblical word for cunning work, or knowing how to use intentions, thought, and prayer to heal. 

[melungeonculture]

Black hens hold an interesting role in Mekhashepha. Their feathers have many uses like being hung from horseshoes above doorways for protection. They can also be burned and the powder can be used in many different magical workings from hexing and uncrossing to divination. Feathers from Black Hens are commonly used in conjure boxes and chests. The egg from a Black hen can be used to bring illness to your enemies as well used to heal illness and injury alike. The scratching of a black hen in the dirt around your home prevents crossings from being laid against you.