Exorcising A Home

Conjure men and women from Virginia, in addition to being called upon for your regular love, money, revenge, uncrossing, and court case work, were also quite famous for their ability to exorcise spirits from a place or home. There were a variety of means by which these powerful root doctors could accomplish this and were often handed down from generation to generation. These set of techniques and practices were referred to as "ghost laying" or "laying a spirit down to rest." The idea was that  if you had a spirit, or ghost haunting your house it was because it was in a state of unrest, confusion, and loss.   Therefore, it was the job of the conjure man or woman to help put that spirit to rest, often by directing them away from the home and back to where they properly belong: the cemetery. 

Though we are talking specifically about Virginian hoodoo and conjure practices, the terminology and concept has its roots in both African spiritual practices as well as the magical techniques of Northern Europe.  Indeed, one of the most common services provided by the Hellenic and even the archaic goet was that of laying down spirits. I like to think that I carry on the practice of the goetic magicians of old and the conjure doctors who taught me their arts by performing ghost laying for clients and working as an exorcist.

If you find yourself in the need to lay a spirit down to rest you can do the following. 

Go to each room of the house and place a cup of fresh water in the center of the room on a surface or on the floor. Place into that cup of water an egg. Recite over the cup with the egg Psalm 10 which is used commonly in Pslamic magic to exorcise restless spirits. Let the cups and eggs rest over night. Then take all of them to the cemetery. If you have a lot of cups, you might need help carrying them all. At the cemetery door pay three coins to the gatekeeper to grant you entrance. Pour the water out and bury the eggs. I suggest burying them in the general cemetery grounds not a specific grave that is already occupied. Pour cool water over the freshly buried eggs, say a prayer, and tell the spirits that this is their new home and to be at rest. 

Some people also perform a mock funeral at this point to help the spirit adjust to its new home and find peace. Leave the cemetery and take a different route home. 

When you come home, sprinkle your home with Holy Water and mark the doors with Holy Oil, Blessed Oil, or Fiery Wall of Protection. Finally take a nice cleansing bath to remove any spiritual gunk off of yourself with Rue, Basil, and Bay leaves brewed into a tea. Catch a bit of the used bath water, let yourself air dry, and dispose of the used bath water off of your property at the crossroads or at a tree. Return home and anoint yourself with Holy Oil. 

In general this works excellently for spirits that have taken up residence in a certain place. If a spirit is attached to a specific person or sent with a specific mission, then a different approach would have to be taken.