It’s practically a Caribbean tradition to hear a neighbor practice Obeah with someone you know. However, it is a taboo subject and the actual rituals of Obeah are rarely discussed except among practitioners. Few know how Obeah works. Even less knowing where Obeah’s power comes from. This will reveal some of that mystery, as well as the African and ancient spiritual forces behind it.
There are four independent spirits that influence the spell an Obeah male can choose from, as well as a fifth category of ancestral spirits. The spirits are Ogun, Sakpata, Mama Wata, Eshu and the final group of ancestral spirits belonging to an Obeah man. The Obeah man learns the art from him by tradition, but perfects it with specific help from his ancestral spirits. Obeah’s deities, the spirits, can also be seen from an allegorical or Jungian point of view. On an allegorical level, each of these spirits represents strength, destruction, creation, the opening of spiritual power, and tradition, respectively.
In most spells, the first matter to be decided is the role of Ogun, the spirit of strength and war. It would be wrong to trust Ogun in a love affair, where a protective spirit like Mama Wata should hold sway. Ogun may still have a small role, but he would not be a dominant force. If we do not want a particularly powerful ritual or excessive force, the ritual with Ogun must be proportionate and smooth. Alternatively, the result may be overwhelming, unpredictable, or unstable.
Sakpata is a spirit that alludes to destruction, specifically pestilence. If a curse is in order, Sakpata can take an important role in the ritual. Again, with a love spell, Sakpata would be less relevant. There are some exceptions too. Sakpata, who has some mastery over agricultural matters, is also an important spirit in finance. For example, a spell for money may involve Sakpata and Eshu, or other spirits.
Eshu must be mentioned before continuing. As the spiritual guardian in Obeah, the conduit to the spirit world, Eshu is invoked in all rituals. Eshu may also be the sole force behind many, as he is said to have mastery over magic and spiritual power. It is Eshu who gives visions and psychic abilities. Eshu is often related to Papa Legba, in Vodou, or Saint Lazarus in a spiritual Catholic interpretation.
So we can’t tell much just by knowing if Eshu is involved. Eshu may be involved in curses with Sakpata, or even healing spells with the same spirit, again Sakpata. This is one of the reasons that Obeah has been less codified and exposed than other Afro-Caribbean religious traditions. The ambiguity of many rituals has made it obscure for the uninitiated to discern their meanings.
If Eshu represents the link to the spirit world, our actual ability to cast a spell, then it is the ancestral spirits of Obeah that make each individual unique. Obeah, technically, is a form of shamanism though less commonly associated with the term. This is because it is based on spirit contact; both unrelated and ancestors of the practitioner. This is one of the reasons, although being a primarily African tradition, modern Obeah has incorporated occult traditions from Western Europe. Mixing began in Jamaica as early as the 1940s, with the tracts and publications of LW de Laurence.
The Obeah man must deal with many factors to choose the right spell. Knowing which spirits to work with is required and the main principle behind Obeah is the spiritual forces that drive him. Like a spiritual painting, he must be designed with the right balance. This is the only way to ensure both the safety and accuracy of the ritual.
Safety is of utmost importance to the Obeah man. The reason is because, when it comes to spirits, the danger falls on the direct practitioner. It has traditionally been common in the Caribbean for many people to visit an Obeah man, but only a few actually practice. Obeah will turn on the person attempting the ritual. He would not do anything to the person using the services of an Obeah doctor, since they themselves did not participate in the ritual. This provides a level of safety for the client, but a level of danger for the practitioner. Therefore, safety is always a concern for the Obeah man. He must respect the spirits and act according to their will to ensure the safety of the spell.
Reliability is the final staple of why a spell is selected or discarded. The ritual simply must work. Few expect a spell to change their life overnight. But it must work consistently and quickly. Those who practice Obeah experiment and ultimately come up with the best and most functional spells. That’s why Obeah is both powerful and practical. He has been able to discard less functional spells and integrate new practices to speed up results. Obeah gets the reputation he deserves for having effective rituals.
The balance of spiritual forces, concern for safety and reliability are the cornerstones in selecting or creating an appropriate Obeah ritual. A failure in any of these can make a ritual dangerous to perform or not work. However, Obeah is a growing tradition with more people learning and practicing as knowledge spreads. This will make experimentation with Obeah more common, but the spells will stay consistently strong, even if they change, because we use the ones that just work.