ozarkhealingtraditions

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

I’ve got another series of virtual classes coming up at Catland Books NYC! For more information and to purchase tickets, follow the links below.

January 8 - Ozark Folk Magic 101 @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

A general overview of folk magic rites, rituals, and spells, from an Ozark point of view. A great class for beginner witches and folk magicians as well as seasoned practitioners wanting to brush up on their foundational practices and considerations. Specific areas that this class will cover include:

Foundational Ozark worldview and the relationship between humans and magic.

Interactions between the Human Realm and the Otherworld.

Magical considerations that form the basis for Ozark rituals e.g. auspicious timing, locations, and repurposing household objects for magic and healing.

Materia of Ozark folk magic with a focus on plants and non-plant-based ingredients, tools, and other items.

Each topic will include practical guidance as well as rites and rituals specially formulated for this class.

All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

January 15 - Ozark Bible Magic @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

Along with the almanac, the Bible was often the only book owned by Ozark hillfolk until the modern era. At one point in our past, the Bible was the source not only of spiritual teachings, but also a combination reading primer, divinatory system, and spell book.

We will be looking at the position the Bible has held in Ozark traditions of healing and folk magic. In many cases, hillfolk families might not have had a spiritual connection to the Bible but still recognized the text as a valuable text for working magic in the world. We will be looking at verses and passages that have long histories of use in the Ozarks for specific purposes like healing, protection, retribution (or cursing), as well as love and money magic. We’ll also look at rituals that have developed amongst hillfolk using these biblical texts as well as using the Bible itself as a divinatory tool as well as a protective amulet.

All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

January 22 - Twelve Houses of Healing @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

The figure of the “Man of Signs” or “Zodiac Man” serves as a foundational guide for most traditions of Ozark healing and magic. This figure was often committed to memory, but could also be found in the home almanac (and it is still printed in the major farmers’ almanacs today.) In Ozark healing theory, the primary effect of illnesses (physical or magical) is that they force the Twelve Houses of the body and their associated signs out of balance. This creates disharmony and manifests as bodily symptoms. Bringing the body back to equilibrium is therefore the main goal of the traditional healer. The main tools in their satchel are divinatory methods aimed at finding the exact location (Zodiac House) where the illness or hex is rooted in the body. Knowing this then provides a plethora of correspondences that can be “countered” as part of the healing process.

We will be looking specifically at the role of the twelve bodily houses in the healing process, how healers and magical practitioners diagnose these houses, and methods for correcting imbalances in the houses using elemental and zodiac correspondences.

All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

January 29 - Ozark Plant Magic @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

The Ozark region is prized for its biodiversity and at times throughout history has even been targeted by researchers and herbalists alike because of its many healing plants. In this class, we will look at the most important plants for Ozark practitioners, both for their medicinal and magical values. We’ll examine how the relationship between practitioner and plant spirits have developed into the modern area. And of course, we’ll take a look at specific traditional herbal remedy recipes from the region as well as a few spells using amazing mountain botanicals like the “Holy Trinity” of Ozark plants: red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), sassafras (Sassafras albidum), and tobacco (Nicotiana spp.).

All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

February 5 - Ozark Love Magic @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

A controversial area of magic, even amongst traditional folk healers and magicians. In the Ozarks, love magic was once as necessary as work for healing and fortune. Today, love magic continues to pique the interest of those looking to folk magic practitioners for help. Ozark hillfolk have both inherited as well as developed a rich relationship with magical practices aimed at the heart. Everything from divination rituals to locate your true love, to fashioning love-drawing (or sex-drawing) amulets, to ritual methods of healing, binding, and breaking relationships.

We will look at Ozark love magic divided into three main categories of 1) divination 2) amulets, and 3) ritual work. We will be looking at specific spells and methods from both the much older folk record as well as how modern practitioners have approached and evolved love magic today.

All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

February 12 - Ozark Witches: Fact & Fiction @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

Witchcraft has occupied a controversial position in the Ozarks since the first white settlers came to the region in the early 1800s. For many, there is a firm separation between the role of the witch, who is said to always do harm, and the healer, who is said to always do good. Many other magical practitioners of the past and present have occupied a much more neutral area and have used their gifts to both give and take away. For these individuals, the role of the healer or gifted individual in the community is likened to nature itself, which exists outside our human conceptualizations of “good” and “evil.”

We will examine the many sides of this complicated story, from the point of view of proud witches themselves to the old tall tales and legends about broom-riding grannies and child-stealing hags. We'll try and separate some facts from the fiction and even throw in a spell or two you can use at home.

All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

February 19 - Ozark Graveyard Magic @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

The graveyard has always been an important part of Ozark folk magic traditions. In the old days, this was where a witch could be born from an ordinary human and where the “veil” between worlds was constantly thin. Graveyards aren’t just for the spooky ritualist, however, and have traditionally been a site for the work of Ozark healers as well. For many mountain practitioners, historic and modern, healing work includes not just serving the living but also the dead. These shades often figure as guides, guardians, patrons, and ancestral helpers in many healer stories as well as aids in the process of healing or “elevating” the restless dead as well.

We will be examining Ozark folklore situated in the graveyard as well as look at some of the many ways healers and other magical practitioners have incorporated this all-important work with the dead into their own lives and rituals.

All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

February 26 - Ozark Spirit Archetypes @ Catland Books (Virtual)

Time: 6-8pm (Central) 7-9pm (Eastern)

Location: Virtual

Purchase Tickets Here

Ozark verbal charms and prayers often invoke archetypal figures as helping spirits in the work at hand. These archetypes are seen as being far more predictable in their correspondences than individual spirit entities, who often have their own goals and desires that might not align with the magical practitioner’s. Some of these spirits are metaphorical individuals, for example, invoking the figure of Prosperity in a ritual seeking aid for the success of a business or job. Others are figures found throughout Ozark folklore like the character of Clever Jack (of beanstalk fame.) And it is these folkloric archetypes that we will be examining in this class, seven in particular: The Fortunate One, Clever Jack, Green Thumb, The Aunty, Mother Mary, Silver Eye, and Old Scratch.

​All classes are recorded. A link to the recording is sent out to the ticketholders the day after each event. These links stay active for 30 days.

#ozarks #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #witchythings #folklore #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folk magic #ozark folkways #ozark healing traditions #healing #spiritual healing #traditional healing #traditional medicine #magic #spiritism #spiritualism #Spirits

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Did you know?

I've taught a lot of virtual classes since 2020, but did you know you can purchase video recordings of all of my past classes in case you missed any of them? Well you can! Visit this page to find out more information.

Classes Available for Purchase

Ozark Ghosts, Monsters, Fairies, and Spirits Ozark Works of Magical Protection Ozark Traditional Witchcraft Using the Farmers' Almanac in Ozark Folk Magic and Healing Tell the Tombs: Graveyard Magic in the Ozarks A Guided Tour of Ozark Folk Magic: Plants, Prayers & Healing The First Spell Book: Ozark Bible Magic The Wheel of the Ozark Year Otherworldly Instructions: Ancestors and Land Spirits Repurposing Household Objects for Your Practice Divination & Diagnosis in Ozark Folk Magic Ozark Native Plants for Magic & Healing Ozark Astrological Magic Ozark Folk Magic Foundations

#ozarks #folk magic #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #ozark folk magic #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folkways #spiritual healing #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #ozark mountain spell book #traditional medicine #folklore #Magic #Spirits #spiritualism #spiritism #espiritismo

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Fall 2022 Virtual Classes!

Ozark Folk Magic Foundations

Date: Saturday September 10, 2022 Time: 6-8pm (Central) Location: Zoom (a link will be emailed to you 24 hours before the event) Purchase Tickets Here

This class will be recorded and a video will be sent to all ticket holders 3-5 days after the class.

Take a look at the basics of folk magic rites, rituals, spells, and processes from an Ozark point of view. A great class for beginner witches and folk magicians as well as seasoned practitioners wanting to brush up on their foundational practices and considerations. Specific areas that this class will cover include:

The magical process of diagnosing conditions like evil eye, hexes, bad luck, etc.

The importance of auspicious timing in spell formulation.

The Law of Sympathy (Sympathetic Magic) and how practitioners can use it to empower their work.

Tonifying, complementing, and countering conditions/entities using elemental correspondences.

Each topic will include practical guidance as well as rites and rituals specially formulated for this class.

Ozark Magic for Mental Wellbeing

Date: Saturday October 1, 2022 Time: 4-6pm (Central) Location: Zoom (a link will be emailed to you 24 hours before the event) Purchase Tickets Here

This class will be recorded and a video will be sent to all ticket holders 3-5 days after the class.

Traditionally, Ozark healers and magical practitioners never separated the physical body from the mind or spirit. They were both considered together as well as remedied together. In this class we will be examining both modern and traditional methods Ozark healers have used to help balance the physical and mental zones and how we can utilize these methods today.

Key areas we will look at include addressing the “burnout” of the magical practitioner (we’ve all been there), utilizing nature-based practices and meditations to balance internal strife, and taking traditional spirit work as a path to addressing “demons” within ourselves.

Note, this class isn’t intended to provide any medical treatments or diagnose any mental illnesses. All methods and information derive from a folkloric, magical, and spiritual dimension alone.

Otherworldly Instructions: Exorcism & Elevation

Date: Saturday October 15, 2022 Time: 4-6pm (Central) Location: Zoom (a link will be emailed to you 24 hours before the event) Purchase Tickets Here

This class will be recorded and a video will be sent to all ticket holders 3-5 days after the class.

Part two of the Otherworldly Instructions series (attending part one isn’t required for this course). Ozark spirit work has addressed issues of malevolent ghosts, demons, and other entities in a variety of ways. In this class we will be looking at techniques of traditional exorcism, including methods of banishment, sealing, countering, etc. as well as compassion-based methods originating in 19th century Spiritualism and Spiritism as it mixed with Ozark folk practices.

This class will include details about the entities of the Otherworld a magical practitioner might encounter, how to diagnosis spirit-influence, as well as practical techniques for either kicking the entity out or aiding them on their own spiritual journey through elevation or healing practices.

The Mountain is Alive: Ozark Animism

Date: Saturday November 12, 2022 Time: 4-6pm (Central) Location: Zoom (a link will be emailed to you 24 hours before the event) Purchase Tickets Here

This class will be recorded and a video will be sent to all ticket holders 3-5 days after the class.

In the traditional Ozark worldview, all of nature is alive with a sense of presence and spirit. This presence can take on many different forms depending upon the individual. Amongst healers and magicians, there’s an idea of this innate flow or river of life energy and magic that flows through everything in the universe. When an individual is “going with the flow” they find themselves connected to this river of magic and thereby connected to all other parts of nature as well.

In this class we will be looking at how to connect to that flow of magic. We will also be delving into how the animate Ozark landscape has influenced practices of folk healing and magic as well as how modern practitioners can approach and work with the personalities of nature.

Town is in Nature Too: Urban Folk Magic

Date: Saturday December 10, 2022 Time: 4-6pm (Central) Location: Zoom (a link will be emailed to you 24 hours before the event) Purchase Tickets Here

This class will be recorded and a video will be sent to all ticket holders 3-5 days after the class.

While the natural world has been foundational to practices of traditional Ozark folk healing and magic, so many of us today are far removed from the forested hills and hollers of our ancestors. But, as one of my favorite mentors told me, “Town is in nature too,” meaning that the flow of life and magic isn’t just in wilderness areas, but can be accessed and utilized in wondrous ways even in the concrete jungle.

In this class, we will be looking at how modern Ozark practitioners have creatively utilized the urbanized landscape as a part of their practice. Specific areas will include:

Examining the magical landscape itself and find entryways into the Otherworld by means of abandoned buildings, urban parks, cemeteries, and the crossroads.

Cultivating your roots in nature through magical gardening.

Community support as a magical act.

Reading signs and omens in the urban landscape.

Collecting and using specific magical materia related to society and town structures (e.g. bank dirt, library water, etc.)

#witchcraft #traditional witchcraft #ozarks #ozark folk magic #folk magic #ozark folk medicine #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #traditional medicine #ozark healing traditions #traditional healing #folklore #Spirits #spiritual healing #spiritualism #spiritism #espiritismo #Magic #herbal #herbalism

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Upcoming virtual class alert! My next class will be Saturday April 9th from 4-6pm. Recordings will be sent to all ticket holders after the class session.

Tickets available here

Repurposing Household Objects for Your Practice

Simplicity in practice has always been an important feature of Ozark traditional healing and magic. Many of the tools healers and practitioners use even to this day don’t come from metaphysical or specialty stores but from inside the home itself. In this class, we’ll be looking at the many magical tools and ingredients that you likely already have right in your home. We’ll also be discussing the power of simplicity in practice and what it actually means to work in this way.

#traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #ozarks #ozark folk magic #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folkways #traditional medicine #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #herbalism #Spirits #spiritual healing #spiritualism #spiritism #folklore

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Have you missed any of my virtual classes and would like to catch up? Good news! Recordings are available for purchase on the website.

Here are the classes available:

🌿Otherworldly Instructions: Ancestors & Land Spirits 🌿The Wheel of the Ozark Year 🌿Ozark Bible Magic 🌿A Guided Tour of "Ozark Folk Magic: Plants, Prayers & Healing" 🌿Graveyard Magic in the Ozarks 🌿Using the Farmers' Almanac in Magic & Healing 🌿Ozark Traditional Witchcraft 🌿Methods of Magical Protection 🌿Ozark Ghosts, Monsters, Fairies, & Spirits

#traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #ozarks #ozark folk magic #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folkways #ozark healing traditions #folklore #traditional medicine #traditional healing #herbalism #Spirits #spiritual healing #spiritualism #spiritism

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

My next virtual class will be Saturday March 12th from 4-6pm CDT. This one is going to be a great resource for anyone who works with the spirit world (or wants to start), especially ancestors and land spirits.

Tickets are available here. Recordings will be sent to all ticket holders after the class session.

Otherworldly Instructions: Ancestors and Land Spirits

Working with spirits of the land and family has at times figured heavily in Ozark traditional healing and magical practices. Healers often derive their “gifts” from such interactions. In this class we will be examining the basics of working with the otherworld, specifically ancestors and land spirits. We will discuss how to take heal and take care of the land (and its many otherworldly inhabitants) as well as techniques for honoring ancestral spirits in the home and practice.

#ozarks #ozark folk magic #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #folklore #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folk medicine #ozark healing traditions #traditional medicine #traditional healing #Spirits #spiritual healing #spiritualism #spiritism #ancestors #herbalism

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

I've got my Spring 2022 virtual class schedule up! Four new great classes including subjects of Ozark seasonal magic, working with ancestors and land spirits, using household objects in your magic, and Ozark native plants! For more information and to purchase tickets visit: https://www.ozarkhealing.com/class-tickets.html

February 12, 2022 - The Wheel of the Ozark Year

Time: 4-6pm CDT Location: Zoom (links will be sent the day before) Notes: Registration will close 30 minutes before the event begins

Traditional Ozark folk healing and magic practices are characterized by “going with the flow” of nature, the stars overhead, and the seasons of the year. In this class we will be examining how modern practitioners can incorporate traditional Ozark holidays as well as seasonal herbalism and magic into their own Wheel of the Year.

March 12, 2022 - Otherworldly Instructions: Ancestors & Land Spirits

Time: 4-6pm CDT Location: Zoom (links will be sent the day before) Notes: Registration will close 30 minutes before the event begins

Working with spirits of the land and family has at times figured heavily in Ozark traditional healing and magical practices. Healers often derive their “gifts” from such interactions. In this class we will be examining the basics of working with the otherworld, specifically ancestors and land spirits. We will discuss how to take heal and take care of the land (and its many otherworldly inhabitants) as well as techniques for honoring ancestral spirits in the home and practice.

April 9, 2022 - Repurposing Household Objects for Your Practice

Time: 4-6pm CDT Location: Zoom (links will be sent the day before) Notes: Registration will close 30 minutes before the event begins

Simplicity in practice has always been an important feature of Ozark traditional healing and magic. Many of the tools healers and practitioners use even to this day don’t come from metaphysical or specialty stores but from inside the home itself. In this class, we’ll be looking at the many magical tools and ingredients that you likely already have right in your home. We’ll also be discussing the power of simplicity in practice and what it actually means to work in this way.

May 21, 2022 - Ozark Native Plants for Magic and Healing

Time: 4-6pm CDT Location: Zoom (links will be sent the day before) Notes: Registration will close 30 minutes before the event begins

The Ozark region is prized for its biodiversity and at times throughout history has even been targeted by researchers and herbalists alike because of its many healing plants. In this class, we will be looking at the most important plants for Ozark practitioners, both for their medicinal values and magical as well. We’ll look at some traditional Ozark herbal remedy recipes as well as a few spells using these amazing mountain botanicals.

#traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #ozarks #folk magic #ozark folk magic #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folkways #traditional medicine #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #Spirits #spiritual healing #spiritualism #spiritism #herbal #herbalism

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

So excited to see my upcoming second book, the "Ozark Mountain Spell Book" is now available for pre-order from Llewellyn Worldwide! For those interested, I've also now seen it online on Bookshop and Amazon as well. Be warned though, it doesn't release until June 2022, so you'll have to be patient.

"Discover traditional folk magic of the Ozark Mountains and how to incorporate it into your own practice with Brandon Weston's follow-up book to Ozark Folk Magic. This unique grimoire weaves fascinating historical details and thrilling stories from Weston's life alongside step-by-step instructions for authentic remedies, rituals, and spell work.

"Ozark Mountain Spell Book includes numerous regional recipes using ingredients commonly found in the household or in nature. This book covers good luck amulets, love potions, magical cleansing rituals, protection spells, divination tools, and more. Weston also shares advice on updating Ozark traditions for the modern practitioner and folk secrets from his own craft. A perfect launching point for your own magical path, this collection of spells includes everything from unlocking the truth behind your dreams to reversing a hex."

#ozarks #folk magic #ozark folk magic #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #traditional healing #traditional medicine #ozark folkways #herbalism #ozark folk medicine

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Recording available for my latest virtual class on using the Farmers’ Almanac in Ozark folk magic and healing!

#ozarks #traditional witchcraft #folk magic #witchcraft #herbalism #ozark healing traditions #ozark folkways #ozark folk magic #ozark magic #ozark folk medicine #traditional healing #traditional medicine

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Four New Virtual Classes Coming Up!

Using the Farmers' Almanac in Ozark Folk Magic and Healing

Date: September 18, 2021 Time: 4-6pm CDT Purchase tickets here This is a virtual class. A Zoom meeting link will be emailed to participants the day before the event. All ticket holders will receive a link to download a recording of this class after the event. The Farmers' Almanac has been a staple book of many hillfolk households for centuries. As one of my teachers told me, “Used to folks only needed two books: the Bible and the almanac.” But the uses of the almanac extend far beyond just predictions of annual weather patterns and calendars of holidays. For Ozark healers and magical practitioners, the almanac still offers the “best days” to perform certain rituals and healing acts based on cycles of the moon and zodiac. ​In this class we will be looking at how the almanac can still be a useful magical guidebook today and discuss methods of incorporating magical timings into your own practice.

Tell the Tombs: Graveyard Magic in the Ozarks

Date: October 30, 2021 Time: 4-6pm CDT Purchase tickets here This is a virtual class. A Zoom meeting link will be emailed to participants the day before the event. All ticket holders will receive a link to download a recording of this class after the event. The graveyard has always been an important part of Ozark folk magic traditions. In the old days, this was where a witch could be born from an ordinary human and where the “veil” between worlds was constantly thin. Graveyard work isn’t just for the spooky ritualist but has been a site for the work of healers as well. For many Ozark practitioners, historic and modern, healing work includes not just serving the living but also the dead. These shades often figure as guides, guardians, patrons, and ancestral helpers in many healer stories as well as aids in the process of healing or “elevating” the restless dead as well. In this class we will be examining Ozark folklore situated in the graveyard as well as look at some of the many ways healers and other magical practitioners have incorporated this all-important work with the dead into their own lives and rituals.

A Guided Tour of Ozark Folk Magic: Plants, Prayers & Healing

Date: November 13, 2021 Time: 4-6pm CDT Purchase tickets here This is a virtual class. A Zoom meeting link will be emailed to participants the day before the event. All ticket holders will receive a link to download a recording of this class after the event. Ever since my book Ozark Folk Magic: Plants, Prayers & Healing was released earlier this year I’ve received requests for a class based in the book itself. Well, here we go! In this class we will be taking a guided tour through the pages of the book and delving deep into this complicated magical system that’s often hidden behind a deceptive mask of simplicity. In this process, I will be providing more comprehensive explanations for many of the more difficult concepts to understand as well as providing a glimpse into my own personal development as a practitioner and how I’ve managed to bring traditions of the past into the modern world.

The First Spellbook: Ozark Bible Magic

Date: December 11, 2021 Time: 4-6pm CDT Purchase tickets here This is a virtual class. A Zoom meeting link will be emailed to participants the day before the event. All ticket holders will receive a link to download a recording of this class after the event. Note: while we will be using the Bible in this class, it will not be taught from any specific religious perspective. All are welcome. Along with the almanac, the Bible was often the only book owned by Ozark hillfolk until the modern era. At one point in our past, the Bible was the source not only of spiritual teachings, but also a combination reading primer, divinatory system, and spellbook. In this class we will be looking at the position the Bible has held in Ozark traditions of healing and folk magic. In many cases, hillfolk families might not have had a spiritual connection to the Bible but still recognized the text as a valuable text for working magic in the world. We will be looking at verses and passages that have long histories of use in the Ozarks for specific purposes like healing, protection, retribution (or cursing), as well as love and money magic. We’ll also look at rituals that have developed amongst hillfolk using these biblical texts as well as using the Bible itself as a magical object or talisman.

#ozarks #folk magic #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #ozark folk magic #ozark healing traditions #ozark folkways #ozark magic #ozark folk medicine #traditional healing #traditional medicine #folklore

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Had such a great time talking to Marla Brooks of Stirring the Cauldron about all the weird and wonderful magical practices in the Ozarks! You can listen at the link above or on Spotify, Youtube, etc. 

Enjoy!

Website!  Facebook!  Ozark Folk Magic, the Book!

#traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #spiritualism #spiritism #ozarks #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folkways #ozark folk magic #traditional medicine #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #spiritual healing #herbalism #folklore

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Praise for Ozark Folk Magic: Plants, Prayers, and Healing

“This is an honest, clear look at American witchcraft and folk magic, veering far away from the fantasy realm magic, which is sadly entwined within the modern imagination.”—Marcus McCoy, blacksmith at Troll Cunning Forge and editor of the Verdant Gnosis book series

“Brandon takes you on a remarkable journey into the Ozarks, giving a well documented and unique vision into the mysteries of Ozark medicine, myth, and magic. Brandon, a healer from this bio region, is able to interpret the stories he's collected, giving cultural context...The information gleaned from this process is invaluable and a real treasure to ensuring these traditions will not be forgotten and are understood. He provides a strong foundation and thorough overview of the magical considerations that formulate this system and how the modern practitioner can incorporate it into their praxis today.”—Catamara Rosarium, convenor of The Viridis Genii Symposium and proprietor of Rosarium Blends

“Weston's piece is both reference book, recipe book and working book all in one. Insightful and personal, his insider perspective and lived experience as an Ozark person combined with his astute academic mind make for a useful and pleasurable guide to the folk magical ways of the Ozark region...This work not only provides the reader with the ability to see how people made do with what they had in the past, it provides the valuable service of preserving this cultural knowledge in such a way that it is still useful, practical and most importantly, connective for the people interested this region today.”—Rebecca Beyer, founder of Blood and Spicebush

“Those of us who practice these old and peculiar traditions always welcome new and experienced voices writing about folkways that are little known but cherished still. Brandon Weston's book is one of those—a gem of discovery for historians, folklorists and humble healing folks. This is a solid addition to any library.”—H. Byron Ballard, teacher and author of Staubs and Ditchwater

“Brandon Weston is a true folklorist and brings valuable firsthand experiential knowledge to his presentation of Ozark folk traditions. A valuable read for both its preservation of American folklore and its intimate insights on a vibrant, living folk tradition of magic and healing. This work stands as an important modern contribution to the study of American folk traditions and is a must have.”—Matthew Venus, artist, folk magician, owner of SpiritusArcanum.com

Website! Facebook! Ozark Folk Magic, the Book!

#ozarks #traditional witchcraft #folk magic #witchcraft #herbalism #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folk magic #ozark folkways #traditional medicine #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #folklore

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

I love that my work lets me go out to amazing Ozark spots like this and call it my “office.” The hills and hollers sing out. If you listen, you can learn the song.

Website! Facebook! Ozark Folk Magic, the Book!

#ozarks #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #herbalism #ozark magic #Ozark Folklore #ozark folk magic #ozark folkways #traditional medicine #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #folklore

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Spring is one of my favorite times of the year, especially in the Ozarks because warmer weather usually starts early. I love seeing the redbuds and dogwoods in bloom. The purple grape hyacinth and sunny yellow dandelions dot my backyard and down along the creek side the trout lilies are yawning awake after a long winter underground.

Spring is a magical time. In Ozark folk magic and healing traditions, now is the time for cleansing. We had our period of incubation and hibernation back in the winter. It’s time to rise and shine! And that means brewing up some sassafras tea and taking a dip in the cold river.

Cleansing can take a lot of forms of course, but Ozarkers love three things above all else: sassafras, red cedar, and clear water. Sassafras tea has long been used as a spring tonic to help “clean the blood,” a euphemism referring to the plant’s mild laxative properties. Externally we sweep and smoke our homes with red cedar branches to clear out any stagnant energies or entities holed up inside. And lastly, three dips into an icy cold river will do the trick to help clean away the last bits of winter from off our skin.

Website! Facebook! Ozark Folk Magic, the Book!

#ozarks #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #herbalism #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folk magic #ozark folkways #ozark healing traditions #traditional medicine #traditional healing #folklore

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Got a picture with my book? Tag me and I’ll reblog! You can also send me a review! 

Website!  Facebook! Ozark Folk Magic, the Book!

#ozarks #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #ozark magic #Ozark Folklore #ozark folk magic #ozark folkways #traditional medicine #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #herbalism #spiritual healing #spiritualism #spiritism

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

Some fancy Ozark yarbs from my recent trip to Meadowcreek. 

1) Mayapple, Podophyllum peltatum

2) Jack in the pulpit, Arisaema triphyllum

3) Wild ginger, Asarum canadense 

4) Wood betony, Canadian lousewort, Pedicularis canadensis

5) Wild comfrey, blue houndstongue, Andersonglossum virginianum

Website! Facebook!  Ozark Folk Magic, the Book!

[ozarkhealingtraditions]

I’m so excited I got to be on NWW! It was one of my bucket list items (no seriously.) We talked about the modern Ozarks, magic, healing, and of course the book! It always excites and surprises me to no end when people are actually interested in my culture and the work I do. I lived so long feeling like I had nothing to offer and it’s just great seeing my people being looked at in a way other than the stereotypes. 

Website! Facebook!

#ozarks #traditional witchcraft #witchcraft #folk magic #herbalism #Ozark Folklore #ozark magic #ozark folk magic #ozark folkways #traditional medicine #traditional healing #ozark healing traditions #folklore