Mojo (African American culture)

Mojo /ˈmoʊdʒoʊ/, in the African-American folk belief called hoodoo, is an amulet consisting of a flannel bag containing one or more magical items. It is a "prayer in a bag", or a spell that can be carried with or on the host's body.

Alternative American names for the mojo bag include hand, mojo hand, conjure hand, lucky hand, conjure bag, trick bag, root bag, toby, jomo, and gris-gris bag.

The most common synonym for the word mojo is "gris-gris", which literally means "fetish" or "charm", thus a gris-gris bag is a charm bag. In the Caribbean, an almost identical African-derived bag is called a wanga or oanga bag, but that term is uncommon in the United States. The word "conjure" is an ancient alternative to "hoodoo", which is a direct variation of African-American folklore. Because of this, a conjure hand is also considered a hoodoo bag; usually made by a respected community conjure doctor.

The word "hand" in this context is defined as a combination of ingredients. The term may derive from the use of finger and hand bones from the dead in mojo bags, or from ingredients such as the lucky hand root (favored by gamblers). The latter suggests an analogy between the varied bag ingredients and the several cards that make up a "hand" in card games. Mojo reaches as far back as West African culture, where it is said to drive away evil spirits, keep good luck in the household, manipulate a fortune, and lure and persuade lovers. The ideology of the ancestors and the descendants of the mojo hand used this "prayer in a bag" based on their belief of spiritual inheritance, where the omniscient forefathers of their families would provide protection and favor; especially when they used the mojo. Through this, a strong belief was placed in the idealism of whomever used mojo, creating a spiritual trust in the magic itself.

Although most Southern-style conjure bags are made of red flannel material, most seasoned conjurers use color-symbolism. This practice embodies itself in the practice of hoodoo, where green flannel is used for a money mojo, white flannel is used for a baby-blessing mojo, red flannel is used for love mojo, and so on. West Indians also use mojo bags, but often use leather instead of flannel.

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