In Hoodoo, the act of using a brick to weigh down a picture of someone symbolizes making that person experience the "weight of their actions." This ritual embodies the principle of return, where the energy or actions someone has inflicted on you is sent back to them. Here’s how this practice works and the symbolic significance behind it:
How It Works
The brick serves as a physical representation of the burden that the person will now carry. By placing the brick on their picture, you are creating a tangible link between the symbolic "weight" and the individual. In Hoodoo, such actions work through sympathetic magic—essentially, "like affects like." As the brick rests heavily on the picture, so too will the weight of their deeds rest on them. You are also calling upon your ancestors to witness and enforce this process, providing spiritual backing to the act.
Symbolism
Brick: Represents both the heaviness of the person’s actions and their stubbornness or resistance to change. It is a strong and enduring material, just as the repercussions are intended to be lasting.
Picture: This serves as a connection to the person. A photograph is a strong link in Hoodoo, as it holds the energy of the individual, making them more susceptible to the influence of the ritual. I was always taught to burn the corners of the photograph to contain the persons spirit within.
Ancestors: Calling upon ancestors adds spiritual weight and protection, ensuring that the ritual aligns with justice and that your actions are backed by familial spirits who care for your well-being.
Writing directly on the brick is a powerful way to personalize this ritual further, as it allows you to specify the exact nature of the person’s actions that you want them to feel. In Hoodoo, this act enhances the symbolic power of the brick, as each word or phrase you inscribe on it represents a specific burden they have placed upon you. By transferring these experiences to the brick, you are essentially holding them accountable for each one.
How to Inscribe the Brick
Gather Supplies: You’ll need a brick, a permanent marker, and perhaps a nail or sharp tool if you wish to etch the words more permanently into the surface.
Writing the Words: As you write, focus intently on each aspect of their actions that you want them to feel. Here are some examples you might inscribe:
Broken Promises
Lies
Manipulation
Betrayal
Deception
Neglect
Relevant Bible Verse:You can incorporate Bible verses that speak to carrying one's own burdens and having wrongdoings returned to them.
Isaiah 3:11—"Woe unto the wicked! It shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him"—is a powerful verse for this ritual, as it underscores the inevitability of justice for wrongdoers. In the context of this Hoodoo working with the brick, this verse can serve as both a warning and a declaration of spiritual law: those who commit harm will ultimately face the consequences of their actions.
Breakdown of the Verse:
"Woe unto the wicked!"
This opening line conveys a strong sense of impending judgment. The word “woe” is often used in the Bible to signify distress, calamity, or misfortune that is about to befall someone. It is a word of lamentation. By calling upon this verse in the ritual, you are invoking a spiritual decree that those who act wickedly (whether through lies, betrayal, manipulation, or other harmful actions) cannot escape the consequences of their deeds. The weight of their wrongs will come back to haunt them.
"It shall be ill with him"
This phrase emphasizes that the wicked will not find peace or prosperity; their wrongdoing will create turmoil, chaos, and suffering in their lives. When you use this verse as part of the ritual, you’re reinforcing the idea that the person will experience the pain and discomfort they have caused you. The brick, symbolizing the weight of their actions, will be a physical manifestation of this ill fortune resting on them.
"For the reward of his hands shall be given him"
This line is particularly significant in the context of this ritual, as it highlights the principle of retribution or "what goes around comes around." The "reward of his hands" refers to the outcomes of his own actions, meaning that whatever harm they have done to others will be returned to them. By writing the specific burdens (lies, betrayal, manipulation, etc.) on the brick, you are giving form to this concept, ensuring that the energy they have put into the world will come back to them in full force. Their deeds will be their own undoing.
How It Fits into the Ritual:
Isaiah 3:11 provides spiritual backing for the ritual’s intention: that justice must be served and the person will be held accountable for their actions. The brick, with the wrongs they have committed inscribed upon it, symbolizes the "reward of his hands"—their own negative actions coming back to weigh upon them. As you lay the brick on their picture, you are calling upon spiritual forces, including the ancestors, to enforce this law of reciprocity.
This verse reinforces the idea that justice is inevitable, and that no one can escape the consequences of their misdeeds. It speaks to the universal principle of balance and karmic retribution that underpins many spiritual traditions, including Hoodoo.
Commentary for Use in Ritual:
When reciting this verse during the ritual, visualize the person feeling the burden of their own actions pressing down on them, just as the brick presses down on their picture. You are not creating new harm for them; rather, you are returning what they have already set in motion. The verse serves as a declaration that they cannot escape the spiritual laws of justice—they will reap exactly what they have sown. And this can be physical harm, financial, mental or emotional.
Incorporating Isaiah 3:11 ensures that this working is not about revenge but about divine justice. The "reward of his hands" will not be something you impose on him, but rather the natural consequence of his own choices. This makes the ritual spiritually aligned with the principle of righteousness, allowing you to perform the work with a clear conscience, knowing that you are simply returning what is due.
To set up the ritual, place the brick face down on top of the picture of the individual, with their image facing downward. This symbolizes the burden now resting upon their back, transferring the weight of their actions to them. You can choose to light a candle of your choice on top of the brick—whether it’s a reversal, black, or any other candle that aligns with your intentions. As the candle burns, it amplifies the energy of the ritual, ensuring that the weight is fully returned to the individual.
You can bury the brick in the ground, symbolizing the weight being permanently rooted in their life, or leave it somewhere significant to you as a constant reminder that justice will be served. To undo the work, dig it up or just remove the brick from resting on the picture.
This combination of inscribing the brick with their wrongs and weighing it down on their picture adds layers of intent and accountability to the ritual. The Bible verses further anchor the work in spiritual justice, ensuring that what they have done will be returned to them.
You can also burn any candle of your choice such as black, white or a reversing candle if you like but not needed.
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