Crossroads University

Conjure—also known as Hoodoo—is a living system of African American folk magic, healing, and protection born from the blending of African, Indigenous, and European traditions in the American South. Rooted in resilience and ancestral wisdom, Conjure emerged as both a spiritual and practical response to survival under oppression. Its practices honor the sacred relationship between people, nature, and spirit through prayer, herbs, roots, and ritual. 

At Crossroads University, we approach Conjure as both cultural heritage and academic study, preserving its authentic lineage while empowering students to understand its deeper spiritual and historical foundations.

Ancestral Roots and Cultural Blending

Conjure took shape during the transatlantic slave trade, when people of African descent brought with them a deep knowledge of herbal medicine, divination, and spirit work. In the Americas, these traditions encountered both Indigenous ecological wisdom and elements of European folk magic and Christianity. The result was not a dilution but a transformation — a new spiritual technology built for survival, healing, and resistance.

While enslaved Africans were denied access to their ancestral religions, the core principles of balance, reciprocity, and reverence for the ancestors endured. Plants became teachers, roots became allies, and prayer became power. Conjure is thus both a spiritual and cultural archive — preserving history through practice.

Practices, Tools, and Symbols of Power

At its heart, Conjure is pragmatic. It is concerned with living — healing the sick, protecting the home, drawing love or luck, and navigating life’s crossroads. Common elements include:

• Herbs and Roots: such as High John, Devil’s Shoestring, and Angelica, each carrying symbolic and energetic significance.

• Curios and Natural Materials: coins, nails, shells, and lodestones often serve as vessels of intent.

• Prayer and Psalm Work: a reflection of African spirituality blended with Christian mysticism.

• Divination: from playing cards to bones, divination helps discern spiritual causes and remedies for life’s challenges.

These practices are not superstition; they are acts of empowerment and remembrance — ways of staying in relationship with the seen and unseen world.

Conjure as Resistance and Restoration

Historically, Conjure was also a quiet form of rebellion. In a world that sought to strip African Americans of power and autonomy, spiritual practice became a language of defiance and dignity. Root doctors, midwives, and spiritual workers held essential roles in their communities, blending healing with activism and preserving ancestral knowledge through oral tradition.

To practice Conjure was — and remains — to affirm the sacredness of Black life, the intelligence of the natural world, and the unbroken line of ancestral presence.

Modern Conjure and Cultural Continuity

Today, Conjure continues to evolve, practiced across generations and communities worldwide. For some, it remains deeply tied to African American identity; for others, it serves as a framework for reconnecting with the land, the ancestors, and the self.

At Crossroads University, our study of Conjure honors both its history and its living practitioners. We emphasize cultural respect, academic rigor, and spiritual responsibility — ensuring that this tradition is preserved, understood, and passed down with integrity.

Continuing the Legacy

Conjure is more than a collection of spells or recipes; it is a way of knowing, a method of healing, and a spiritual conversation that has endured for centuries. To learn Conjure is to learn resilience — to remember that the sacred can live in the simplest of acts, from lighting a candle to fixing a meal to tending a garden.

As we continue to teach, research, and practice these traditions at Crossroads University, we invite you to explore the path where heritage, history, and the living spirit of Conjure meet.

Explore What is Hoodoo, Conjure, and Rootwork? at ConjureDoctors.com for more information about conjure and conjure doctors.