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Biography
A black cat bone is a type of lucky charm used in the African American Magic (paranormal)|magic al tradition of hoodoo (folk magic)|hoodoo . It is thought to ensure a variety of positive effects, such as invisibility , good luck , protection from Black magic|malevolent magic , rebirth after death, and romantic success.cite book | title = Conjure In African American Society | publisher = Louisiana State University Press | month = December | year = 2005 | last = Anderson | first = Jeffrey E. | isbn = 0-8071-3092-3
''...Got a black cat bone got a mojo (African American culture)|mojo too, I got High John the Conqueror|John the Conqueror root , I'm gonna mess with you... :—" Hoochie Coochie Man ," Muddy Waters
The bone, anointed with Van Van oil , may be carried as a component of a mojo (African American culture)|mojo bag; alternatively, without the coating of oil, it is held in the charm-user's mouth.cite book | title = Folk Beliefs of the Southern Negro | publisher = Kessinger Publishing, LLC | month = January | year = 2003 | last = Newbell Niles PH. D. Puckett | isbn = 0-7661-2778-8
Origins
The black cat has been a symbol of both good and ill luck in near-worldwide folklore accounts. Magical traditions involving black cat bones , specifically, have been found in Canadians of German ethnicity|German-Canadian practice as well as in hoodoo; these German-Canadian magic-makers were not previously in contact with hoodooists, suggesting a European origin to the charm.
The use of the black cat bone to ensure invisibility, specifically as an aid to would-be criminals, is comparable to the European Hand of Glory .cite book | title = Spiritual Merchants: Religion, Magic, and Commerce | publisher = The University of Tennessee Press | month = April | year = 2001 | last = Long | first = Carolyn Morrow | isbn = 1-57233-110-0
Differences in method
After a black cat is caught, it is almost universally boiled alive in a pot of water at midnight, so that its bones may be more easily looked over by the hoodooist. One particular bone, special to each individual cat, contains all the magical efficacy alone. A variety of rituals and methods are used to determine which bone is the right one, and preparation before the cat's slaughter can vary according to tradition.
One method of obtaining a black cat bone, described in Zora Neale Hurston 's Mules and Men , involves a period of fasting before the actual catching of the animal. After the standard boiling of the cat's corpse, each bone is tasted by the hoodooist, who then selects the first Taste#Bitterness|bitter-tasting bone as the correct one.cite book | title = Mules and Men | publisher = Harper Perennial | month = January | year = 1990 | last = Hurston | first = Zora Neale | isbn = 0-06-091648-6
Another way to determine the magical bone, though it is otherwise similar in procedure, involves a mirror . The hoodooist passes each one of the cat's bones through his or her mouth in front of the mirror while reciting, "Mecca lecca hi, mecca hiney ho (3x). Are you from the motherland? Wonderful!" When the reflection of the bone becomes dark, the hoodooist will know that it is the right one. A variation of this method is also practiced on the Sea Islands , where the one bone that doesn't reflect in the mirror is believed to be magical.
Sale of purported "black cat bones"
Contemporary hoodoo supply shops do sell items that are labeled "black cat bones," usually small bones taken from a chicken and dyed black.
