The Powwow Guy

I have spent several years working to "decode" certain charms that are found within Long Lost Friend, Albertus Magnus, and a few other sources, in an effort to uncover any hidden symbolisms or meanings. In some instances, I was alarmed by what I had found because it made me realize how much actual POWER there is in the tradition. It shocked me the first time I was able to work a charm with the true understanding of it's meaning and the power that it conjured.

Recently, I decided to start unraveling the mysteries of the blood-stopping charms. Here's one from Egyptian Secrets that you might be familiar with:

To Stop the Blood

Three roses upon God's acre stood -- the one is called humility, the other gentleness, the third stops the blood. + + +

At first glance, you might find yourself visualizing three roses growing on a lovely patch of God's green earth... And two of those roses have a name, and the third has the power to stop the flow of blood.

But let's look closer.

"God's acre" comes from the German Gottesacker (field of God). This doesn't mean just any old field, it means a churchyard. In particular, a graveyard just outside of a church. So this charm doesn't actually call on a lovely sunny field of earth, it calls up the image of a graveyard. This phrase is particularly common amongst the Moravian church, which is headquartered here in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

The three roses are a recurring motif in Powwow charms due to the number 3's association with the Holy Trinity. 

The names of the roses are where we begin to decode this charm.

"the one is called humility, the other gentleness, the third stops the blood." As you can see, only the first two are given names. The name of the third rose is not revealed, although this rose is stated to "stop the blood". But what is the third rose's name?

For that, we go to Ephesians 4:2 "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."

"bearing with one another in love." Roses are historically symbols of love.

The name of the third rose is PATIENCE. And so the word PATIENCE is the true word of power in this charm.

When working for this charm, you will repeat it three times, as stated. But you would also silently utter the word "patience" over the bleeding wound. The charm literally states that it is this specific rose that will stop the blood. The rose of patience.

With the mental imagery of a graveyard, we can understand that patience is necessary in order to wait for ever-lasting life. When we are all called into heaven at the End of Days, our patience will be rewarded. I believe this understanding while working this charm is crucial to it's success. As is true with all of the Powwow charms I've "decoded", what you see at face value is very different than what is truly at work. And a deeper understanding of the mysteries of these charms adds so much power to your work.