How I Collect & Use Graveyard Dirt in My Magical Practice
Traditional Use of Graveyard Dirt
Graveyard dirt or graveyard dust is commonly used across a variety of magical traditions and practices, and in a number of different ways. Within the context of my own practice, information about the various curios used in magic and their applications comes primarily from the traditional grimoires of Northern Europe, often referred to as “Black Books”. Because of the need to find and (often) translate these Black Books on my own, my independent research is limited by my ability to read and translate the source language. This means that most of the material that I’ve been able to read and analyze for myself comes from Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Germany. Here, the written history of practitioners using graveyard dirt in magic goes back as far as the 16th century—with a long history of oral tradition before that.
Other traditions that employ graveyard dirt in their workings include (among others) Hoodoo, Appalachian and Southern American folk magic, Traditional Witchcraft, Spirit-Based magic. The names, methods of collecting and creating, and uses for graveyard dirt can vary across these traditions—and even within them. Within Northern European traditional magic alone, the term “graveyard dirt” has been used across history to refer to dirt from a churchyard or cemetery, dirt specifically from a grave, powered valerian, and even powdered skeletal remains.
Within this type of traditional magic, true graveyard dirt—that is, soil that is collected from a cemetery—is considered magically significant both because of its connection to the dead and the spirit world, and due to the connection of the cemetery itself to the church. Historically, cemeteries existed in the churchyard, in the space between the church gates and the church itself. Thus, graveyard dirt calls upon the holy forces of the church, as well as the spirits of the people who were accepted by the church and buried within its gates. It can be used for holy purposed, such a protection, banishment and exorcism.
As with most things, there is another side to graveyard dirt and to the churchyards from which it comes. Outside of the hallowed ground of the churchyard, there was traditionally a place set aside for the burial of society’s less tolerable members, such as the unbaptized and the ostracized. Depending upon the manner of collection, graveyard dirt could call upon the powers of either polarity or a balance of both, making it a useful tool in both creative and destructive magical workings.
Note: The words “creative” and “destructive” are used here in their most literal sense. Creative is used to refer to magic that “builds up”. This can refer to building up wards and protections and well as layering on bindings and blightings. Similarly, the word destructive is used to refer to magic that breaks something down—whether that is breaking down ties between people, breaking down luck, or breaking down your own obstacles. There is, in my own opinion, no such thing as a magical working that is always used in a positive or negative way. That distinction depends more upon the situation and the motivation behind the action than it does on the action itself, which is why I chose not to classify magical workings here as being “positive versus negative” or “helpful versus baneful”.
According to accounts found in Northern European Black Books, graveyard dust was traditionally collected directly from the grave and, very often, from specific graves. These would include both graves within the confines of the churchyard—such as the graves of young, unmarried women and the graves of soldiers—and without, with evidence of both being used in a wide array of workings. Dirt from the grave of a criminal, for example, would often be collected from outside of the church yard and would often be used in the prevention of physical harm or theft.
A History of Personal Innovation
Although there is plenty of evidence for the various methods and rituals used for locating and collecting graveyard dirt, time has made changes to these practices necessary. In the United States, most cemeteries are no longer located in the yard of the local church, rendering the practice of collecting dirt from a grave in the shadow of the steeple mostly useless to the modern or urban practitioner. And the typical graveyard is far too large for a practitioner to collect a handful of dirt from each of its corners. And that’s not even taking into account the number of laws that prohibit trespassing and vandalizing these places of rest.
So, if everything has changed with time, is there anything useful in traditional practices—whether they come from text or oral tradition? Absolutely. From studying the protocol outlined in the many grimoires we have available, there is clear evidence that the rituals built by these practitioners where both flexible and intuitive, rooted more in the individual’s understanding of the spirit of the graveyard dirt and the lore surrounding it than it was in a strict set of customs. In most Black Book traditions, a practitioner’s Black Book was not shared with other people, including their apprentices. When information was shared from within one’s practice, it was typically done in a more abstract sense than how we might share information on our blogs and websites today.
Traditionally, the magical mentors who taught these practices functioned more as guides than they did as the teachers we know today. Knowledge of these magical traditions was not transmitted word-for-word from teacher to student. Rather, it took place in similar fashion to what was now call discovery learning within education field. The magician’s apprentice was not provided with the answers. Instead, they were provided with the tools and curios, and with enough guidance to build their own understanding of the significance and usefulness of their tools, curios and practices. Learning about magic in this environment wasn’t as black and white as taking a structured course. It was a long process of observing the work of the mentor, building a personal understanding of the spirit and lore of magic, and then experimenting (independently or with guidance) with method and action.
Yes, the folk and traditional magical practices of the world are deeply rooted in the idea of tradition. But that idea does not necessary refer to the practice of transmitting magical theories and methods from mentor to apprentice verbatim. In many cases, the tradition upon which these magical practices are built is the tradition of the source culture’s folklore and folk custom—not the strict adherence to ritual. And we can see that expressed in the various grimoires that come out of Northern and Eastern Europe. The folklore of these cultures is the common thread throughout the numerous personal practices that the owners of these Black Books chronicled over time. The folk stories, folk customs, and the practitioners’ understanding of them formed the shared foundation upon which each practitioner built their own informed practice.
With that in mind, yes, it is perfectly okay to create your own practices and protocols for the collection and use of graveyard dirt. Not just because of the laws protecting graveyards, but because your practice is still your personal practice, even if it is informed by tradition and folklore. The history of the personal craft is long and documented within the grimoires of the folk practitioners that laid the groundwork for what we now consider traditional magic—and continuing that practice can be as valid as following the grimoires to the letter.
My Personal Methods for Collecting & Using Graveyard Dirt
As I’ve already said, the use of graveyard dirt is a documented fact in a variety of magical practices. Since my personal practice is informed by a set of grimoires, by a specific folkloric source, I relied specifically on those sources to build and flesh out my own beliefs about graveyard lore and the methods for collecting and using graveyard dirt. If you are following an established tradition or folklore-informed path, I highly recommend focusing your research entirely on that path and its history—even if that means totally ignoring other sources while building that element of your practice. Although there is documented use of graveyard dirt within a number of magical paths, the lore that forms the foundations for those paths may approach the topic of cemeteries and the souls at rest within them from very different angles. There are many, many methods locating the proper soil, interacting with the spirits of the graveyard, and using the dirt you collect—and they can vary a great deal depending upon whether your practice is inspired by written documents, established magical traditions, local folklore or ancestral custom (just to list a few possibilities). So find your own way, or craft one with which you (and the spirits you work with) are comfortable.
1. Taking soil from a grave. I tend to stay away from actual graves while collecting graveyard dirt, but it can be helpful in cases when I feel I need to call on the aid of a specific spirit, or on the qualities represented by a specific spirit. When it is truly necessary to collect dirt from a grave, I typically choose to take it from the grave of someone I knew personally. I make an initial visit to the graveyard to explain what I plan to do and to ask for permission; then I leave and wait for a sign of the spirit’s permission to remove anything from the grave. Only after receiving or divining what I believe to be a sign of permission do I proceed. Over the course of a month, I visit the graveyard once a week to clean and tend the grave by wiping the headstone of dirt and burning a candle or incense on it, removing weeds and other debris, leaving or planting flowers, and leaving a small offering. It is fairly easy and inconspicuous to remove a handful or two of dirt while weeding and cleaning the grave—especially if you bring a Thermos or Ziploc bag with you. If you are able to plant flowers on the grave (which some graveyards may have rules against), it is even simpler as you can just plant the flowers and take the graveyard dirt with you along with your tools. After the four weeks are up, I make a final trip to clean the headstone, leave an offering, and thank the spirit again for their assistance.
2. Collecting dirt from the cemetery gate or fence. There are instances when I feel it is more appropriate to collect dirt from just outside of the cemetery gate or fence than it is to collect it from inside of the graveyard. These times include, for example, workings for protection and workings which involve the veil between the spirit world and the world of the living. I also use this kind of graveyard dirt when I am performing work that historically would have called on dirt from the graves which lied on the outskirts of the churchyard, outside of the church’s hallowed grounds. This is because the symbolism that those types of workings call upon is typically that of the otherness that comes with being buried on this other side of the church wall, the disparity between the sacred and the profane. Most of us don’t have access to churchyards old enough to have this kind of cemetery—and, if we do, they are likely historic landmarks and have strict rules about taking things from them. Taking dirt from just outside the gate or fence of the cemetery accomplishes the same symbolism, by collecting from the boundary between that which we hold sacred and the profane.
3. Collecting dirt from the four corners or compass points of a cemetery. There is evidence in a number of traditional sources of dirt being collected from all four corners of a graveyard—particularly for use in work with the spirit world as whole, or otherworldly forces such as angels. Here, the journey to and around the graveyard is as significant as the dirt collected there. According to the folklore, this journey is both a time to become acquainted with the spirits (and to improve your ability to see and hear them) and a time for Spirit to become acquainted with you. The journey, then, becomes a sacrifice or offering which creates the symbolic bond that allows the practitioner to wield the power of their collected curios. Cemeteries have grown quite a bit in the time since traditional Black Books were written, and most of them are without four distinct corners. Because of this, I find that it is often useful to instead collect the dirt from the four compass points of the cemetery. It can be taken either from within the cemetery itself or from just outside it, depending on your personal preference.
I use graveyard dirt in magical powders, hex bags, inks and bottles. I do not recommend the use of true graveyard dirt in anything that you or anyone else might consume, because you really don’t know what is in dirt no matter how fine it is.
Some Substitutions for Traditional Variations of Graveyard Dirt
1. If you need to find dirt from a grave that lies directly in the shadow of the church steeple, try collecting dirt from a grave that lies in the shadow of the graveyard’s tallest cross.
2. If you need to find dirt specifically from the churchyard gate, considered collecting your dirt from the lawn of a church rather than from the cemetery.
3. If you need to find dirt from the grave of a lawful man, try collecting dirt from land once owned by a historical figure (as lawful or righteous typically refer more to falling within the favor of society than actually being lawful or righteous).
4. If you need something you can put in food/drink, try a small amount of powdered valerian root.
5. If you do not have access to a graveyard, try collecting dirt from other liminal or spiritually significant spaces—such as tunnels, the grounds of abandoned buildings, the threshold of any door or gate, or from the foundation/steps of a building that has been torn down.
Disclaimer: Each of the Crowsbone writers and guest bloggers has their own magical background, beliefs, traditions and practices. These post represent the opinions, research and beliefs of the individual writers. We do not believe that they represent beliefs and rules associated with all magical practice or witchcraft; nor do they represent the beliefs and opinions of all of the Crowsbone community.