Commission Of Spirits: Part 1
Let’s talk about spirit guides. Spirit guides are not angels. They are not folk saints, or anyone who died that you knew in life. You may have some idea of who they are, but the way to work this tradition is to be open minded. Not everyone will have a certain class of spirits or commission, and the spirits can be in more than one class but will settle or identify where they want to be identified or placed, such as if they are of mixed occupations or races. For example you may think you have a madama spirit, but maybe she really is a conga. Spirit guides are individual dead humans and people will not have the same one.But really there are infinite types and courts of spirits, but the ones covered in this course are the most common in African American Spiritism.
Spirit guides are discovered usually through readings, spiritist misa, or misa investigation. They can also make themselves known by appearing to you directly or in a dream. One can at times see a guide standing next to a person, or be able to communicate with them using cards to start to look into your spirit court, called a cuadro in Spanish or your spiritual frame energetic makeup. This can take some time to shape up, but the main ones should come across first or as directed by your main spirit guide, called the centinela or guardian. This spirit is the gatekeeper and boss of the rest of your court. This is not the guardian angel that is the title we use for a person's head spirit, higher misterio such as a Lwa. We can have negative or positive links to spirits called cadenas or chains. Spirit guides are contracted to help us for their own elevation and are elevated spirits free from the need to incarnate. We may have past lives links to them, but they are most likely not ancestors, but may have ancestral connections. Spirit lines and court are not by your current race, but this may also be reflected in some of your spirits.
Take a moment to listen to this quick lecture on the commission of spirits
La Madamas
Who is La Madama? Her origin is a mystery. One of the mistakes made by many is that La Madama is just one woman spirit. Actually, a Madama is one of many spirits. These were regular women, who either practiced folk magic, or were slaves and died. They could be cooks, or have indigenous knowledge of herbs for healing when the family was sick. They may still practice their african religion in the forest at night. They range from a mixed creole to very black color and are normally presented as a heavy set black woman wearing aprons or gingham skirts, and matching head cloth. Usually she’s holding a broom or a basket on her head. A male madamo can be a butler, stable keeper, garden or groundskeeper etc. This is a very popular commission.
Congos
The Congos, or Negros, commission of spirits are very unique in that they tend to come down hot, boisterous, and fierce. The Congos are always Black/African and are the spirits of the witch doctors, paleros, juju man, root workers They are often of a strong character, demanding, and up front. They never hold their tongues and love to smoke tobacco and drink hard liquor. They are often invoked in lifting curses, and combating black magic. Many are suspicious of non black people. While living they were people of high political or spiritual status who were captured and made into slaves. This is the reason for their suspicion of non blacks.
Natives/Indios
This family of spirits consists of the indigenous peoples connected to all areas of the diaspora. This would include the various tribes of Northern America, the Taino and Awarak of the Carribbean, the Mayans, Olmecs, and Aztecs of South America, and many more. One can have more than one indigenous spirit in their spiritual court and from more than one tribe or area. Natives are a huge asset in one's spiritual court because they are one of the commissions that are closest to the land we walk on. Therefore they often show up as healers, shamans, warriors, or medicine men/women. to teach us about the secrets of the earth, plant medicine, ancient ritual, and warfare.
Water
Water entities are interesting because they can be the spirits of people that lived near and whose livilihoods were tied to bodies of water. Priests/Priestesses of water are also included in this commission along with those that died by drowning. My experience with water spirits is that they tend to be shapeshifters, therefore they can appear as anything such as a mermaid, snake, man or woman, waterfall, or sea creature. Because of this, if a water spirit reveals itself to you it may take a while to identify what it is.
These spirits are very primal, old, and are always found near sources of water. They are best worked with directly in nature though some don’t mind being included on bovedas. Though cool in nature, water spirits can be very unprededictable. Because of this I consider them to be one of the most dangerous commissions of spirits to work with. Despite this, water spirits can bring blessings of abundance, good health, protection, and psychic abilities.
Priests, Pastors, and Religious Leaders
This commission includes religious leaders of all practices such as pastors, priests, bishops, monks, and nuns. This commision is special to African Americans because religon, particularly Christianity, plays a large role in our culture. So it’s very common for us to have these types of spirits in our court. The spirits in this commission tend to be calm, wise, and subtle. They’re big on prayer and worship, it’s not uncommon for them to require their charge to attend a church service as a means of serving them. These spirits can also serve as intermediaries for other spirits such as a saint or anima solas. Overall this commision is the easiest to work with.
Gypsies
This family of spirits are the most misunderstood and least common for African Americans. Culturally, the term gypsy refers to the nomadic Romani peoples and while this commission certainly includes them, it can also feature folk dancers, fortune tellers, brujas/curanderas, sex workers, travelers, and bohemians. Gypsies are what I call “street entities'' meaning that they were people that, when alive, were living on the fringes of society as outcasts engaging in illegal or socially unecceptabele activiites. It’s for this reason that this commission of spirits are the most relatable and approachable. They are lively, stern, happy, and somewhat obnoxious. They are experts on divination, money magic, and love spells though they are not limited to these areas by any means
Sailers, Pirates, and Maritime Peoples
Although sailors and pirates are technically water spirits, they deserve to be in a category of their own. This family of spirits represents those that lived and died at sea and consists of sailors, sea captains, navy officers, pirates, and other maritime peoples such as Vikings. Maritime spirits are a rare find in anyone’s spiritual court and are more often seen walking with those that practice Candomble. The spirits are typically male, though a female pirate may show up from time to time. Maritime spirits bring blessings of wealth and protection. They are also great at helping return lost or stolen items.
Week 2 Journal Prompt
Take a moment to reflect on the following questions and submit your answers via the form below.