Yuza-Yuza/Necromancy Oil Pt. 1

I have been feeling the draw to work with the dead, and after establishing a relationship with my ancestors for some time, and getting experience with cemetery work, I am confident that I am ready. Recently I decided to experiment with “Voodoo Sorcery Grimoire” (VSG) by Brujo Negro and his method for utilizing the spirits of the dead in spell work.  The text mentioned a blend known as Yuza-Yuza Oil, which is a powerful oil used for calling the “evil spirits of the dead” for hexing purposes. He puts Yuza-Yuza in the same category as Yula perfume, Black Arts, and Crossing oils as far as hexing potency is concerned albeit with a more necrotic energy. I decided to look up more information on this oil and make some for myself.  First thing I had to do was track down a recipe.

I didn’t have to look far, as it turns out Yuza-Yuza is listed Herman Slater’s formulary.  The oil is listed as thus:

Black

Myrrh

Cypress

A dreaded mystical oil blend used for calling the spirits of the dead.

Very Dangerous. Never use in jest. Also for casting hexes.

On the surface this seems like a pretty simple oil with only two ingredients and the instruction that it be colored black.  In context both Myrrh and Cypress make perfect sense to be included in a necromantic oil. Both are associated with the planet Saturn which is the planet associated with such works, and in regards to voodoo is connected to the Lwa Baron Samedi (Saturday). Myrrh has a long history of being connected to funerary rites, and was even used by ancient Egyptians in the process of embalming mummies. Cypress wood earned the folk name “Tree of Death” for it’s long association with dead, and because it’s wood was used in Egypt to build coffins. So here we clearly have the necromantic element present in both ingredients, and while I wouldn’t necessarily classify them as being known their  powers in hexing, their Saturnian energies can be used as such. So while the VSG mentions it solely as a hexing oil, it seems that it is more so used to call forward the spirits of the dead, but can also be used for hexing as well. Brujo Negro says that he learned of the formula from his course work with now defunct International Guild of Occult Sciences (IGOS). I however was not able to find any alternate recipe for the oil, and asking around a few message boards didn’t turn up much in the way of information. With that being the only recipe I could find, the next step was to gather the materials.

Myrrh is pretty easy to get, cypress however was going to be the adventure. I did a search for cypress trees in Richmond and found one planted in the historic Hollywood Cemetery. I have hung out here before (what goth kid in this city hasn’t at some point?) but have not done work in there before. So, with a flask of whiskey and bag of shiny pennies I set off to the cemetery. I first made my customary offering at the gate and asked for permission to enter. Using the iron key on my necklace as a pendulum, I got my confirmation I went to work. Since Hollywood Cemetery is a tourist they have maps available for self guided tours of both graves of note, and the plant life there. Also, much kudos to the woman in the office for not giving the guy in a black trench coat and fedora even the slightest odd look for buying tour maps of a cemetery in the rain. With this being my first time working I had to make my way to the first burial in the cemetery to honor the Baron before gathering my cypress. I made my way to the tree and gave offerings and asked for permission to gather what I needed. I have to admit that even though I have been at this at a while, it is hard not to feel like a crazy hippy while having a conversation with a tree. With cypress leaves, bark, and a few twigs in hand I made my way out of the cemetery ready to make some oil. Or so I thought….Duh Duh Duh!

As I mentioned earlier I asked around a few message boards and groups about Yuza-Yuza oil. I only got replies on one group and that was Brother Moloch’s Guild of Sorcery on Facebook. One set of replies was from someone that just wanted to say that all of the Herman Slater recipes were “pulled out of his ass”. He knows this you see, because the oils and powders that he bought from Magickal Childe way back in the yesteryear of 1985 didn’t work for him. Fortunately Moloch had something actually helpful to add to the conversation as he always does. He even gave a recipe and instructions on how to make a necromancy oil. This reminded me that I don’t necessarily need to  follow a recipe to the letter and should go with what the spirits have to say on the subject. After a conversation with my ancestors and a bit of research I came up with my own blend which was one part Yuza-Yuza, a bit of Moloch’s and a dash of Ash. Trust me a dash of Ash is all you really need. My recipe is as follows:

Myrrh

Cypress

Tobacco

Patchouli

Yew Needles

Hellebore Root

I set out to make this oil in the hour of Saturn, so 3:30 am Dec, 25th (Yes Christmas morning. Happy belated birthday Yeshua Ben Yosef) I sat down to begin my work.  If you are familiar with planetary days and hours you know that the next planetary day does not begin until sun up. I chose this time because it happened to be both the hour of Saturn and the true witching hour. I sat down at my altar, lit a black candle in honor of the planet, burned some myrrh, and began to combine the ingredients into a glass jar.

I used a pestle to combine everything a bit and then poured some sweet almond oil over it all. After saying a few words in set the jar in a box that I put all of my oils and other objects in to charge and will let it sit there for at least a week to let oil get the essences and scents of all of the ingredients. 

If you noticed this was titled as part 1. That is because I have some other rituals planned to empower this oil, so stay tuned true believers because there is more to come....