The Hand of Glory
“The hand of glory is a very old spell that originally was said to work the following way. The left hand was cut from a hanged man’s corpse during the night, then dried and cured. The cured hand was slathered with the rendered fat of the hanged man to make it flammable like a candle. The hand was placed fingers up in a holder. It was believed that when this charm was placed next to the intended victim and each of the five fingertips lit like candles, it would render the targeted person completely immobile and motionless. The following spell is meant to render someone’s power immobile. This will not be a physical immobility, but rather the spell will stop their actions and power over you or others.”
~ Kate Freuler
I have slightly modified this spell from Of Blood and Bones. I might try it out tonight, for the blood moon. The original spell is meant to be cast on a dark moon.
Materials
- Black taper candle
- Animal paw bones that you don’t mind burning (one or several)
*substitution: a stick that has a shape similar to a hand or a cardboard cutout of a hand - Banishing Oil, or Death Oil
- Photo or sigil of the targeted person(s)
- Lighter or matches
- Charcoal disk
- Fireproof dish
Step One: Ritual Space
Set up a ritual spaced in accordance with your own practice. Make sure you have all materials with you. You could prepare for the work with a spell such as the Hekatean Phylactery. I will probably call Hekate and the Fates; call whoever you like, or don’t call upon anything at all.
Step Two: Candle Magick
Cleanse your candle; you can use visualization, spoken word, mantra, mudra, etc. Anoint and consecrate it with your oil (I will use Atropos Oil, and surround it with witch’s salt). Charge your candle, and if you have called upon an entity, ask them to charge it as well. Light your candle once you have cleansed, consecrated, and charged it.
Step Three: Faunal Remains
Hold the bones (or whatever you are using) in your hand and breathe on them gently to bring them to life energetically. Imagine you are holding the hand of a hanged man. Massage your oil into each of the bones. This replicates the act of putting tallow or rendered fat on the hand. It also carries the essence of death itself, imbuing the bones with the absence of life and movement.
Step Four: Target
Place the photo of the person next to your fireproof vessel and light your charcoal disk. Put the disk in the fireproof dish. One by one, place the bones on the charcoal disk and watch them burn. Imagine the smoke is rising from them carrying the power of death and stillness, drifting through the air to find the intended person, stopping them cold in their actions. Do this with each bone. Imagine the person becoming powerless as the smoke surrounds them.
If you’re using a bone that is too large to fit on the charcoal disk, you can light it on fire with the lighter and let it burn in the dish. You may have to relight it several times during the process depending on how dry it is.
Step Five: Close
When the bones are done burning, let the candle burn all the way out and extinguish the charcoal disk. Close the circle. You can keep the ashes of this spell to add to protective witch’s salt or for use in future curses. Keep in mind that bones smell bad when they burn, so you may want to do this spell outdoors or in a well-ventilated area.
Artist: Alice Durose
Ref: Of Blood and Bones: Working with Shadow Magick of the Dark Moon (Kate Freuler)
