Care of the dying and newly passed over

While they are passing
Encompasses many things and dependent on their ability to participate such as counselling, cleansing baths, counselling for the family, organizing a will, palliative care team planning, and completion of a bucket list. Speak to them when you visit and hold their hand because hearing is one of the last sense to be lost. No one knows the last date we will be in our physical body in this incarnation. The prayer for the sick, and the medium who heals can be of benefit from Allan Kardec's book of selected prayers.
If you are knowledgable with psalms certain ones can be said or use Acts 19:11-12 in the bible for healing. Even if their death is imminent it can improve symptoms or help spiritual healing.
It gives peace and consolation to the person who is dying, and to process their suffering to be of benefit as they think on their life.
It can also help to pray for the wisdom and compassion of the health care team, to get the care and attention the patient needs.

A water glass is often placed at the bedside of the sick and dying to purify, and have a portal for the spirit to go through when they pass.

Some of the prayer can be found in the references and links below.

Act of prayer:
A white candle, a clear water glass is needed for this.
Cleansing and purifying the material and spiritual aspect to ease transition, assists to call their spirits to help them transition, and orient them, awaiting them on the other side of the door of mortality to decrease their confusion. Pray that the good ancestors will greet them when it is time. Purifying them will lessen the shock of transition and gain light spiritually by lighting them white candles. Lighting white candles also dedicated to their spirit guides and higher spirits will empower their spirits to be better able to assist them as well. It protects them from outside influences, and to help further elevate them for spiritual progress and healing spiritually. This will assist them also to have a better reincarnation when it is time. We have lived many lives and our soul is eternal. This will also help their ti bon ange, ghost self or personality to be maintained for ancestral veneration at a later date.

Speak from the heart or paraphrase: I light this candle and offer this water to (name) and thier spirit guides, good ancestors and higher spirits, cleansing and purifying the material and spiritual aspects to ease transition. Upon passing orient them, awaiting them on the other side of the door of mortality to decrease their confusion. Good ancestors greet them when it is time. May this light spiritually empower you to be better able to assist. Protect them from outside influences, and help further elevate them for spiritual progress and healing spiritually. Our soul is eternal, and I will continue to assist (name) on your journey, with love. May it be so.

After death
Mass for the dead is usually done in church funerary rites and funeral home services in western culture first. They usually will hang out around their body at the hospital, home or grave site around 9 days after they have passed. You can still speak to them here. Flowers are traditionally given to the dead and not to the Orisha, and will also help them spiritually. White is the best color. Otherwise just a white candle and water, holy water should be given at this time in a clean space, and on a white cloth if desired.

After burial or cremation you can preform an elevation, hopefully they have released emotional attachment to their body they have shed and start transitioning to spiritual realms if they have not already and depending on the type of life they lead and manner of death.

 9 night novena candle elevation
Fire, though divided, suffers no loss. It may pass from candle to candle and grow in number, while remaining one from the source.
This is done at least nine nights after they have passed and have had the funeral, done for 9 nights.
For 9 nights take a white novena candle which has been cleansed and dedicated to God, the persons spiritual court and ancestors to help the person along with the clean water glass each day. The water can be held up to the sun and visualise it taking on light. 

NEVER blow this candle out, it can be placed in a fireproof dish or on a baking sheet. Anoint the candle with a cleansing, olive oil, or protection oil from the bottom up. Lift this candle up and just state this general dedication, you may write their name if desired on it. You are going to need several because they will only last 2-3 days. Each night move up from the lowest to gradually the highest part of your house on a clean surface during your prayer session. You can perform the sign of the cross and imbue this with light to provide a spiritual crossroad or doorway for them, and begin to pray. You can state as I lift up this candle, I also elevate this spirit.

This is not crossing a spirit over, however this can be the end result. You should be clean and maintain pure thoughts, and any words that are heartfelt. Concentrate on the light, and giving light emanating from a higher source, and through yourself. You should be taking spiritual baths to assist this process, and keep your energy clean and together. Dress in white or light colors no brown or black. Describe the water you have given for purification and to quench their thirst, describe the candle to help them see, orient them and give them warmth and energy.

Crossing a spirit over can be dangerous if they are earthbound or angry who can turn into a standoff or battle, and began to take you over or attach to you and influence your life, so its better if you have support of a spiritualist. This is why their manner of death must be taken into consideration if they were extremely mentally ill or died of violence or suicide. What I am describing is a very simplified process. However most normal dead people are extremely grateful and accepting of the help, no matter what their religion was in life. and may not have other options. You should get a feeling of grace, triumph or exhaltation, clean energy and peace.

Prayer for the newly "fallen" who have died, or passed over

PREFACE:

Prayers for those who have just left the Earth are not for the exclusive purpose of showing our sympathy. They also have the effect of helping to release them from their Earthly ties, and in this manner shorten the period of perturbation which always follows the separation, so allowing a more peaceful awakening on the other side. Nevertheless, in this case, as in all other circumstances, the efficacy depends on the sincerity of the thought and not on the quantity of words offered with more or less solemnity in which very frequently the heart does not participate.

Prayers which truly come from the heart encounter a resonance in the Spirit to whom they are directed, whose ideas are still in a state of confusion, as if they were friendly voices come to awaken them from sleep (See The Gospel According To Spiritism, chapter 27, item 10).

PRAYER:

Almighty God, may Your mercy be shown to the soul of X . . . whom You have just called back from Earth. We beg and implore that the trials suffered here may be counted in their favor and that our prayers may soften and shorten the penalties still to be suffered in the Spirit form!

Good Spirits who came to fetch this soul, and most especially their Guardian Angel, help them to free themself from matter. Give them light and a consciousness of themself so that they may quickly leave the state of perturbation, inherent in the passing from the body back to the spiritual life. Inspire in their Spirit a repentance for all errors and faults committed and a desire to obtain permission to remedy them, so as to quicken their advancement in the direction of the life of those who are eternally blessed.

And you, … ., who have just entered into the World of the Spirits, we wish to say that despite this fact, you are still with us; you hear and see us, since you have merely left the perishable physical body, which will quickly be reduced to dust.

You have left the gross envelope which is subject to vicissitudes and death, now retaining only your etheric body which is imperishable and inaccessible to material suffering. If you no longer live through a physical body, you live instead through your Spirit, and the spiritual life is free from those miseries which afflict humanity.

You no longer have over your eyes the veil which hides the splendors of the future existence from us. Now you may contemplate new marvels, while we remain bathed in darkness.

You may travel through space and visit the worlds in all liberty, while we still painfully drag ourselves about here on Earth, prisoner in our material bodies, which are like heavy armor.

The infinite horizons stretch themselves before you, and on seeing their grandeur you will understand the vanity of terrestrial desires, of worldly aspirations and the futility of the so-called joys to which Man delivers himself.

For Man, death is nothing more than a separation from matter, lasting but a few instants. From this place of exile in which we continue to live according to the Will of God, and with the duties we still have to fulfill in this world, we will continue to follow you in thought till the moment when it is permitted for us to join you once again, just as now you are reunited with those who preceded you.

We cannot go to where you are, but you may come here. So come then to those who love you and whom you love; help them in the trials of life; watch over those who are dear to you; protect them as much as you are able; lessen the bitterness of absence by suggesting to them the thought that now you are happier and that one day, for certain, you will again be reunited in a better world.

In the place you are now, you must extinguish all earthly resentments. You must hold yourself inaccessible to them now, for the sake of your future happiness! Therefore forgive all those who may have incurred debts towards you, just as those against whom mistakes were committed now forgive you.

There are other prayers which can be recited such as the prayer for the suffering spirits

PRAYER:

God of clemency and mercy, may Your goodness extend to all the Spirits we have recommended to You in our prayers, especially the Spirit of X .

Good Spirits, whose only occupation is to do good, intercede together with me for their relief’. Make a ray of hope shine before their eyes and enlighten them as to the imperfections which maintain them distant from the homes of the blessed. Open their hearts to repentance and the desire to cleanse themselves, so they may accelerate their advancement Make them understand it is by their own efforts that they may shorten the duration of their trials.

May God, in all His goodness, give them the necessary strength to persevere with their good resolutions! May these words, infused with benevolence, soften their trials, so showing them that there are on Earth those who sympathize and wish them happiness.

A different version

For Suffering Souls Asking For Prayers
Kind and merciful God, may you extend your abundant mercy to include those who seek help from us.
Oh good and merciful spirits charged by God to instruct us, pray with us for the souls of those who would benefit from our positive thoughts. Make us vessels of Divine providence; enable us to share with the spirits of those who need light whatever light may have been granted us by that Great Spirit, the Creator of All. Amen

You can find these prayers in Allan Kardec's book of selected prayers, or the version by Candita Gual. 

No spiritist should be without a copy. It is of utmost utility.
There is within prayer for those facing imminent death.

There are some of the prayers linked here

and others here

I also suggest the books helping yourself with selected prayers by original publications.

After these 9 days then you need to let these spirits rest and have no further attempt at contact nor offerings for one full year. The spirits have their own journey, healing centers to go to and work and spirit lives to do. We do not want to keep them around here because it would be damaging to them and our grief process, until they are ready to visit which could take from 1 to 5 years or more for you to receive messages, and for them to be able to. They may even choose to reincarnate quickly if it is needed or their decision. However the person they were will remain as a spirit.

After one year, you can pay the Catholic church to preform a mass for the dead if you wish for a very nominal fee. This was traditionally done and sung because they believe most people go to a holding place or purgatory. This is a great charity we can do for a loved one. The church does this for those who are Catholics mostly, but also can be performed by those who know how in Espiritismo and Sanse, or by well versed spiritualists.

You can hold another elevation or have a Espiritismo misa seance as well or instead where you may receive messages and status update, then you can add them to boveda or ancestor altar if their status is good. A Palero or Santo can read them to see their disposition. 
The boveda or a white table can be placed in elevation for them using the water glass formation in a pyramid or the point of the ^ formation facing away like so on the table.
Otherwise experienced spiritualists mediums can guide you to further help them out.
There are other rites such as if they were a priest in the ATR's the casse canari: breaking of spiritual pot to seperate gros bon ange and met tet Lwa from the soul for rest. As well as taking care of their spiritual tools, other pots, and robes of office or spiritual clothing.
They can also call up the family member or priest into a govi clay pot for veneration.
A Haitian Vodou seance is done by some Mambos in a white tent on a streamlet or by the river and give trance messages to the person who enters.

Hopefully this will help alot of people out, and reassure them of life after death.
If you have any questions or need to clarify, just ask.

An end is just another beginning or chapter on your souls journey, 
light and progress,
Sancista Siete Encruzhiladas

Hoodoo, folk magick and Voodoo differences

Hoodoo is a system of largely protestant based rootwork or plant work, combined with biblical passages such as the psalms. Some do work with the dead in terms of animal bones, and different dirts including grave dirt. There is believed to be spirits within the plants, and are the main spirits worked with outside of Christianity. There are allegorical teaching stories used such as briar rabbit and trickster spirits from the native american, african mix saw the similarities with their spider Anansi. Being protestant, there were no saints to preserve african spirits as well of the Orisha, Mpungo or Lwa, and the slave masters were less understanding of idolatry.

To facilitate this practice graveyard work including mediumship with the dead is employed, but it cannot be readily identified as necromancy. In modern times (the last 45 years) many who practice folk magic have joined the afro spiritualist or spiritualist churches which some are more Catholic based. Not all hoodoo or root workers are in the spiritualist church. This lead to the inclusion of spirit guides such as Blackhawk, 7 african powers and la madama from endless commissions of spirits incorrectly without reference, as practices and knowledge around these spirits were not passed on from the cubans and puertoricans from which they originated, known as espiritismo or the spiritualist church outside of the more european kardecian based.

 Many people want to use the items in a botanica, but they have no power sitting on a shelf. The 7 african powers are not Orisha, they are various dead warriors from different african tribes from puertorican espiritismo and not the Cuban religions. This was further confused with the image of the crucified jesus as the just judge, Ogun or Olofi. Many different images of the Jesus and Mary are used for various african spirits where there was Catholicism. The Cubans do not use saint images for their religious item for the spirits, it is just decoration. They receive the spirits in a pot in ritual. From what I have read about New Orleans, the catholic italians and irish kept to themself, although the pomp certainly was appreciated by the rest of the population, and welcome during open house feast dates of the saints.

There is some speculation at this time how someone from an American east coast european spiritualist church could found a southern afro church without having any public information about lineage, because they did not have our spiritual pots and teachings. It is possible that a congo based practictioner helped create this as Chicago is not far from New York where there is espiritismo. In which case Blackhawk no longer was a spirit guide and became more like a spirit of the dead in an nganga or nkisi which can be birthed from to another who already has it. Unless this pot was created because his spirit guide statue was unable to be prepared in the afro spiritualist way. We also have indian pots, if a person has several indian spirits or ancestry as do those in Dominican Voudou called a Tindjo as a portal, and this could have been appropriated or influenced this creation.

I have contacted a hoodoo author about this question politely with no response, who supposedly held the lineage of Blackhawk into introducing it into Hoodoo. Quickly glancing at one of her books online, she had a section on how to work with the spirit of la madama, which shows the lack of cultural connection, as she is thousands of different individual people who is a spirit guide to an individual, of which not everyone has one in this category, nor have the same indian guide. Hoodoo workers going out and buying a la madama statue is rediculous.

 In more European spiritualist churches good spirits have to acknowledge Jesus. These spirit guides are concerned with one person only. People may be attracted to the image of a specific historical indian perhaps because they have a spirit guide, no two will be alike however, and cannot be willingly passed to another person, or in life. Many people like the image of La Madama, but she is hundreds or tens of thousands of different dead people in that class, all with different real names. A person may have a Congo or an Africana, as black dolls are not all the same person, class or culture. Spirit guides come from seances, in which advanced mediums in community identify your spirit court or entourage, and no two people will have the same dead muerto or spirits. This is not something a person can do themself outside the traditions of spiritualism. People even have confused the Lwa statue of the african man Candelo as a folk saint, or these spirit guides as folk saints.

Hoodoo is folk magic that does not use african spirits, or pagan spirits, however in modern times the usage of Catholic saints has been added, again by going to botanicas and imitating african religions such as Santeria. Santeria is really magic with the saints, but came to also incorrectly be the term for the Orisha religions of Ocha, Lucumi and Ifa.

What most people think is New Orleans Voudou is in most cases actually folk magick, heavily congo based, incorrectly attributed by white ethnographers whose missionaries treked heavily into west africa and identified anything remotely african as Voodoo. Modern pracitioners in the area are mostly Haitian initiates, and the records do not identify Lwa as being ever mentioned or prevalent in this area. The slaves in the area were mostly Senegalese and Congo, and can be reflected in the usage of red and black for some Rada, the inclusion of european poppets with "nails" not understanding the congo nkisi, and they were not used of curses. Nails are used for differing reasons, but share the marking of intention. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A VOUDOU CURSE. It is outside the religion to do so.

Really voudou dolls do not exist. These things are not seen in any other branch of Vodou for the most part or have very different uses and meanings. Dolls are used throughout the Caribbean to represent an ancestor, a guide or spirit they love. In other african diasporic religions such as palo they may make a doll for a client to work in absentee, such as protection to keep in a temple, much like a pot de tete in voudou, items are made with personal hair clipping or nails etc is included as just one of the ingredients required.

 Also the emphasis on the color white is in voudou for rada Lwa, with red and black used only for petro. Black is rarely used otherwise, except for a few Ghede or Ayizan along with other colors or white throughout Voudou diaspora in the Caribbean. In Sanse we use purple and white for our chief Ghede Limbo, and black and white for the Ghede family. I do not think people understand the use of color, why they are used, its not just, those are their colors. Red and purple are considered hot, black and white are cool, with black being lower and darker. Black and purple is more so with riling up the dead to send them out, hot and dark, such as with bokor tradition outside of Voudou. Some Haitian hounfort are two handed. We try to make the influence of the dead more kindly yet active with the "choice" lineage of color. There is no preservation of Ifa with the Orisha either, or the inclusion of Ellegua. The Orisha mostly exist in a form of Ogun, and not many female Orisha survived in Vodou. If they do they are 1-3 from a family passed down. Red and black is also more congo with their crossroads Lucero spirit, or within congo based Quimbanda with their Exu and Pomba gira crossroad spirits. Unfortuenately people mess with what they do not understand and is beyond their egoic control, or knowledge level.

Unscrupulous uninitiated authors have tried to make an afro wicca out of new orleans "Voodoo", as there should be no pagan Greek or European spirits, they should not use spirit guides like espiritismo, and they should not have a whole pantheon of Orisha to choose from or Ellegua, and does not include western magick of hermetisicm. Most of any remaining west african practices have likely gone underground due to the tourists, or are practiced by Haitian lineage. Meaning they are Haitian immigrants who recently brought their religion, or Americans who went to Haiti as is required, not new orleans Voodoo. Any native new orleans Voodoo within the confines of one city that possibly existed largely left or went underground within Louisiana.

There was seldom any Caribbean to America transport of slaves by prohibition law. And there is no other indigenous Voudou or African religion diaspora origins in America. It has become a tourist collection of museums, gift shops, tours, and books to make $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. Just because there are cultural mixes in tradition doesn't mean people can just grab anything, and say "well they did it, they mixed things". Who's "they": the slaves who were forced to, and hundred to thousands of year old traditions these tens to hundreds of thousands of people agreed upon. They died over t preserve their tradition the best they could and made informed choices to changes or substitutions based on cosmology or philosophy.

Madam Marie Laveau was a Catholic, relatively middle to upperclass free buisnesswoman, of mixed ancestry, possibly part Haitian, said to be American born in some accounts. Written suppositions are often more fiction than fact at an apprasial of the wikipedia page. She possibly married a 3/4 white Haitian man who shortly left, and then she studied under a Senegalese man Dr John, a hoodoo worker. Her chewing peppers for justice in one story, crying with red eyes reflects the congo as in petro. And then there is congo square, where she was seen dancing with her snake possibly named Zombi, performance art or no, Nsambi was the congo god. Yes we have the snake dhamballah, but the congo makaya tribe is where we get the Simbi Lwa. The mojo or gris gris bags came from a Senegalese or wolof word. The original bag was red flannel, and only used or had access to white or yellowish tallow candles for the most part.

There is a system in which any venerated dead of any religion or people can become Lwa however, but would be within a religious framework of Voudou. There is also a seperate ancestral veneration by their own family or cultural group or tribe. Did Marie Laveau practice voudou?, its very doubtful. But if the stories of her nursing epidemic victims is true, she definately deserves veneration, and as a folk magick practitioner and diviner.

 The disgraced author Tallant is generally regarded as grandiose fiction, who again called all african folk magick and cursing voodoo, even Zora Neale Hurston was doubtful about the existance of a public or widespread voudou lineage as an ethnographer. She stated on her visit (sic), "the african rites, with names that rivaled those in Haiti", but they were not similar, nor recorded. My guess is they used the congo name for god, Nsambi. In our spiritual house, we hold secrets, all I can say is that Marie Laveau is venerated, and a congo spiritual worker through Palo Mayombe. JFK was made into a voudou Lwa by some Haitians. A bishop? who harried the folk practitioners in New Orleans was supposedly made into a Lwa, who hated any spiritual expression other than than Christianity. Both were not practitioners of voudou in their life as far as is known. Can a spirit guide become a Lwa? Yes by a legitimate voudou practitioner with legitimate reason such as connection, as we do not work with a whole pantheon. Scholars are now beginning to write about the difference in african tribes and their influences in the new world, previously inaccurate reports from largely white missionaries is what shapes most and outsiders viewpoints on this subject to this day.

Obeah from Jamaica has practitioners also in a tradition of spiritualism, pocomania or revivialism. Obeah is heavily folk magick based, and ceremonial magic based using the 4th and 5th books of Moses. Folk magick, ceremonial magic and sorcery is evident within the Bokor, secret societies, black lodges of Haiti, and is not considered religion nor Voudou, even if used for healing. They do use Lwa more so the congo based Petro, Baron Samedi and Kalfu (carrefour, four square).

Some people identify Hoodoo, conjure and appalachian magic as the same, but they have regional differences. As explained to me by my apprentice, Appalachia has more scottish roots, Granny or Hexen has more dutch germanic roots with hex signs etc that mixed with natives to use pow wow healing methods, and hoodoo is more african based. Conjure can be xonidered more spirit based. Although each region included european, native american and african practices, they settled into slightly different traditions and had different local plants.

These were family traditions, mostly practiced in solitary, or passed down one on one orally. Thus it is very difficult to learn accurate practices from books or the internet.

The spiritualist churches as in the african based espiritismo has baptisms, and some hoodoo practitioners say they have baptisms outside the catholic church. Hoodoo is not a religion however, and many have no such practice. This lave tet is also done in Vodou which is an initiatory religion and uses the Lwa, of which only a few concern the practitioner and not a whole pantheon. The Orisha people only possibly had one or two out of hundreds in Voudou passed down by family lineage and not generally within the religion. In New Orleans some Voudou houses say they have no clergy nor initiations which mark religion.

 Many people want to work with african spirits uninitiated, but this does not exist outside of lineage, whether family or orthodox. These african diasporic religions do not contain a bunch of spells, as the magic is inseperable from the religion's services, practices, spiritual point of access passed to you in intiation or blood lineage and rites. Voudou is life, largely in the moment and experiential in congress with spirits. The spirits come in physical mediumship and interact with the community, that is Vodou.

Many seek to keep the people of the culture and these spirits at an arms length with over intellectual approach, such as through a books, but this is impossible as a way to practice. You can study the culture, but not the religious experience this way. A Haitian American said, "voudou pas des livres". I agree voudou is 98% without books, leaving room for creativity and cultural study once you know the spirits you are supposed to be working with through your initatory rites and services.

People from Louisiana, shameless profiteer authors or newagers can get as mad as they like about what I have said. The unitiated authors neglect to address these issues I have raised, nor have the lineages to back it up, nor allow disagreeing viewpoints on their pages. In Africa there were royal priest kings, and there is no guarentee of this connection now, outside of unbroken family lines and religion. There is nothing wrong with hoodoo, it is awesome folk magic, but its not Vodou religion either.