John the Conqueror Aromatic Bath Herb, 1 1/4 oz

The High John register, as a bath. Named for the great root of Hoodoo, worked for personal power, mastery, and overcoming obstacles, here in the form you soak in rather than wear.

For baths and washes both. Steep the herbs into hot water and add the strained liquid to a bath, or use it as a wash for the body, the threshold, or the floor.

A 1 1/4 oz packet. A practical working size for a bath before a court date, a negotiation, or any morning you mean to walk in strong.

• Weight: 1 1/4 oz of aromatic bath herbs
• Tradition: Hoodoo, named for High John the Conqueror
• Use: steeped into a spiritual bath or a wash for the body, threshold, or floor
• For external use only. Not for ingestion. Strain the herbs before bathing, and keep out of reach of children.
• SKU: RBHJOHC

John the Conqueror, or High John, is a folk hero of African American tradition: a legendary enslaved prince whose wit, humor, and unbroken spirit outlasted every attempt to master him. The knobby morning-glory root that carries his name became Hoodoo's foremost curio for personal power, mastery, and victory over what would hold a person down.

The spiritual bath is where that intention meets the body. Where an oil dresses and a powder dusts, a bath surrounds: you steep the herbs, pour the water over yourself, and rise carrying what you asked for. Practitioners take a High John bath before a court date, a negotiation, an interview, or any morning that asks for nerve, and many pair it with a candle burned while they soak. As with all conjure, the bath focuses your own resolve rather than acting alone, and the victory is still something you go out and claim. Hoodoo is a living African American tradition; to go deeper with High John, learn from its own teachers and practitioners.

1. Name what you mean to master. The obstacle, the room, the contest ahead.
2. Steep the herbs. Pour hot water over a portion of the packet and let it steep like a strong tea, then strain the herbs out.
3. Take the bath. Add the strained liquid to a warm bath, or pour it over yourself as a wash after washing normally.
4. Work it upward. For drawing power toward you, wash upward, toward the heart, rather than down and away.
5. Rise and go. Air dry if you can, dress, and carry the intention into the day, and use any leftover wash on a threshold.

• High John the Conqueror Root, 1 oz: the root itself, to carry after the bath.
• John the Conqueror Oil, 2 Dram: dress and anoint after you rise from the water.
• John the Conqueror Green Jar Candle: a vigil candle to burn while you soak.
• John the Conqueror Sachet Powder, 0.5 oz: the same register as a dressing powder.
• Complete Book of Baths by Robert Laremy: a working reference for the spiritual bath tradition.

What is a spiritual bath?

A bath worked with intention: herbs steeped into water, the water poured over the body, and the practitioner rising carrying what was asked for. It is one of the oldest forms of conjure, and among the plainest.

What is John the Conqueror bath herb for?

Mastery, confidence, and overcoming obstacles. Practitioners take a High John bath before a court date, a negotiation, an interview, or any morning that calls for nerve and standing in their own power.

Do I put the herbs straight in the tub?

Steep them in hot water first, like a strong tea, then strain the herbs out and add the liquid to your bath. It works better and it saves your drain.

Which direction do I wash?

Upward, toward the heart, when you are drawing power toward you. Washing downward and away is the direction for clearing something off, which is a different working.

Can I use it as a floor wash?

Yes. The same strained liquid can be used to wash a threshold or a floor, worked inward, to carry the intention into the space you live and work in.