Simple Magick: 9 Uses for Graveyard Dirt

Living on a cemetery it makes sense to talk about Graveyard Dirt.

Amongst other things, it is used for:

Samhain rituals

Protection spells

Communicating with spirits

Altar item during mourning

Banishing

Habit-breaking spells

Curses

Ancestor connection and veneration

Summoning spirits

Although it is used across many traditions, it is fair to say that using Graveyard Dirt can be a contentious issue, and some people find it disrespectful to take land from those who are trying to rest, simply to increase power, or for other spell casting motives. However, it does not need to be taken from specific graves.

The dirt I have gathered is the dirt removed from grave digging - not all of it goes back, and is left in a pile; but it still holds the energy of this land, which for hundreds of years has been used for funerary purposes. Alternatively, you can gather dirt from somewhere else on the cemetery, or from a grave that is occupied by someone you know.

Firstly, this feels much more acceptable than taking dirt from the grave of someone you don’t know (depending on your viewpoint), and secondly, the character of the person who is buried there may be crucial in your workings, or may have wanted to have been a part of your workings in some way. I suspect my Nan - had she been buried - might have taken interest in some of my spells!

Of course, it is thoughtful and fair to leave a gift for the dead in exchange for what you have taken; flowers, stones, a libation, small coins, or some other small offering, are all appropriate.

Do you use Graveyard Dirt in your practice? What do you think about it?

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