Palo and Me: What I Believe & Do Pt. 1
Pretty. Chola Wengue.
Children of Chola love beauty but are vain. We are determined, but can be weak. We can appear to be wealthy but are poor. There are many dynamics at play. Opposites attract too. Nkisi choose us for their reasons and we do not have a choice. Some may want a certain Nkisi badly as a parent - but there is just nothing we can do to influence it. Palo is not an easy religion.
There is a lot of intricacies involved. Though I tend to break some of their "regla" and not follow the intricate laws. Why? Because I want to practice and they say I can't. <cough> Bullshit. Lucero says that there is "much that I can do." And that "your free to practice far and wide as long as you offer to us." He doesn't mean sacrifice either.
Divination has been a big part of my life for a while but not tarot cards or flimsy stuff. I do the hard stuff, in particular, scrying - and I'm good at it. Its been three years since I started scrying. After my dad died, he passed his great gift to me. Now, I use regular mirrors or regular clear glasses of water to divine.
Learning chamalongos wasn't hard but I had to get them working with Lucero first. Tricky. I used a lustral water and aguardiente and smoke, and put them in darkness for a time. I tested them one day and they felt so different. Lucero was there and he was listening. I asked my questions. They came true. Since then, they have worked successfully. Apparently, Lucero really likes brandy! Lol! :)
You know, I've been pretty close to Lucero for quite a while. I had a beautiful beaded necklace that my Palero friend Angel No. 1 made me, but it broke. That was a protective measure for me - Lucero kept me safe from something dangerous. It was covered in menga, Angel No. 1 left the blood of the sacrifice there on purpose. I didn't have to pay for shit. He offered a really affordable initiation, but I wasn't getting much SSI money at that point and my hubby didn't want me going to Baja alone. Yeah, I know two Paleros named Angel. Weird? Jajajaja!
If this wasn't my path, it wouldn't keep popping up for me. Things wouldn't happen and my interest would wane. Its not like I have very many books, well, there aren't many in English. Since I'm studying Spanish, I am reading a Spanish Palo book. Tata Antonio was right - the Spanish Palo books are much better. Haha. I was reading about nfumbe pacts last night. Seen shit that I've never seen written about in English. Fascinating. I mean, I haven't seen consideration about whether the nfumbe is mentally balanced before! Great book. Its called, "La Puerta Al Fundamento." The format sucks but the knowledge is sound. If you have Kindle Unlimited, its free.
But not everyone is cut out to practice Palo. Its a very heavy load. A lot comes at you. You need to learn about muertos. Every aspect. And ancestors. Very important. Handling Nkisi can be complicated, especially without help. All I can say is read all that you can! Start practice slowly. Get a reading from a Palero to find out basics like your parent Nkisi and your spiritual court. Its too difficult and biased for you to try to read those for yourself.
I would never attempt to teach anything even resembling Palo. My Muertería has only small similarities to Palo, so nah, not happening. What goes with my Muertería? Still have it! But Palo is now my religion of choice that goes with it. Double the muertos, double the fun. :) I don't pay attention to the fact that Palo is male dominated, nor a bit antiquated.
I don't sacrifice animals, as most women don't in Palo. I also won't cook for any ritual because I'm not a cook. I won't pay for religious items unless I can't make them myself. I'm not having anyone divining for me unless I know that I can't do it myself. Why should I need so much assistance with my religion? Can I be wise on my own? Can I find out things myself? Sorry, I'm autonomous. I don't need to be constantly watched. I'm not a child. Hopefully I don't offend anyone's feelings. Reeeeeeeee!!!
