Brujería (“witchcraft,” “sorcery”)

The usual term to denote any Afro-Cuban religion and all other practices similarly dismissed as superstitions. The word is also used by followers of the cults themselves to denote black magic – the deliberate misuse of legitimate religious techniques for malicious ends. All santeros are supposed to be capable of black magic, but no one admits to practicing it. The rituals of the less familiar cults are believed to consist exclusively of black magic, with the smallest and least known credited with the most dangerous powers. They include, in rough order of deadliness, the Ñañigos, Congolese, Jamaicans, Haitians, Canary Islanders, and Chinese. Beliefs in Santería are likely to attribute to sorcery such abnormal and inexplicable conditions as insanity and any condition that fails to improve when appropriate offerings have been made to the orisha. Cubans unassociated with any cult may still be frightened at apparent indications of occult malice; for instance, white chicken feathers unaccountably found in the house. Counter magic obtainable from a santero may be thought necessary. If this is not considered strong enough, recourse may be had to a priest of a more mysterious cult.