We practice ancestral magic. This cemetery is filled with the remains of our witch ancestors. Without access to them, we're powerless. If we run, we're leaving our legacy behind– our home, our family.
Ancestral Magic was an extremely powerful form of witchcraft that was commonly practiced among the witches of New Orleans. Similar to Spirit Magic, Ancestral magic drew energy from the power of the Ancestors, the totality of all witches who had been consecrated into New Orleans soil and remained attached to the land as spirits.
However, ancestral magic was limited to the area where the witch's ancestors were buried. Without access to the remains, or to the earth in which they're consecrated, witches who practiced ancestral magic were left without such power and had to seek other forms of magic. As a result, ancestral witches were very committed to their families and their coven, and the bloodlines of the witch families in the community typically went back centuries.
Genevieve explained that the Ancestral Plane (the home of all Ancestors), was created to separate the dead witches of New Orleans from the Other Side; a world-wide spiritual purgatory created by an extremely powerful witch called Qetsiyah to trap all supernatural beings at death. This is most likely the origin of Ancestral Magic, and it appears to remain a traditional source of magic for the coven of witches who reside in New Orleans, though it can be assumed that ancestral magic is practiced elsewhere in the world.
Ancestral magic works by the magic of a living witch connecting with the magic of the witches' dead ancestors and allowing it to flow through them via the witches' natural connection to the earth. To keep their ancestral magic flowing, any coven who practices this form of magic must perform a ritual every three hundred years or so that is known as the Harvest.
During the Harvest ritual, four witches are sacrificed, and their deaths result in all of their magical energy being released back into the earth to appease their ancestors. In return, the ancestors resurrect the four sacrificed witches at the Reaping, through another ritual performed by an Elder of the coven.
The resurrection of the four sacrificed witches is the final step in strengthening the coven's connection to their ancestors' magic, giving all of the living witches in the community more power. Additionally, the four Harvest girls also become more powerful after they have been brought back to life as a reward for their sacrifice to their coven.
If the Harvest ritual is not completed, the community will first receive a warning in the form of a series of natural disasters, each one more intense than the one preceding it: first earthquakes will shake the city, then incredibly strong windstorms, followed by torrential rain, and then finally, fire will begin to engulf the community. Afterward, the witches in the coven will slowly start to lose their magic until they "cease to be witches altogether" but in actuality cease to have access to Ancestral Magic.
In order to continue their tradition of Ancestral Magic, when a New Orleans witch dies, the coven must consecrate the body of their fellow witch by performing a ritual to ensure that the spirit of the deceased joins their ancestors and that their magic replenishes the earth, allowing the magic of that specific bloodline of witches to continue flowing. This process allows the living descendants/relatives to continue to draw on the deceased witch's magic, even after their death.
Eight months prior to the beginning of The Originals series, the French Quarter Coven attempted to begin the Harvest ritual as they planned, by sacrificing four teenage girls in their coven: Monique Deveraux, Davina Claire, Abigail and Cassie. However, many community members disagreed with the ritual, due to many who believed that the infrequently-performed Harvest ritual was nothing more than a myth akin to Noah's Ark. These skeptics included Sophie Deveraux (Monique's aunt), Father Kieran, and Marcel Gerard, the latter of whom had a personal rule against harming children. At a loss for options, Father Kieran sent Marcel to intervene before the girls could be sacrificed. However, Marcel arrived too late to do as he he was told, and two of the four girls had already been had their throats slit as an offering to their ancestors. He instantly killed Bastianna , the Elder performing the ritual, hoping that her death would put a halt to the event, but Agnes, another Elder, managed to sacrifice Monique before anyone could stop her. Marcel was finally able to save Davina from being sacrificed, but before he could whisk her away, they (along with Sophie) witnessed Monique's magic flowing out of her body and into Davina's through her outstretched hand. Because Davina was the only Harvest girl who wasn't sacrificed in the first attempt to perform the Harvest, the magical power belonging to the three other girls flowed into her, instead of flowing back into the earth to appease their ancestors as intended. This meant that the Harvest ritual was not complete, and until Davina was sacrificed, the final step in the ritual known as the Reaping could not be performed, leaving the three sacrificed girls stuck in limbo in the interim.
When Sophie saw her niece Monique's magic flow into Davina, she realized that the Harvest ritual was real after all. She felt sp guilty for her part in ruining the Harvest that it became her mission to find Davina and kill her to complete the ritual so that the coven could finally perform the Reaping and resurrect Monique. Sophie and her sister, Jane-Anne, who was Monique's mother, were so committed to their plan that Jane-Anne sacrificed her own life in order to ensure that the Harvest ritual would finally be completed.
Nearly a year later, Davina first began having difficulty controlling the immense power she possessed as a result of the Harvest, which was the first sign that something was wrong. Then, Davina completely lost control of her magic, which caused New Orleans to begin experiencing natural disasters. Sophie explained to Marcel and the Original vampiresKlaus, Elijah, and Rebekah Mikaelson that the disasters were a warning to the witches that they were running out of time to complete the Harvest. First, a sequence of earthquakes occurred, which made all of the human and supernatural denizens of New Orleans extremely confused and nervous. Though the Originals and Marcel were skeptical of Sophie's explanation, assuming that she was just trying to scare them into helping her, but when extremely powerful winds started blowing through the city, they realized that Sophie was telling the truth. Klaus, Elijah and Rebekah reluctantly allowed Sophie to consecrate their mother's remains, which allowed Sophie to absorb her power and become an Elder, due to the fact that Elders are the only witches in an ancestral coven who can perform the Harvest ritual, and all of their covens' Elders had been killed. Then, after much debate, Davina eventually agreed to allow Sophie to sacrifice her to complete the Harvest, and Sophie used a ceremonial athame to slit her throat. Afterward, Sophie attempted to complete the Reaping, in which the four girls would all be resurrected, but after several failed tries, it became clear to all in attendance that something had gone wrong, and the four girls were not coming back.
Afterward, it was revealed that Celeste Dubois, a powerful dark witch and a former lover of Elijah (who was revealed to have been inhabiting the body of the witch Sabine Laurent) hijacked the power of the Harvest to resurrect three formerly-deceased witches, all of whom were known to have a grudge against vampires, and Original vampires in particular: Genevieve, (who was killed by Rebekah in 1919), Papa Tunde, (who was killed by Klaus in 1919), and Bastianna (who was killed by Marcel during the first attempt to complete the Harvest). With Marcel no longer in possession of Davina, he had no way to continue to monitor and restrict the use of magic in the Quarter, so the coven quickly began practicing magic again and building up their strength. Celeste, with the help of her newly resurrected friends, began to make moves against the Originals as payback for past slights against them. First, Papa Tunde attempted to use his sacrificial magic to kill all three Originals in order to seek revenge against Klaus for killing him and his twin sons 1919. His plan was also to kill as many vampires as possible to further fuel his sacrificial magic. Once Elijah, Hayley, and Klaus intervened, Papa Tunde fled to the Garden, where he slaughtered all of the desiccated vampires entombed there and channeled all of their magical power into his knife. Then, he met with Celeste, and gave her permission to sacrifice him as their final offering. His magic was also channeled into the blade, which gave it the ability to cause untold torment to anyone who is stabbed with it, whether human or an Original vampire.
Since the resurrected witches' life force was hijacked away from the four sacrificed Harvest girls, Papa Tunde's death resulted in Monique's resurrection, and she woke up in her grave at Lafayette Cemetery. Later, Celeste revealed to Elijah that her intention was to punish him for choosing Klaus and his family over her back in the 1800's. She sought her revenge by torturing Klaus with Papa Tunde's blade, and by torturing Rebekah with memories from her past with Genevieve. Genevieve helped Celeste with her plan by confessing to Klaus that it was Rebekah and Marcel who summoned Mikael to New Orleans in 1919 with the intention of chasimg Klaus out of town. These events caused such a rift between the three siblings that Marcel was exiled from the French Quarter and Rebekah was exiled from New Orleans completely. When Celeste and Bastianna were killed (by Elijah and Marcel, respectively), their life force was redirected back to the Harvest girls, and resulted in both Abigail and Davina's resurrection.
Elijah eventually took over Klaus' post as leader of the Faction, and quickly began reaching out to representatives from the witches (Genevieve) and the vampires (Diego) in order to work out a peace agreement between the supernatural factions. Eventually, much to the witches' and the vampires' dismay, the werewolves were also brought into negotiations, and after an impassioned speech by Hayley, the five factions finally hammered out a peace agreement, signed by Elijah and Klaus (representing the Originals), Genevieve, Diego, Hayley, and Francesca Correa (representing the humans). As a show of solidarity and respect for the peace treaty, the Mikaelsons allowed Genevieve and the coven a party for one of their traditional feast days, La Fête de Bénédictions, where the community offers the witches gifts in exchange for their blessings. Genevieve sought to use the feast as a forum to introduce the three resurrected Harvest girls into New Orleans society. That day, Monique, Abigail, and Davina attempted a spell to communicate with the ancestors, who told them (through Monique) that Genevieve needed to sacrifice herself in order to finally resurrect Cassie and complete the Harvest, giving the coven full access to the Harvest's power during a time of mounting tension between the supernatural factions. Genevieve, who was not ready to die, convinced the coven that she wanted to do more work for the witch community before she fulfilled her duty to their ancestors, and informed them that she planned on stealing Esther's Grimoires so that they could use her powerful spells to empower the witches.
At the feast, Monique confessed her feelings about Davina to Genevieve, and remarked that Davina didn't deserve the honor of being a Harvest girl because she hadn't sacrificed enough for the cause. In order to "teach her a lesson," Genevieve set up the feast so that Davina would not receive any gifts from the other community members. In the end, Klaus, who felt bad that Genevieve and Monique were being so rude to her, gave her a lapis lazuli ring and the |daylight ring spell from his mother's grimoire (for her best friend Josh) in apologies for his previous actions against her. The feast was eventually ruined by Marcel, who intended to send a message to the Faction by compelling a group of tribal drummers to slit their wrists in the middle of the party, causing all of the vampires in attendance to become overcome by bloodlust. Though Elijah tried to convince the vampires to relax, the electricity was shut off, and the vampires took advantage of the darkness by violently feeding on the drummers and many of the human party guests. This first breach of the peace treaty ended in the deaths of all the drummers and many of the party guests.
The night of the feast, Genevieve tried and failed to steal Esther's grimoire from the Mikaelson compound, in hopes that obtaining it would earn her enough favor from the ancestors to keep her alive. When she failed, Monique and the rest of the coven confronted her and insisted that she needed to die, because Marcel's attack at the party made clear that the witches needed their full power to fight back. Right before Monique was about to kill her, the ancestors changed their minds at the last moment, and told Monique that Genevieve could continue to live. But, in return, they demanded another sacrifice to take Genevieve's place, specifically, Hayley and Klaus' still-unborn baby. Afterward, Genevieve tried a slow-burn approach to get close to the Mikaelsons in order to get access to Hayley and finally fulfill her obligations. However, Monique wasn't satisfied with her methods, and took matters into her own hands by using a poppet representing Hayley to cast a spell to kill her (and in the process, the baby). However, Genevieve realized what Monique had done and was able to reverse the spell just in time to save them both. Later, Genevieve became angry with Monique, and insisted that because the baby was part-witch, the ancestors need the baby to be born before she can be sacrificed, so the witches to consecrate her remains and her power could fuel the witch community.
Genevieve later made an agreement with Klaus and Elijah to adapt several of the spells from Esther's grimoire to make moonlight rings for Hayley and the Crescent wolves as an excuse to be in the compound and around the family. Unbeknownst to the Mikaelsons, Genevieve had also made a deal with Francesca Correa, who was supplying the black kyanite stones for the rings. The conditions of their deal was as follows; Genevieve would enchant the stones with the spell, using Klaus' blood as a source of energy to power the stones, and would then give them to Francesca and her siblings, who were revealed to be werewolves who had pretended to be humans for decades. In return, Francesca would allow Genevieve to take Hayley, who the witches intended to kill as soon as she had given birth, as well as the baby.
Their plan succeeded with few complications; since the stones were drawing on Klaus' power, it weakened him to the point he couldn't retaliate against the wolves or the witches during the full moon. However, as Hayley tried to fight against her captors, she experienced a placental abruption, which caused her to go into labor early. Genevieve, Monique, and Abigail took Hayley to St. Anne's Church for the birth. Klaus heard Hayley's labored screams from the streets and burst into the church to stop them, but due to the immense strength of Abigail and Monique's combined Harvest power, combined with Klaus' residual weakness from the moonlight rings, he was pinned to the wall and unable to fight back as he watched Hayley gave birth to their child. Once the baby was born, Hayley asked to hold her, and Genevieve allowed her one moment with her child before Monique slit Hayley's throat, either as an additional offering, or just to keep her from retaliating. Klaus threatened them all with violence, but was unable to move until the witches took the baby and left.
Genevieve, Monique, and Abigail took the baby to Lafayette Cemetery, where they planned to complete the offering as soon as the full moon disappeared from the morning sky. Abigail and Monique talked privately in one of the tombs, and each admitted that they hoped that Genevieve would be unable to sacrifice the baby so that they would be allowed to kill her and finally get their friend Cassie, the last Harvest girl, back. Meanwhile, Elijah and Klaus searched the cemetery to find the baby, only to figure that the witches had set up a powerful illusion that led them around in circles so they were unable to find the the ritual site. However, much to everyone's surprise, Hayley awoke at the church in transition, since she died with the baby's blood in her system. The baby's blood was also necessary for Hayley to survive her transition into a hybrid, and as a result, her body could lead her toward her baby as a sort of survival instinct. The three used this ability to find the altar where the three witches were about to sacrifice the baby. Monique and Abigail quickly saw them approaching the altar and linked hands, revealing that they had the full force of the magical power of every witch buried and consecrated in the cemetery. This gave them such immense power that the two were easily able to fight against them. Klaus, Hayley, and Elijah started fighting against the witches' magic, and eventually, Klaus killed Abigail in order to break the link to their ancestors' power. Hayley violently fought against Genevieve to keep her from being able to sacrifice the baby, but while they were fighting, Monique grabbed the knife and prepared to complete the sacrifice herself. Before Monique could kill the baby, Marcel arrived, and broke his cardinal rule of not hurting kids by killing Monique with the Devil's Star, protecting the baby from death.
Elijah and Hayley chained Genevieve up in a tomb in the cemetery and questioned her for answers as to why she did what she did. Genevieve reveals that Esther, who became a New Orleans witch when the Mikaelsons allowed Sophie to consecrate her body on New Orleans soil, was the ancestor who gave the decree to kill Klaus and Hayley's child. She also suggested that Esther is currently the leader of the ancestors, though it has not been confirmed. Genevieve insisted that because Esther decreed it, the New Orleans witches must obey her order, and informed them that as long as the baby is alive, the New Orleans witches will continue to come for her in order to fulfill their obligations. Elijah and Hayley were disgusted by Esther's tactics against her own family, as well as Genevieve actions, and Hayley ultimately killed her by stabbing her in the stomach with the blade she planned to use to sacrifice the baby.
At the end of From a Cradle to a Grave, it is insinuated that Esther has come back from the dead in the body of Cassie, the last remaining Harvest girl. It is also suggested that Finn, her eldest son, and Klaus and Elijah's eldest brother, has also been resurrected to help her, who is possessing the body of a witch named Vincent Griffith.
In Give 'Em Hell Kid, Vincent sought to follow through on his ex-wife's plan of cutting off the Ancestors and their connection to the living. Vincent, with the help of Davina Claire, used a magical object that would absorb all of the Ancestor's power. The plan succeeded and the Ancestors were cut off from the land of the living, cutting of witches access to Ancestral magic too.
Paternity Spell/Linking Spell: A spell used to identify if another is in fact pregnant. Jane-Anne used it to figure out if Hayley was in fact pregnant with the child of Niklaus. The witch uses salt to make special symbols on an altar and lights candles around the area while humming in order to gain confirmation. It was also used to bind Sophie to Hayley in order to control hers and the baby's life.
Used By:Jane-Anne Deveraux on Hayley to ascertain that she was in fact pregnant, to confirm whether Klaus was the father of Hayley's Unborn Child and link her to Sophie.
Channeling the Ancestors: Different rituals and invocations used to invoke the Ancestral spirits, commune with them and channel their collective power and will.
Davina, Monique & Abigail's Spell: This spell is commonly used by the Harvest Girls in order to commune with the Ancestors. Each Harvest Witch will take a different position: one will do a handstand, one will be sprawled/contorted against the wall and the other would be laying on the ground.
Incantation: Vie dans des ancêtres, renforcer noblesse. Comme des ancêtres, de coeur noblesse. Décider on de ancêtres, garder noblesse.
Genevieve's Spell: This spell allows a witch to commune with the Ancestors and give them a foothold in the physical world, allowing them to successfully interact with it in various ways. It also gives them control over the witch in question.
Directions: The spell is performed by crunching a handful of herbs, laying out a witch's personal object and sprinkling salt on the altar. However, more witches can use this spell without any of the formerly mentioned necessities.
Incantation: C'est cette nouveau vie, nouveau âme mélange avec nous.
Sophie & Katie's (Ancestral Harnessing) Spell: This spell is used to charge a witch with a large amount of ancestral power and focus it into one or more ancestral witch by invoking the Ancestors.The spell was originally cast in the cemetery where the ancestors are buried, by sprinkling salt on an altar and focusing on her intention.
Directions: The witches place several trinkets on a small altar and sprinkle the salt upon it. They then proceed to focus on the ancestral power and absorb it as their Ancestors can be heard.
Ancestral Mass Pain Infliction Spell: The spell commonly allows a witch to inflict pain on dozens of people at the same time, though it requires a massive amount of power, such as the unified ancestral power, charged in one witch.
Incantation: Donn moi se la vroh kondu feh aila ra donn toi moi. Donn moi. Salacku tusdeh do. Vala.
Used by:Katie performed this spell by absorbing a large amount of ancestral power with Sophie's help. It allowed her to subdue at least a dozen vampires in an attempt to save Thierry.
Ancestral Locator Spell: Various spells used to locate people through the use of ancestral magic, sand and a map.
Sophie's Spell: Moved by the wind, sand will form a path along the map, pointing at the target's location.
Incantation: None
Ingredients: Map, Black Sand, Pocket Watch
Davina and Kol's Spell: The energy will be drawn from the belonging of the target and the Iron powder congregates, make a single pile on the map, showing the target's location.
Incantation:Ce che vous, pro la busque. Ce che vous, pro la busque. Ce che vous, pro la busque.
Ingredients: Map, Magnets, Object that belongs to the target (sometimes), Iron fillings
Harvest Ritual: A powerful ritual and spell used to reconnect the witches of New Orleans with their ancestors spirit and magic. Only an Elder can cast the spell. They must call upon the four elements to bind the Coven's past and future magic: Earth to connect the Witches with their ancestors; water to heal the community; wind to carry the Harvest girls to their ancestors and back; and fire to purify. Each girl is brought forward and has their throat cut with a sacred blade, passing the power of the community onto the next girl until they've all been sacrificed. After the Harvest comes the Reaping, where in the Harvest Girls are resurrected.
Incantation:
Harvest Incantation:Our magic fades as our ties to our ancestors weaken over time. We beseech them, accept this offering as a sign of our faith. To be born, you must sacrifice.
Reaping Incantation:After the Harvest comes the Reaping. Their sacrifices made and accepted. We call upon our Elders to resurrect the chosen ones.
Requirements: Four Harvest girls, Sacred ground, Athame
Used by: Elders of the ancestral witches. Bastianna & Sophie Deveraux.
Harvest Hijacking Spell: A powerful spell that deviates the immense power of the Harvest ritual to the caster to be used however she pleases. The power is then able to do one of two things: To resurrect a total of three other witches from the Ancestral Plane / To be bestowed onto the caster, empowering her further.
Incantation: Sacré sang du père. Sacré coeur de la mer. Donnez-moi, donnez-moi.
Requirements: Poppet filled with blood, Chalice
Used by:Celeste Dubois (while possessing the witch Sabine Laurent) cast this spell right after Davina completed the Reaping to hijack it's power in order to resurrect Bastianna, Genevieve and Papa Tunde and bestow her the power of a harvest girl.
Sacred Ground Sealing Spell: The spell functions by closing off a certain to location to all vampires. The only way they could enter was through an invitation by the witch who cast the spell. The spell remained in effect even after Jane-Anne's death, however, after Sophie's death, the spell was lifted, implying that it was bound to Sophie's life.
Incantation: Unknown
Used by: Sophie and Jane-Anne Deveraux. The Deveraux sisters used this spell shortly following their failed attempt at the Harvest in order to seal of the Lafayette Cemetery from Vampires.
Werewolf Lunar Curse: An extremely powerful spell that could force werewolves to stay in their wolf form except on full moons.
Used by: Celeste DuBois ( while in the possession of Brynne Deveraux) performed this spell at Marcel's request on the werewolf pack of New Orleans, which kept them cursed for more than 2 decades.
Reversing the Crescent Moon Curse: A counter-spell to the Werewolf Moon Curse that allows the cursed werewolves to return to their human form.
Directions: Grind herbs into a liquid paste and targets must consume it the following full moon.
Used by: Celeste Dubois (while possessing the witch Sabine Laurent) used this spell to reverse her curse placed on the Crescent wolves.
Celeste's Protection Spell:A spell that allows a witch to prevent her from permanently dying. Casting said spell allows her to resurrect should she meet certain doom. However, it appears to be a one time deal and have to be cast again should she wish to continue avoiding death.
Incantation: Unknown
Used by: Celeste Dubois (while possessing the witch Sabine Laurent) cast this spell before confronting Davina and Camille at the church. Davina then proceeded to kill her and her group of witches by magically snapping their necks. She revived shortly afterwards without any visible side effects. She was forced to cast it once again by Marcel on Davina to protect her from poisoning. Her speech with Marcel that "they all should have done the same", in addition to the speed at which she cast it on Davina, implies that while requiring to be cast again every death, is a fairly common and easy to prepare spell.
Sedation Spell: The spell will successful subdue the targets and knock them unconscious unless the target is too powerful.
Incantation: Gadyen nan balans, gadyen nan la foi. Se pou nou fe sa yo dwe fe.
Used by: Celeste and three other witches performed this spell on Davina and Camille, though only Camille was subdued as Davina was too powerful, therefore she managed to overpower the witches.
Insanity Hex: A curse invoked by tracing a symbol on the victim's hand while using the power of a cursed rosary, used to induce madness. The spell will drive the victim insane to a point where they become violent and kill. If a Hex like this is allowed to set in for too long, it can no longer be reversed. It is explained that hexes like this begin with magic, but after a while they alter the very chemistry of the brain, making them irreversible.
Incantation:
Bastiana's' Incantation: Torsion fou mort de l'espirit.
Used by: This spell was performed by two elders, Bastianna and Agnes on two priests, Kieran and his nephew Sean respectively, in order to drive them to madness and eventually suicide.
Inferno Spell: The spell will invoke violent flames over a certain location and trap the residents inside.File:AnMagic3.png The witches light candles and chant over them until torches ignite and the flames are replicated over a home.
Incantation: Fumée chaleur vicieux enfermé les vitres la bas.
Ingredients: Candles
Used by: Celeste, Bastianna and Genevieve performed this spell in order to burn down the Mikaelson plantation.
Poison Kiss: A simple enchantment enacted by a kiss. It was powerful enough to temporarily incapacitate an Original Vampire.
Requirements: Kiss the target
Used by: Celeste used this spell in order to temporarily incapacitate Elijah.
Ancestral Pain Infliction Spell: A spell that is similar to the power of pain infliction, though it works on a larger scale, giving the casters the ability to subdue more vampires at a time and even those older ones, commonly more resistant to aneurisms.
Incantation:
Genevieve's Incantation: Radiamis.
Genevieve's Second Incantation: Vamisa la visia.
Bastiana's Incantation: Votre âme, l'ame boa.
Used by: Bastianna and Genevieve performed various pain-inflicting spells on several vampires.
Message Spell: A spell that causes a message to catch on fire and then be transported to the intended recipient.
Incantation:
Genevieve's Incantation: Prend ce message ce au le centre se levant
Cassie and Rebekah's Incantation: Vain se message sa a le main sur la vain
Used by: Genevieve used a similar spell in order to bring Mikael to New Orleans by sending him a photo of Klaus and Marcel. Rebekah and Cassie later tried the same spell, so that Rebekah could send her brothers a message. However, before it could take effect, they were stopped.
Devinette:A mystical riddle that Witches use to teach their children, it manifests as tattoo-like writing on the subject's skin. Once the subject solves the riddle the writing disappears.
Used by: Monique Deveraux cast this spell on Celeste's request on Elijah to lead him to where she was holding Klaus and Rebekah
Genevieve's Mind-linking Spell: The spell allows a witch to connect two minds together. A potion concocted using herbs, the witch's blood and host's blood, which will then be drunk by the target. Doing so allows the drinkers to see into the host's mind and access their memories which the witch can then guide through.
Incantation: -TBA-
Requirements: Blood of target, Blood of caster, Herbs
Used by: Genevieve on Klaus and Rebekah Mikealson in order to show him her betrayal.
Celeste's Possession Spell: A spell that allows the spirit of a deceased witch to jump from body to body.
Requirements: Death of the witch's current host
Used by: Celeste has used this spell for over 200 years in order to possess several female New Orleans witches. Every time she would grow bored and seek a new body, she would drown her current host in the Mississippi.
Spirit Trapping Spell: The spell allows a witch to return a spirit jumping witch back to her original body, entrapping her within it. It was powerful enough to reconstitute an entire body from just its bones.
Incantation: À ses restes, retourne au sol.
Requirements: Bones of target, Anointing of skull with ash
Used by: Monique Deveraux used this spell from a page of Esther's Grimore on Celeste when she tried to jump into another body. Instead, the spell deviated her back to her original body, trapping her.
Lunar Boundary Spell: The spell will be bound to the moon and will last until the next moonrise.
Requirements: Moon as a binding agent
Used by: Celeste used this spell in order to trap the Originals inside of the City of the Dead. Genevieve later used a simila spell to trap Kieran inside of the attic of St. Anne's.
Calling Spell: The spell's true purpose is unknown though it can be assumed it was an invocation of the Ancestors, due to the whispering voices surrounding the witch casting the spell.
Incantation: Attendez notre appel.
Used by: Monique used this spell while lying in the cemetery.
Illusion Spell:The spell allows ancestral witches to project an illusion over an entire location, transforming it such that unwanted intruders perceive it to be an infinite maze and will walk in circles. However, it is not powerful enough to deceive the sire-bond as such, sired hybrids are still able to sense the location of their sires.
Ingredients: Place of power (e.g. Lafayette Cemetery), Ancestors
Used by: Monique, Abigail and Genevieve in collaboration with the Ancestors to hide from Klaus and Elijah while they attempted to sacrifice Hope.
Defense Spell:A powerful spell primarily that allows ancestral witches to call on the entire collective power of the Ancestors. However, if death occurs in one of the witches performing the spell, the collective power of the Ancestors will fade.
Incantation: La mère, le père, le frère, la sœur.
Requirements: Being in the City of the Dead
Used by: Monique Deveraux and Abigail used this spell in their confrontation with the Originals and Hayley, which allowed them to easily subdue all of the Originals.
Flower Revival Spell:A spell that channels Nature and the Ancestors to revive dead flowers
Incantation: Belle la vie à cette fleur, belle la vie à cette fleur, belle la vie à cette fleur, maintenant
Used by: Monique, Abigail, and Davina to revive dead roses at the Lycée.
Ancestral Séance Spell: A ritual that allows ancestral witches to contact the spirits that are suspended between life and death.
Incantation: -TBA-
Requirements: Assorted herbs, Stones, Chalk inscriptions (a circle surmounted by a cross with arms of equal and glyphs), Possession of target, Blood from caster, Candles.
Used by: Davina and Abigail to contact Tim using his Violin after being killed by Klaus.
Consecration Ritual: This ritual is performed whenever a New Orleans Witch dies to allow the French Quarter Witches to fuel the earth with magic, maintaining their link. According to Sophie if the ritual is not performed by sundown, the link is lost. However, if a Witch body jumps and possesses someone else, their remains cannot be consecrated.
Incantation: I consecrate these bones to the earth. Ancestors, hear me.
Directions: The ritual is seldom shown so it remains obscure, however it is known that it involves dressing the corpse in white and sprinkling water and rose petals over it, cleansing it with sage and wrapping the body in black velvet and burying it in the cemetery.
To Find a Person's Remains: The spell summons a path of wind that will lead to the target's location. A small vortex will than swirl at the location, pinpointing it.
Incantation:Soeurs et freres, mwen rele sou nou. Mennen me sa me chache.
Ingredients: None
Used by: Sophie Deveraux used this spell to find the hidden remains of the witch Celeste Dubois
Dreamcatcher Sight Spell: Twin mystical dreamcatcher charms adorned with animal bones and chicken feet can be enchanted to spy on a subject.
Used by: Genevieve used this to spy on Marcel and Cami. Looking in her dreamcatcher allowed her to see through the other.
Poppet Death Curse: The spell is performed by stabbing a poppet with a needle while chanting. The victim will experience shortness of breathe, cold chills, weakness, vomiting blood and then unconsciousness. The victim will eventually die in a span of two days.
Incantation: Purger l'interieur, éteindre la lumiere dans cette font.
Ingredients: A poppet, Needle
Used by: Monique used this spell on Hayley in an attempt to kill her baby on the request of the Ancestors.
Genevieve's Resuscitation Spell: The spell cast allows a Ancestral witch to revive a target that has recently stopped breathing. It is powerful enough to combat a Poppet Death Curse.
Incantation: Coeur blessé, battre avec mwen.
Requirements: Poultice made from Chamomile, Gris-gris pouch, Salt, Herbs
Used by: Genevieve in the attempt to revive Hayley. She used a poultice made from chamomile and applied to Hayley's forehead as she chanted the words However, upon knowing how serious Hayley's affliction is, she resorted to using the contents of her gris-gris pouch. She poured out some salt near Hayley and drew symbols on it. She then sprinkled crushed herbs over Hayley's body until she eventually came to.
Blood Gathering Spell:The spell enables a witch to telekinetically lift specific liquids and gather at one point.
Incantation: Venez sanguis. Venez sanguis, Venez sanguis la force de la bête à moi.
Used by: A spell used by Davina to gather what was left of Klaus's blood that splattered on a car not too far from the Abattoir. She did this in attempt to save as many vampires as she can from the poison of the werewolf bite, but what she collected was only enough for one vampire.
Davina's Resurrection Spell: An extremely powerful spell written by Esther a 1000 years ago, used to bring a person back from the dead. The spell gains it's power by a witch channeling the energy of a Nexus Vorti, an event so infrequent that it is almost miraculous.
Incantation: La cendre à l'os, de la chair à la vie. De la cendre à l'os, de la chair à la vie. From ash to bone, from bone to flesh, from flesh to life.
Directions: The spell calls for the witch to draw a circle on the floor, then form another circle within it with the deceased person's ashes. A Nexus Vorti is supposed to be channeled for power.
Used by: The spell was created by Esther, and Davina used this spell to resurrect the Original Vampire, Mikael. Davina also added her own component to the spell (using a dark object) that would give her complete control over Mikael and bind him to her will, forcing him to obey her every command. She also drew power from three other dark objects for support.
Davina's Locator Charm:
Used by:Davina Claire mentioned to Kaleb that when she resurrected the Original Vampire, she made sure that she would always know his location.
Summoning Spell: The spell will summon a a certain person bound/controlled by the bracelet of obedience.
Incantation: Jwenn mwen vennez ça maintenant.
Ingredients: The bracelet of obedience.
Used by: Davina used this spell in order to summon Mikael to her rescue upon being attacked by a pack of werewolves.
White Oak Stake Locator Spell:
Incantation:L'arme filium. Pa kenbe ex oculus. Indi
Used by:Esther Mikaelson (while possessing Cassie) cast this spell for Francesca Correa to find the location of the White Oak Stake. She drew a triangular symbol in some salt and also utilized a number of stones in this spell. The spell would seemingly work psychically as there was no map involved, and since Cassie had her eyes closed.
Esther's Locator Spell:
Incantation:Qu'est nou te fuis. À pouvoir la trouver, yonn sou ris nan sape la.
Ingredients: Map
Used by: Esther Mikaelson used this spell to try to locate Davina Claire.
Water Divination Spell:
Incantation: Ma te ak san sou ki à lumière le fuis.
Ingredients: Glass bowl of water, Three rose petals, Drop of caster's blood
Used by: Esther used this second spell in an attempt to find Davina Claire. In a glass bowl of water she placed three rose petals and a drop of her own blood. Kol focused and conjured her in his mind as his mother chanted. (Note: she used one of Davina's revived roses so it may be possible that the rose is in fact one of the objects enchanted by the researched witch)
Mary-Alice's Boundary Spell: The spell will be bound to an object that is supposed to be pinned down on a gate surrounding the location.
Requirements: Object as a binding agent
Used by: Mary-Alice used this spell to prevent anyone from entering the dowager's house by sticking a doll's head onto the gate.
Boundary Manipulation Spell: The spell allows a witch to manipulate the effects of a boundary spell placed by another witch. It can allow the witch to turn around the boundary's effects, for example, a spell that is supposed to keep people out will keep people trapped inside of a certain location.
Requirements: Binding agent of the boundary spell
Incantation: Aven safa sa belise, de la mer...
Used by: One of Klaus' witch allies used this spell to turn Mary-Alice's spell against her and Astrid by trapping them in the dowager's mansion.
Imprisoning Spell: A powerful enchantment that can be placed on a building. The spell imprisons anyone inside of the building, by locking all of the exits permanently, therefore, once someone enters the cursed building, they can no longer leave. The spell on the Asylum however, was in fact a heightened version of Mary Alice and Astrid's boundary spell, turned against them.
Requirements: Binding agent of the boundary spell
Incantation: Aven sa fuis sa belise, de la mer...
Used by: One of Klaus' witch allies used this spell to turn Mary-Alice's spell against her and Astrid by trapping them in the dowager's mansion, as well as to curse the entire place by ensuring that once a person is inside, they can no longer leave.
Ancestral Boundary Reversing Spell: The spell allows a witch to undo a barrier spell, however if the barrier spell is bound to a powerful object, reversing it would be impossible without the binding agent.
Requirements: Two or more witches
Incantation: Singuinata Venet a Superem
Used by: Davina and Kol attempted this spell in order to reverse Finn's boundary spell, however, they were unsuccessful.
Ancestral Cloaking Spell: The spell will cloak several people so that the location seems empty to anyone outside as long as the witches continue chanting.
Incantation:
Davina's Incantation:...keschede sede ni canun keschede senu ni...,
Kaleb's Incantation:...excede canun infenun da ba nunc ca nun,senon canu ni...
Requirements: Two or more witches are required, lit candles.
Used by: Davina and Kol/Kaleb used this spell in order to cloak themselves and Mikael from Klaus.
Vessel Preparing Spell: An ancient spell that is used to prepare another body to act as a host for a certain spirit. The byproduct of the spell is a vertical line of large pin-like pricks on the back.
Incantation: Carama Say, Au...
Ingredients/Requirements: A handful of herbs, The host
Used by: Esther commonly uses this spell in order to choose the next body for herself. She also used the same spell to prepare new bodies for all of her children.
Esther's Spirit TransferenceSpell: The spell will be locked in the moment the hourglass is turned over. When the sand finally falls down, the target's soul will be "ripped" out of their body and placed into the body prepared through a vessel preparing spell.
Directions: An egg-like shape is placed in the center of an altar and the hourglass is placed next to it. Turning over the hourglass will bind the spell and make it irreversible, though it can be counteracted.
Used By: Esther used this spell in order to place Rebekah's soul into Camile's body. However, Davina counteracted her spell, therefore Rebekah's soul was instead sent to the body of an imprisoned witch, whose body was prepared by Kol.
Possession Counteracting Spell: A spell that has to be performed at the exact moment as the possession spell that it's counteracting. The spell works by linking two hourglasses, one of the possession spell and the other of it's counter spell, therefore turned in reverse. Both the body of the vessel and the possessor will tremble violently, which will repel the spirit of the possessor from the vessel's body, sending it to another prepared vessel.
Incantation: Scen ta Lum ves Victa per Vatis Imparret.
Used By: Davina performed this spell to counteract Esther's magic in order to protect Camile as well as to keep Esther from body jumping.
Protection Against Possession: A spell that is able to protect someone from being possessed by another spirit. It is performed by dipping the doll representing the target into an unknown mixture in a cauldron, placed in a circle of salt, with yellow flowers and herbs scattered around, possibly as a power source.
Incantation:
Kol's Incantation: Pwoteje sa. Scandalum subsisto... subsisto venenatis. Impedit l'ecoulement.
Davina's Incantation: Se pa toi... Subsisto... Inquia l'ecoulement.
Used By: Davina and Kol performed this spell in order to protect Camile against Esther's magic.
Fête des Bénédictions: Genevieve and her coven performed the Feast of the Blessings as a means of introducing the Harvest Girls to society and as a way for the Witches to celebrate their existence publicly after Marcel's ban on magic. During the ceremony, the girls are paraded through the street like royalty and then proceed to call forth the elements. Afterwards, the Harvest Girls are brought gifts in exchange for blessing the community.
Used by: French Quarter Coven
Daylight Ring Spell: A spell which enchants lapis lazuli rings so that they allow their Vampire wearers walk in the sun. This spell was kept locked up by Marcel to keep the vampires under his control, promising them daylight rings in return for loyalty, to be created by Davina. Klaus gave Davina this spell and a lapis lazuli ring at the Feast of the Blessings for Josh.
Moonlight Ring Spell: A spell, originally used by the witch Esther a thousand years ago for her werewolf lover. In modern New Orleans, the witch Genevieve adapted this spell using three spells from Esther's Grimoire to allow the werewolves in possession of these rings to not change during the full moon, as well as access the height of their metaphysical abilities. The spell must be cast when the full moon is at it's apex, and upon black kyanite stones.
Davina was able to detect when witches use ancestral magic in the French Quarter, likely due to her possessing the full power of the Harvest before it was finally completed.
It's unknown if practitioners of ancestral magic are generally equally powerful to witches who practice other forms of magic, but many ancestral witches have proven to be notably more powerful than witches who practice other forms of magic.
As evidenced by the fates of both Sophie and Genevieve, practitioners of ancestral magic are completely subjected to the rule and wrath of their ancestors, despite the great power to which they have access. Disobedience, betrayal, or failure to comply with the ancestors' orders usually results in the witch being injured or sentenced to death.
Sophie was killed as the result of a decree from the ancestors, due to her lack of faith in the Harvest ritual and ancestral magic in general, as well as her willingness to reject her witch heritage. The ancestors condemned Sophie to death using her brainwashed niece, Monique, who cast a spell on her that caused her to bleed out on the street.
Though her death was supposed to bring back the fourth sacrificed Harvest girl, Genevieve was told by the ancestors that she could continue to live, so long as she completed the task of sacrificing Klaus and Hayley's daughter to fuel the power of the coven. Although she was visibly disturbed by her task and clearly did not want to kill an innocent child, the ancestors threatened her by violently throwing her around in the cemetery until she relented. When she failed to complete the sacrifice of the baby, she was captured by Hayley and Elijah. The Ancestors began claim her life in a similar to the way they killed Sophie (bleeding out from the eyes, nose, and mouth) but before she could die at their hand, she was stabbed to death by Hayley.
It has been suggested by Sophie Deveraux that ancestral witches can only practice magic within the boundaries of the city that their ancestors are buried, but it has never been demonstrated in practice.
It can be assumed from Genevieve's comments before her death that Esther is now leading the French Quarter's witch ancestors.
Since Esther's resurrection and subsequent transformation into a vampire, it is unknown who has taken her place as leader of the ancestors, if anyone.
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