There’s No Shame in Being Mortal”: The Secrets of Santa Muerte (2024)

MIAMI – Dr. Cressida Stone took some time to talk with The Wild Hunt about her recent book, The Secrets of Santa Muerte: A Guide to the Prayers, Spells, Rituals, and Hexes. Released in August 2022, the book has garnered extraordinary reviews.

The book has been described as immediately engrossing and immediately comprehensive. Spoiler alert: this will be another one. I was impressed. The book is extraordinarily solid, unquestionably standing out as the most all-inclusive text available in English on this subject. It covers not only the history of Santa Muerte and how she revealed herself but also offers practicable advice on how to build a relationship with her. Stone covers everything from color systems to offerings, but more importantly, she offers solid and clear guidance on how to strengthen your intuition when working with Santa Muerte.

Stone’s experience with Santa Muerte and her profound devotion is immediately obvious. She combines her personal experiences with respectful and culturally sensitive research on Santa Muerte, involving witches, curanderos, shamans, and other healers. She delves into fine details with great clarity, leaving nothing hidden—from the paths of the Saint to iconography to creating an altar. Her words transmit a sense of illumination, healing, empowerment, happiness, and, perhaps most importantly, humility and gratitude for Santa Muerte’s guidance in revealing the text of the book.

For those unfamiliar with her, Santa Muerte is often referred to as the “Mexican folk saint of death.” She is a sacred figure originally venerated in Mexico, whose worship has spread to other parts of Latin America, the United States, and Canada. Santa Muerte is not recognized by the Catholic Church nor canonized through those channels. Rather, Santa Muerte manifested directly to those honoring her, emerging from grassroots devotion and personal manifestation rather than an organized patriarchy endorsing her.

Stone experienced that manifestation personally and intimately, despite being, as she describes herself, an unlikely votary based on her cultural background: “obviously being a white person of non-Mexican origin. I’m very aware of that position that I have the privilege of being able to write this book.” In our conversation, it is clear that Santa Muerte makes those choices. Stone had a serious accident in Mexico, where Santa Muerte intervened. It was not her time. As followers of Santa Muerte note, we all end with her. Santa Muerte decides the moment. It was not Stone’s time. But it was a moment of revelation, sparking a journey of discovery attested to by other leaders of the Santa Muerte community like Arely Vazquez, Soraya Arredondo Hernandez, and Yuri Mendez, These leaders attested to Stone’s experience.

Academics have praised the book as well. Dr. Eliseo Torres, a retired academic vice president, professor, and currently adjunct faculty at the University of New Mexico, is an expert on Curanderismo and Mexican folk knowledge praised Stone’s work as did Dr. R. Andrew Chestnut, Professor and Bishop Walter Sullivan Chair of Catholic Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University.

The book covers magical elements such as spells thoroughly. But in our conversation, Stone notes, “I would say absolutely, for me, it’s about devotional practice first… Sex, love, money, business, that’s never really been my primary impetus. I’ve been more interested in exploring the spiritual aspects.” The magical elements are not lost in the book, but Stone’s emphasis on spiritual awakening comes through clearly.

Santa Muerte works to improve you and who you are, Stone explains. The novenas, the prayers, and the magic align for your clarity, “if it’s beneficial for you and she wants to help you and your bond is good, then those things will come to pass.” But Stone cautions that Santa Muerte sees all, including your self-destructive nature. She warns you about who you are and reminds you that some prayers cannot be answered for your own benefit. That’s a “moment for self-reflection,” Cressida explains.

One common fear in working with Santa Muerte, and one criticism often leveled against devotees from outsiders, is what many perceive as a fixation on death. Stone agrees regarding the bias but adds, “In a sense, we’re all here because of the deaths of others.” She continues, “We each have parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, great-great-grandparents, and more ancestors before them, and then all the non-human lives that have allowed our life to be here.”

That recognition that all expires is a source of strength. It is a fundamental reality that doesn’t require belief, and that is why Santa Muerte is so captivating and powerful. “Everything will expire and crumble away to ashes. Everything ultimately returns to death, so she is queen. She is sovereign of all life, of everything on the planet,” Stone said. “She owns everyone at the end.”

Stone warns that approaching Santa Muerte is a spiritual commitment. She cautions against trying to create a transactional relationship: “She already owns everything, right? So even if you’re offering her gifts on your altar, which is obviously nice, she will pluck what she wants.” Approaching such power requires immense respect because we cannot entice her to act when she has everything. “You need to treat her like royalty,” and realize in approaching her that “there’s no shame in being mortal.” The material object is irrelevant; “the most important thing is prayer and devotion.”

But again, Santa Muerte is not a dark power. She is simply a vast power.

Stone shares that working with Santa Muerte leads to empowerment, and for marginalized communities, that is a principal gift the saint bestows on her followers. “If you are a sex worker, a criminal, an outcast, it doesn’t matter. She welcomes the oppressed, the indigenous, LGBTQ+, those society judges, those feeling inadequate; it doesn’t matter who you are, you are welcome. She accepts you, “ Stone said “No matter who you are, she will listen. Death accepts everyone.”

Secrets of Santa Muerte: A Guide to the Prayers, Spells, Rituals, and Hexes by Cressida Stone was published by Weiser and released on August 1, 2022. It is widely available in multiple formats.

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