The Double Soul Doctrine Class

In Black Southern folk spirituality, a person is never just one soul housed in flesh. Tradition teaches the Doctrine of the Double Soul: that each human being carries both a breath-soul and a shadow-soul. One is the divine spark that returns to God at death, the other is the lingering essence that walks among kin, dreams, and the land. This dual understanding of spirit and body shapes how conjure doctors, rootworkers, and elders explain visions, dreams, hauntings, and ancestral presence.
This class explores the theology, history, and lived practice of the double soul. We will trace its roots in African cosmologies, its transformation through the crucible of enslavement, and its survival in Southern Hoodoo practice. We will examine how the breath-soul is tied to prayer, speech, and divine inspiration, while the shadow-soul is tied to dreams, spirit visitations, and haunting memory.