WHY I DON’T TEACH CERTAIN SUBJECTS
Every now and then I get asked to teach things I do not have courses for. Because I talk about the relationship between Solomonic Magic and Hoodoo, people approach me and ask me to start teaching classes on Solomonic Magic. I do have some classes that touch upon that form of magic. But they are not the kind of courses that transmit the traditional method of Solomonic magic. That’s not historically how Solomonic magic intersected with Hoodoo. Their connection was more informal and organic. My own focus is on a different place.
My first reason I don’t teach everything is because it doesn’t make sense to teach a subject when I know from my own first-hand experience of another teacher that they are already teaching something well. People ask me to teach Espiritismo all the time. But I have taken Yamil Henriquez’s classes on espiritismo, and his approach is clear, simple, and effective. I learned several things about my own tradition that I did not know before taking his class. There is no need to build on something that already feels perfect enough in my book.
This brings me to my next point. I am a community-oriented person. Part of being in community for me is affirming that there is room for everyone. If people want to teach, then take the proper steps and do it! I have noticed over the years of teaching that people who have the most negative things to say tend to be the same ones who will never gird their loins and put themselves out there and teach. It’s easier to be critical of someone else’s work than to do the harder work of making your own thing.
Because I value community, I do not see myself in competition with my close occult colleagues. There’s no need for all of that. This is why you see me highlight my colleagues, their classes, businesses, and products. I am not out here trying to make as much money as possible at the expense of community or relationships or my own integrity. There is in our time a rabid venture capitalist mindset that leads to nowhere good. As a Black businessperson, I also stand on the shoulders of ancestral and community-ancestral entrepreneurs. It is in my literal blood to have my own business! Back in the day these ancestors always focused on bringing the community with them as they advanced. Maintaining a focus on this means we don’t have to step on anyone else to accomplish our dreams and goals.
The last reason I will cite is I also don’t need to teach everything because I also believe in giving other people opportunities to step into their calling. Some wise mentors in my past said that if you are an elder and do not have someone younger/less seasoned than you at your side learning from you, your legacy will die. I have seen this happen over and again when elders do not know when or how to let go of the reins. Their knowledge indeed dies with them. Encouraging others around us to step into their calling to teach ensures these traditions stay alive, relevant, and adapt for the emergent needs of our time.
There are more reasons than this, but there IS enough for everyone. A fallacy of our time is the lie that everything is limited, which leads to unrestrained greed and hoarding. Don’t believe the hype.
