An Interview with Sorcerer Papa Hood, Guiding People Into a New Age
Jerrod Reader aka Papa Hood is a self-described sorcerer. I met Jerrod in the now-defunct Facebook Group Modern Mystics. Every week, we had a featured mystic and one week Jerrod was featured. He practices a lot of magic that I hadn’t even heard of before. Even now, talking with him I don’t ask him a lot of questions about the different orders because there seems to be a lot.
Although I am a Medium/Healer and Jerrod is a Sorcerer, a lot of the work we do overlaps. In the end, we are just practicing Mystics here to welcome the dawn of a New Age on Earth.
SG: How did you come up with your business name?
Every picture I posted on social media had me with my hood up, as a result, my friend called me Mr. Hood. Papa is a title I earned, so I called my business Papa Hood.
SG: Describe your business. How did you get started?
After watching the movie Dungeons and Dragons at age 11, I said to myself, ”I wish I knew how to do magic.” My mom bought me two magic books. I did more research and read many books. I couldn’t discuss my interest in magic with anyone because I lived in a conservative area. Essentially I practice Wicca without the religion and focus on ceremony and ritual. At 15 I got a computer and started networking with others online.
A sorcerer is not a priest nor am I religious. I make my own symbols and use them.
My current business is actually my third. I have a reputation as the guy who will help people, mainly through spells and rituals.
SG: Who inspires you?
Two of my mentors, Jason Miller, who runs a sorcery business and wrote a book that was a foundation for me. He does sorcery full time and I am inspired by him. The other mentor is Clifford Alford who is a Tibetan Shaman and Sorcerer.
What’s the most important thing a teacher or mentor taught you and why?
There is no cookie-cutter service. Everything, including the spells that I do, has to be tailored to that person.
SG: When was the first time you realized you were different, especially spiritually?
I started at the age of 12, but I didn’t get a real feel for it till the following year. I read the book Cults of the World and that opened my eyes to the sorcery world. My mother was open to it but she was religiously conservative.
SG: When was the first time you decided to find out what your gifts were and how to use them?
I did spells for myself for a long time. In my late teens, I started working with a group that now no longer exists. Using their techniques, I started to affect others by helping and healing people. I can practice divination on past, present, and future and create bindings/curses. As for the latter, I try to discourage clients from cursing anyone because this creates a karmic debt upon them, not on me.
SG: If you could give advice to your younger self about your gifts, what would you say?
I would follow certain paths sooner, like the Aghori path. I would avoid certain people and orders. I would stick with it and keep practicing. It’s become such a central part of my life…I am always doing reading, writing, or talking about sorcery.
SG: What advice would you give to someone who just discovered their spiritual gifts?
Don’t lock yourself into a single system yet, there’s hundreds maybe thousands of magic systems. Learn the techniques and do your research. Experiment and find what works best for you. Follow your intuition and heart and make it personal to you.
SG: What part of your gift is your favorite and why? What is your least favorite and why?
My personal favorite is being able to grasp and understand complex subjects from books and put them into words that others can understand. I am good at teaching magic. Also I love doing divination because it helps others. I focus on the present over the past. The tools I use are Tibetan dice, the Tarot, and wands.
I’d say my least favorite part is being able to know what will happen to others if they take certain paths and not being able to stop it if they aren’t willing to listen.
SG: What is the funniest thing that happened to you regarding your gifts?
Three and half years ago I was alone, living like a hermit. I had been working with the goddess Aphrodite and I asked her to bring someone into my life in the next three days or I will just live alone. I actually met the mother of my son within three days. I am certainly not alone anymore.
SG: Why do you think the Creator gave us these gifts? And what are we supposed to use them for?
Everyone has hidden psychic potential. We were placed here to be the torch bearers and guide people into an open age. People are more accepting and open, people are marching!
SG: Why are we here?
To worship the creator and follow his path and bring glory to him. We are also here to get in touch with our own divinity and become our own gods. We are equal to God.
SG: What do you wish that people knew or understood the most about you?
I am not doing this work for the money, but to offer my talent to the world. I put a price tag on it to reach more people, it’s about helping others.
SG: What do you wish the world would know or understand?
Darkness doesn’t suppress darkness and hate doesn’t suppress hate. We need to accept others for their beliefs and practice the core belief of loving your neighbor and God.
SG: What do you envision the world will be like in the future?
If we continue with the bloodshed, I envision a world devolving back to where religious leaders are in charge.
There will be some rough patches. People may not like it, but the only way we can get along is through freedom of religion, lack of judgment and acceptance of each other.
You can contact Jerrod by visiting his webpage www.papahoodsorcery.com or joining his Facebook group the Order of the Thorn.