Rue, guinea hen weed and snake plant: the three protection plants of Brazil
Chaos Society
Acervo de estudo · magia, ocultismo e esoterismo
The trio by the front door
In many Brazilian homes there is a pot by the door holding three plants: rue, guinea hen weed and the snake plant, which Brazilians call espada de São Jorge, the sword of Saint George. The combination brings together three different traditions, one European, one Afro-Brazilian and one from popular Catholicism, and shows how spiritual protection in the Americas is built from blending. Knowing each plant helps you use them with meaning, and safely.
Rue: against the evil eye
Rue (Ruta graveolens) came from the Mediterranean with the colonisers. In Europe it had been a protective plant since antiquity: it appeared in amulets against the evil eye, and the Italian cimaruta, a charm shaped like a sprig of rue, is a famous example. In Brazil people wear a sprig behind the ear or in a pocket, or keep a pot at the entrance against envy. Folk belief says rue withers when it absorbs a strong charge.
Caution: the sap contains furanocoumarins, which burn skin exposed to the sun. Strong infusions are toxic and have a history of dangerous use as an abortifacient. Wear gloves when handling it and do not ingest it.
Guinea hen weed: the herb that cuts
Guinea hen weed (Petiveria alliacea), called guiné in Brazil and also known as anamu or garlic weed for its strong smell, is native to the Americas and widely used in Afro-diasporic religions. In Umbanda, Candomblé and Santería it appears in cleansing baths, ritual cleanings and smoke cleansing as a "hot" herb that cuts heavy energies. Pierre Verger documented the use of plants like this in the Yoruba tradition, and the authors of Ewé Òrìsà record guiné among the herbs of Ogun and Oxóssi in several houses, with variations.
Caution: guinea hen weed is toxic if swallowed and should not be drunk as a tea. Strong guiné baths are traditionally poured from the neck down and not repeated daily. The exact rules depend on each house.
Snake plant: Ogun's guardian
The snake plant, also called mother-in-law's tongue or sansevieria (now classified as Dracaena trifasciata), is African. Its sword-shaped leaves linked it to Ogun, the orisha of iron and war, and to Saint George, the warrior saint with whom Ogun is syncretised in much of Brazil. The variety with yellow edges is often associated with Iansã, as the sword of Saint Barbara.
Planted at the entrance, it acts as a sentry. In some terreiros, cut leaves are used in cleansing rituals, passed over the body.
About the air: a 1989 NASA study listed it among plants that removed pollutants in sealed chambers. In 2019, Cummings and Waring showed that in a real home you would need hundreds of plants per square metre to match an open window. Caution: the leaves contain saponins, which are toxic to dogs and cats.
How to use the trio
- Protection pot: all three together near the entrance. When one withers for no obvious reason, the tradition says to replace it and do a cleansing.
- Cleansing bath: rue and guinea hen weed, from the neck down, followed by a bath of sweet herbs to rebalance.
- Smoke cleansing: dried guiné and rue on charcoal, opening the windows at the end. See the guide to cleansing rituals.
Going further
See the guides to spiritual protection, protection amulets and magical herbs.
Sources and further reading
- Luís da Câmara Cascudo, Dicionário do Folclore Brasileiro (1954)
- Pierre Fatumbi Verger, Ewé: o uso das plantas na sociedade iorubá (1995)
- José Flávio Pessoa de Barros and Eduardo Napoleão, Ewé Òrìsà (1999)
- Toxicology literature on Ruta graveolens, Petiveria alliacea and Dracaena trifasciata
- B. C. Wolverton et al., Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Abatement (NASA, 1989)
- B. E. Cummings and M. S. Waring, J. Exposure Sci. Environ. Epidemiol. (2019)
Reviewed by the Chaos Society editorial team in November 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between rue, guinea hen weed and snake plant for protection?
In folk tradition, rue wards off the evil eye and envy, guinea hen weed cuts heavy energies and curses, and the snake plant, linked to Ogun, guards the house like a sentry at the door. Together they make up one of the most common protection pots in Brazil.
Is rue toxic?
Yes. The sap can burn skin that is then exposed to sunlight, and strong infusions are dangerous, especially in pregnancy. Wear gloves when pruning it and do not ingest it without guidance.
Does the snake plant purify the air?
A 1989 NASA study tested the plant in sealed chambers, but later research showed that in an ordinary home the effect is negligible compared with ventilation. In the tradition, its power is symbolic.
