Question on Vudou?

Question

I'm researching for a book and one of the characters practices Vudou (I think that's the right spelling, not the Americanized 'voodoo'). However, I don't know much about it. I want real information, not that garbage from Hollywood (ie, evil sorcorers and zombies).

Can you help out? I've checked Wikipedia already.

Answer 1

The Wikipedia entry on Vodou is a pretty good stepping stone. Vodou is a West African belief system that has gone through a significant resurgence both in West Africa and among communities in the diaspora. One particularly important example is Haitian Vodou which shows both a creolization and an evolution of the religion and the ART form. I recommend a book (source 1) by a current professor of mine, that gives the practice a non-patronizing scholastic going over. For a more personalized look at the practice of Vodou, particularly in our globalized world, I've heard incredible things about source 2.

Because it's such a complicated system that can be difficult to study anthropologically (it's difficult to observe the inner circles of traditions), Vodou can be a lifelong scholarship if you were to chose it. Definitely check out those two books for a good understanding.

Answer 2

Yes VooDoo is very real. It is practised through the caribean, Panama, and other places including the U.S, Brazil, etc.

There is a rather insavory branch of voodoo practised in Panama called Candomble that is a lot nastier than anything done in New Orleans, Haiti, or even the movies.

Making those sorcerers angry at you is not a good career move.

I have been doing real magick all of my life, and practise kahunaism from old Hawai'i.

Answer 3

Archiving and distribution, by request, from the Pagan Files List is consented to by
Mambo Racine Sans Bout Sa Te La Daginen so that seekers of a Path
may learn more of Vodou.
Vodou Lesson 1
COPYRIGHT 1996 - Mambo Racine Sans Bout
No reproduction without consent of author
Excerpted for educational purposes
VODOU AND VODOUISANTS
Part 1. What is Vodou?
Vodou is a spiritual tradition which originated in Haiti during the period of
French colonial slavery. Africans of many ethnic lineages were transported
by force to Haiti, primarily to serve as agricultural slaves. The original
Taino and Carib peoples of Haiti were exterminated in the invasion by the
Spanish. During this historical period, Europeans from France and other
countries, including pro-Stuart deportees from Scotland, settled in Haiti.

Because so many lineages were represented, no one particular African
service could satisfy all participants, especially since reverence for
ancestral lines was so important. Therefore, each "nation" would take it's
turn at a gathering. This "take turns" approach eventually evolved into the
ceremonial order of the Vodou liturgy. During this formative period,
European pre-Christian entities such as Brigid, or Maman Brigitte in the
Vodou tradition; and influences from the native Taino and Carib populations
were also absorbed.

There are denominations in Vodou, just as in many other religions.
The first, and most widely known, is the orthodox Vodou. In this
denomination, the Dahomean rite is given a position of primacy, and
initiations are conducted based mainly on the Dahomean model. A priest or
priestess recieves the asson, a ceremonial rattle, as an emblem of
priesthood. In this rite, a priest is known as a Houngan or sometimes
Gangan, a priestess is known as a Mambo.

In the orthodox Vodou, Yoruban lines are also given prominence. Other
"nations" or lines than the Dahomean are represented as sub-headings in the
ceremonial order. This rite is widely represented in Haiti, and
concentrated in Port-au-Prince and in the south of Haiti.

The second denomination is called Makaya. In this rite,
initiations are less elaborate, and the priest or
priestess does not recieve the asson. A Makaya priest is called a Bokor,
and a priestess is sometimes referred to as Mambo, sometimes as a sorciere,
sorceress. (The terms bokor and sorciere are considered pejorative in the
orthodox Vodou, and bokor can also refer to an uninitiated specialist in
malevolent magic, also called malfacteur. Such individuals are not clergy
in any denomination.) The Makaya liturgy is less uniform from peristyle to
peristyle than the orthodox Vodou, and there is a stronger emphasis on
magic as opposed to religion. This rite is present in Port-au-Prince, and
strongly represented in the Artibonite Valley in central Haiti.

A third denomination is the Kongo rite. As the name implies,
it is almost exclusively representative of the Kongo
tradition. The initiation follows the Kongo model. A priest or priestess of
this line is called a Serviteur. (In orthodox Vodou, a serviteur is merely
one who serves the lwa, the dieties of Vodou.) This rite is concentrated
near Gonaives in central Haiti, and a major annual Kongo festival is held
every year in Sucrie near Gonaives.

All of these traditions have several points in common: There is only
one God, called Gran Met, or Great Master; and also Bondye, from the
French Bon Dieu, Good God. There are lesser entities are called lwa, and
though they vary from rite to rite, they are all considered immediately
accessible through the mechanism of spirit possession. Possession in the
context of a ceremony is considered normal, natural, and highly desirable,
however there is a certain "etiquette" to possession which will be
discussed later. All rites employ prayer, song, drumming, costume, and
dancing during ceremonies.

By permission.

Answer 4

Try Karen McCarthy Brown's award-winng book, Mama Lola. It's an ethnographical account that reads like a novel, but seriously attempts to write an empathic, though methodically rigourous account of Vodou.

Answer 5

It is widely practiced in Haiti, read up on Haiti and you will find much information on Voodoo. There is also a combination of voodoo and Catholicism called "Santeria" which is widely practiced in Cuba. In short, read about ancient religions in Caribbean islands and you'll get much info on voodoo and its origins.

Answer 6

Voodoo originized from africa. It is practiced alot by people in New Orleans. It mostly has to do with spirits.