Vodun is sometimes called Voodoo, Vodoun, Vodou. Religions
related to
Vodun are: Candomble, Lucumi, Macumba, and Yoruba)
General background:
Vodun (a.k.a. Vodoun, Voudou, Voodoo, Sevi Lwa) is commonly
called
Voodoo by the public. The name is traceable to an African word for
"spirit". Vodun's can be directly traced to the West African Yoruba
people who lived in 18th and 19th century Dahomey. Its roots may go
back 6,000 years in Africa. That country occupied parts of today's
Togo, Benin and Nigeria. Slaves brought their religion with them
when they were forcibly shipped to Haiti and other islands in the
West Indies.
Vodun was actively suppressed during colonial times. "Many Priests
were
either killed or imprisoned, and their shrines destroyed, because
of
the threat they posed to Euro-Christian/Muslim dominion. This
forced some
of the Dahomeans to form Vodou Orders and to create underground
societies, in order to continue the veneration of their ancestors,
and the
worship of their powerful gods." 1 Vodun was again suppressed
during the
Marxist regime. However, it has been freely practiced in Benin
since a
democratic government was installed there in 1989. Vodun was
formally recognized as Benin's official religion in 1996-FEB. It is
also followed by most of the adults in Haiti. It can be found in
many of the large cities in North America, particularly in the
American South.
Today over 60 million people practice Vodun worldwide. Religions
similar to Vodun can be found in South America where they are
called Umbanda, Quimbanda or Candomble.
Today, there are two virtually unrelated forms of the
religion:
the actual religion, Vodun practiced in Benin, Dominican
Republic,
Ghana, Haiti, Togo and various centers in the US - largely where
Haitian
refuges have settled.an evil, imaginary religion, which we will
call
Voodoo. It has been created for Hollywood movies, complete with
"voodoo
dolls", violence, bizarre rituals, etc. It does not exist in
reality,
except in the minds of most non-Voduns.
History of Vodun in the west:
Slaves were baptized into the Roman Catholic Church upon their
arrival
in Haiti and other West Indian islands. However, there was little
Christian infrastructure present during the early 19th century to
maintain the faith. The result was that the slaves largely followed
their original native faith. This they practiced in secret, even
while attending Mass regularly.
An inaccurate and sensational book (S. St. John, "Haiti or the
Black
Republic") was written in 1884. It described Vodun as a profoundly
evil
religion, and included lurid descriptions of human sacrifice,
cannibalism, etc., some of which had been extracted from Vodun
priests by torture. This book caught the imagination of people
outside the West Indies, and was responsible for much of the
misunderstanding and fear that is present today. Hollywood found
this a rich source for Voodoo screen plays. Horror movies began in
the 1930's and continue today to misrepresent Vodun. It is only
since the late 1950's that accurate studies by anthropologists have
been published.
Other religions (Macumba, Candomble, Umbanda and Santeria) bear
many
similarities to Vodun.
Vodun beliefs:
Vodun, like Christianity, is a religion of many traditions. Each
group
follows a different spiritual path and worships a slightly
different pantheon of spirits, called Loa. The word means "mystery"
in the Yoruba language.
Yoruba traditional belief included a chief God Olorun, who is
remote and unknowable. He authorized a lesser God Obatala to create
the earth and all life forms. A battle between the two Gods led to
Obatala's temporary banishment.
There are hundreds of minor spirits. Those which originated from
Dahomey are called Rada; those who were added later are often
deceased leaders in the new world and are called Petro. Some of
these are:
Agwe: spirit of the sea
Aida Wedo: rainbow spirit
Ayza: protector
Baka: an evil spirit who takes the form of an
animal
Baron Samedi: guardian of the grave
Dambala (or Damballah-wedo): serpent spirit
Erinle: spirit of the forests
Ezili (or Erzulie): female spirit of love
Mawu Lisa: spirit of creation
Ogou Balanjo: spirit of healing
Ogun (or Ogu Bodagris): spirit of war
Osun: spirit of healing streams
Sango (or Shango): spirit of storms
Yemanja: female spirit of waters
Zaka (or Oko): spirit of agriculture
