Are niggers greenpilled? Is their magic powerful? Does it work?
lotta niggers where i used to live in africa were very greenpilled, I had some crazy experiences with their traditional/shamanic religion. Though most of the population would claim to be christian a lot of them are still going to their pagan ceremonies and shit.
>>7802They do seem to have some supernatural powers, although the majority do not.
I don't think that the negroid race is inherently inferior so much as that they are too "diverse"; there are thousands of tribes in Africa that just do not get along at all. It is like the Balkan wars times a thousand.
Another fact is that the negroid race is the most genetically diverse branch of humanity; this isn't known to others very much because we just see their dark skin and think that they are just one people.
>>7815Yeah though when you see people from west africa and east africa you can tell they're very different races. For example the kenyan people, especially the masai mara(though the corrupted other people of kenya are as well as well) are very tall and noble, while in west africa most people are much shorter.
Black people, I'd say, are about as smart as euro people but get much worse education on average, and the african american culture doesnt help with their education. And since africa as a country is very blighted especially right now, since they're in chaos because of the arbitrary borders between countries which have no heed for cultural and tribal borders. There are multiple ancient civilizations in africa that got quite far, such as the Zimbabwe, Egypt(one could argue egyppt is more middle eastern), and the peoples of Ghana who amassed legendary amounts of gold. I think in a few years more black nationalism will arise, especially in the area near Lake Victoria, and in the Zimbabwe, and Africa will become much more united, and powerful. It's really a coin toss on whether the more united africa will keep with its more powerful indigenous pagan religions, or convert to a religion such as islam or christianity to keep their people controllable.
>>7805>Then I transformed into a black goat and ran to my backyard. I was eating grass when all these police showed up asking dumb shit like "why is this goat wearing clothes?" They did not know it was me and it was the funniest thing. I woke up laughing.It is a Gede kind of humor that only a child of Gede would understand. 3 police dead, Gede let me know. >>7815I already know that though. I keep telling people all the time – negroids are the most genotypically diverse race and caucasoids the most phenotypically diverse race (this is true).
>>7816>Black people, I'd say, are about as smart as euro people but get much worse education on average, and the african american culture doesnt help with their education.Bullshit. Don't spew this crap here and think you won't get contradicted. They aren't as intelligent as whites and "education" is fucking worthless, all the really intelligent whites that have transformed society have done so IN SPITE of the education systems meant for the masses, they learn everything on their own.
>Egypt(one could argue egyppt is more middle eastern),Egypt is NOT a nigger nation. Egypt literally was ruled by blonde haired Nordic phenotypes and the average Egyptian is Caucasoid.
I want more stories of voodoo!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3xpt7cQmcQThis is some cool shit here. I started watching and a lot of awesome stuff is happening in the vid so I'm still watching 15 minutes later. The christfaggotry is annoying but this guy is using some kind of voodoo to battle with the priest.
>>9498About 18 minutes in there's some neat stuff the spirit talking through him says.
>>9498I get the feeling watching this that the christians are the evil ones. That spirit just wants to protect the man and they're trying to banish him.
>>9498>39:55>double-mindedness killsFuck that. I want to split my mind.
OGUN - GOD OF IRON - BLOODY AND FEARSOME
Ogun, or Ogun Onire, is the god of war and iron of the Yoruba people of West Africa. In Yoruba lore, Ogun and the other gods climbed down to earth on a spiderweb. When creation was completed, the gods realized that people needed to clear more land in the forest where they lived. Unfortunately, the only tools available were made of soft metal, a material not suitable for cutting down trees. However, Ogun had been given the secret of iron by Orunmila, son of the supreme god Olorun, and he used an iron ax to clear the forest. Ogun later shared the secret of iron with the other gods and with humans. He also showed them how to shape the iron into weapons.
Though a fierce god, Ogun is not evil and will help those who pray to him. Yoruba blacksmiths have traditionally sacrificed dogs to Ogun, and each year they hold a three-day festival in his honor.
>>9500Seems to have 3 spirits in him, Idigun, the Queen, and a Python. The most interesting things he says are 'the queen can't talk', and at 18 minutes, he says "I am an oracle of Idigun. I am Idigun. I am Idigun. [Writhing on the floor] [HEY! Your back on the floor, in Jesus' Name!] I will talk. I will talk. [Who are you?] I am Idigun. I'm Idigun. [What have you done to him?] The senior brother to the father, when the mother was pregnant, they came to me. The woman could not deliver. She was at the dying spot. Martin Eboka begged me and pleaded me and I agreed with his plea. I gave him my water, and immediately, after he gave it to the mother of this boy, she gave birth to this boy, and gave him into my hand." More comes but this was the best part.
It seems that the possession is a result of Mr. Enny's uncle's pleading to Idigun, and Idigun gave him something(water may be a metaphor) and when he gave it to Mr. Enny's mother she gave birth to him, and Idigun received the body.
>>9502Don't tell me you're a JoSer.
>>9508interesting. I wonder if that crouching with hands clasped thing is a symbol of Ogun/Idigun as well.
ACTING ON THE WORDThe first Sunday Service was started with the Prayer Line during which the Wise Men attended to many people who came with diverse ailments.
In his sermon, Prophet T.B. Joshua spoke on the message titled, 'Acting On God's Word', which was a follow-up of last week's message on the potentialities and essence of the Word. "Believing demands action, creates action. It requires performance," he began his message as the congregation and viewers worldwide on Emmanuel TV listened with rapt attention. He further explained, "Acting on the Word is letting Christ act through you because Christ and the Word are one. Acting on the Word then gives God an opportunity to heal you, bless you, to save you, to deliver you."
Talking about the problem people have when it comes to believing, he said, "The problem of believing is made simple when we know that it is acting on what God has spoken. You cannot be greater than your processing."
He went on to say, "The wise man is the doer of the Word. The other hears but does not act upon it. He is a sense-knowledge hearer. He is a mental assenter because He responds to reason instead of the Word of God."
He explained that mere knowledge of the Word without corresponding action is wasted. "We may be familiar with the original Greek or Hebrew, we may know the history of Word, but that is all wasted energy, baseless if you do not act on the Word, if you do not live in the Word and practice it. If we do not live the Word and practice it, we cannot bring Jesus on the scene." Commenting on the dangers involved in mere lip service when it comes to Christianity, he said, "What a grave danger of deluding ourselves, deceiving ourselves. What a danger if there is no corresponding action. Idle words may entertain men, they do not reach God."
A MIGHTY DELIVERANCEShortly after his sermon, T.B. Joshua informed the church of the presence of the family members of Mr Enny Eboka, whose dramatic deliverance had taken place last week. The video was played for the people to know exactly what had happened. Mr Enny, who was possessed by the demons of 'Idigwu' and 'Queen of all queens' had confronted Wise Man Daniel but the evil spirits in him were finally subdued by the power of God during last week's Monday Service. After his deliverance, the clips showed how he was later taken to burn the chicken he had used for a live sacrifice during his encounter with Wise Man Daniel. In the process, he fell suddenly to the floor, only for the evangelists to discover that he was deaf and dumb. It was only after the prayer of Wise Man Daniel that he was once again restored to normalcy. Clearly, the principalities and powers in the demonic kingdom did not want him to expose them.
During the service, Mr Enny was given time to narrate the story of his life and his shocking sojourn in the kingdom of darkness. He explained that he was born under mysterious circumstances, being in his mother's womb for 11 months. However, his uncle made a sacrifice involving water to Idigwu, the god of iron he worshipped, proceeding to give the water to his mother who then delivered him safely. Thus, right from birth, he had been dedicated to this demon. At the tender age of six, Enny was fully initiated into the world of darkness after being given food to eat at a festival.
That night, he found himself in a strange adverse world where stealing, killing and destruction were the order of the day. He was sent out on various missions to initiate people, especially to churches. Enny explained that he would be equipped spiritually in his kingdom before coming physically to earth for the devilish assignments. When coming to church, he would be given clothing with a very strong perfume. Any church he enters where the people there are not spiritually strong would perceive the aroma of his perfume, have some form of contact or conversation with him and, by doing so, be initiated. He further explained that he would give huge amounts in tithes and offerings to such churches, with any person who touches such tainted money equally being initiated. The churches he chose to operate in where the well-known and well-populated ones.
In the midst of this, Enny explained that this spirit would push him to steal or buy birds such as fowls and pigeons to perform a strange ritual near a river involving him strangling the bird and pouring the blood over his head. Whilst doing this one day, he proceeded to bathe in a river only to see a strange woman on top of the river beckoning on him. He experienced the sensation of a woman sleeping with him while in the water before fainting and only regaining consciousness some minutes later. From that moment on, a strange woman would appear to him in the dreams, as he had been possessed by 'the queen of the coast' or 'the queen of all queens.'
Mr Enny said he had never worked in his life yet he was living flamboyantly and swimming in money. How? If he saw anyone that was not a genuine Christian – whom he could identify by the flames of fire surrounding them – he had the power to walk up to them and demand for money, of which they must obey. With the millions he gathered, Enny would freely give to people around him, anyone unfortunate to collect such being unwittingly initiated into the world of darkness and chained.
He said that after trooping around all the churches in Nigeria, he came to The SCOAN to assess the spiritual level of T.B. Joshua in order to subdue him. However, by merely holding the Anointing Water, he became extremely uncomfortable before entering the church and encountering Wise Man Daniel. After his final deliverance on Monday, Enny testified that his life had been completely transformed. "As I have initiated millions of souls for the devil, I now want to win billions of souls for Christ," the young man told the congregation, who listened to his confession with undivided attention.
Mr Enny's father, Anthony Eboka, came out to share his own experiences, saying that his son behaved like 'a lion' in the house and had the power to even disarm police if anyone came to attack him. He thanked God for the mighty deliverance and counselled parents to be watchful of their children. "I noticed that the human race is in trouble if my son could be possessed like this," he said, explaining that he was a disciplined father but soon realised that the situation of his son was spiritual.
Mr Enny's uncle, Martin Eboka, who had served the idol Idigwu, came out to corroborate Enny's story behind his birth. He explained that his forefathers had served the god and he began serving it as he heard it would bring him protection. When his brother's wife experienced challenges in child-birth, a native doctor told him to take water from the idol to give her, which he did. Thus, Enny came into the world possessed by the spirit of Idigwu. Mr Martin explained that although he phsycially had thrown away the idol and stopped worshiping it, his life had become a shambles. He ended up a drunkard and his entire family was characterised by a cycle of disappointment and failure.
The entire congregation joined the Eboka's to rejoice in Enny's deliverance as they all danced to the glory of God. We thank Jesus Christ for delivering him from the terrible grip of satan!
http://reewat.blogspot.ca/2012/08/acting-on-word.html >>9509I've wanted to do shit like this myself and that's kind of why I made this thread: (
>>6629 )
I want to create a vessel for a very powerful spirit.
>>9509samefag, I'd like to say the python seems to be just a different manifestation of the Queen of the Coast
>>951647 minutes in he tells how he goes invisible and causes car accidents and sacrifices people for their blood!
I want to do this very much! I will find a way to turn invisible one day!
>I will never worship man made gods
That part is repeated multiple times at the end, lel they are lost in delusion.
>>9520why ? are you saying the voodoo pantheon was made by man?
>>9537He's saying that the judeo-christian god was made by man …
Voodoo pantheon may or may not be made by man … but when you pour enough energy into something, first it will become sentient, then powerful, then a god. Voodoo pantheon may be man made or not, but it doesn't really matter.
>>9539i thought he was implying that everything is a tulpa (thoughtform)
hey how do i pour enough energy into myself to be a god? tantra???
am i a human that needs to adopt godforms? or am i a god that has adopted a manform? -tempel ov blood book (probably a misquote )
>>9541Well if you want to do it to yourself it will take a lot of time … These gods became gods by having thousands of people giving them energy, over a lot of time, I think. You could try to get a cult to either worship you or worship some thoughtform you intend to turn into a godform
>>9537No I'm saying the Christian one is.
>>7870A. Education is important. Where would you be if you couldn't read? Where would our book references be if those who figured things out couldn't write and express themselves well? Higher education is pretty worthless, but basic education is essential.
OBEAHAFRO-CARIBBEAN SHAMANISM(Afro-Shamanistik Witchcraft)By:
Azoth KalafouObeah is one of the more unknown and obscure African traditions of Sorcery. While Santeria, Umbanda, Candomblè are getting a broader and broader reputation Obeah is still veiled in a great deal of secrecy, which is understandable when you view the complexity in this earth-religion. The word Obeah or Obi is itself a word obscured and clouded in secrecy (see). Although an Obeahman can be thought of as a Sorcerer or a cross between a voodoo witchdoctor, medicine man, root doctor, and Carlos Castaneda "Teaching of Don Juan" occult spiritualist (i.e., Don Juan Matus who learned of the black arts through a Diablero, a shaman-sorcerer with evil powers said to have the ability to shape shift), the most understandable meaning of the word Obeah can be translated as "occult power," meaning a powerful engine used to empower spells for witchcraft as well as other forms for practical magic and communication with the gods.
It is thought that the Ashanti and the Dahomeyans are the carriers of the wisdom of Obeah. That it was slaves from west and-north-Africa that brought this current of power to Jamaica and Trinidad-Tobago. The tradition of Obeah captures several lines of occult transmission. The Obeah it self is best seen as an multi-different source of extreme power. In a way, in that Obeahmen have been around and practicing their craft for centuries, and long before the term came into popular culture,
the Obeahmen are the TRUE Chaos Magicians since they can use any system they want and fuel it with the power of Obeah, without the danger of disrespect for the gods. In Trinidad you will find Obeah blended with Muslim faith with Hinduism and Christianity. Also in Sierra Leone there are certain tribes which declares themselves as Muslim but who use the Quran to perform powerful magic with the help of Angels and Djinns. Similar traditions are to be found in Trinidad-Tobago as well. In the succession I belong to Obeah is blended with Orisha worship, which is the most common manifestation of Obeah. Orisha worship in Trinidad has two main fractions "Spiritual Orisha" which are very Christian in its practical way. They also avoid blood-offerings. The other one "Baptist Orisha" is a more pure and ancient line of Orisha-transmission who accept blood-offerings and function very much like Orisha-worship you’ll meet elsewhere in the world. Still I might add that Voudon (Voodoo) is perhaps the closest "brother" to "Baptist Orisha" (for more on Orisha see The Seven African Powers).
Obeah is close to witchcraft, but it also includes many elements easily recognizable as Shamanism. This is the very core of Obeah, the shamanistic techniques that are used at initial stage of obtaining knowledge, on a more developed level the practice developes into forms of worship easily recognized within voudun. The impulse of Obeah is the witchcraft-part.
Obeah can be viewed as "a Tower of Power", an enormous vault of Intelligent-Power (similar in scope to Joriki in Japanese) that can be communicated with by the Obeah in special and secret ways. The Obeah inhabits All, that's why it is no problem to blend it with other traditions.
http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/awakening101/obeah.html 
THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS:In Obeah related to Orisha worship you can become an Obeahman or a Obi-man. This signifies that your pathway is particularly dark and evil. Usually the Obeahmen sooner or later will move to secluded places and perform dark forms of magick mainly connected to the Dead. The Orisha of the Obi-men are called Bones. Bones is the King of Death, and has many features in common with Ghuede of the voudon pantheon, and oddly enough, the Prince of Darkness, Mara in the Buddhist religion. Another deity of great importance is Oduda, which means "The Black One," a complementary mirror-figure of the male King of Death, or "Dark One". She is the principle balancing and most of all - complementing Bones. In features she is closely linked to Maman Brigitte and also resembles the Hindu-Indian Mother Kali (Kali-Ma) in her aspect as Dhumavati and Baghalamukhi combined. The spirit known in the outer world as Anima Sola is also of great importance, but my vow of silence restrains me for telling much about her in the open.
It must be understood that the path of Bones is a special path not suitable for anyone. The path has a tendency to turn the practitioner of his magic into anti-social beings who inhabits what can look like a disrespect for the life of human beings. The initiation of Bones is only given to those who truly belong in this path of empowerment. The access offered to the wisdom of existence and how to change it relies on the practitioners ability to recognize his or hers own heart of hearts in a manner that draws proper cells of attunement close to the practitioners of the Dark Luminosity of Self and the Light of Death. The path of Bones is lethal in the way that he gives his children tools and formulates of a direct and instant function that infuse the ability to severely destroy whatever comes in the Obeahmans path. I have heard stories about Obeahmen who charge people only a few pennys to kill off someone, like they really want to just kill for the sake of killing. These are rumors, maybe a few occasions has given rise to this rumor – since the danger inherent in solely working with the forces of Night and Death is evident. But the same rumors also surround Paleros, without having much substance in them – with of course, a few exceptions.
It is proper to mention vouden at this juncture since Obeah in practice is very similar to vouden. But there are some differences. For instance, Satan is personified in this tradition as all the princes of Hell are. This is due to the great influx of western theurgical teaching and the importance stressed on kabbalah and gematria. The different Grimoires are frequently used by the Obeahmen, like Grimorium Verum and Goethia as well as the VI and VII Books of Moses (it should be mentioned, traditionally it is said that Moses only wrote FIVE books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The other two books, which are claimed to be written by Moses, contain the witchcraft of Egypt from the time of Moses). Both of these books have an especially great importance since Moses is seen as the snake-charmer and among the greatest of magicians having turned a wooden staff into a snake in front of the Egyptian pharaoh. The snake or serpent in the Egyptian language was called Ob and most likely the root for the word Obeah. See The Word Obeah: What Does It Mean, How Does It Work?. Techniques of shamanistic quality are frequently used together with methods ascribing to traditional witchcraft. The way of the Obeah-man is a crooked one but a path that leads to Attainment of Self. Much of this is shrouded in secrecy and it still will be. This is only a taste for the truthful eyes of wisdom to get even wiser.
http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/awakening101/obeah.html The following account with the Obeah is from Consulting Mediums: For those of you that may be familiar with the Wanderling and his interactions with the shaman man of spells called Obeahman high in the mountains of Jamaica you may recall that when a young girl from the village was hit by a car, the parents, who could not afford a regular medical doctor, opted to have their daughter taken to the Obeah. The Wanderling and another village member carried the girl in a sling-like hammock slung between two long wooden poles up the hazardous mountain trail to the Obeahman's abode. During that several hour period, although breathing, the girl never regaind consciousness. The Wanderling was not allowed to go into the Obeah's hut because he was white, nor were any of the rituals performed observed, that is, if any at all were performed. The next morning the Wanderling ended up clear down the mountain and didn't exactly see what happened to the girl. About two weeks later she was seen to be playing with other village childern as though nothing had ever happened. No marks, scars, scraches, casts or anything else. Many months later the Wanderling contracted Dengue fever and laid in his bed sweating in pools of water, delirious with a high fever, not eating, and basically unable to move. A villager happened by and reported how sick he was to a village elder. He inturn passed word to the Obeah. Under NO circumstances had the Obeah ever been known to leave his mountain lair, everyone in need of his services ALWAYS had to go to him no matter how serious the situation. However, much to the suprise of everyone in the village and others for miles and miles around, within a few hours of hearing of the Wanderling's condition he showed up on the veranda. He would not enter his house, again because the Wanderling was a white man, but he did remove spiritual items and herbs from his Medicine Bag called an Oanga Bag and perform a set of rituals that included spreading sand and ashes in a circle, casting bones into the circle, sitting Buddha-like doing some chanting and using smoke that waifted throughout the house. The next day the Wanderling was up and around, sore, and except for a substantial loss of weight and weak from having not eaten, OK. The Obeah was gone.
The day after the Obeah departed and following a night of heavy wind and rain, the Wanderling, conscious but racked with pain, for the first time in days was able to move and hobbled himself out onto the veranda. Barely able to stay upright he stood before the shaman's circle, and despite the storm of the night before, the circle was still in place just as it had been left by the man of spells. An ever so slight breeze came up and spread across the veranda floor twisting itself into a small dust-devil-like Vortex encompassing the Wanderling's bare feet and legs with the ash and sand of the circle. As the twisting breeze climbed his body the pain dissipated eventually disappearing altogether along with the wind.
http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/awakening101/obeah.html >>9940Proof that racists can be magical as fuck and those pacifistic egalitarian morons hold no spiritual superiority over us.
>>9941help me in my quest to save the black race from stupid ass white girls
>>9508Man, the Yoruba religion is so cool. Aren't they heavily persecuted though, and basically considered witches?
>>11257Not sure about Yoruba specifically but most indigenous african religions in west Africa(where I used to live) are shit on by Christians and muslims. The christians always characterize the African deities as 'the devil' and I don't specifically know how the muslims do it. However, many people do claim to be christian or muslim for social acceptability but still hold to their ancestral practices in secret.
>>11281>you will never eliminate the kikes religions plague from this world;_;
Drugged Husa animists in trance foaming at the mouth, are helped by their spiritual chief, during voodoo ceremony..Under the influence of drugs several Husa animists go into trance, speaking in tongues, guiding by their spiritual leader. After several hours they jump onto pumpkins exploding them, the pieces are made into stew which are concidered sacred. After their meeting with the gods they are considered embodied with their spirits and locals who paid for the ceremon will ask them questions about how to lead their life. Animist voodoo pagan ceremonies and traditions pre-date the arrival of Islam in Africa. The earliest Africans were animist, praying to the spirits of rocks and beasts. Animism and Islam have happily co-existed together until Sharia Islamic law was instated which outlaws animist ceremonies music and dancing. The implementation of Islamic Sharia Law across the twelve northern states of Nigeria, centres upon Kano, the largest Muslim Husa city, under the feudal, political and economic rule of the Emir of Kano. Kano State, Northern Nigeria, Africa
http://nigeldickinson.photoshelter.com/image/I0000qyfSUWWnZQ0
How Voodoo Works
← World of Warcraft's Temple of Zul'Gurub features witch doctors, blood drinkers, hoodoo piles and voodoo dolls.
You don't have to look far to find references to Voodoo in popular culture, especially in the Western world. Zombie movies, of course, have distant roots in Haitian Voodoo. Novelty stores sell pin-filled dolls to target anyone from miscreant romantic partners to unreasonable bosses. Even World of Warcraft has its own brand of Voodoo, found in Zul'Gurub's Hakkari witch doctors, jinxed hoodoo piles and punctured voodoo dolls.
Representations like these are a big part of what many people would mention if asked to describe Voodoo. Some people would also talk about spiritual possession and animal sacrifice. Many might reference a specific place – usually the Caribbean islands, like Haiti and Jamaica, or the southeastern United States, especially New Orleans and the Mississippi delta.
In spite of their prevalence in most people's minds, many of these stereotypes have nothing to do with Voodoo. Others are related only tangentially. However, some of the stereotypes include a grain of truth, and one – spirit possession – is central to the Voodoo religion.
According to the Voodoo tradition, there is one supreme god, who is known by different names in different parts of the world. In Haiti, for example, he is called Bondye, which comes from the French bon dieu, meaning "good god." Regardless of which name people use, the primary god is immensely powerful and beyond the reach ordinary followers. For this reason, Voodoo practitioners must rely on hundreds or thousands of other spirits to communicate with god.
>>15150←
A Voodoo ceremony in Togo, AfricaPhoto courtesy Mami Wata Healers Society of North America Inc., image public domainThese spirits are known as loa or lwa in Haiti; anthropologists writing about African Voodoo often refer to them as spirits or gods. The spirits exist in a hierarchy. There are major, powerful loa, many of whom have their own holidays, celebrations or other observances. There are also minor spirits, who play various roles in different regions. Communities and even families have their own loa, such as the spirits of beloved or influential family or community members. The loa receive their power from god and communicate with god on behalf of followers.
During ceremonies and observances, followers of Voodoo ask the spirits for advice, protection or assistance. The process is reciprocal; followers must look after the loa by performing rituals, which sometimes come in the form of animal sacrifice. Other rituals allow followers to thank the spirits for protection, blessings or good fortune. To maintain a good relationship with the loa, followers must also conduct themselves properly according to the customs of both the community and the religion. In this way, the practice of Voodoo can influence a person's day-to-day decisions and activities.
Part of the Voodoo belief is that loa communicate with followers through possession. The loa temporarily displaces the soul of its host, or medium, and takes control of the medium's body. According to this belief, the medium cannot feel pain or become injured while possessed. The loa speaks through the medium, often giving instructions, advice or prophecies of future events. Sometimes, a loa rebukes followers for failing to perform their duties to the loa, their family or their community. In some Voodoo traditions, a few select people have the privilege of becoming possessed. In others, the loa may choose to possess anyone at any time.
This idea – that powerful or influential spirits can possess people – unites two distinct forms of Voodoo. One exists primarily in the northern and central portions of the western African coast. The other is practiced primarily in Haiti, as well as in parts of North and South America. Books that explore either form often explain the religion through a series of stories or anecdotes instead of as a straightforward analysis. There are several reasons for this:
• Voodoo is an oral tradition without a primary holy text, prayer book or set of rituals and beliefs. In different regions, Voodoo practices, the names of gods and other traits can vary considerably.
• The religion makes use of a wealth of rituals and observations that affect followers' day-to-day lives, making a straightforward list of observances impractical.
• In many ways, Voodoo is a personal religion. Followers have direct experiences with spirits and loa, and these experiences can be dramatically different from place to place and person to person.
To get an idea of where Voodoo came from and how it works, we'll explore the religion's history as well as the symbols, objects and customs that are common in its practice. We'll begin by taking a look at African Voodoo.
>A Note on NamesSome scholars and practitioners prefer alternate spellings of Voodoo, such as Vodou, Vodon, Vodun or Vodu, in part to differentiate the religion from the stereotypes. Additionally, when used to refer to the religion itself, the word "Voodoo" is capitalized. For other uses, such as "voodoo dolls" or "voodoo economics," it is not.
African Voodoo
Voodoo originated in the African kingdoms of Fon and Kongo as many as 6,000 years ago. The word "voodoo" comes from the Fon language, in which it means "sacred," "spirit" or "deity." Other words used in Voodoo today also come from the Fon and Kongo languages. For example, a Voodoo priestess is often referred to as a mambo or manbo. This is a combination of the Fon word for "mother" or "magical charm" and the Kongo word for "healer."
The Fon kingdom was located in what is now southern Benin, a region some anthropologists refer to as the "cradle of Voodoo." People also practice Voodoo in Togo, Ghana and other countries in northwestern Africa. Approximately 30 million people in Togo, Ghana and Benin practice Voodoo today [source: National Public Radio: Radio Expeditions]. Voodoo is also an official religion in Benin, where as many as 60 percent of the people are followers [Source: BBC].
Since Voodoo is primarily an oral tradition, the names of gods, as well as the specifics of different rituals, can change in different regions or from generation to generation. However, African Voodoo has several consistent qualities no matter where people practice it. Along with the belief in multiple gods and spiritual possession, these include:
• Veneration of ancestors
• Rituals or objects used to convey magical protection
• Animal sacrifices used to show respect for a god, to gain its favor or to give thanks
• The use of fetishes, or objects meant to contain the essence or power of particular spirits
• Ceremonial dances, which often involve elaborate costumes and masks
• Ceremonial music and instruments, especially including drums
• Divination using the interpretation of physical activities, like tossing seed hulls or pulling a stone of a certain color from a tree
• The association of colors, foods, plants and other items with specific loa and the use of these items to pay tribute to the loa
← This Voodoo altar incorporates dolls, bottles and ordinary objects.
Photo courtesy Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
Many of these traits, particularly ancestor worship, polytheism, and the importance of music and dance, are also important in other African religions. So, in practice, Voodoo looks a lot like other traditional African religions. Many observances appear to be part celebration, part religious service incorporating rhythmic music, dancing and songs. Many rituals take advantage of the natural landscape, such as rivers, mountains or trees. Through decoration and consecration, ordinary objects, like pots, bottles or parts of slaughtered animals, become sacred objects for use in rituals.
In parts of Africa, people who want to become spiritual leaders in the Voodoo community can enter religious centers, which are much like convents or monasteries. In some communities, initiates symbolically die, spending three days and nights in complete seclusion before being returned to the outside world. Initiates learn the rituals, colors, foods and objects associated with different deities, as well as how to communicate with the loa. The spirits have different personalities and different requirements of their followers, much like the gods in Greek and Roman myths.
Some people associate Voodoo with evil, but many of its rituals, even those that include the sacrifice of live animals, focus on respect and peace. Its religious leaders become community leaders, providing guidance and settling disputes. Leaders also frequently provide medical care in the form of folk medicine. Priests, priestesses and other practitioners typically dedicate their work to helping and caring for others. Curses, witchcraft and spells designed to do harm fall instead into the category of bo. However, most anthropologists agree that Voodoo leaders have a working knowledge of bo, which is separate from Voodoo, believing that understanding how it works is necessary to fighting it. Sorcerers known as botono, rather than Voodoo priests and priestesses, are said to control more sinister spells. In some cases, though, people act as both priests and botono, depending on the situation.
This African form of Voodoo is a precursor to the Voodoo practiced in Haiti and other parts of the Western hemisphere. The regions of Africa where Voodoo has thrived are also areas that were heavily trafficked during the slave trade. Slavery brought Voodoo to the Americas. Next, we'll look at the changes to Voodoo that took place on the other side of the Atlantic.
>The Babe with the Power
In many Voodoo communities, people consider twins to be sacred. According to the tradition, twins have two halves of the same soul. If one twin dies, the other will often carry a twin doll, believed to carry the deceased sibling's spirit. In Haitian Voodoo, twins have special powers that can be dangerous, and a ceremony to the loa Dossou prevents them from doing harm. In Benin, twins also symbolize fertility.
Haitian Voodoo
In the American colonies, African Voodoo became what is known as Haitian Voodoo today. In 1492, Christopher Columbus landed on an island known to its indigenous Taino inhabitants as Ayiti, or "Land of the Mountains." Columbus re-named this island Hispaniola, or "Little Spain." Colonists arrived, building plantations that became rich sources of crops like sugar, coffee and indigo. To make these plantations profitable, colonists relied heavily on slave labor. Eventually, Hispaniola became the countries known as Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Many of the slaves brought to Hispaniola from northern and central Africa in the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries practiced Voodoo. But the colony's slave code required all slaves to be baptized as Christians. This forced conversion had a big influence Voodoo. Since slaves could not observe their religion openly, they borrowed many elements from Catholicism to protect their own spiritual practice. This process, known as syncretization, strongly influenced voodoo in Haiti:
• The names of Catholic saints became the names of loa. In many cases, the loa's role reflected that of the corresponding saint. For example, Saint Peter holds the keys to the kingdom of Heaven and corresponds to the loa Papa Legba, who is the spirit world's gatekeeper.
• Catholic religious holidays became Voodoo holidays for the corresponding loa. For instance, celebration for a family of spirits called the Gedes, who are personifications of dead ancestors, take place on All Saint's Day and All Soul's Day.
• Christian crosses became symbols for the crossroads, which represents life-altering choices and steps in the spiritual path for followers of Voodoo.
• Catholic hymns and prayers became part of Voodoo services.
Several other influences affected Voodoo as well, including the traditions of the local Taino tribes.
The resulting form of Voodoo is a creolized religion, made up of influences from many other religions. But in spite of these additions, Haitian Voodoo strongly resembles African Voodoo. Priestesses, known as mambos, and priests, known as houngans, conduct religious services and provide traditional folk remedies. People who wish to become mambos or houngans often enter an apprenticeship as initiates with other leaders rather than joining a large-scale worship center. Many ceremonies take place in a structure called a honfour, which serves as a temple or sanctuary.
←A woman in a trance stands in a pool of water during a voodoo Easter ceremony, April 16, 2006.
THONY BELIZAIRE/AFP/Getty Images
As in Africa, possession is an important part of Voodoo in Haiti. The person being possessed is often called a horse who is ridden by the possessing loa. The possessed person may move unnaturally, speak in unknown languages or make clear, direct statements to the other followers. Sacrifice is also important, and many ceremonies involve sacrificing goats, chickens or other animals. In many cases, the combination of possession, animal sacrifice and the ritual dancing and music that accompany them can seem dramatic or even frightening to outside observers.
←Voodoo ritual objects for sale in Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Public domain image
Haitian Voodoo also incorporates clothing, objects and decorations to invoke or show respect for the loa. Kongo packets, or medicine packets, hold healing or medicinal herbs and items. Worshippers carry flags called drapo through areas used for worship to show respect for the spirits. To call to and invoke the loa, people play a variety of drums, bells and rattles. Altars hold numerous ritual objects, such as decorated bottles, dolls and kwi, or calabashes full of food offerings. Worshippers use the dolls as mediums to contact specific loa or the spirit world in general, not to inflict pain or suffering on others. Today, many of the objects have become part of Haitian artwork and crafts. Some Haitian artists, for example, focus on creating depictions of different loa, elaborate drapo or ornately decorated ritual objects.
←Although prevalent in Haitian lore, zombies are not typically part of voodoo practice.
As in African Voodoo, mambos and houngans do not typically curse or harm other people. However, some followers believe that bokors, or sorcerers, have the ability to use magic to cause misfortune or injury. Bokors are also part of zombie lore – some believe that a bokor can use poisons and capture a person's soul to create a zombie. You can read How Zombies Work to learn more about the theories.
Voodoo is an important part in the day-to-day lives of many Haitians. Estimates vary, but in general anthropologists believe that more than half of Haitians practice Voodoo. The religion has also played an important role in Haitian history. The French Revolution in 1789 sparked revolutions elsewhere in the world, including in several colonies in the Americas. In 1797, a Voodoo priest performed a ceremony at Bois Caiman in the Haitian mountains. This ceremony prefaced a slave revolt that lasted until 1804, and the people of Haiti fought armies from Spain, France and Britain. Eventually, Haiti became the first free, black colony in the Americas. This ceremony and its importance are somewhat controversial, but they have become part of the Haitian lore.
Voodoo is widely and openly practiced in Haiti. It also exists in various forms in New Orleans and the southeastern United States. In some cases, the Voodoo practiced in other parts of the Western hemisphere is mixed with other, similar traditions, pagan practices or other customs. However, in some regions, practices known as hoodoo have overtaken Voodoo in the public eye. Hoodoo practitioners are said to use evil magic, or bad juju, to harm other people. Love spells, curses and methods of revenge generally fall under the umbrella of hoodoo and are not Voodoo practices at all.
Confusion with hoodoo is only one reason that Voodoo is controversial. We'll take a look at a few others next.
>Voodoo and Uprisings
Voodoo ceremonies may have played a part in other slave uprisings during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. For example, a slave called Gullah Jack, considered to be a conjurer, helped plan a slave rebellion in South Carolina.
Voodoo Controversy
Since its growth in Haiti, Haitian Voodoo has spread to other parts of the world. Slaves transported from Haiti to the Mississippi delta carried their traditions with them, and Voodoo expanded from there. Today, people practice various forms of Haitian voodoo openly in Haiti. In other parts of the world, people often practice more covertly.
In many parts of the Western world, people view Voodoo with suspicion. Some people believe it is outright evil or that it encourages worship of the devil. In some countries, missionaries make a deliberate effort to convert people from Voodoo practice to Christianity. There are a number of reasons for these views.
From 1915 to 1935, the United States Marine Corps (USMC) occupied Haiti. During and after this period, Haiti became the setting for books and movies, which often depicted Voodoo as sinister, cruel and bloody. Movies like White Zombie, released in 1932, portrayed Voodoo priests as evildoers who made innocent people into zombies.
Around the same time, hoodoo became more commonplace in parts of the United States, including New Orleans. Previously, New Orleans had had a thriving Voodoo community, lead by Voodoo queens, including two women both known as Marie Laveau. One Laveau disappeared in the late 1870s, and the other died in 1881. Under their successors, the Voodoo community eventually splintered and became less publicly visible. At the same time, vendors began selling hoodoo charms and trinkets throughout New Orleans. Eventually, hoodoo, along with its curses and spells, became synonymous with Voodoo in New Orleans and other parts of the South.
←The burial site of Haitian Voodoo leader Marie Laveau
Public domain image
But fictional portrayals and public perceptions are only part of the sense that Voodoo is dark or disturbing. In addition, the practice of Voodoo includes activities that are taboo in other religions and cultures. Many ceremonies involve the sacrifice of live animals and the use of animal blood. Some also include the use of dried animal carcasses and animal parts. While animal sacrifice has been a part of major religions, including Judaism, it is not commonly practiced today. Snakes, which many people find frightening, also play a part in some Voodoo ceremonies and Voodoo symbolism. For example, in Haiti, snakes are associated with one of the most powerful loa, known as Damballah. For this reason, followers often use images of the Catholic Saint Patrick that incorporate snakes to represent Damballah.
The idea of spiritual possession is troublesome to many people, but it also has a place in other religions. For example, in Tibetan Buddhism, gods can temporarily inhabit the bodies of oracles. According to Tibetan lore, the Nechung Oracle, or the protector deity Dorje Drak-den in the body of a Buddhist monk, successfully instructed the Dalai Lama on how to escape Chinese forces in Tibet 1959.
One practical concern about Voodoo practice involves public health. In some Voodoo ceremonies, followers may injure themselves as a show of faith or as a demonstration of a loa's power. Followers may bleed freely or may bleed onto altars or sacred objects. Public health officials state that this may encourage the spread of disease. In addition, many Voodoo leaders, especially in rural areas, offer medical advice and folk remedies. Sometimes, this advice runs contrary to established medical thought concerning the spread of illnesses, especially HIV and other diseases spread through contact with infected blood.
Finally, death is a substantial part of the Voodoo religion. The spirits of dead ancestors, leaders and other important people are central to the Voodoo practice. Critics argue that the emphasis on appeasing dead ancestors creates a culture of fear. Supporters counter that many other religions have placed the same emphasis on appeasing gods. In addition, since death is a topic that makes many people inherently uncomfortable, it is logical that a religious tradition that embraces death may make people uncomfortable, too.
While Voodoo has little to do with many of the nefarious aspects people associate with it, some of the stereotypes that surround it have some basis in real Voodoo practice. To learn more about Voodoo and related topics, check out the links on the next page.
>Other Forms of Voodoo
Voodoo is not the only religion that comes from the combination of Christian and traditional African forms of worship. Santeria, which originated in Cuba, has many similarities to Voodoo; in Santeria, the loa are often known as orisha. For this reason, Orisha worship is sometimes used as a euphemism for Santeria or Voodoo. Santeria and Orisha worship both exist today, especially in Cuba and in countries to which Cubans have immigrated.
