From ReligiousTolerance.com “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, 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.
Vodun rituals: The purpose of rituals is to make contact with a spirit, to gain their favor by offering them animal sacrifices and gifts, to obtain help in the form of more abundant food, higher standard of living, and improved health. Human and Loa depend upon each other; humans provide food and other materials; the Loa provide health, protection from evil spirits and good fortune. Rituals are held to celebrate lucky events, to attempt to escape a run of bad fortune, to celebrate a seasonal day of celebration associated with a Loa, for healing, at birth, marriage and death.
Vodun priests can be male (houngan or hungan), or female (mambo). A Vodun temple is called a hounfour (or humfort). At its center is a poteau-mitan a pole where the God and spirits communicate with the people. An altar will be elaborately decorated with candles, pictures of Christian saints, symbolic items related to the Loa, etc. Rituals consist of some of the following components:
- a feast before the main ceremony,
- creation of a veve, a pattern of flour or cornmeal on the floor which is unique to the Loa for whom the ritual is to be conducted,
- shaking a rattle and beating drums which have been cleansed and purified, chanting,
dancing by the houngan and/or mambo and the hounsis (students studying Vodun).
The dancing will typically build in intensity until one of the dancers (usually a hounsis) becomes possessed by a Loa and falls. His or her ti bon ange has left their body and the spirit has taken control. The possessed dancer will behave as the Loa and is treated with respect and ceremony by the others present.
Animal sacrifice; this may be a goat, sheep, chicken, or dog. They are usually humanely killed by slitting their throat; blood is collected in a vessel. The possessed dancer may drink some of the blood. The hunger of the Loa is then believed to be satisfied. The animal is usually cooked and eaten. Animal sacrifice is a method of consecrating food for consumption by followers of Vodun, their gods and ancestors.
Unfortunately, Hollywood movies and horror tv shows, make light, exploit and give this religion a bad name. It is afterall a religion, with clergy and proceedures known to the initiated.
When a mambo or houngan does a love spell, it is to entreat the lwa/loa to act on behalf of the clients love request. A ritual to reunite lovers, end stress and discord (or create it), and to find a lover are the most common love spells requested.
Mambo Nelly of http://www.mambonelly.com says that not all love spells require animal sacrifice. Mambo Nelly does offer vegetarian offerings to the lwa/loa when a client specifies it. She also “ties” a wanga/ounga (spell) which only uses herbs, roots, oils, and other non-animal materials.
Her spells she says “work, because there is real power behind it”. There is a lot more to voodoo apparently.
