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Voodoo Rituals and Evil Sorcery
The purpose of rituals is to make contact with a spirit, to gain their favors 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.
Voodoo priests can be male (houngan or hungan), or female (mambo).
Voodoo temple is called a hounfour (or hum fort). At its center is 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
First comes the feast before the main ceremony
Creation: 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 cleaned and purified.
Chanting and Dancing by the houngan or mumbo, the dancing will build intensity until one of the dancers becomes possessed
by a Loa and falls. And the spirit has taken control; the possessed dancer will behave as Loa and is treated with respect
and ceremony by the others present.
An animal is sacrificed this maybe a goat, sheep, chicken, or dog. There 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 cooked and eaten by the
followers of voodoo, their gods and ancestors.
The houngan and mambos confine their activities to "white" magic, which is used to bring good fortune and healing. Rarely,
a houngan will engage in such sorcery; a few alternate between white and dark magic.
However caplatas (also known as bokors) perform acts of evil sorcery or black magic, sometimes called "left-handed Voodoo".
One belief unique to Voodoo is that a dead person can be revived after having been buried. The zombie has no will of their
own, but remains under the control of others. In reality, a zombie is a living person who has never died, but is under the influence of powerful drugs administered by an evil sorcerer. Although most Haitians believe in zombies, few have ever seen
one. There are a few recorded instances of persons who have claimed to be zombies. Sticking pins in "voodoo dolls" was once
used as a method of cursing an individual this practice continues occasionally in South America. The practice became closely
associated with Voodoo in the public mind from horror films.
Voodoo has been freely practiced in Benin since a democratic government was installed there in 1989. Voodoo was formally recognized as Benin's official religion in 1996-FEB.
Voodoo is practiced in Haiti. It can be found in many of the large cities in North America, particularly in the American South.
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