Caribbean/European reporting for thread.
Since a few people had inquired about it, I figure I may as well expound a little here. I come from culturally and religiously mixed family, and much of my family practiced Vodou (on our new world side, obviously.) Which honestly, is just a normal religion like any other. It doesn't get a lot of attention (barring negative stereotypes) because Haitian ("Orthodox") Vodou takes itself especially seriously, and that turns edgy hipsters off I guess. It is also as organized and dogmatic as any faith and I hate to call it "pagan" (most new world Vodouisants think of themselves as Catholics- lol. It also used to insult the faith endlessly.) But it has a panoply of spirits, and other weird stuff. It fits this thread better than the other religious threads.
But I guess I better lay down the basics since it is kind of out there for most westerners:
Essentially, Vodou sees the world under the guidance of a single God, "Bondye" or "Bon Dieu", the "Good God." This God is very distant and hard to hit up when you need him, because he runs the
whole universe and you are a tiny mortal. So he delegates. The people he delegates to are called the "Lwa" or "Loa" and are sort of demigods, spirits, ancestors, and ghosts all in one. Some are so old and primordial that they may have never lived human lives, and depending on where you are these might be Loa like "Damballah", a father figure of sorts, or "Erzulie Freda", a spirit/God of wealth, luxury, love, and sex. These are considered the weakest Loa in practice because they are starting to get farther away from us, like Bondye.
Offerings are left for these entities usually based on the individual worshipers needs, but there are all kinds of ceremonies and stuff for communities to collectively invoke them. This is done through a kind of ecstatic trance- essentially the Loa in question possesses someone and then speaks and acts through them, usually while the priests try to figure out which Loa they are communicating with. They then perform miracles, dispense advice, cure illnesses, whatever they need to do.
The most powerful Loa are recent ancestors, still remembered and venerated by mortals on a more personal level, and who are still connected to a world they can better remember. Some are frightening and dangerous, like Marionette (who ascended after being executed by French planters and inspiring the Haitian Revolution), or Baron Kriminel, a former murderer condemned to death who now appears mostly to judge others similar to him. Some are revered like Erzulie Dantor, protector of women, children, LGBT people, and the abused. One of the most powerful (if not THE most) and respected Loa is Ghede, master of the dead, who digs every man's grave on the other side (and must, in order for them to die). He is said to have been the first man who ever died, although his original name and gender are considered lost (and he often flaunts gender stereotypes simply to shock people.) He is generally supposed to be crass, drunken, sexual, and deviant from the norm in any way he can be to make the point that life is short. He isn't fond of white people because he thinks they are very puritanical and serious. They apparently don't like his top hat or find his night time sunglasses weird or something. Or don't drink enough? He kind of just throws complaints out there whenever priests find him. However, because he has conversed with every person to ever die he has gained much of their wisdom, and he is widely sought by practitioners for solutions to things.
Vodou in general/random facts:
- is highly syncretist
- Encompasses vast branches with a lot of differences but who do not consider themselves "separate" in say the sense of the Sunni/Shi'a divide
- Dislikes outsiders and converts, but allows them if they prove themselves (but this difficult because it is an entirely local call, and even then other areas may not honor it)
- condemns magic or sorcery of almost any kind (contrary to population belief,
)
- practices animal sacrifice, as well as votive and general sacrifice (I practiced and condoned all three)
- at least in the new world, believes in the Holy Trinity and considers Jesus the Son of God (lol)
- is mostly focused on day to day interactions with spirits and community/local affairs
- believes it is acceptable to challenge higher powers if they have done wrong by you
- has this weird thing about black chickens (idk but it's prevalent especially in sacrifice wtf auntie)
- is deeply devoted to egalitarianism and gender equality (legacy of perhaps the most brutal enslavement in human history will do that to you)
- is very secretive, and only practiced openly in rural areas, some knowledge is held only by priests
- is an ancient and unbroken tradition, which also bothers tumblr neopagans because they can't just make shit up about it and it is not "how you interpret it."
- still has an unusual amount of white people who claim to be part of it and will sell you shit. I have known a few legitimate ones but they are the exception and almost always live in the Caribbean, or married in to it (which always counts).
- selling religious services or paraphernalia is one of the highest sins in Vodou because it considered blasphemous greed and usury (see: the slavery thing again.)
- these problems are worst in New Orleans
- divides itself into multiple houses, or traditions, with different bloodlines and tribes honoring different sets of spirits (this is considered necessary and important to make sure that they all feel loved and appeased)
- believes in the afterlife more strongly than any group I have ever met
- is practiced by millions of people around the world, despite any bad press it gets
Anymore anyway, I do not practice it, but I often consider doing so. I really wish I could return to the Caribbean and that might convince me. Mostly I just consider myself Catholic though. It's easier that way, besides, some Loa are just regular Christians (and a few, as I mentioned in another thread to
@Ntwadumela are even Muslim but still answer summoning for some reason like what is Allah supposed to be doing up there.) So I guess I could still make it in to the pantheon apparently since utility and knowledge are apparently the only qualifiers.
Shout out to
@Legatus Lanius who wanted more details about this.
Edit: all that said
@Melkor I specialized in Religious Studies and especially folk and polytheistic practices, although I was most fascinated with African traditions and those of indo-European peoples. I can try to answer any questions if you want although I don't want to make myself sound too useful because religion is well, basically a huge grab bag of crazy opinions and shit.
