Adelle our correspondent from USA Washington State
I am currently trying my hand at writing a novel. Right now it’s just in the beginning stages and I am enjoying getting to know my characters as they develop and grow. As I let my imagination run and let my characters personalities and adventures guide my hand in telling this story, I have to pause for research. This current adventure has led my characters to the great state of Louisiana. I have never been there myself so I decided to take a peek at what environment, culture and entertainment this state could offer, particularly in the city of New Orleans.
To fit the deep and expansive history of this state into a three page article is rather impossible. Louisiana is an impressive melting pot of ethnicities. It bears great influences from the French, Spanish, English, Native Americans, Haitians and slavery. The state has survived through hurricanes, the civil war, Ku Klux Klan activity, and of course, World War 2. The state supplies the country with cattle, poultry, eggs, dairy, cotton, sugar cane, petroleum, gas and let’s not forget that bottle of spicy Tabasco sauce.
Everyday life in this great state is home to the Creoles and Cajuns. Creole is a term from the Portuguese that means “slave of African descent born in the new world”. It was a term mainly used to describe slaves but now days such a term is used to describe the daily life of those descended from slaves, freemen, French, Spanish and Native Americans. Cajun comes from a primarily French background. Often Cajuns were considered to be low class citizens until recent years. The Cajuns settled in the lands of Lafayette and the Bayou country of Louisiana. We have fallen in love with their everyday lives including their good food (gumbo anyone?) and music (dance the night away to some swamp pop).
Just as with the different ethnicities and lifestyles, Louisiana has a vast expanse of practicing religions. Among the predominate religions are Roman Catholic, Southern Baptist, United Methodist Church, Evangelical Protestant, Jewish and the mysterious Louisiana Voodoo. I am personally a rather open person in terms of religion and the Louisiana Voodoo caught my attention.
I don’t have any first hand knowledge of the religion and I think I always assumed that Voodoo was a practice of spells and rituals of sacrifice. It seemed to have an eerie feeling about it. Voodoo is often inaccurately portrayed in movies, TV shows and books. I think most of us would believe that Voodoo is a cult of black magic and perhaps even devil worship. We might believe that it consists of violent witchdoctors, sorcerers and priests. Most of us have only heard of a Voodoo doll and how it can cause you to experience whatever is done to the doll. As I read more on the subject the more I come to find the religion to be non threatening. Since Voodoo came from West Africa to America via slave trade it has often carried a stigma that is actually rooted in racism.
Voodoo has many different divisions just like other faiths. The three major sectors of this practice are Haitian Voodoo, Louisiana voodoo and Southern Voodoo. Voodoo originates from the African based spiritual ways rooted in West African Dahomeyan Vodun. Dohemey is a French based country and Vodun means “spirit” in the Fon and Ewe languages. Louisiana voodoo is a melding of practices with the contradictory beliefs of Catholicism and Francophone cultures because of the slave trades. There is a certain emphasis of Gris-gris, voodoo queens, occult paraphernalia and a snake deity known as Li Grand Zombi.
Snakes are the keepers of intuitive knowledge. Dances with serpents represent the equality and balance between genders. Rituals almost always include a snake dance as a way to celebrate sacred and ancient knowledge. In the origins of the Li Grand Zombi it is said that the snake was called Nzambi and was the Creator God. Nzambi existed in everything and controlled the universe through spirits he appointed. He created a being that could mediate between matter and space. He did this by giving life to a being that was both man and woman called Exu Aluvaia. Many rituals are held with the presence of a live snake as well.
Voodoo has ordained clergy called Hougan (priests) and Manbo (priestesses). They are committed to their spiritual path and can offer other believers guidance when needed but they believe that each person is capable of self actualization and are responsible for their own actions. This faith believes in community and support and feels they must participate. They seem to practice the art of calling upon ancestors and dead family members to offer guidance in their lives. The people of Voodoo believe in the visible world and invisible world. They believe death is the transcendence from one world to the next.
A popular spell among followers was varying recipes for a cure all. It was believed that a mix of jimson weed, sulfur and honey could solve any problem. After being mixed, a glass was filled with the concoction and rubbed against a black cat and slowly downed. A common misconception about the Voodoo doll is that it’s used to curse people. The opposite is true. Voodoos are usually used to bless someone. Sticking pins in the doll is not about causing pain but more to pin a picture or the name of a person to the doll. Traditionally the doll is used to represent a spirit. Ritual is performed from one of the following categories: Love, Power, Luck and dissolution of a curse. This type of practice is known as sympathetic magic. Voodoo methods vary and include devised diets, prayer, readings and spiritual baths. They are used to cure anxiety, addictions, depression, loneliness and other ailments.
Being very spiritual by its nature, followers spend much time with the spirits. I can only imagine how this practice allows for one to spend time quieting the static that is our minds in this ever busy present day. I have a feeling it would allow for a great sense of being “aware”. It is common that during spiritual gathering, followers use “Spirit Guides” in their worshiping services. Spirits are more accessible than the ever present mighty God and easier to identify with. In some rituals forms of ritual possession may take place as well.
Beginning in the 1930’s, Voodoo went underground. Voodoo was ridiculed and dismissed as superstition. Voodoo had been introduced during a great political and social evolution. Slaves were viewed as less than human and those that were not slaves feared the faith out of ignorance. As a result their priests were denigrated as witchdoctors and spirits denounced as evil. True believers went into hiding because they worried how they would be treated based on their religion. It’s understandable but by doing so followers have reinforced the suspicion that they practice in secret to conceal something bad or violent.
The Voodoo Queen Marie Laveau became a popular figure when she cast out other voodoo queens when word of her power spread. She believed in helping the hungry, poor and sick. She lived from 1794 until 1881. She is still a strong figure for the religion and culture to this day and more people visit her grave each year than that of Elvis Presley. Many people come to ask her for favors and leave her gifts at her tomb. Voodoo has become a huge tourist attraction for New Orleans. Stores sell charms, gris-gris, candles, powders and more. Practicing followers hold true to their roots of community and hold ceremonies to help against modern day problems such as drugs, abuse, criminal activity and violence.
I am glad that I have sat down to enlighten myself about this faith. It’s easier to put into perspective what Voodoo stands for. I understand that just like with any faith this religion is susceptible to those with mal intent. I am empathetic towards their way of life and respect that they honor their faith by not being the showy commercial Hollywood portrayed misconception that I have grown up with. My mind is at ease with these people that are busy concerning themselves with their own personal responsibility to their environment and not causing a war against the indecencies committed against them in history. It is amazing to see them open to incorporating other contradiction religions and still hold on to their roots of supporting their communities. It is refreshing that there are variations of how Voodoo is practiced around the world and that it is. I can only tell you about Voodoo from my perspective as I understand it. I encourage you to explore for yourself. Perhaps through education and enlightenment one day these amazingly rich culture filled individuals will be safe from judgment to practice without hiding.
it feels good plus 