Vodou in Africa and the Diaspora - Essay Example

Vodou in Africa and the Diaspora Vodou in Africa And The Diaspora Introduction Vodou is an indigenous organized religion of coastal West Africa from Nigeria to Ghana. The religion is practiced by the Kabye, Fon, Ewe and Mina people of the southern Ghana, Southern and Central Benin and Central Togo. However, this religion also features in African Diaspora in New World also called the African Tradition Religion already syncretized with the Catholic Christianity. This has culminated in the variant form of this religion like the Puerto Rican and Haitian Vodou among others. Therefore, the African tradition Vodou as well as its diasporic variants are in agreement upon the existence of benevolent but remote creator deity called Bondye (Rahier, et al. 2010). However, whereas Bondye created all, the religion prohibits bothering deity with human issues. Instead, the Voodooisants resort to their children through prayers and devotion. The children of Bondye are referred to as lwa who are also the spirits who are obligated for various aspects of daily life. There is a further division of the lwa into nations such as Rada, Congo, Petro, who in turn give rise to families like Ghede and Ogou. The people of Vodou cultivate the relationships with their lwa via prayer, offerings and devotions ceremonies and possession. Thus, the close working relationship between lwa and Voodooisants help navigate via life together with its obstacles and hurdles. The paper, therefore, seeks to investigate and present the origin of Vodou, their practices, and survival. Origin of Vodou in Africa and the Diaspora The Vodou primarily developed in New Orleans and Haiti pointing towards the existence of one god, Bondye accompanied by various spirits, lwa who is always reproached since he is more tangible and present that the distant Bondye (Gordon, 2012). The religion is began during the human civilization and hence the best example of the syncretism in the Americas. Despite, the essential wisdom that originated in various regions of Africa prior to the Europeans instigation of the slave trade, this religion structure as currently constituted was born in Haiti during the European colonization of Hispaniola. It is ironical that even after the European had desolated the ethnic enforced immigration of enslaved African from various ethnic groups, they still provided the circumstances for the development of the Vodou. The transplanted Africans found in their faith a common thread hence started to invoke their own gods and practiced rites of other than their own (Peek & Yankah, 2004). Their commingling and modification of rituals of different ethnic groups leading to different religious groups integrated their beliefs and hence created a new religion, Vodou. The word was, therefore, a derivative of the West African, Vodun that meant spirit. Therefore, Vodou is an Afro-Caribbean religion that integrated the practices from several African ethnic groups including Fon, Nago, Ibos, Congos and many others. The Essence of Vodou There are no accidents in the Vodou society as practitioners hold that nothing and no event possess its own life. The universe is all alone, and each thing affects something else as known by the scientist and nature. The spiritualist also supports that Vodou are never separate but serve as part of one whole. Therefore, they believe that actions done by individuals to another comes back to haunt or benefit him since one is another. Thus, the people of Vodou believe that each one is a mirror to one’s soul as God is manifest via the spirits of ancestors (Dubois, 2001). Thus, their ancestors can bring harm or good and hence highly honored in the ceremonies. Moreover, they believe in the existence of a central cycle between the dead and the living with the believers asking for an end to their respective miseries. The Vodou hold such rituals as prayers dancing, animal sacrifice, singing and drumming. Moreover, the serpent critically features in the Vodou faith with the word voodoo being understood as snake whose auspices gather those sharing faith. The high priest called the papa are the channels for the expression of the powers of the serpent with Bon Dieu being the chief deity. The many spirits (Lwa/Loa) control nature, wealth, the happiness of mortals as well as health amongst the Vodou. Moreover, the lwa is a pantheon of deities that include the Ogu, Agwe, Damballa and Legba amongst others. The lwa possess the bodies of the participants during the Vodou ceremonies as it appears by the possessing the faithful who then become the Loa conveying pieces of advice, desires and warnings to the believers. Hence, Vodou is an animist faith as objects, and natural phenomena are held to possess holy significance and possess a soul. Subsequently, the Loa Agwe becomes the divine presence behind the hurricane. Moreover, music and dance are a core element to this religion ceremony that are always dubbed Night Dancing or Vodou Dancing. However, the dancing is never simply a prelude to a sexual frenzy but rather often depicted. Thus, the dancing is a reflection of spirituality and connection with the divinity as well as the world of the spirits. More significantly, the Vodou is a practical religion that plays a key role in the family as well as the society. An individual’s ancestor are held to be an integral component of the world of the spirits, and the Lwa. Thus, this becomes an important means that Vodou serves to perpetuate its participants in the individual tradition alongside history. Also, the Vodou ceremonies showcase such practical aspects as the fact that its participants always come before the papa or the priestess while seeking pieces of advice, help with the issues and spiritual guidance. Subsequently, the priest or the priestess via the divine aid deliver such help as healing by using herbs and medicine based on the knowledge passed down to the Vodou religion. Sometimes, the priest and priestess heal their people via faith just like other religions (Brown, 2001). Therefore, Vodou greatly emphasizes the respect for the natural world. Surprisingly, the perception of the public about the Vodou rites and rituals attaches them to evil and malicious point of view. Moreover, there exist many healing spells, purification spells; love spells joyous celebration spells as well as the nature spell within the Vodou religion. Sometimes the spirits are invoked to provide harmony and peace, rebirth, birth, material happiness and abundance of luck. Therefore, Vodou is an empowerment and powerful faith amongst its practitioners. Vodou and its Fight to Survive Vodou has been perceived as the most superstitious and spectacular religion as reflected in its barbaric, sexually licentious and primitive actions and hence must struggle to remain relevant despite its noble status as the world’s oldest religion. The concerted effort by the Europeans resulting from their fear of anything African has vowed to suppress as well as distort this legitimate and distinct religion as it has flourished amongst the European enslaved Africans. The African held firmly on to the religions as were shipped into the European as slaves. The Vodou took different forms as slavery involved stripping Africans slaves their language, heritage and culture and slaves secretly practiced to avoid death penalties and slaves had to surpass the loss of the language by embracing many elements of Christianity. Despite the diasporic enslavement and oppression, Africans held on to their faiths despite the punishments and hence through the process of acculturation, Vodou grew despite the harsh cultural underpinnings in Americas. Therefore, Vodou thrived as a legitimate religion in various regions of the world such Brazil (Candomble) and English-speaking Caribbean (Obeah). Moreover, the Ewe group found in Togo and Southern Ghana- two West Africa’s countries are staunch believers of Vodou. Unfortunately, in many parts of United States, white slaves became successful in stripping slaves their Vodou tradition as well as beliefs. Therefore, Vodou is for most African Americans another part of their heritage that they can solely attempt to re-discover. Conclusion In conclusion, the Vodou has remained a legitimate religion. For example, in Haiti, the Africans gained firm strength from their religion, and this was powerful making Vodou survive the cruelty of the oppressive French rulers making the revolution to conspire. The Vodou priest got reinforcement from their consultation with their oracles. They were hence advised on the strategies to fight of fighting the impending political battle when the revolution explored in 1791 and won by Haitian in 1804. Presently, the system of Vodou depicts its history as African ethnic mixture are observed in many names of rites and pantheon of Gods and Loas comprising deities from all regions of Africa. References Brown, K. M. (2001). Mama Lola: A vodou priestess in Brooklyn (Vol. 4). University of California Press. Dubois, L. (2001). "Vodou and history." Comparative studies in society and history 43. Gordon, M. (2012) ""Midnight Scenes and Orgies": Public Narratives of Voodoo in New Orleans and Nineteenth-Century Discourses of White Supremacy," American Quarterly 64, no.: 767-86. Peek, P. M., & Yankah, K. (Eds.). (2004). African folklore: An encyclopedia. Routledge. pp. 496-499 Rahier, J. M., Hintzen, P. C., & Smith, F. (2010). Global circuits of blackness: Interrogating the African Diaspora. University of Illinois Press. Read More