Voodoo

8 Pages 1998 Words

e ason), telling the future and reading dreams, casting spells and creating protections, creating potions for various purposes (from love spells to death spells).
Another central feature of Voodoo is the service, the religious rites of the religion. These are usually held outside, under a rough roof and around the poto mitan, the center pole. A houngan or mambo almost always directs these. Drums are used extensively to provide music and dancing is absolutely essential to the whole service. Services are fully participatory. Not only the houngan and mambo participate, but nearly everyone present. A master of ceremonies (La Place) is often present. A hounganikon directs the music and motion. Hounsi (women only) are serving ladies, usually dressed in white. Those in attendance are nearly all participants and most can be mounted by Loa. In most services the Loa mount people. That is, they come and take over a person's body for a time. When the Loa come the person is gone. It is not clear where the person goes. The body is the body of the person, but it is really the Loa. If a Loa mounts a female person, he is referred to as he, not she, during the mounting. Nearly every Voodoo service has animal sacrifice. By killing the animal one releases life. The Loa are exhausted by the taxing task of running the universe. Thus they can receive ...