Ol' Time Religion: Vodun

Demographics

About 18% of the population of Benin, some 1 million people, follow Vodun. (This does not count other traditional religions in Benin.) In addition, many of the 43% of the population that refer to themselves as Christian practise a syncretized religion, not dissimilar from Haitian Vodou or Brazilian Cadombl; indeed, many of them are descended from freed Brazilian slaves who settled on the coast near Ouidah. In Togo, about half the population practises indigenous religions, of which Vodun is by far the largest, with some 2 million followers; there may be another million Vodunists among the Ewe of Ghana: 13% of the population of 20 million are Ewe and 38% of Ghanaians practise traditional religion. According to census data, about 14 million people practise traditional religion in Nigeria, most of whom are Yoruba practising Vodun, but no specific breakdown is available.

European colonialism, followed by some of the totalitarian regimes in West Africa, have tried to suppress Vodun as well as other traditional religions. However, because the vodun deities are born to each clan, tribe, and nation, and their clergy are central to maintaining the moral, social and political order and ancestral foundation of its village, these efforts have not been successful. Recently there have been moves to restore the place of Vodun in national society, such as an annual International Vodun Conference held in the city of Ouidah in Benin that has been held since 1991.

Haitian Vodou or Vaudou (pronounced [vodu], Anglicised as Voodoo) is a syncretic[1] religion originating from the Caribbean country of Haiti, located on the island of Hispaola. It is based upon a merging of the beliefs and practices of West African peoples, (mainly the Fon and Ewe; see West African Vodun), with Roman Catholic Christianity, which was brought about as African slaves were brought to Haiti in the 16th century and forced to convert to the religion of their owners, whilst they largely still followed their traditional African beliefs.[2]

The principal belief in Haitian Vodou is that there are various deities, or Loa, who are subordinate to a greater God, known as Bondy, who does not interfere with human affairs. Therefore it is to the loa that Vodou worship is directed.[3] Other characteristics of Vodou include ancestor worship and protection against evil witchcraft.[4]

Haitian Vodou shares many similarities with other faiths of the African diaspora, such as Louisiana Voodoo of New Orleans, Santera and Arar of Cuba, and Candombl and Umbanda of Brazil. The Voodoo temple is called a Hounfour.[5]   from Honey Amythest  

Gimme Dat Ol' Time Religion!

Vodun or Vudun (pronounced [vodṹ] that is, with a nasal u on a high tone) (so spelled in the Fon language of Benin and the Ewe language of Togo and Ghana; also spelled Vodon, Vodoun, Voudou,"Voodoo" etc.) is a traditional Polytheistic organised religion of coastal West Africa, from Nigeria to Ghana. It is distinct from the unorganized traditional animistic religions in the interiors of these same countries, as well as from various religions with often similar names of the African Diaspora in the New World, such as Haitian Vodou, the similar Vudu of the Dominican Republic, Candombl Jej in Brazil (which uses the term Vodum), Louisiana Voodoo, and Santera in Cuba, which are syncretized with Christianity and the traditional religions of the Kongo people of Congo and Angola.

The word vodn is the Gbe (Fon-Ewe) word for spirit. When the word is capitalized, Vodun, it denotes the religion. When it is not, vodun, it denotes the spirits that are central to the religion. "Voodoo" is the most common pronunciation amongst English speakers. Vodun is practised by the Ewe, Kabye, Mina, Fon, and (under a different name) the Yoruba peoples of southeastern Ghana, southern and central Togo, southern and central Benin, and southwestern Nigeria.



Vodun cosmology


Vodun cosmology centers around the vodun, spirits and other elements of divine essence which govern the Earth. Vodun has a single divine Creator, called variously Mawu or Nana Buluku, which embodies a dual cosmogenic principle, and of which Mawu, the moon, and Lisa, the sun, are female and male aspects, respectively. (Mawu and Lisa are often portrayed as the twin children of the Creator.) There are a hierarchy of lesser creations, the vodun, which range in power from major deities governing the forces of nature and human society to the spirits of individual streams, trees, and rocks, the more impressive of which may be considered sacred. God does not trifle with the mundane, so the vodun are the centre of religious life. (It is often believed that it is these aspects of the religion, similar in many ways to the Trinity and the intercession of saints and angels, which made Vodun so compatible with Christianity, especially Catholicism, in the New World, and produced such strongly syncretistic religions as Haitian Vodou.)

The pantheon of the vodun is quite large and complex. In one tradition, there are 7 daughters and sons of Mawu, which are inter-ethnic and related to natural phenomena or historical or mythical individuals, as well as dozens of ethnic vodun, defenders of a certain clan, tribe, or nation. There is a pantheistic quality to Vodun, since all of Divine Creation is considered divine, and therefore contains the power of the divine. This is a concept vital to medicine, such as herbal remedies, and explains the ubiquitous use of mundane objects in religious ritual.

Patterns of worship follow various dialects, gods, practices, songs, and rituals. In vodun, the practice of offering an animal sacrifice is common as a way to show respect and thankfulness to the gods. Worshipers also believe in ancestor worship and hold the idea that the spirits of the dead live side by side in the world of the living. They also utilise items that hold spiritual properties. Voodoo talismans called "fetishes" are objects such as statues or dried animal parts that are sold for their healing and spiritually rejuvenating properties.

West African Vodun, has its primary emphasis on ancestors, with each family of spirits having its own priestesshood, often hereditary. In many African clans, deities might include Mami Wata, who are god/desses of the waters; Legba, who in some clans is virile and young in contrast to the form of an old man he takes in Haiti; Gu, ruling iron and smithcraft; Sakpata, who rules diseases; and many other spirits distinct in their own way to West Africa...  from Honey Amythest