West African Vodou: Differences Of Different Religions
1430 Words6 Pages
Weixin Niemi 9A
World Religion Essay
30.11.2014
Vodou
Vodou is a very diverse religion that has many different types of the religion and many names for example Voodoo, Vodun, and Vodoun. Its many types come from the areas where Vodou is practised and the three main types are West-African Vodun, Haitian Vodou, and New Orleans Voodoo. In here the dimensions of the religions are told by taking parts of all these types, mostly from Haitian Vodou and West-African Vodun. West-African Vodun is the oldest type of Vodou and the one from where the other Vodous have originated from. It is a collection of traditional religions of West-African ethnic groups. Each of these groups differs a bit and have some different believes or practices. West-African…show more content… Vodou is an animist and spiritist religion that believes that everything (humans, animals, and inanimate objects) has a spirit. Vodou also believes that all life is intertwined, for example spiritual and material world are connected together as well as the world of the living and dead. Vodouisants believe in a supreme being/god called bondye, making Vodou in some way monotheistic. However this god does not live in this world and lets lesser spirits, the Lwas, to control the earth. People interact with the spirits as they are important in everyday life. For example people consult them if they have problems with anything. There are two main groups for the Lwa, Rada-Lwa and Petro-Lwa. Rada spirits are colder, calmer, and older spirits originating mostly from Africa, when Petro spirits are hotter spirits coming mostly from Haiti. Neither of these groups represents good or evil. Interestingly, due to Roman Catholic connections, Haitian Vodou has parallel Christian Saints for the Lwas. Vodouisants also believe in evil spirits and afterlife. Furthermore each person in Vodou has a relationship with one specific spirit “met tet”, who controls their head. Lastly Vodouisants believe that everyone has a two part soul, consisting of gros bon ange (big good angel) and ti bon ange (small good…show more content… Vodou has no actual own written text, but for example in Haiti they believe in the Ten Commandments and some other Roman Catholic rules. Vodou believes in that what you do to another you do to yourself which is close to the golden rule of the Bible, but they still have no written ethical and moral law. Community can also decide which is correct behavior and morally good. They also consult Lwas for advice which may vary because of their different natures of the