Voodoo Like To Hear A Story?

Greetings Dear Reader!

Warning: Reading any further may cause uneasiness and create a dull the atmosphere around you.

Voodoo. To start with, Voodoo is NOT about a wax doll with pins pinched on it. Voodoo is one of the world's most ancient religions. The religion which arrived in the West during the slave trading days. The basis of this religion came from Africa. The Voodoo is practiced widely in Haiti where a variety of ethnic groups amalgamated their traditions into this form of religion in the past.

The word Voodoo is derived from the word 'Vodun' from the African Fon Language, which means 'divinity' or 'spirit'. Thus the roots of the Voodoo religion lie in the ancient Egyptian pyramids where the slaves of the Kings or the Pharaohs could not forget what they saw after they were released post many years of slavery.

The central meaning of the Voodoo worship is God, ancestral worship and reincarnation. It is to be noted that Heaven and Hell do not exist in Voodooism because the followers believe in reincarnation. They believe that the universe is connected. The deeds of a person influence his next life. Someone who has been a good, honest and loyal person during his lifetime has a chance to ascend to the God and are given the power and influence. On the other hand, if a person who has been rude, dishonest and offensive during his lifetime will be born again as a human and begin a new life cycle. It is also possible that he will be punished by the God.

The practitioners of Voodoo believe that the world of humans is shared by the world of spirits. When a person dies, his spirit is believed to be passed to the world of the unseen yet is still able to see the world of humans.It is also believed that spirits can affect the human world. Voodoo includes rites, chants and the use of variety of Voodoo supplies including dolls and candles.

But then what makes this practice so scary as it is? Believe it or not, the story is as follows-

Voodoo was originated when it was used by Tituba, a slave girl, who was reported to have given the power of the witches of Salem. The Voodoo Queen is a title served to heavily famed Voodoo practitioners and was given to appreciate their accomplishments in the Voodoo arts. Voodoo Queens became central figures to Voodoo in the US in the 19th century. They earned an income by administering charms and amulets and offering magical powders which guaranteed to cure ailments or fulfill one's wishes and even destroy one's enemies.

A Voodoo Doll stabbed with pins

Few of the magical powers of the Voodoo practitioners are written below-

• The ability to move objects with the power of mind.

• To move from one location to another in an instant of time without physically occupying the space in between.

• To produce and eerie scream called 'War Cry' that causes all the people who hear it capable of making enemies to fight their own allies.

• An incense to remove jinxes and clearing away evil spirits using an incense, a lock of hair and a Voodoo doll.

The Voodoo Dance

Following are the rituals performed by Voodoo practitioners-

• They consist of a magic circle and sacrifice of animals; snake being the most important.

• Voodoo can actually inject fertility in a woman. During this ritual, the priestess performs a ritual dance, consuming hot guinea pepper which attracts the spirit and then sacrificing a goat. The blood of the goat is spit on the belly of the wannabe woman, who sleeps for four days and nights after the ritual.

• A Voodoo doll doesn't actually symbolize a person. Instead, the doll is usually attached with a picture of the person in question or something that was in intimate contact with the person, like a lock of hair or their perfume. The purpose of the Voodoo straight pin usually seen in a Voodoo doll is commonly believed to be stabbed as an instrument of pain.

A Voodoo Doll

• Another ritual consists of levitating a corpse and while the corpse is in the air, its eyes are rolled back and the priest controls the zombies. This ritual includes sacrificing a snake and drinking its blood. This power is most commonly known as 'Necromancy'.

The rituals and beliefs of Voodoo exist till date which force us to believe that evil forces are as much necessary as the good ones to balance the world with a fine line between what is right and what is not. To conclude this post, I'd like to declare the possibility that any of the beliefs/rituals/powers mentioned above MAY NOT BE true. As the practitioners of Voodoo are reserved and little exposed to the other world, very little is known about them which may not always be true. It is possible that the references that I took while writing this post may be unreliable. Having said this I'd like you to know one last thing, I DO NOT intend to support/preach/disrespect any religion or its practices and rituals.

Calling it a day, I thought that you'd like to know that tomorrow is the birth anniversary of a renowned politician, leader and dictator. Therefore we shall discuss his life and times in the next post. Till then you can share your views/suggestions in comments below. Bye!