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Has voodoo been misjudged? - BBC

News
By Pumza Fihlani BBC News, Ouidah, Benin
9-12 minutes

Image caption The Temple of Pythons in Benin is considered a sacred

place by voodoo followers

While many African traditions and cultures are under threat from
modern life, there is one which is holding its own - voodoo.

It has suffered from a bad press internationally but is an official

religion in the West African country of Benin.

In the voodoo heartland of Ouidah, the sound of drums fills the air,
while men and women dressed mainly in white take turns to dance

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around a bowl of millet, a freshly slaughtered chicken and alcohol.

These are the day's offering at the Temple of Pythons.

They have an audience of about 60 people who have gathered

from nearby towns for an annual cleansing ceremony.

Inside the temple, where more than 50 snakes are slithering around
a custom-made pit, local devotees make amends for sins of the
past year.

Blood, snakes and power

In voodoo, the python is a symbol of strength - the devotees explain

they are relying on Dagbe, the spirit whose temple this is, to give
them the power to change.

And to make that change happen, blood must be spilled.

Image caption Animal sacrifices are an important part of voodoo

ceremonies - an offering to appease the spirits

The first offering is a chicken - some of the blood is spread across

the tiles of the temple and the rest is mixed into a communal bowl

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of millet - which the devotees eat as it is passed around.

Voodoo is rooted in the worship of nature and ancestors - and the

belief that the living and the dead exist side by side - a dual world
that can be accessed through various deities.

Its followers believe in striving to live in peace and to always do

good - that bad intentions will not go unpunished, a similar concept
to Christians striving for "righteousness" and not "sinning".

Image caption Voodoo believers communicate with their gods through

prayers and meditation

Modest estimates put voodoo followers here at at least 40% of

Benin's population. Some 27% classify themselves as Christians
and 22% Muslims.

But expert on African religions and traditions Dodji Amouzouvi, a

professor of sociology and anthropology, says many people
practice "dual religion".

"There is a popular saying here: 'Christian during the day and

voodoo at night'. It simply means that even those who follow other

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faiths always return to voodoo in some way," he tells me.

Slaughtering animals is not unique to voodoo

To illustrate the closeness of the two faiths, there is a Basilica

opposite the Temple of Pythons in the town square.

"At the moment many people here in Benin feel let down by the
establishment, there are no jobs," Mr Amouzouvi.

"People are turning to voodoo to pray for better times."

But how did voodoo get exported to places such as New Orleans
and Haiti?

At the edge of the sea in Ouidah stands La Porte du Non-Retour

"The Door of No Return" - a stone arch monument with carvings of
men and women in chains walking in a procession towards a ship.

Image caption The Door of No Return is a reminder of Benin's painful slave

history

It was from this point that many thousands of African slaves were
packed into ships and taken to the Americas - the only thing they
took with them was voodoo, which they clung to as a reminder of

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home.

They continued to practise it, at times being beaten if caught by the

slave masters.

This made some even more determined to keep it alive, according

to reports.

Some practices in voodoo can appear threatening to the outsider -

the slaughtering of animals have in part earned the faith its
unflattering image, some say.

The image of voodoo went wrong from the first encounter

But Mr Amouzouvi says voodoo is not all that different to other

faiths.

"Many religions recognise blood as a source of power, a sign of life.

In Christianity it's taught that there is power in the blood of Jesus,"
he says.

"Voodoo teaches that there is power in blood, it can appease gods,

give thanks. Animals are seen as an important part of the voodoo
practice."

Regine Romaine, an academic with a keen interest in voodoo,

agrees.

"The African experience is open for all to see - people are invited to
witness the ceremonies, the slaughtering and that same openness
has been judged whereas it isn't in other systems like the Islamic
and Jewish faiths," she tells me.

"Slaughtering animals is not unique to voodoo. If you go to the

kosher deli or buy halaal meat, it's been killed and allowed to bleed
out before being shared.

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"Ultimately, the gaze on voodoo over the years has not been one of
love - that's why it's been given a bad image."

Ms Romaine is of Haitian and US heritage.

She first learned about voodoo from her aunt in Haiti - she travelled
on a pilgrimage to retrace the "slave route" and her last stop was
here in Benin where she has been living for more than a year.

'Voodoo is not evil'

According to Ms Romaine, voodoo's bad image abroad has a lot to

do with what people have seen in Hollywood films.

"The image of voodoo went wrong from the first encounter - from
the first visitors to the continent, the anthropologists who didn't
understand what they were seeing and from that came a lot of
xenophobic writing," she says.

"It was also worsened by the US invasion of Haiti much later, which
gave rise to Hollywood's fascination with the horror stories that all
had voodoo."

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Back at the ceremony, the processing of devotees has now moved

to the town square for the final stage of the rituals.

There is more drumming, singing, dancing and after four animals

are killed and cooked inside three large flaming pots of clay, the
meat inside is shared by all those who have attended the day's
proceedings.

The Regional High Priest of Voodoo Daagbo Hounon is presiding

over the day's rituals.

He is dressed in ceremonial robes, with a striking top hat, and

holding a staff made from cowry shells.

Image caption Regional High Priest of Voodoo Daagbo Hounon says

voodoo has been unfairly judged by outsiders over the years

He is a big man with a booming voice and speaks passionately

about their belief system - he tells me that their faith is
misunderstood.

"Voodoo is not evil. It's not the devil," he says.

"If you believe and someone thinks badly of you and tries to harm

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to you, voodoo will protect you. Some say it is the devil, we don't
believe in the devil and even if he exists, he's not here," he tells me.

He is keen to welcome international visitors.

The small town offers an "initiation" from people from all over the
world to come and learn about the practice - from how to use herbal
medication, how to pray and meditate, how to perform rituals for the
gods.

High Priest Hounon says the programme is popular with tourists

from the US, Cuba and parts of Europe.

For many West Africans in the diaspora, voodoo has become a

symbolic coming home.

Image caption Ceremonies are a chance for young and old to come
together and celebrate

Ms Romaine, who is also member of that diaspora, believes

voodoo is successful because it provides a connection to a
neglected identity.

She tells me that voodoo is gaining appeal in the US amongst

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young people.

"There is a shift especially in the Americas. The younger generation

now want to proclaim their identity in a way that the previous
generation was perhaps more intimidated to do and spiritual identity
is a part of that. For some voodoo meets that need."

The government here in Benin is committed to upholding the

practice.

In the mid 1990s it built a monument to voodoo in a place known as

the sacred forest - an ancient place of worship on the edge of town.

Life-sized metal and wooden totems have pride of place amongst

the towering trees - this place is meant to help teach young people
here about their voodoo heritage.

With the government supporting it at home and the descendants of

slaves embracing it abroad, the ancient voodoo tradition has found
a place in the modern world, where other African belief systems are
often struggling for relevance.

Read more from Pumza on Africa's disappearing cultures:

'I would prefer to die than see my traditions die out'

'Only three people speak my language'

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