Haitian Ritual Art

     Vodou. What is it and where did it come from those are two very good questions. It is a religion that honors and calls upon various African gods. According to the DVD "Black in Latin America" Vodou comes from the slave trading days of Haiti when Africans were taken from their native land and shipped to a French colony in Haiti and is still practiced today. In Haiti flags with sequence called drapo have been used in the Vodou religious worship to proclaim religious affiliation and spiritual militancy in devotion to lwa. Many of the contemporary flags are made of satin, velvet or rayon and often have sequins, beads, or applique attached to them(A History of Art in Africa pg. 533). As embodiments of spirit they incorporate the colors and symbols of the deity. A emblem called a veve, a ritual drawing on the ground to evoke the lwa. The central point of the crossing lines of the veve indicates a crossroads where the spiritual and physical worlds intersect, and where the spirit comes when invoked through the ritual. Some drapos have snakes on them this refers to a deity called Danbala associated with water, coolness, and wisdom. Some have hearts this refers to Ezili Freda, a female deity who is associated with love and affairs of the heart. A circular form refers to Simbi a water deity associated with healing. Campaigns to suppress the practice of Vodou in the 18th and 19th centuries led to strategies to maintain it behind the face of Catholicism, so while the drapo designs can be related to African deities they could also be masked by relation to a Catholic saint. The saints where incorporated into Vodou because there histories and qualities closely relate to those of a particular African deity.

Women being possessed during Vodou ceremony, Haiti

    
  
       Now I would like to share some of my thoughts about Vodou. Honestly learning about this for me was a little uncomfortable and scary. When we read the article about possession by spirits  and watched the DVD it made me uncomfortable because to me that isn't normal, but for the Haitians who practice Vodou it's very normal. Some people may watch that movie and think that it's not real and they fake it. Being a Christian I believe it's unfortunately all too real and this stuff could and does happen. Sadly they believe that they are being possessed by their gods or ancestors when in reality they're actually being possessed by demons pretending to be their gods so that the people will keep on believing and never find the truth. Satan is out there trying in every way he can to keep everyone from knowing the one true God and if that means taking on the identities of many false gods he will do just that. Some people believe that the western world has demonized Vodou and that it's not supposed to be like that unfortunately that's basically what it is demon worship. For me this was a very hard subject to get into because I don't believe in it and I believe that it's dangerous to mess with. Luke 8:12b in the Bible says, "then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved."1Peter 5:8 says, Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour."

                                                Bethany<><