HOW TO PERFORM A VOODOO CEREMONY

 

Traditional Voodoo ceremonies are a big event. There is a lot of food and drinks, many people, and dancing all night long. Depending on what lwa is being summoned, certain songs and dances are performed. In a Voodoo ceremony, they never mix the lwa families together. There are individual spaces and times for each lwa family. 

Voodoo practitioners recognize one supreme higher power known as Bondye. Bondye is too large and powerful to intervene in petty human affairs, so the lwas are summoned to the ceremonies for help and guidance. Before the lwas are summoned, a prayer is given to Bondye. After that initial prayer, the lwa Papa Legba is addressed for permission to speak to the other lwas. Papa lega is like the gatekeeper between the two worlds, the physical and the spiritual. 

Bondye is the architect of the universe. The master of all masters. If he does not permit a prayer or request to manifest, it won’t happen. The most powerful hougon or mambo can’t work their magic if it is not permitted by Bondye. The practitioners of voodoo are just transmitters of Bondye and the lwas. 

Voodoo is a very fluid spiritual practice. It can change form depending on the time, location, and the practitioners. Voodoo in Haiti has adopted many of the Catholic holidays due to the slave trade. A lot of major ceremonies are around the same time as Christmas, New Years, Easter, and so on. 

Voodoo traditions and techniques are not recorded on paper. It is passed down from generation to generation verbally and through practice. For this reason, different regions and communities have their own spin to it, but the core practices are the same. This is why Voodoo was able to survive over the years. The adaptability of the practice gives it room to grow and transform. 

The Poto Mitan is an important part of the Voodoo ceremony. It is a pole in the middle of the space where the ceremony is held. This pole can be the structure that holds the tent roof up, or it can be a tree or any other cylindrical object in the center of the event. The Poto Mitan is significant to the ceremony because it is used as the channel that the lwas use to travel from the heavens down to Earth to participate in the ceremony. 

Certain songs and dances are performed to summon certain lwas. The lwas will come down the Poto Mitan then through the floor and possess a member of the ceremony. That person who is possessed is called a horse. The horse’s spirit no longer occupies that body. The body belongs to the lwa. The lwa is there to answer questions, join the festivities, and give guidance and blessings to their children.

The horse is not aware that the lwa has taken over their body. The horse is not even addressed as the original owner of the body. The horse is addressed as the lwa that occupies the body. The lwa can be very physical with the horse. The lwa is having a good time at the party. The person that is possessed has no control at this point. After the possession, the horse can be very exhausted and could even be physically hurt. 

Certain foods are made at the event because each lwa is known to like particular dishes. Everybody at the ceremony will enjoy at least one plate of food. The host of the ceremony prepares the food and drinks before and during the ceremony. A lot of food is required because a great amount of energy is spent on dancing all night.

This is the way a traditional ceremony is carried out. A voodoo practitioner can have a ceremony with a smaller number of people or by themselves to communicate with the lwas. That person will use their altar to communicate with certain lwas by putting offerings on the altar that that particular lwa likes. That person can also perform the certain songs and dances that are synonymous with that lwa or lwa family.  The important thing is to perform the rituals in the right order.

First you say your prayers to Bondye. After that, you have to communicate with Papa Legba because he is the gatekeeper between the worlds. Then, you have to deal with each lwa family one at a time and not together. Also, when you deal with the different lwa families, there is a particular order to address them. 

There are many different lwa families, but the main three are the Rada, the Petro, and the Gede. You must deal with those families in that order. 

Before I go into more lessons about Voodoo, I want to give you a fair warning. Voodoo is a powerful spiritual practice. I suggest that you practice it with people that are familiar with the culture and the rituals. You do not want to go around and play with this mystic artform without all the facts and precautions.

Voodoo is a practice that deals with live spirits. A lot of the spirits that are summoned are from an extremely turbulent time. Many of the spirits are from the era of slavery and torchure. Most of the spirits walked and talked on the Earth at a time. The thing about dealing with actual spirits is that they have their own agendas. 

When you deal with the spirits of the ancestors, you just can’t control them as you would a thought form. A thought form is created in the mind. This type of entity can be shaped and molded to the creator’s desires. The spirits, on the other hand, within the Voodoo practice are the spirits of the dead. You have to accept them as they are. 

The last thing you want to do is communicate with a spirit that doesn’t see things from your perspective or share your objectives. In Voodoo, you serve the spirits; the spirits don’t serve you. In Voodoo, you form a relationship with the spirits. You give the spirits offerings. If the spirit wants your love or friendship it will help you. 

In Voodoo, there are a lot of ceremonies and rituals that consist of houngans, mambos, and other participants. If you are interested in Voodoo, try to go to these events where the people involved are experienced. If you can’t find these functions, deal with somebody that knows what they are doing. 

When it comes to spellwork, Voodoo is known to get some of the best results. Love spells, protection spells, revenge spells, and much more are performed by the Voodoo specialists. If you are determined to go about the practice on your own, play it safe and deal with the lwas from the Ghede family. 

The Ghede family lwas and spirits like to have fun, and they are more understanding of the average person’s life and struggles. Spirits from the Ghede family are from more modern times. Spirits from this family can be close relatives of yours. They could be friends or people that walked similar paths as yours. 

The important thing is that you do a thorough research before you perform Voodoo spells and rituals on your own. There are parts of the Voodoo practice that you can add to your spiritual journey that are safe and beneficial. Dancing to get into a trance state, showing love to the ancestors, and giving offerings to the spirits are some of the things that can be extracted from the voodoo practice and added to your mystical tool box. 

Thanks for checking out this manifesto. SupremeMoonBeam. Peace.