Haitian Vodou Handbook: Protocols for Riding with the Lwa »

Kenaz Filan (Houngan Coquille du Mer) was initiated in Société la Belle Venus in March 2003 after 10 years of solitary service to the lwa. Filan is the author of The Haitian Vodou Handbook, Vodou Love Magic, and Drawing Down the Spirits, and has written articles for PanGaia, Planet Magazine, and Widdershins. Filan is managing editor of newWitch magazine and lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

SHAMANISM / INDIGENOUS CULTURES

“This highly readable book will be valuable to every reader interested in Haitian Vodou, and essential for those who want to make the transition from intellectual knowledge to personal experience of a profound and unfairly neglected religion.”
--John Michael Greer, author of The New Encyclopedia of the Occult, A World Full of Gods, and The Druidry Handbook

The Haitian Vodou Handbook explains how to build respectful relationships with the lwa, the spirits honored in Haitian Vodou, and how to transform the fear that often surrounds the Vodou religion. Until recently, the Haitian practice of Vodou was often identified with devil worship, dark curses, and superstition. Some saw the saint images and the Catholic influences and wrote Vodou off as a “Christian aberration.” Others were appalled by the animal sacrifices and the fact that the houngans and mambos charge money for their services. Those who sought Vodou because they believed it could harness “evil” forces were disappointed when their efforts to gain fame, fortune, or endless romance failed and so abandoned their “voodoo fetishes.” Those who managed to get the attention of the lwa, often received cosmic retaliation for treating the lwa as attack dogs or genies, which only further cemented Vodou’s stereotype as “dangerous.”

Kenaz Filan, an initiate of the Societé la Belle Venus, offers extensive background information on the featured lwa, including their mythology and ancestral lineage, as well as specific instructions on how to honor and interact fruitfully with those that make themselves accessible. This advice will be especially useful for the solitary practitioner who doesn’t have the personal guidance of a societé available. Filan emphasizes the importance of having a quickened mind that can read the lwa’s desires intuitively in order to avoid establishing dogma-based relationships. This working guide to successful interaction with the full Vodou pantheon also presents the role of Vodou in Haitian culture and explores the symbiotic relationship Vodou has maintained with Catholicism.

KENAZ FILAN (Houngan Coquille du Mer) was initiated into Societé la Belle Venus in New York City in 2003 after ten years of solitary service to the lwa. Filan’s articles on Vodou have appeared in newWitch, PanGaia, and Planet magazines and in the pagan community newspaper Widdershins.

Publishers Weekly

Vodou is not what most people think. It's not "devil worship, dark curses, and drumbeat-driven orgies performed at midnight," poking needles at dolls or simple superstition. With over a decade of service to the lwa (the deities of Vodou) and membership in Societ la Belle Venus #2, a Vodou temple in Brooklyn, Filan sets out to right these pulpy perspectives of what in reality is a complex African diaspora spirituality and a form of worship that marries the secular and the spiritual. Of course, Vodou is not without its dangers, since "the lwa can wreak a frightening vengeance." It's not foolproof, either; without proper initiation into addressing the lwa, they will simply ignore you. But Filan aspires to give potential initiates the proper tools for communicating with the deities of Vodou (like Mama Danto, who protects, and Papa Damballah, who brings peace). In the process, he shares the rich and at times disturbing history of its practitioners (especially the oppression and racism faced during slavery) and offers a litany of everything necessary to practice Vodou on an individual level, from knowledge of the tradition's most important symbols, rites, myths and spells to an extensive list of further resources and Vodou-related Web sites, music and even charities. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Preface

PART ONE
Where Are We Going, Where Have We Been?

Introduction to Part One

1 Some Words of Caution . . . The Dangers of Haitian Vodou

2 The Roots of Haitian Vodou

PART TWO
Vodou Today

Introduction to Part Two

3 The Mysteries: Bondye and the Lwa

4 The Peristyle: Sacred Space in Vodou

5 Implements: The Tools of Vodou

6 Practices: The Techniques of Haitian Vodou

PART THREE
The Lwa

Introduction to Part Three

The Rada Lwa

7 Legba

8 The Marassa

9 Loko and Ayizan

10 Damballah

11 Agwe and La Sirene

12 Ezili Freda

13 Filomez and Klemezin

14 Zaka

15 Ogou

The Petwo Lwa

16 Kalfou

17 Ezili Danto

18 Bossou

19 Simbi

20 Gran Bwa

21 Ibo

22 The Djabs

The Ghede Lwa

23 The Ghede

24 The Bawon and Brigitte

25 The Ancestors

PART FOUR
Ceremonies and Wanga

Introduction to Part Four

26 Illuminations

27 Actions De Grace

28 The Lave Tet

29 The Garde (Gad)

30 The Maryaj Lwa

31 Kanzo

32 Wanga

Conclusion: The Next Step--Seeking a Teacher

Resources Notes Glossary Index