Orisha-based religions
    over 60 million practitioners worldwide
slavery
    the Gold Coast & the Congo Basin
    most Orisha-based religions were officially banned
    all are socially disapproved of by the dominant culture
    syncretism
    movement for de-syncretism
Vodun / Vodoun / Sevi Lwa
    Dahomey
        parts of modern Togo, Benin and Nigeria
        the gold coast
        slavery
            Haiti and other islands in the West Indies
        Yoruba people
    dervived from African word for spirit
    Roman Catholicsm
    Loa
        mysteries
        Olorun
            supreme god
        Obatala
            creator god
        Rada
            minor spirits originating in Dahomey
        Petro
            minor spirits added later
            often deceased leaders
        veneration of ancestors
    hounfour / humfort
        houngan / hungan - priest
        mambo - priestess
        hounsis - students studying Vodun
        ritual
            feast before
            creation of veve
                unique to each Loa
            rattle and drums
                cleansed and purified
            chanting
            dancing
                possession by Loa
                possessed behaves as Loa
                treated with respect & ceremony by others
            animal sacrifice
                goat, sheep, chicken, or dog
                killed by slitting throat
                blood collected
                    possessed may drink some of the blood
                animal usually cooked and eaten
                    method of consecrating food
                    consumption by followers, gods and ancestors
    each person has two protective spirits
        gros bon ange / met tet
            - big guardian angel / - master of the head
        ti bon ange
            - little guardian angel
    caplatas / bokors
        practicioners of evil sorcery / "left-handed" Vodun
        zombie
            blowfish
        voodoo doll
            similar to European poppet magic
            fetishes mistaken for voodoo dolls
Hoodoo
    not a religion
    African-American folk magic
        slave traditions
        some Native American herbalism
        European folklore and folk magic
    conjuring / conjuration
    rootwork
        prominent role of dried roots of plants in charms & spells
    witchcraft
    the pow-wow connection
        German-Jewish chemist / manufacturers
        John George Hohman
            Pow-Wows or The Long Lost Friend
Voodoo
    media mis-portrayal of Vodun
Regla de Ocha / Lukumi
    also called La Regla Lucumi
    called Santeria in comparative religion
        has a derogatory connotation
    Cuba
    Yoruba
    Bantu-speaking groups of the Congo region
    Roman Catholicism
    Kardecist Spiritism
        Allen Kardec
            1804-1869
            considered the father of Spiritism
            real name - Hypolyte Leon Denizard Rivail
            pseudonym originated from mediumistic communications
                both "Allan" and "Kardec" were his names in previous incarnations
            Le Livre des Esprits
                - The Spirits' Book, 1856
                a new theory of human life and destiny
            Le Livre Des Mediums
                - The Medium's Book, 1864
                a source of guidance and information of mediumship and mediumistic development
    Olorun / OlŪd˜marĖ
        supreme deity / creator of the universe
        Orishas
            lesser guardians
    ashe
        - growth, the force toward completeness and divinity
        belief that the real world is one of pure movement
        not of objects, but of forces in continual process
    veneration of ancestors
        ara orun
            - people of heaven
    secrecy
        initiation into faith before information is released
    oral tradition
    ritual
        begins with the invocation of Olurun
        drumming
            the oru or rhythm associated with a specific Orisha
            who is invoked
        animal sacrifice
            an integral part of many rituals
            blood is collected and offered to Orisha
        dancing
            possession
    priesthood
        santeros / babalochas - priest
        santeras or Iyalocha - priestess
        olorisha - priest or priestess
        trained for many years in oral tradition of faith
        followed by a period of solitude before being initiated
        learn dance, songs and healing methods
    botanicas
        - stores that specialize in providing religious supplies
        sell charms, herbs, potions, musical instruments, & other materials used by followers
Candomble
    also called Macumba
        derogatory term refering to "evil magic / witchcraft"
        Quimbanda works "for evil"
            a simplistic interpretation
                the ambivalence between good and evil
                    a characteristic of the fundamental myths of these religions
                    conceives of the cosmos as divided between different factions
                        which relate to each other through mystical attacks and defenses
    Brazil
    Roman Catholicism
    Kardecist Spiritism [see Kardec above]
    Afro-Brazilian traditions
        South American Indian traditions
    Candomble
        - dance in honour of the gods
        Gege-Nago
            based on Yoruba and and Fon tradition
        Angola-Congo & Caboclo
            based on diverse Bantu and Brazilian sources
    Umbanda
        1900-1908
        NiterŪi, state of Rio de Janeiro
        Umbanda works "for good"
    Olodumare
        Exu
            messenger god
            trickster
        Orixas
            devotee belongs to several Orixas
                they control his destiny and act as his protectors
    possesion
        devotees can become possessed by the spirit of their orixa
    axe [see ashe above]
        supernatural force
        contained in and transmitted by representative elements
        three categories
            red blood
                animal kingdom (blood)
                vegetal kingdom (dende oil)
                mineral kingdom (copper)
            white blood
                animal kingdom (semen, saliva)
                vegetal kingdom (sap)
                mineral kingdom (chalk)
            black blood
                animal kingdom (animal ashes)
                vegetal kingdom (dark juice from certain vegetables)
                mineral kingdom (charcoal, iron)
    life occurs in two levels
        aiye
            the world, man's dwelling place
        orun
            beyond, the Orixa's dwelling place
            a world parallel to the real world
            coexists with all the contents of this one
            in distant times aiye and orun were connected
    terreiro
        temple / sacred space
        peji / alter
        equede(s) / priestess(es)
        iaos / "brides of the gods"
        spiritual leader
            babalorix· / pai de santo
            iyalorixa / mae de santo
        ogan
            drum players
        barracao
            - literally, large cabin
            public space
        casas dos Orixas
            - house of the Orixas
                for the initiated only
    divination
        buzios
            - cowry shells
        which two orixas guide you
        ori
            your "head"
        odu
            an individual's destiny
        ancestors
 
Escola Americana do Rio de Janeiro web site - Macumba
Lucky Mojo web site - Hoodoo
Ontario Consultants on Religous Tolerance web site - Santeria
Ontario Consultants on Religous Tolerance web site - Vodun
OrishaNet web site
Santeria, A Practical Guide to Afro-Caribbean Magic web site