Move your mouse around the picture to learn about some of the things included on an Vodou alter honoring Gede, the lwa of death and sex.
Category Archives: Vodou Temples
Lakou Souvnans
by Claire Payton Lakou Souvnans has the largest and grandest temple in the Gonaives area. At Souvnans, practitioners honors and preserves the Dahomey (or Rada) traditions, which are traced to the African kingdom of Dahomey, or present day Benin. Loa associated with the Rada tradition include Danbala Wedo, and Ayida Wedo. When we arrived at …
Lakou Badjo
by Claire Payton Lakou Badjo is the lesser known of the three major Gonaives Vodou temples. Badjo maintains the Nago traditions, which are traced to the Yourba people of West Africa. The Nago pantheon is mainly the Ogou family of loa, which are known as warriors and leaders. The temple at Badjo was dedicated to …
Lakou Soukri
by Claire Payton Our first visit was to Lakou Soukri, outside of Gonaives. Soukri preserves the Congo traditions. The festival of Soukri, one of Haiti’s most important pilgrimages, begins the night of August 14th and continue for two weeks. The celebrations include rituals, dance, meals, ritual baths, music and artistic expressions of all sorts. Like …