Veves in Voodoo

Voodoo & Hoodoo

Voodoo (and Hoodoo as well, because not being a religion unlike Voodoo, Hoodoo is based on the same entities, the same divine spirits.) is a religion native to Africa which combines the elements of nature and supernatural spirits. Voodoo magic developed mainly in Benin then spread to Haiti with the deportation of many slaves in the 15th century who took their beliefs and traditions with them.

Symbolically, the name voodoo represents a supernatural and all-powerful being. Voodoo beliefs are based on the spirits (the Loas), their functions, their classifications and to this are added rites carried out by priests (Hougan) and priestesses (Manbo). Rites intended to honor divinities, genies and ancestral spirits.

The Loas (or Lwas) are not deities in themselves, they are incarnations of God who manifests himself in several forms. In addition, vévé are symbolic writing of spirits in the form of a drawing or pattern. “

(For my part, I invite you to find out more if you are interested, Voodoo is fascinating in many of its aspects, whether in the practices or the symbolic ones, as well as its roots and the history which generated the evolution of this religion – in Voodoo, the rites adapt and evolve according to the times.)

✦ Loa Loco

I start with Loco, who is a Loa guardian of sanctuaries but also of vegetation and healers.
He is a personification of nature and especially trees, and he would never part with his pipe and cane during his appearances. The offerings offered to him are placed in bags hung on the branches of the sacred tree.

✦ Great Brigitte

Guardian of tombs and Loa of cemeteries, Brigitte or Maman Brigitte is the queen of the Guédés, the spirits of death.
Grande Brigitte protects tombstones and cemeteries, provided they are properly provided with crosses.

We invoke Maman Brigitte to wake the dead in order to heal and save those who are on the verge of death. Also a healer, it is particularly effective on illnesses caused by spells.

Wife of Baron Samedi, they are both attached to the cemeteries, and they are shared in this way: If the first person buried in a cemetery is a woman, it belongs to Grande Brigitte. Otherwise, the cemetery is for Baron Samedi.

✦ Damballah Wédo & Aïda Wédo

Damballah is the primordial creator, symbolized by an earth serpent.
Aïda Wédo is the guardian of the cosmic treasure, and is symbolized by a celestial serpent.
Like her husband, Damballah, Ayida Wedo is a great cosmic loa that wraps itself around the world, making creation possible.
These two spirits represent the cosmic force.
They form the rainbow which symbolizes their alliance