Mysteries and Secrets of Voodoo, Santeria, and Obeah

by Lionel

  Green, for a colour therapist, is the colour of healing and overcoming the passing years. Green is thought to be able to take a patient back to a time when he or she was younger, healthier, stronger, and more energetic. Green is regarded by colour therapists as particularly relevant to healing broken bones or other tissues that have been injured or damaged by illness.

  In Santeria, black and green are associated with the Orisha named Oggun, who corresponds to Saint Peter in the syncretism of Orishas and saints. He is the Orisha of work and energy. Green is also sacred to Oshosi, known alternatively as Saint Norbert. Oshosi is regarded as a hunter god who lives in wild and lonely places.

  In colour therapy, blue represents serenity, peace, tranquility, and harmony. It is useful against fever because it is a cooling colour. It helps to reconstruct the patient mentally, physically, and spiritually. It is also thought of as a protective colour, guarding a patient against infection. In Santeria, blue and white are strongly associated with Yemayá, the prolific mother goddess of the sea. (The variant spellings of the Orishas’ names means that Yemayá can also be written in many forms, including Yemoja, Yemonja, Yemana, and Imanja.)

  Oggun, the Orisha of work and energy.

  Colour therapists maintain that indigo is one of the most dynamic and important of all the healing colours: they believe that its beneficial effects work on the mind and spirit as well as on the physical body. It improves the lymph system and glandular functions in general and reinforces the immune system. It is also thought to have valuable detoxifying properties and is believed to purify the blood and improve muscle tone. Colour therapists also believe that it can be used as an anesthetic, and that patients in an indigo environment can lose sensitivity to pain without losing consciousness. In Orishan tradition, Yemayá is the one who dyes cloth indigo.

  Violet, easily confused with purple, is the last of the colours on the spectrum, and has a shorter wavelength than blue. Purple, technically, is not a colour of the spectrum but rather a mixture of red and blue light. In colour therapy, it is believed that purple is helpful for patients suffering with nerve disorders. Purple is also thought to help reduce pain, to benefit patients with rheumatism, and to help those who are suffering from epilepsy. In Santeria and the associated syncretistic religions, Nana is thought of as the mother of the Orishas. Purple is one of the colours linked with her worship.

  During a Santerian healing ceremony, the worshippers wear the colours associated with their Orishas, and appropriately tinted cloths and ribbons will be swirled during the rhythmic dancing and the chanting of healing prayers.

  In addition to healing ceremonies, Voodoo, Candomblé, Santeria, Lucumi, and the other mysterious, syncretistic religions are frequently concerned with prophecy, divination, and foretelling the future. These religions generally have an understood hierarchical structure for their religious leaders. A general term of respect for the priest in charge of an ile (or temple) is Babalorisha, meaning “father of the Orishas.” The priestess in charge would be known equally respectfully as Iyalorisha, meaning “mother of the Orishas.” The very special rank of ifa is awarded to those religious leaders who are believed to be in contact with Orunmila, the Orisha of prophecy and future knowledge. The title Babalawo, meaning “the father who has the secrets,” is used as a term of respect for such an ifa priest.

  Before investigating Santerian divination ceremonies in depth, it is essential to consider the underlying philosophical and theological principles behind any form of apparent prophecy. Belief in human freedom of choice, and the power of genuine decision-making, means that at any moment, any person can make a decision that will affect his or her future — and the future of others.

  A kind-hearted, moral, and ethical person wins a huge sum of dollars on a lottery. That good person then decides to build orphanages and retirement homes, which in turn vastly improve the quality of life of their residents. Another person decides to try drugs and in time becomes an addict — so desperate now for the next fix that murder and robbery are used to pay for it. The addict’s life and the lives of his victims are ruined. Human beings are free to make good or bad decisions. Every person has an infinite number of choices to make all the time, and those choices steer the future.

  Divination makes sense only when there is a belief system that includes fate and predestination. Of course, as with many of the other great questions of metaphysics, philosophy, and theology, the argument between predestination and free will cannot be definitively resolved. A believer in human freedom will be quite certain that he or she has freely decided to buy a dog, go to the cinema, or take a holiday in Canada. The predestinationists will argue that God, fate, or destiny put it into the subject’s head to take the particular course that he or she chose. For predestinationists, the apparent free choice is only an illusion. People merely deceive themselves into thinking that they made the decision.

  Most Santerians would broadly accept that they have a preordained path to follow, and so it is important for them to find out how well they are following these paths — and to try to ascertain what is coming next along that path!

  One of the most interesting and elaborate Santerian ways of doing this is by a technique known as merindilogun — a form of divination that uses sixteen cowry shells. This is a very ancient technique, and, in one form or another, may well have been used for millennia. In its modern Santerian form, it is governed by the Orisha Orunla, the keeper of memories, whose name can also be spelled Orunmila. Within Orunla’s vast reservoir of knowledge, the destiny of every human life — past, present, and future — is stored. The Babalawo, acting for and with Orunla, can reveal an individual’s path of destiny when certain Santerian ceremonies are correctly performed. Another Orisha involved in the sixteen-cowry–shell divination method is Eleggua, the messenger, the communicator, whose services facilitate the work of the other Orishas, the Babalawo, and the worshipper who has come to discover more about his or her destiny.

  Some worshippers come seeking guidance because they feel that there is something missing in their lives: they think that perhaps they are not following their preordained paths as closely as they should. Other enquirers are concerned about money, health, and family relationships. In certain cases, worshippers claim to have received answers to questions that they did not ask but that were hidden below the surface questions that were asked. This is part of the deep understanding and trust that has to exist between the Santerian priest and the enquirer.

  The process of using the cowry shells is also known as the registro, and has a great deal in common with the ancient and revered Chinese I-Ching system. Is it possible that ancient African cowry shell techniques were known and used in China? In which direction did the secrets move?

  One I-Ching technique, for example, uses sixteen marbles or beads. These must all be of the same size and shape, but four different colours are used. It is not difficult to connect this sixteen-bead method with the Santerian registro; the colours on the Chinese marbles could link with the special colours allocated to the Orishas.

  The Santerian obi divination system is also similar, but uses a coconut broken into four pieces instead of sixteen cowry shells.

  The Ukuele is a method of divination reserved for those who have attained Babalawo ranks. A necklace of eight specially prepared coins, or eight pieces of carved and polished coconut shell, is dropped, and the divination is based on the patterns made by the eight concave-convex discs. The discs can produce 256 possible combinations. The Babalawo interprets these patterns in terms of folk tales, fables, and proverbs from the remote past. The way that the Orisha heroes overcame their problems in these stories guides the enquirers as to how they should deal with their own contemporary difficulties.

  The most serious and solemn of the Santerian divinations is known as the table of ifa. It is a tray on which there are various writings and carvings, on which yefa powder is sprinkled. The original African yefa powder was apparently obtained from the residue left by termites che
wing wood; it was duly sanctified and purified before being used for divination. Other varieties are obtained by drying and powdering roots.

  Santerian spells and charms are in constant high demand. Many of these aim at attracting love, money, success, and fame. Those categories can be subdivided in various ways, but like the great majority of human beings, Santerian worshippers seek happiness, stable personal relationships, prosperity, admiration, respect, safety, and security.

  All of these understandably desirable goals, towards which the “magical” element of the mysterious syncretistic religions is frequently directed, have happiness as a common denominator. Worshippers who request Santerian help to achieve strong, loyal, loving, and enjoyable human relationships seek such relationships because they bring great happiness. Seekers of wealth and prosperity want to use them to buy the luxuries and comforts that they think will increase their happiness. Social respect, admiration, and fame are also sought after as a path to happiness. The universe, of which our earth is a microscopically tiny part, is an extremely hazardous place. The security and safety that human beings crave are only additional routes to happiness. Therefore, pure and simple, it can be argued that happiness is the real objective of all types of enchantment.

  How does Santeria set out to provide the happiness that its worshippers are looking for? Santeria demands high moral and ethical standards regarding a worshipper’s attitude and behaviour towards other worshippers — and towards other people in general, whether they are Santerians or not. Because of this, Santeria is already well on the way to operating the basic formula for achieving happiness for its members. Psychologically, happiness and love both possess a real but paradoxical quality. When people seek genuinely and altruistically to give love and happiness to others, the love and happiness given rebound upon the giver in greater magnitude.

  At the heart of Santerian faith is the basic ethical teaching that the one supreme, creating, sustaining God — and his powerful servants, the benign Orishas — want human beings to love one another and to do their best to promote one another’s happiness. By teaching people to love one another in this way, Santeria is really teaching them to be happy themselves. This central truth is so close to the teachings of Jesus that it becomes easier to understand how Santeria, Obeah, and Candomblé developed as syncretistic faiths. The ancient Yoruba beliefs simply welded themselves to Christianity when African slaves confronted traditional European Catholicism from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries.

  Lucumi happiness spells work effectively during their ceremonies because those present really enjoy one another’s company and genuinely want to make their brothers and sisters happy — both during shared worship and in the workaday world outside their temple.

  One of the simple finance-as-a-path-to-happiness spells goes like this: Take gold, silver, or a note — say a $5 bill — and wrap it inside a clean, new, linen handkerchief, along with one, three, or seven small magnets. Put a few drops of holy oil — cedar wood oil is recommended — on the handkerchief. The package is then held up to a carving of Oshun — the Orisha of beauty, love, sex, sensuality, and money — that has been placed on the temple altar. The words of the spell are: “Oshun, good and powerful Orisha, grant your servant the blessing of wealth. By your power and kindness, let money come to me swiftly in my time of need.”

  This ceremony may be repeated to Saint Expedite, the Orisha who makes things happen quickly. Expedite, however, is not as uniformly benign and forgiving as Oshun. His image on the altar takes the form of a young and handsome Roman centurion. When Expedite answers a worshipper’s request by providing money, the Santerian tradition says that it is essential to buy flowers for him and place them with a prayer of gratitude beside his image on the altar. He also likes publicity, and Santerians who have prayed to him and had those prayers answered place a notice in the local paper acknowledging Saint Expedite’s power and thanking him for his help. Traditionally, those who forget to thank him are warned that there will be a death in the family if no praise and gratitude are forthcoming.

  There are probably several thousand Santerian spells aimed at attracting not only wealth and money but good luck and prosperity in general. One expert recommends putting coins and candles in every corner of your house, and then doing the same at street corners and at crossroads. The reasoning behind this particular spell is that it will please Elegua, who will then put his power at the disposal of the spell worker. Another Santerian idea intended to attract good fortune is to make necklaces of jet and coral stones, wear them constantly, and wash them periodically in holy water and coconut water. An alligator’s tooth is also believed to bring good luck if worn around the neck. Strangely, however, it should never be worn in a river, lake, or ocean, as this will weaken its powers.

  A magical African model of a crocodile or alligator.

  Co-author Lionel wearing a tooth talisman.

  Just as the alligator’s tooth magic is thought to be weakened by water, so some other good luck and prosperity charms are totally dependent on the spell maker’s being immersed in water. One variation of this bath spell requires seven roses: a red, a white, and five yellows. The other ingredients are a red apple, a pint of milk — goat’s milk if available — and seven fresh, crisp lettuce leaves. Other ingredients include honey, mint, lavender, cinnamon, almond oil, and patchouli oil. The ingredients are blended into a smooth paste, which is poured into a warm bath. The spell-worker lights a red candle and relaxes in the bath until it cools. The spell has to be repeated on seven consecutive days in order to be fully effective.

  A far simpler good luck and prosperity ritual can be performed by using crushed laurel leaves in the bath — and that spell does not need seven repetitions.

  For spell workers who are tired of the bathing spells and want something simpler and drier, there is a sleeping spell involving geranium leaves, lavender, and laurel, as well as pine needles and patchouli oil. The spell worker removes the stuffing from his or her pillow and replaces it with a mixture of the listed ingredients. Sleeping on this pillow every night is thought to bring good luck.

  Another Santerian spell that is focused on bringing prosperity to the user involves the skin and leaves of oranges, generous quantities of natural sugar, and an all-important iron pot. The orange leaves and skin have to be dried so that they will burn easily. They are placed in the iron cauldron with the sugar — which can burn surprisingly well — and the compound is then ignited. After a few moments, put out the flames and leave the mixture smoking. While it smokes offer a prayer to Oshun requesting wealth.

  Another wealth-attracting spell requires the use of a bowl of many colours — this is intended to please all of the Orishas, whatever colour each may prefer. The spell worker must also wear a multicoloured cloak for the same reason. Nine coins and a quantity of red ochre are also needed. Dust has to be brought from consecrated ground, such as a sanctified cemetery or churchyard, or from the blessed gardens in which a church or dedicated holy building stands. Pure fresh rainwater is needed, as well as a quantity of alum. The number nine is significant in performing this spell. The nine coins are placed in the multicoloured bowl and covered with alum crystals. Nine drops of oil are added, and nine pinches of red ochre are used — one pinch on each coin. The holy ground dust is added next and the rainwater goes in last to cover all the other ingredients completely. The enchanter then removes his or her multicoloured cloak and uses it to cover the bowl. During the temple ceremony, the whole is then laid reverently before the statuette of Oya on the altar. When the prayer is answered with money, the spell worker is required to buy a sacrifice for Oya.

  Another significant aspect of Santerian worship is communication with the dead. Ancient African religious traditions seek to explain the role of ancestors and the importance of being able to communicate with them. This integrates well with traditional Christian ideas, and has biblical support in the account of Jesus speaking with Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew Ch. 17). The
traditional Christian view of life after death also gains biblical support when Jesus speaks to the dying thief who is being crucified beside him: “And he said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in Paradise.” The wise and perspicacious Canon Harry Scott Holland, who was at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London a century ago, summed it up by saying, “There is absolutely unbroken continuity.” Life goes on, so it should be possible to communicate with those who have gone before. Santerians not only believe in the possibility of communication — they practise it.

  This communication takes two forms: requests for help, advice, prosperity, and protection, much as requests of these types are made to the Orishas — and normal, friendly, conversational communication of much the same kind that took place while the ancestors were still on earth.

  In much the same way seances were conducted during the heyday of spiritualism in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in Europe, Canada, and the U.S.A., Santerian mediums, or channellers, believe that they are making themselves available to spirits of departed human beings or other paranormal entities. Having achieved the altered consciousness known as the trance state, the Santerian channeller may speak with several different voices that are unlike his or her familiar, normal voice. The channeller’s facial expressions often change as well when the “other entities” are speaking. These phenomena are witnessed often enough — but what is really happening?

  There are numerous theories concerning these manifestations. The apparent change of identity could be due to activity in the channeller’s own subconscious: subordinate personalities are expressing themselves because the psychological security mechanisms that normally keep them in check cannot function effectively during the channeller’s trance state.