- First, I just want to confirm your suspicions, I do not claim an authority on Haitian Voodou, and I in no way want this to come off as any sort of authorial source on this most-intriguing particular of Afro-Carribian culture as a whole. I find this culture to be the most- intriguing of all the Afro-Carribian cultures because of it's deep connection with not just the religion I grew up with, Catholic-Christianity, but also the facts surround it's deep connection with it's African roots, a connection that is deeper than any other island or country in the Carribian due to Haiti's revolution and subsequent independence of most Western ties during it's development as a country. During this period of independence, elders who were raised on the African mainland, were able to infuse Haitian culture with their African roots.
- Second, I am writing this because I have noticed a dramatic increase in readership searching my blog from google, and I am hoping to get outside information if anyone notices any misconceptions that are inherent within my research. Please keep in mind though, I am just looking for coherence in my research, not your opinions. There are many different versions of Voodou, and I am not looking for anything more than coherence within the system I will use.
- Third, I am going to put in brackets personal notes for myself that are largely related to character and narrative. Please largely disregard these aspects. Now, with further ado, onto the research...
"Les invisibles peuvent être faites le visible par les humains sur la grande scène de la vie." - [FINAL WORDS FROM HOUNGAN(Priest)]
Translation - "The Invisible powers can be made visible acts by humans on the great stage of life"
Sevis - The ceremony in which a trance occurs. Here, the visible and invisible interact with intimacy. Persons involved in the ceremony become inhabbited by Iwa.
Iwa - Spiritual beings that act as mediums between humanity and Bondyè. They are correlated with many of the saints.
Bondyè - The highest deity in Voodou, largely uninterested in the affairs of man, despite being's its Pangian creator.
[The houngan in the script left Haiti during the great earthquake due to genocide being committed on houngan's out of superstition and a lack of understanding on the part of the perpetrators. Possibly has spent some time in New Orleans learning Hoodoo].
Houngan - Voodou preist(ess)
"Run from a naked man offering you a piece of cloth" - Haitian Voodoo saying.
Six commonalities among Afro-Carribian culture/belief/myth-structures.
- Spirituality and healing are synonymous. [Houngan will tell Jon something to this effect, that the effects of the medicine/spell/curse are all in his own viewing of it].
- Individual person is defined by the web of connections that includes family/ancestors/spirits/saints. A strong reason for the importance of this connection with ancestors has to do with the Haitian renaissance after the revolution at the end of the 18th century, and rediscovery of their old culture, IMO. [Jon is not a true person in the eyes of many Voodou initiates, due to his willfully treating his family like shit].
- Healing takes place by healing these connections with family/ancestors/spirits/saints.
- Connection between root problems and the symptoms are never necessary. Angering Iwa is always a possibility.
- Harmful emotional states that cause disruption in relationships are explained in non-rational, non-verbal ways, just as those who are often exhibiting these harmful emotions which disrupt are often irrational. A methodology might seem irrational, in that it is not directly connected with anything physical, and is more often than not, a psychological medicine. [Jon will be given a small jar by Houngan. Inside the jar will be a small amount of sugar syrup and a lone cube of ice. with a small sheet of paper containing his name]. He is instructed to say an Our Father and Hail Mary with the jar in his hands three times a day, and attend mass once a day as well.
- Focus on affairs Western Medicine isn't concerned with like love affairs and family. In areas of rural Haiti, the hounran still handles physical matters as well though.
"Moun f'et pou mouri" - People are born to die.
"Death is a departure of nom"
Nom - Lifeforce. Nom consisters of two main guardian angels, a greater and a lesser.
Gwo Bonanj - Greater guardian angel. Unlike Nom, it can exit outside the body. If it has to leave his body, especially during a ritual, there is a greater problem inside the practitioner. It suggests that the Gwo Bonanj is angered with the body it inhabits., and is robbing him/her of sleep and sanity, and probably his dreams as well.
Ti Bonanj - Lesser Angel. This one gives you will to forge on against adversity. [Jon must confront this aspect of himself in order to solve the problem of the narrative dealing with his family].
Houngan will have a small rattle, which he uses to change the rhythm in the music being played by the Others. This will also summon Iwa to inhabit the bodies of the Others with him. The floor will be covered in beads and snake vertebrae.
Iwa take on characteristics of the person, and many times these characteristics allow the person inhabiting it to discover more about themselves.
[At the end of the initial scene, the Priest will draw a crucifix in flower in front of Jon]
Crucifix symbolizes the crossroads [where Jon is in his life]
Most of information comes from: http://themiltondoddreaders.weebly.com/uploads/1/0/8/1/10819822/vodou_in_haitian_life_and_culture__invisible_powers.pdf
Watch, Rewatch, Watch Again Throughout Process - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YIO_dxyJio
[At the end of the initial scene, the Priest will draw a crucifix in flower in front of Jon]
Crucifix symbolizes the crossroads [where Jon is in his life]
Most of information comes from: http://themiltondoddreaders.weebly.com/uploads/1/0/8/1/10819822/vodou_in_haitian_life_and_culture__invisible_powers.pdf
Watch, Rewatch, Watch Again Throughout Process - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YIO_dxyJio
