Traditional Methods of HEALING
Voodoo, or Voudou. Voodoo, or American voudou, is a belief system often alluded to but rarely described in any detail (Davis, 1998). At various times, patients may mention terms such as fix, hex, or spell. It is not clear whether voodoo is fully practiced today, but there is some evidence in the literature that there are people who still believe and practice it to some extent (Wintrob, 1972). It also has been reported that many Black people continue to fear voodoo and believe that when they become ILL they have been “fixed.” Voodoo involves 2 forms of magic: white magic, described as harmless, and black magic, which is quite dangerous. Belief in magic is, of course, ancient (Hughes & Bontemps, 1958, pp. 184–185).
Voodoo came to this country about 1724, with the arrival of slaves from the West African coast, who had been sold initially in the West Indies. The people who brought voodoo with them were “snake worshippers.” Vodu, the name of their god, with the passage of time became voodoo (also hoodoo), an all- embracing term that included the god, the sect, the members of the sect, the priests and priestesses, the rites and practices, and the teaching (Tallant, 1946, p. 19).
Tallant goes on to explain that the sect spread rapidly from the West Indies. In 1782, the governor of Louisiana prohibited the importation of slaves from Martinique because of their practice of voodoo. (Despite the fact that gatherings of slaves were forbidden in Louisiana, small groups persisted in prac- ticing voodoo.) In 1803, the importation of slaves to Louisiana from the West Indies was finally allowed, and with them came the strong influence of voodoo. The practice entailed a large number of rituals and procedures. The ceremonies were held with large numbers of people, usually at night and in the open coun- try. Sacrifice and the drinking of blood were integral parts of all the voodoo ceremonies. There were those who believed that this blood was from children. However, it was most commonly thought to be the blood of a cat or young goat. Such behavior evolved from primitive African rites, to which Christian rituals were added to form the ceremonies that exist today. Leaders of the voo- doo sect tended to be women, and stories abound in New Orleans about the workings of the sect and the women who ruled it—such as Marie Laveau.
In 1850, the practice of voodoo reached its height in New Orleans. At that time, the beliefs and practices of voodoo were closely related to beliefs about HEALTH and ILLNESS. For example, many ILLNESSES were attributed to a “fix” that was placed on one person out of anger. Gris-gris, the symbols of voo- doo, were used to prevent ILLNESS or to give ILLNESS to others. Some examples of commonly used gris-gris follow (Tallant, 1946, p. 226):
1. Good gris-gris: powders and oils that are highly and pleasantly scented. The following are examples of good gris-gris: love powder, colored and scented with perfume; love oil, olive oil to which gardenia