Loa (voodoo)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Loa (also Lwa or Lua ) is a spirit in Voodoo with great power and almost unlimited possibilities. The loa are said to be able to grant almost any wish to those who adore them.

Terminology

The idea of ​​the loa is older than the voodoo religion itself and goes back to its African roots. The word loa means spiritual guide and describes a (usually friendly) spirit being.

Loa play a central role in the rituals of Voodoo and usually manifest themselves in them through obsession . They are divided into the three Nachons (groups): Rada (benevolent), Petro (destructive) and Ghede (fertility and dead spirits).

The temples where the loa are worshiped are known as hounfours . The spiritual plane of existence of the Loa is derived from the Kingdom of Dahomey or the region of Guinea which includes the latter , the designations Dahomé or Guinée .

The ritual rattle used by voodoo priests to invoke the loa is the asson .

Loa and saints

Each loa is assigned characteristic properties and different attributes. As part of the Christianization of the distribution area of ​​the Voodoo, indigenous religions were mixed with Christianity , which led to the fact that Christian saints were often “hijacked” to represent a loa. In doing so, overlapping responsibilities or visual externalities of loa and sacred were used as an opportunity to assign them to one another. So it is not necessarily about character similarities, but the graphic representation of a saint can be used to represent a loa due to a detail, regardless of what qualities the saint actually has. An example: St. Patrick , depicted with the snakes he drove from Ireland at his feet, is used as a symbol for Damballah , the white and wise cosmic serpent of Voodoo. Another interesting example of this syncretism is Papa Legba , which is represented by an image of Peter, since he, like Papa Legba, takes on a mediator role between the divine and human world.

Example: Veve des Loa Damballah

Sacrifice for Loa

In a ritual, offerings (mostly fruits, flowers, drinks or animal sacrifices) are made to the Loa. Each loa has specific preferences in terms of the gifts presented. The animal or blood sacrifice was of particular importance: For example, the nature-loving followers of voodoo sacrificed a full-grown animal with a chicken, which they raised from the egg. As a result, the sacrifice was also accompanied by a kind of personal loss, which, however, was not of a material nature. The loa only takes in the essence (soul) from its victim and the physical remains (meat) remain for the victim to use.

The Veve

Each loa is represented and called in the ritual not only by its name, but also by a complex symbol, the so-called Veve . This veve usually reflects certain characteristics of a loa graphically.

List of Loa

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Andreas Gößling : Voodoo - gods, magic, rituals. Radio 39 Edition, ISBN 3958245986 , 2016
  2. ↑ Milo Rigaud: Secrets of Voodoo . Pages 36 f, published 1969. ISBN 978-0872861718 at Google Books