Greetings in the name of God, the ancestors, and the lwa! I am Mambo Racine Sans Bout, a priestess of the Vodou religion and head of the Roots Without End Society, an international Vodou society based in Jacmel, Haiti, with members all around the world.
On Sunday, December 23, 2005, we began our prayers. About half the Haitian membership was already present in the peristyle, or temple, as the sun came up.
Many people in the United States, including international members of the Roots Without End Society members, Houngans and Mambos of other houses, and uninitiated American and international Vodouisants, purchased sacrificial animals to be offered during our ceremonies. We are very grateful to these individuals, because once the life of the animal is offered to the lwa, the meat is consumed by the Haitian members and by members of our local community, thus providing us with an opportunity to feed hungry people while serving God and the lwa. Above are photos of just a few of the sacrificial animals that were offered.
In gratitude for these offerings, we kissed the ground before God and all the lwa!
Then the dance began! The drums began to play the stirring, evocative Vodou rhythms, and the members danced together to begin the process of calling the lwa, the spiritual entities of Vodou.
To see more photos and text describing the ceremonies, go on to the next page.