What is Voodoo?

Many people think of pins stuck into puppets or magic spells to make people sick, but these imaginations are very far from the truth. Basicaly Voodoo was the old religion of the native African population and was brought to America with the huge, overcrowded ships which transported the slaves to the new colonies. Voodoo is a system of religion and spiritualism that finds its roots in ancient Africa. In many ways it differs only little from modern organized religions. Its followers believe in one God and the search for a better understanding of the spiritual aspects in life. It existed for many years in Africa as a rich part of the culture. The hierarchy of voodoo includes God first, followed by Loa, or spirits that oversee everything that happens on earth. Each of the Loa has its own preferred fruit, vegetable, color, number, day of the week or other elements of life. The reason that the spirits are so well known is that Voodoo is a religious practice passed from generation to generation by "Griots." African slaves in the Caribbean Islands during the 19th century were banned from practicing Voodoo. But it didn't take long for them to realize the parallels between voodoo and catholicism and soon they gave some of the loa the names of catholic saints, and much of the ritual in the Catholic church was mirrored by the Africans, including ceremonies and costuming.