Voodoo versus Obeah
Voodoo is the product of the slave trade (principally in the Spanish and French colonies in the Caribbean), and derives from vodu, meaning spirit or deity in the Fon language of Dahomey, now part of Nigeria. Creole slave masters in the New World translated the word into vaudau, and eventually became known as voudou, voudoun, vodoun, voodoo, and hoodoo. Whites forbade their slaves to practice their Voodoo religion on pain of torture and death. Any slave found possessing a fetish (sacred objects such as dolls, carved images, animal teeth, claws or bones) was to be imprisoned, hanged, or flayed alive. Seems like the equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition, don’t you think?
To save black souls, the masters baptized the slaves
as Catholics. Tribal deities took on the forms of Catholic saints, and fetishes
were replaced by Catholic statues, candles, and holy relics. Voodoo therefore
consists of both traditional West African beliefs blended with local
variations, and also of various magical techniques employed to achieve certain
ends, including the descent of the gods into individual worshippers to give
oracles and to provide protection. These magical techniques are known as Obeah.
There are many theories about the origins of Obeah,
even the word itself. There are many words in many West African languages that
have ‘obi’ or ‘obea’ in theme that are connected to mysticism. Since many Igbo
people were taken to the West Indies as slaves though, the term most likely
originated from the Igbo word ‘obia’ which means working as a healer or doctor.
Some call it sorcery or witchcraft, however unlike some western forms of
witchcraft, it also does not come from an attitude of the Spirits serving the
person, but the person serving the Spirits. Obeah practitioners would consider
it unthinkable to summon a demon and give it orders as if it was obligated to
obey. Like any Voodoo practitioner, if they’re calling on a Spirit, they follow
the proper procedure, approach with humility, and do not show up empty handed.
In the third instalment of The Last Timekeepers time
travel adventure series, The Last Timekeepers and the Noble Slave, my character
Henri is a mulatto slave driver who’s originally from Louisiana, and practices
Voodoo. Louisiana Voodoo (a.k.a. New Orleans Voodoo) developed within the
French, Spanish, and Creole population of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is
often confused with—but not completely separable from—Haitian Voodoo and
southern Hoodoo (folk magic). Henri’s practices differ from Voodoo in the
emphasis upon his use of Gris-Gris (charm bags filled with magical powders,
herbs, bones, feathers, and so on) and Voodoo dolls to control and manipulate
the plantation slaves.
In contrast, another character—a slave from Jamaica
named Eilish, practices Obeah. She embodies what it is to be ‘Obeah’ and
believes no human is stronger than Nature itself, and that every action has
consequences. Her biggest belief? Don’t do bad things to people. That’s it. To
the Obeah, when you do bad things to people, you put a wound on your soul. Even
in the scientific sense, harming others damages you psychologically. So the
more wrong you do to others, the more vulnerable you become to the dark forces
of Nature.
Speaking of dark forces, those who worship Voodoo may not all practice black magic, but darker aspects of Voodoo do exist. A practitioner known as a bokor is more involved in sorcery than healing, and their greatest fear is not a death curse but zombification. Now that’s what I’d call some badass karma! In the end, if you do your best to make up for your wrongs, you will be blessed in other ways. You will at least have peace and be stronger for what you have learned.
Drake read over their
Timekeeper mission again. Blood. Deep south. Race. Broken. Soul. Red
flags waved through his mind like a category five hurricane. He’d seen one too
many movies and documentaries to know 1855 was not a great time in history for
people with his skin color. Drake shut the Timekeepers’ log, and shook his head
vehemently. “There’s no way in hell I’m gonna go on this mission, Lilith!”
Lilith wrinkled her
long, narrow nose. “I understand why you have these fearful feelings, Drake,
but I do not choose where you go into the past. Belial is the one who holds
that power, and seeks to disrupt history whenever he sees a chance.”
“May I see the
Timekeepers’ log, Drake?” the Prof asked.
“Sure, Prof, but I’m
still not going,” Drake replied, passing the log over.
“Can he do that?” Ravi
asked, glancing at Treena.
“I don’t think so. It’s like
signing a contract for a movie. You’re committed to finishing the film or you
face the studio lawyers. Case closed, gavel down.”
“Lilith isn’t a judge.”
Ravi looked at Lilith. “Right?”
“No, Ravi, I am not your
judge, but what Treena said rings true. You were all chosen as Timekeepers for
a reason, and are bound by this covenant,” Lilith replied, unclasping her
hands. “That is all I can offer you.”
“Fine. I’ll just remove
my Babel necklace,” Drake said, digging under his shirt. “Problem solved.”
“Drake, why are you
freaking out like this?” Jordan asked, helping Amanda to her feet. “It can’t be
as bad as fighting the Nazis in our second mission.”
“Yeah, or being
interrogated in the Gestapo Headquarters by Belial’s creepy crony Marcus
Crowley,” Ravi added.
“Why don’t you ask
Amanda why she puked? It wasn’t because she had warm and fuzzy feelings about
this mission,” Drake argued.
Melody wiped Amanda’s
chin. “Do you feel well enough to speak?”
“I…I think so.”
Professor Lucas
whistled. “Now I see why Amanda was sick to her stomach. Using the words deep
south and the date as a clue, this mission puts us in the antebellum era, six
years before the American Civil War began. This period was filled with so much
hate, racism, turmoil, and political upheaval, I’m willing to bet these
emotions went right through her.”
“If Uncle John is right,
why would Belial want to change anything back then?” Jordan asked, frowning.
“That slithering douche-bag lives for human suffering during those dark times
in history.”
“Exactly.” Drake removed
his Babel necklace. “So why tempt fate?”
“N-no, Drake, you have
to come.” Amanda reached for his hand, and squeezed it. “Trust me, you’re an
important part of this mission.”
“Huh? How?”
Sharon Ledwith is the author of the middle-grade/young adult time travel adventure series, THE LAST TIMEKEEPERS, and the award-winning teen psychic mystery series, MYSTERIOUS TALES FROM FAIRY FALLS. When not writing, researching, or revising, she enjoys reading, exercising, anything arcane, and an occasional dram of scotch. Sharon lives a serene, yet busy life in a southern tourist region of Ontario, Canada, with her spoiled hubby, and a moody calico cat.
Learn more about Sharon Ledwith on her WEBSITE and BLOG. Look up her AMAZON AUTHOR page for a list of current books. Stay connected on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, PINTEREST, LINKEDIN, INSTAGRAM, and GOODREADS.
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Hugs and thanks for hosting me, my guest post, and my new release on your blog today, Amber! Cheers for all you do for us authors!
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome~ I love working with all of you!
DeleteSounds great. Fascinating cover.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Nancy! I think the cover is perfect for the book. Cheers!
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