WANT: Books, webpages about the Voodoo pantheon (preferrably New Orleans/Louisiana)

[Gaupemor]

Hi!

I'm looking for good sources to research the Voodoo pantheon, especially the flavor they use in New Orleans, but if you have some good sources on the other flavours of Voodoo, post them too : . All media types are welcome!

I have just started studying Voodoo, so even beginner-friendly sources are appreciated.

The more sources, the merrier!

[Sophia C]

Hi!

I'm looking for good sources to research the Voodoo pantheon, especially the flavor they use in New Orleans, but if you have some good sources on the other flavours of Voodoo, post them too : . All media types are welcome!

I have just started studying Voodoo, so even beginner-friendly sources are appreciated.

The more sources, the merrier!

I'm not a practitioner, so I can't speak to their reliability and authenticity, but I enjoyed these books:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/1578635136/ref=mw_dp_sim_ps1?pi=SL500_SY125

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/088289336X/ref=mw_dp_sim_ps2?pi=SY125 (a collection of local folklore - not written by a practitioner, but very interesting)

I've also had this recommended to me as an OK starter guide - apparently it's a mix of New Orleans tourist guide and voodoo history: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1594774358/ref=mw_dp_sim_ps2?pi=SY125

But it does seem that there are very few books available on the subject, and I suspect that those which exist should be taken with a pinch of salt, so caveat emptor and all that.

[Gaupemor]

I'm not a practitioner, so I can't speak to their reliability and authenticity, but I enjoyed these books:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/1578635136/ref=mw_dp_sim_ps1?pi=SL500_SY125

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/088289336X/ref=mw_dp_sim_ps2?pi=SY125 (a collection of local folklore - not written by a practitioner, but very interesting)

I've also had this recommended to me as an OK starter guide - apparently it's a mix of New Orleans tourist guide and voodoo history: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1594774358/ref=mw_dp_sim_ps2?pi=SY125

But it does seem that there are very few books available on the subject, and I suspect that those which exist should be taken with a pinch of salt, so caveat emptor and all that.

 
Yeah, I noticed that there were few books on the subject, too. Such a shame, really, because the little I've read about Voodoo hints at a really interesting and rich religion.

Thanks for the recommendations! I'll look into them. =)

[SatAset]

Hi!

I'm looking for good sources to research the Voodoo pantheon, especially the flavor they use in New Orleans, but if you have some good sources on the other flavours of Voodoo, post them too : . All media types are welcome!

I have just started studying Voodoo, so even beginner-friendly sources are appreciated.

The more sources, the merrier!

I recommend a book called Haitian Vodou:  An Introduction to Haiti's Indigenous Spiritual Tradition by Mambo Chita Tann.

[Emma Eldritch]

Hi!

I'm looking for good sources to research the Voodoo pantheon, especially the flavor they use in New Orleans, but if you have some good sources on the other flavours of Voodoo, post them too : . All media types are welcome!

I have just started studying Voodoo, so even beginner-friendly sources are appreciated.

The more sources, the merrier!

 
Kenaz Filan has put out a few books - Gaupemor already recommended the New Orleans specific one. The Haitian Vodou Handbook: Protocols for Riding with the Lwa has a good overview of the main lwa.

Although not New Orleans specific, I'd recommend Mama Lola: A Vodou Priestess in Brooklyn by Karen McCarthy Brown and Tell My Horse by Zora Neale Hurston for a good cultural background to Voudou. Jambalaya by Luisah Teish deals with New Orleans, but the pantheon she deals with is the Lucumi one. Still, if you want a magical feel for the city I'd say give it a read.

It's a pretty big subject, and although it is a living religion it isn't always the easiest to get into in depth - after a certain point you pretty much need to get initiated.

[Gilbride]

I'm looking for good sources to research the Voodoo pantheon, especially the flavor they use in New Orleans, but if you have some good sources on the other flavours of Voodoo, post them too : . All media types are welcome

The Divine Horsemen- it's not New Orleans, but it's a beautiful book.

[Scent of Pine]

Hi!

I'm looking for good sources to research the Voodoo pantheon, especially the flavor they use in New Orleans, but if you have some good sources on the other flavours of Voodoo, post them too : . All media types are welcome!

I have just started studying Voodoo, so even beginner-friendly sources are appreciated.

The more sources, the merrier!

From a slightly different perspective on Haitian Voodoo, I recommend "The Serpent and the Rainbow" by Wade Davis.  He's an ethnobotanist with Harvard.  This book discusses his research on the "zombie powder", but it also has lots of other bits of information written from the point of view of a scientist.  

There was a movie loosely based on this book, but really really loose.  The book is quite scientific.

[Alex]

Hi!

I'm looking for good sources to research the Voodoo pantheon, especially the flavor they use in New Orleans, but if you have some good sources on the other flavours of Voodoo, post them too : . All media types are welcome!

I have just started studying Voodoo, so even beginner-friendly sources are appreciated.

The more sources, the merrier!

New Orleans Vodou was birthed largely from Haitian Vodou, so a good place to start would be there.

The Kenaz Filan books are fantastic and on-point. The Tann book was not one that I enjoyed and her lineage in vodou is highly questionable. Alvarado has a serious issue with cultural appropriation in her written material and in her commercial endeavors. The Mama Lola book is decent. Sallie Ann Glassman has a book out, too, and I've heard mixed reviews. Here are some other places to start:


Tell My Horse: Voodoo and Life in Haiti and Jamaica by Zora Neale Hurston is THE anthropological book on Haitian Vodou. She spent several years going back and forth to Haiti and Jamaica and developing relationships with native practitioners. You find much about rituals or spells in here, but if you want to understand vodou, you have to understand where it came from...and this book will give you that.

Hoodoo, Voodoo, and Conjure by Jeffrey E. Anderson. It's not strictly vodou, as it incorporates other traditional African Diasporic Religions and African-American religious and magical practices, but it is an excellent and informative read by someone who spent an awful lot of time immersing himself in the culture of African-American practices.

Books that I have not read but have been recommended to me:

Serving the Spirits: The Religion of Haitian Vodou by Mambo Vye Zo Komande la Menfo.


Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti by Maya Deren.

Migration and Vodou by Professor Karen E. Richman. This is supposed to be an excellent ethnographic study of Haitian vodou.

Houngan Matt's blog @ vodouboston.com Houngan Matt is a personal friend and colleague and he's a great dude and a dedicated Houngan. He updates infrequently, as he travels quite a bit for spiritual purposes and has recently opened a conjure shop.

I would stay the hell away from the Roots Without End Society and Mambo Racine Sans Bout. She's initiated and has a lineage, but she has..murky ethical and religious practices, including initiating folks who have absolutely no experience in vodou in the least.

Keep in mind as you read that vodou [and other ADRs such as Santeria/Lucumi and Quimbanda] are intiatory religions and many practices are not available for someone outside of the religion. It is a religion that came to the Americas via slavery and most of the members are people of color. If you truly feel called by the Lwa, do your homework in a serious way and keep in mind that you are only getting a fraction of the picture of what the practices look like.

If you've got further questions, shoot me a PM and I'll tell you what I know [not an initiate or anything, just well-read on the topic].

[Alex]

Oops, forgot a really good blog: Dreams of Ginen. It's a scholarly blog and it's fantastic. I believe the writer has a bunch of links to follow as well.