Beginning of new cycle for us in Vodun

[Azacotogan]

I want to thank those who have been reaching out in response to the first post about salawa looking for more information. We've gotten some emails but I encourage you all to go ahead and join this forum in spite of the interactions you saw with other members. It will be good to see a healthy and positive dialogue on the subject of Vodun. 

 

I'm still working on part 2 but it's taking longer than I thought because of my schedule and because it's a little more involved than part one. I'm working on it though. 

 

On to this post's topic. The sciences of studying the cosmos and recognizing which deities, (called Hun pronounced "hoon" in Aja language) as well as other spirits and energies are performing what functions in relation to that and human life is called Wezizakpon in Aja culture. Some people may refer to that sort of process as "astrology." In Vodun (also sometimes referred to as vodou or voodoo, but the west African term is Vodun) , time is cyclical. Not only is it cyclical but there are cycles within cycles. For instance, many are familiar with the so called great year which is simply the procession of the equinoxes (the equinox is called zankpozekpan in Fongbe) of approximately 26,000 years (though it's closer to 25,800) and within that there are smaller cycles of 2,160 years and then within that are smaller cycles of 540 years and so forth. Of course there is a certain energy shift that happens with the procession and also with the movement within each of the smaller cycles as well that must be accounted for. This is a part of what we do as wezizakpon. In Vodun we have all these cycles and eventually we get down to smaller cycles that occur monthly at a certain time.

 

There are numerous monthly cycles we have with various significance (for instance we have one that is dedicated strictly to strengthening our bond with the ancestors [Kulito in Aja and Egungun in Yoruba]) but one cycle in particular deals with the energy of a certain time period and is related to a particular Hun. In fact yesterday we began such a cycle and it is related to the hun we call Hu. In Yoruba culture, this deity (called orisa in Yoruba) is Olokun. So we are in the Xwenu (season) of Hu and great care as a Vodunvi must be taken to not only be aware of the characteristics of Hu but be mindful of how that will make certain activities either more challenging or much more likely to be successful. We also would try to make an offering of some kind to Hu at the beginning of the season. This is a time where things associated with Hu will dominate so one must always be mindful of how to best take advantage of that. This is an example of the way that in Vodun we strive to "live in harmony."

 

E sun gbede