Bondyé and the Lwa

Bondyé is the Supreme Deity in Vodou; the name is kreyòl for "Le Bon Dieu". Many writers have commented on how Bondye is "remote" or "impersonal". That's a fairly lengthy topic by itself.

The Trinity

In Vodou, there are three categories of supernatural beings: les morts (the dead a.k.a. the ancestors), les mystere (the lwas), and les marassa (the sacred twins).

The Rada, The Ghedes, and the Petro

The pantheon of lwas can be grouped into three main categories: the Rada, the Ghedes and the Petro.

 
Rada Ghede Petro
Papa Legba Papa Gede Legba Petro
Marassa Mamman Brigitte Marassa Petro
Loko Atiso and Ayizan   Wawangol
Damballah and Aida Wedo   Ibo
Sobo   Senegal
Badessy   Kongo
Agassou   Kaplaou
Silibo   Kanga
Agwe   Takya
La Siren   Zoklimo
Erzulie Freda   Simbi Dlo
Bossu   Gran Simba
Agarou   Kalfou
Azaka (Papa Zaka)   Cimitiere
The Ogoun group   Gran Bwa
    Kongo Savanne
    Erzulie Dantor
    Marinette
    Don Petro
    Ti-Jean Petro
    Gros Point
    Simbi Andezo
    Simbi Makaya

Relationships

It's a funny characteristic of mine: I'm usually far more interested in understanding the relationships between things rather than the things themselves.

Copyright © 2001, 2002, 2004 by B.C. Holmes.  Last updated May 16th, 2004.

Back to the main page.