His regime is regarded as one of the most repressive and corrupt of modern times, combining violence against political opponents with exploitation of Vodou to instill fear in the majority of the population.

It is distinct from the various traditional animistic religions in the interiors of these same countries and is the main origin for religions of similar name found among the African Diaspora in the New World such as Haitian Vodou, the Vudu of Puerto Rico, Candomblé Jejé in Brazil ( which uses the term Vodum ), Louisiana Voodoo and Santería in Cuba and the Dominican Republic.

" Zombi " is also another name of the Vodou snake lwa Damballah Wedo, of Niger – Congo origin ; it is akin to the Kikongo word nzambi, which means " god ".

In Haitian Vodou and related African diasporic traditions, one way that those who participate or practice can have a spiritual experience is by being possessed by the lwa ( or Loa ).

According to Vodou believers, when this occurs, it is a sign that a possession is about to take place.

In the Vodou of Benin and Haiti Ayida-Weddo ( a. k. a. Aida-Wedo, Aido Quedo, " Rainbow-Serpent ") is a spirit of fertility, rainbows and snakes, and a companion or wife to Dan, the father of all spirits.

In the Vodou tradition, Papa Legba is the lwa of crossroads.

For example, Papa Legba is considered by Haitian Vodou practitioners to be closest to Saint Peter, although in Brazilian Quimbanda it is not uncommon to see Exu closely associated with demonic entities such as Lucifer, clad in Mephistophelean attire and bearing a trident.

Antigòn is noteworthy in its attempts to insert the lived religious experience of many Haitians into the content of the play through the introduction of several Loa from the pantheon of Haitian Vodou as voiced entities throughout the performance.

In Vodou and especially in Haiti, Adjinakou is an elephant loa.

In the Vodou religion, Agassou ( also Ati-A-Sou ) is a loa, or deity, who guards the old traditions of Dahomey.

In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Agwé, also spelt Agoueh, is a loa who rules over the sea, fish, and aquatic plants, as well as the patron loa of fishermen and sailors.

In Vodou, especially in Benin and Haiti, Aida-Weddo ( also Ayida-Wedo, Aido Quedo, Aido Hwedo ) is a loa of fertility, rainbows and snakes, and a companion or wife to Damballah-Wedo.

In Vodou, Damballah is one of the most important of all the loa ( also spelled lwa ).

In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Ayizan ( also Grande Ai-Zan, Aizan, or Ayizan Velekete ) is the loa of the marketplace and commerce.

In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Azaka-Tonnerre ( also Azaca or Azacca ) is in the same " family " of Loa as Azaka Medeh-the Loa of agriculture.

In Vodou, ( the Voodoo religion ), Bacalou is a feared loa ( or spirit ), represented by a skull and crossbones.

In Vodou, and particularly in Haiti, Bedessy is a minor loa who holds the domain of the sky.

In Vodou, Baron Cimitière ( Baron Cemetery ) is one of the Guédé, a spirit of the dead, along with Baron Samedi and Baron La Croix.

In Vodou, Baron La Croix ( French for " Baron of the Cross "), or Bawon Lakwa in Kreyol, is one of the Guédé, a Loa of the dead and sexuality, along with Baron Samedi and Baron Cimetière.

In Haitian Vodou, Papa Legba is the intermediary between the loa and humanity.

Answers from the council of dead kings to the queries posed by the messengers were given through divination: either by tossing cowry shells or seed pods and marking the results on dust-coated Fa boards, or by spirit possession of Vodou adepts.

In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Boddou Ashadeh is a loa, the spirit of the deceased Dahomean King Tegbésou.

Kalfu, Kalfou or Carrefour ( literally crossroads-see crossroads ( mythology )) is ( in Haitian Vodou ) one of the petwo aspects of the spirit Papa Legba.

In Haitian Vodou, Simbi ( also Sim ' bi ) is a large and diverse family of serpent Loa ( Vodoun spirit ) from the West Central Africa / Kongo region.

Sobo is a spirit or Lwa in the Haitian Vodou religion.

The ecstatic, possessory form of invocation may be compared to loa possession in the Vodou tradition where devotees are described as being " ridden " or " mounted " by the deity or spirit.

In Haitian Vodou the image of St Expedite is used to represent Baron Lakwa a spirit associated with death, cemeteries, children and sex.

* A spirit in the Guédé family in Haitian Vodou

African culture thus remained strong among slaves to the end of French rule, in particular the folk-religion of Vodou, which commingled Catholic liturgy and ritual with the beliefs and practices of Guinea, Congo, and Dahomey.

These latter are the original zombies, occurring in the West African Vodun religion and its American offshoots Haitian Vodou and New Orleans Voodoo.

The concept of spiritual possession exists in many religions, including Christianity, Buddhism, Haitian Vodou, Wicca, and Southeast Asian and African traditions.

Animal sacrifice is also found in the Cuban religion called Palo, which derives from African religion of the Congo, and in Haitian Vodou, a religion that derives from the Vodou religion of Dahomey.

Candomblé can also be distinguished from Umbanda, a religion founded in the early 20th century by combining African elements with Kardecism ; and from similar African-derived religions such as Quimbanda, Haitian Vodou, Cuban Santería, and Obeah, which developed independently of Candomblé and are virtually unknown in Brazil.

Vodou, encompassing several different traditions, may contain a mix of Central and Western African, European, and Native American ( Taíno ) religions is also widely practiced, despite the negative stigma that it carries both in and out of the country.

Haitian Vodou ( also known as Voodoo in the United States ) is a syncretic mixture of Roman Catholic rituals introduced during the French colonial period, African beliefs, with roots in the Yoruba, Kongo and Dahomey mythology, and folkloric influence from the indigenous Taino Amerindians that once populated the island.

* West African Vodun-West African religion, an antecedent of Haitian Vodou

A Vodou priest, Mackandal inspired his people by drawing on African traditions and religions.

Some of these folk Catholic forms have come to be identified as separate religions, as is the case with Caribbean and Brazilian syncretisms between Catholicism and West African religions, which include Haitian Vodou, Cuban Santería, and Brazilian Candomblé.

* West African Vodun and Haitian Vodou ( Voodoo ), mainly among West African and black Caribbean immigrants in the United Kingdom and France.

) In addition, many of the 41. 5 % of the population that refer to themselves as Christian practice a syncretized religion, not dissimilar from Haitian Vodou or Brazilian Cadomblé ; indeed, many of them are descended from freed Brazilian slaves who settled on the coast near Ouidah.