Articles

Explore Erzulie’s Practitioner-Written Archive on Vodou, Voodoo & New Orleans Spiritual Traditions

Welcome to our curated archive of practitioner-authored articles on Haitian Vodou, New Orleans Voodoo, Marie Laveau, and Louisiana Voodoo sacred spiritual heritage. Every piece in Erzulie’s Voodoo archive is written by initiated Vodou practitioners—offering authentic insights into the beliefs, rituals, and spiritual practices of this powerful and often misunderstood religion.

🤍This Voodoo article section also includes expert references on many Voodoo, Vodou and New Orleans Voodoo spiritual topics: 

🤍 Some of our more popular topics include:

🤍 Additional Voodoo Resources: 

Don’t miss Erzulie’s exclusive Vodou Glossary, Vodou Veves, how to Build Vodou Altars and Shrines, History of Marie Laveau, New Orleans Voodoo History, Voodoo and Witchcraft Folklore in New Orleans & authentic Voodoo Magic ritual tips and tricks! This is the place to learn all about the Voodoo religion, spiritual beliefs, secrets of Voodoo, sacred Vodou words and more educational content.

We invite you to research our academic archives with expert articles on this vast and misunderstood religion, and to learn all about the handcrafted Vodou wares exclusively at Erzulie’s Authentic Voodoo in New Orleans.

We update this section frequently on fantastic info, articles and anything important to the Vodou, Voodoo & New Orleans Voodoo traditions so check back often!  Alafia from all of us at Erzulie’s Voodoo in the French Quarter of New Orleans!

Healing Isn’t Pretty – Why Voodoo Cleansing Comes Before Love Spells

🤍 Healing Isn’t Pretty — Why Voodoo Cleansing Comes Before Love Spells & Rituals

This series is authored by initiated Vodou practitioners at Erzulie’s Voodoo in New Orleans, offering clear guidance rooted in ritual practice, lineage, and spiritual authority for those seeking healing, clarity, and transformation. These are not abstract theories or borrowed ideas—they are lived truths, carried through initiation, service to the Lwa, and the sacred responsibility of preserving Vodou’s integrity.

Our purpose is to reveal what is often unseen: the spiritual hygiene, emotional resonance, and ritual foundations that must precede any meaningful work. Healing, cleansing, and preparation are never optional—they are the sacred architecture upon which love, prosperity, and protection are built.

This article is part of Erzulie’s Spiritual Summary Series™, a practitioner-led archive designed to illuminate the divine structure behind authentic Vodou rituals and Vodou spells. Each entry honors the divine spirits, emotional truths, and ethical boundaries that guide authentic ritual practice. These summaries are crafted to preserve legacy, educate seekers, and preserve the sacred Vodou tradition.

Continue reading “Healing Isn’t Pretty – Why Voodoo Cleansing Comes Before Love Spells” →

Love Spells for Forgiveness: Releasing Betrayal, Resentment & Returning to Self

🤍 Love Spells for Forgiveness: Releasing Betrayal, Resentment & Returning to Self

There’s a kind of heartbreak that doesn’t just ache—it corrodes. The kind that leaves you questioning everything: your worth, your intuition, your ability to trust. You gave your love freely. You showed up with tenderness. And they weaponized it.

You’re left with the wreckage: rage, grief, resentment, and the haunting question—how do I move forward when I’ve been spiritually betrayed?

In Vodou, we do not bypass pain. We ritualize it , or as our Mambo’s love to say – “give it to the Lwa and go to sleep,” ha-ha!  Forgiveness spells are not about excusing the harm. They are about releasing it. They are the sacred act of clearing spiritual debris so your soul can breathe again. So your heart can remember its own rhythm. So your future is no longer shackled to someone else’s betrayal.

This article is part of Erzulie’s Spiritual Summary Series™, a practitioner-led archive designed to illuminate the divine structure behind authentic Vodou rituals and Vodou spells. Each entry honors the divine spirits, emotional truths, and ethical boundaries that guide authentic ritual practice. These summaries are crafted to preserve legacy, educate seekers, and preserve the sacred Vodou tradition.

🤍 What Is a Forgiveness Spell in Vodou?

Forgiveness spells in Vodou are not passive. They are active rites of restoration. They sever toxic emotional cords, purify the heart, and reset your spiritual field to receive love again.

These spells are designed to:

  • Release toxic lovers and emotional sabotage
  • Clear spiritual discouragement and energetic residue
  • Restore your dignity, clarity, and spiritual autonomy
  • Reopen the pathways to love, joy, and divine connection

Forgiveness is not for the person who hurt you. It is for you—to reclaim your power, your joy, and your future.

Continue reading “Love Spells for Forgiveness: Releasing Betrayal, Resentment & Returning to Self” →

Banishing with Dignity – How Vodou Rituals End What No Longer Serves

🤍 Banishing with Dignity — How Vodou Rituals End What No Longer Serves

In Vodou, banishing is not an act of vengeance—it is an act of sacred restoration. It is the spiritual severance of what no longer serves your peace, your power, or your destiny. Whether you are disentangling from a toxic lover, ending spiritual sabotage, or reclaiming your emotional clarity, banishing is a rite of dignity. It is how we say: “No more. I choose myself.”

Banishing is not about harming others. It is about protecting yourself. It is about restoring balance to your spiritual field so that new blessings can take root.

This article is part of Erzulie’s Spiritual Summary Series™, a practitioner-led archive designed to illuminate the divine structure behind authentic Vodou rituals and Vodou spells. Each entry honors the divine spirits, emotional truths, and ethical boundaries that guide authentic ritual practice. These summaries are crafted to preserve legacy, educate seekers, and preserve the sacred Vodou tradition.

🤍 What Is Banishing in Vodou?

Banishing is the ritual removal of:

  • Toxic relationships that drain your spirit
  • Spiritual attachments that cloud your clarity
  • Curses, hexes, or bindings that block your path
  • Energetic residue from betrayal, grief, or trauma

It is a sacred act of spiritual sovereignty—one that clears the way for healing, love, and liberation.

Continue reading “Banishing with Dignity – How Vodou Rituals End What No Longer Serves” →

Erzulie Freda vs Erzulie Dantor – Love, Power and the Divine Feminine Lwa

Erzulie Freda vs. Erzulie Dantor — Love, Power, and the Divine Feminine Lwa

🤍 Introduction to the Divine Feminine

In Haitian Vodou, few spirits evoke as much passion, complexity, and reverence as the family of the Erzulie spirits.  Erzulie Freda and Erzulie Dantor represent two distinct aspects of divine femininity—one soft and seductive, the other fierce and protective. Understanding their energies is essential for anyone seeking love, healing, or justice through Vodou spells and rituals.

This article is part of Erzulie’s Spiritual Summary Series™, a practitioner-led archive designed to illuminate the divine structure behind authentic Vodou rituals and Vodou spells. Each entry honors the divine spirits, emotional truths, and ethical boundaries that guide authentic ritual practice. These summaries are crafted to preserve legacy, educate seekers, and preserve the sacred Vodou tradition.

🤍 Erzulie Freda: The Spirit of Romantic Love and Elegance

Continue reading “Erzulie Freda vs Erzulie Dantor – Love, Power and the Divine Feminine Lwa” →

Spiritual Healing With Authentic Vodou Cleansing Rituals

🤍 Spiritual Healing With Authentic Vodou Cleansing Rituals

This article is part of Erzulie’s Spiritual Summary Series™, a practitioner-led archive designed to illuminate the divine structure behind authentic Vodou rituals and Vodou spells. Each entry honors the divine spirits, emotional truths, and ethical boundaries that guide authentic ritual practice. These summaries are crafted to preserve legacy, educate seekers, and preserve the sacred Vodou tradition.

🤍 What Is Spiritual Healing in Vodou?

Spiritual healing is not a trend — it is a sacred necessity. In the Vodou tradition, healing begins where the unseen meets the unbearable: the emotional wounds we carry, the spiritual debris we absorb, and the energetic imbalances that disrupt our path. True healing is not about quick fixes or surface calm. It is about restoring harmony between your spiritual body, emotional state, and energetic field — the invisible architecture of your soul.

At Erzulie’s, spiritual healing is precisely prepared.  It is guided by the divine spirits of Vodou — the Lwa — who govern purification, renewal, and protection. Each ritual is a conversation with these sacred forces, a ceremonial act of remembrance, release, and re-connection. These are not wellness trends or aesthetic rituals. They are ancestral ceremonies rooted in centuries of practitioner-led wisdom, designed to cleanse what cannot be seen and restore what should never have been lost.

🤍 Why Spiritual Healing Requires Cleansing First

Before healing can begin, the spiritual body must be cleansed. Emotional trauma, toxic relationships, energetic attachments, and spiritual blockages accumulate over time. Our cleansing rituals are designed to:

  • Remove spiritual debris and stagnant energy
  • Break ties to harmful influences or entities
  • Reconnect you with your divine path and purpose

This is the foundation upon which true healing can occur.

Continue reading “Spiritual Healing With Authentic Vodou Cleansing Rituals” →

Vodou Lwa Simbi

♥ MEET THE LWA SERIES AT ERZULIE’S VOODOO – VODOU LWA: SIMBI

♥ PRACTITIONER-LED INSIGHTS INTO THE SPIRITS OF HAITIAN VODOU!

Welcome to our Meet the Lwa series. Each page offers a brief overview of the Lwa’s origins, attributes, and ceremonial roles—designed for spiritual students, researchers, and practitioners seeking clarity and context.

These teachings were passed down to me by my elder Mambos, spiritual godparents, and our beloved Hougan Aboudja, in collaboration with Hougan Jour Mwen Lonje, whose lifelong service and deep initiatory knowledge continue to guide our work.

As the founder and Vodou practitioner of Erzulie’s Voodoo New Orleans, I created this archive to share the foundational aspects of each spirit with respect, accuracy (from our Vodou house’s perspective), and spiritual devotion. Every detail—from Veve symbols to ritual offerings—has been curated to reflect the integrity of our tradition and the legacy of those who came before us.

♥ Simbi: Master Magician & Spirit of Fresh Waters

Simbi is a powerful and diverse family of Lwa served primarily in the Petwo rites. The name Simbi encompasses many manifestations, including Papa Simbi, Simbi Andezo, Simbi Anpaka, Simbi Anpola, Simbi Makaya, and others. Though each incarnation varies, Simbi is foremost a spirit of fresh water—springs, streams, and wells—and a consummate magician. He lends his power to many Houngan, Manbo, and Bokò, and is revered as a master of sorcery and spiritual communication.

♥ Symbols & Attributes

Clay jar of water, dagger, small green snake (varies by incarnation and rite)

Continue reading “Vodou Lwa Simbi” →

Vodou Lwa Ogou Feray

♥ MEET THE LWA SERIES AT ERZULIE’S VOODOO – VODOU LWA: OGOU FERAY

♥ PRACTITIONER-LED INSIGHTS INTO THE SPIRITS OF HAITIAN VODOU!

Welcome to our Meet the Lwa series. Each page offers a brief overview of the Lwa’s origins, attributes, and ceremonial roles—designed for spiritual students, researchers, and practitioners seeking clarity and context.

These teachings were passed down to me by my elder Mambos, spiritual godparents, and our beloved Hougan Aboudja, in collaboration with Hougan Jour Mwen Lonje, whose lifelong service and deep initiatory knowledge continue to guide our work.

As the founder and Vodou practitioner of Erzulie’s Voodoo New Orleans, I created this archive to share the foundational aspects of each spirit with respect, accuracy (from our Vodou house’s perspective), and spiritual devotion. Every detail—from Veve symbols to ritual offerings—has been curated to reflect the integrity of our tradition and the legacy of those who came before us.

♥ Ogou Feray: Wounded Warrior, Lover & Protector

Ogou Feray is a famous Lwa of the Nago nation, often served in both Rada and Petwo rites. He is the brother (or in some lineages, son) of Ogou Badagris and is revered as a great warrior—always injured, but never vanquished. Feray is the most revered of the Ogou spirits, known for his bravery, discipline, and imposing presence. He is also the passionate lover of Ezili Freda, and women are both his passion and his ruin.

♥ Symbols & Attributes

Machete, iron pince

Continue reading “Vodou Lwa Ogou Feray” →

Vodou Lwa Ogou Balendjo

♥ MEET THE LWA SERIES AT ERZULIE’S VOODOO – VODOU LWA: OGOU BALENDJO

♥ PRACTITIONER-LED INSIGHTS INTO THE SPIRITS OF HAITIAN VODOU!

Welcome to our Meet the Lwa series. Each page offers a brief overview of the Lwa’s origins, attributes, and ceremonial roles—designed for spiritual students, researchers, and practitioners seeking clarity and context.

These teachings were passed down to me by my elder Mambos, spiritual godparents, and our beloved Hougan Aboudja, in collaboration with Hougan Jour Mwen Lonje, whose lifelong service and deep initiatory knowledge continue to guide our work.

As the founder and Vodou practitioner of Erzulie’s Voodoo New Orleans, I created this archive to share the foundational aspects of each spirit with respect, accuracy (from our Vodou house’s perspective), and spiritual devotion. Every detail—from Veve symbols to ritual offerings—has been curated to reflect the integrity of our tradition and the legacy of those who came before us.

♥ Ogou Balendjo: Naval Healer, Protector & Elder of the Nago Nation

Ogou Balendjo is a Lwa of the Nago nation, also served in the Rada rites. He is a great healer and considered a “wet Ogou,” second in command to Osanj of Agwe’s navy. Ogou Balendjo is an elder man, well past middle age, known for his mild and amiable nature. He grants resistance to poisons and protects travelers—especially those journeying by sea. Unlike other Ogou spirits, he does not grant fame or power, but offers quiet strength and healing.

♥ Symbols & Attributes

Triangle and signaling flags

Continue reading “Vodou Lwa Ogou Balendjo” →

Vodou Lwa Ogou Badagris

♥ MEET THE LWA SERIES AT ERZULIE’S VOODOO – VODOU LWA: OGOU BADAGRIS

♥ PRACTITIONER-LED INSIGHTS INTO THE SPIRITS OF HAITIAN VODOU!

Welcome to our Meet the Lwa series. Each page offers a brief overview of the Lwa’s origins, attributes, and ceremonial roles—designed for spiritual students, researchers, and practitioners seeking clarity and context.

These teachings were passed down to me by my elder Mambos, spiritual godparents, and our beloved Hougan Aboudja, in collaboration with Hougan Jour Mwen Lonje, whose lifelong service and deep initiatory knowledge continue to guide our work.

As the founder and Vodou practitioner of Erzulie’s Voodoo New Orleans, I created this archive to share the foundational aspects of each spirit with respect, accuracy (from our Vodou house’s perspective), and spiritual devotion. Every detail—from Veve symbols to ritual offerings—has been curated to reflect the integrity of our tradition and the legacy of those who came before us.

♥ Ogou Badagris: Military General of Valor, Fire & Protection

Ogou Badagris is a powerful Lwa of the Nago nation and a general in the armies of Ogou. He is the child of Batala and the spiritual husband of Ezili Freda. Ogou Badagris is known for his boastful, vain, and recalcitrant nature, yet he is deeply protective of his devotees. His presence is commanding and fiery, and he is served with great respect in Petwo rites.

♥ Symbols & Attributes

Sabre, cutlass, machete

Continue reading “Vodou Lwa Ogou Badagris” →

Vodou Lwa Ogou Shango

♥ MEET THE LWA SERIES AT ERZULIE’S VOODOO – VODOU LWA: OGOU SHANGO

♥ PRACTITIONER-LED INSIGHTS INTO THE SPIRITS OF HAITIAN VODOU!

Welcome to our Meet the Lwa series. Each page offers a brief overview of the Lwa’s origins, attributes, and ceremonial roles—designed for spiritual students, researchers, and practitioners seeking clarity and context.

These teachings were passed down to me by my elder Mambos, spiritual godparents, and our beloved Hougan Aboudja, in collaboration with Hougan Jour Mwen Lonje, whose lifelong service and deep initiatory knowledge continue to guide our work.

As the founder and Vodou practitioner of Erzulie’s Voodoo New Orleans, I created this archive to share the foundational aspects of each spirit with respect, accuracy (from our Vodou house’s perspective), and spiritual devotion. Every detail—from Veve symbols to ritual offerings—has been curated to reflect the integrity of our tradition and the legacy of those who came before us.

♥ Ogou Shango: Warrior Magician of Fire, Discipline & Power

Ogou Shango is usually served during Petwo rites as a great magician and warrior spirit. Known for his stern discipline and fiery nature, Ogou Shango is a hermaphroditic mystery who can be very cruel. He resides in Les Cayes, Haiti, and is revered for smoothing difficulties, offering protection, and bringing luck to his devotees. His presence is commanding, and his possessions are marked by intense dancing and elemental fire.

♥ Symbols & Attributes

Iron pince (clamp, pincers)

Continue reading “Vodou Lwa Ogou Shango” →