1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:16,983
This series presents information based in part on theory and conjecture.

2
00:00:16,983 --> 00:00:21,504
The producer's purpose is to suggest some possible explanations, but not necessarily

3
00:00:21,504 --> 00:00:28,505
the only ones to the mysteries we will examine.

4
00:00:28,505 --> 00:00:38,947
The ceremony mingles the demons of humanity's oldest fears with elements of a young religion.

5
00:00:38,947 --> 00:00:52,150
The result is a faith filled with the spirits of good and evil and tinned with magic.

6
00:00:52,150 --> 00:00:57,471
For priest and practitioner alike, the cares of the real world disappear in the ecstasy

7
00:00:57,471 --> 00:00:59,712
of celebration.

8
00:00:59,712 --> 00:01:16,355
They transport themselves into a domain rich in legend, dark curses and mystery.

9
00:01:16,355 --> 00:01:21,757
When Christopher Columbus anchored off the tip of Haiti in 1492, the island was proclaimed

10
00:01:21,757 --> 00:01:26,518
a land that possessed everything in the world a man can want.

11
00:01:26,518 --> 00:01:31,559
Five hundred years later, the promise has dimmed.

12
00:01:31,559 --> 00:01:38,080
French colonizers plundered Haiti using slaves to wrench sugar and coffee from the soil.

13
00:01:38,080 --> 00:01:43,641
Today, for all its richness, the descendants of slaves live in the poorest country of the

14
00:01:43,641 --> 00:01:45,642
Americas.

15
00:01:45,642 --> 00:01:50,563
The second oldest republic in the western hemisphere, Haiti is the only nation ever

16
00:01:50,563 --> 00:01:57,564
to leap from slavery to sovereignty in one bloody step.

17
00:01:57,564 --> 00:02:09,807
Poor, noisy, crowded, Haiti clings to the traditions of two worlds.

18
00:02:09,807 --> 00:02:13,288
The language is Creole, a corruption of French.

19
00:02:13,288 --> 00:02:18,129
Officially, it has accepted as its religion Catholicism.

20
00:02:18,129 --> 00:02:24,530
Ninety-five percent of the people of Haiti are Catholic.

21
00:02:24,530 --> 00:02:31,652
Unofficially, they follow the Hongan of Voodoo.

22
00:02:31,652 --> 00:02:34,052
His name is Papa Jouy.

23
00:02:34,052 --> 00:02:39,493
By birthright and practice, he is a Voodoo priest, reportedly one of the most powerful

24
00:02:39,493 --> 00:02:45,775
in Haiti.

25
00:02:45,775 --> 00:02:51,136
The parish of Papa Jouy perches atop a dusty hillside on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince,

26
00:02:51,136 --> 00:02:53,416
Haiti's capital city.

27
00:02:53,416 --> 00:02:55,977
No electric lines feed the houses.

28
00:02:55,977 --> 00:02:58,177
No pavement covers the roads.

29
00:02:58,177 --> 00:03:03,218
No plumbing carries in fresh water or drains the wastes.

30
00:03:03,218 --> 00:03:14,581
In two crude temples atop a small cliff, Voodoo thrives.

31
00:03:14,581 --> 00:03:20,542
As preached by Papa Jouy, it holds the key to good fortune and good health for all the

32
00:03:20,542 --> 00:03:25,383
people of the hillside.

33
00:03:25,383 --> 00:03:29,704
When an expert is asked what lies behind the practice of Voodoo, the inevitable answer

34
00:03:29,704 --> 00:03:31,825
is it cannot be explained.

35
00:03:31,825 --> 00:03:33,985
It must be experienced.

36
00:03:33,985 --> 00:03:39,266
What we committed to film, therefore, is Voodoo as it is rarely seen by strangers.

37
00:03:39,266 --> 00:03:48,468
Voodoo as it is felt by the people who live through its precepts.

38
00:03:48,468 --> 00:03:50,749
The time is early evening.

39
00:03:50,749 --> 00:03:55,030
No formal announcement of a Voodoo ceremony has been made.

40
00:03:55,030 --> 00:03:59,470
But the activity on the hilltop has attracted dozens of people.

41
00:03:59,470 --> 00:04:05,032
The signal that the festivities will soon begin is the drawing of the veve.

42
00:04:05,032 --> 00:04:10,073
Different patterns outlined on the floor in a white sand-like substance.

43
00:04:10,073 --> 00:04:15,834
The mark of a veve, however complicated its pattern, is the mirror image created by each

44
00:04:15,834 --> 00:04:18,515
design.

45
00:04:18,515 --> 00:04:34,998
Papa Jouy has established tonight as a rada ceremony, a celebration of white Voodoo.

46
00:04:35,878 --> 00:04:41,119
The drums are set to call forth a galaxy of smiling, optimistic spirits who bring with

47
00:04:41,119 --> 00:04:43,640
them good luck and good tidings.

48
00:04:43,640 --> 00:04:49,641
It is believed that the measure of a priest is his ability to summon the spirits.

49
00:04:49,641 --> 00:04:55,523
So Papa Jouy takes extraordinary care to design the proper atmosphere.

50
00:04:55,523 --> 00:04:59,843
The drums are believed to have Hunto, a divine spirit.

51
00:04:59,843 --> 00:05:06,845
The veve are drawn in honor of a life force inside the drums.

52
00:05:30,850 --> 00:05:36,851
Each drum has a unique pitch and rhythm it keeps.

53
00:05:36,851 --> 00:05:43,853
Together they create the music of Voodoo, the hard driving underpinning of its power.

54
00:06:06,858 --> 00:06:13,859
In the rada, the white ceremony, all is joyous and the children are allowed to participate.

55
00:06:36,864 --> 00:06:43,866
The Hunsai gather to launch the night's festivities.

56
00:06:48,387 --> 00:06:52,948
To dress in white and join the priest, they have undergone a protracted and difficult

57
00:06:52,948 --> 00:06:57,229
initiation.

58
00:06:57,229 --> 00:07:03,870
They have become insiders in the world of Voodoo and can expect a larger share of good fortune.

59
00:07:03,870 --> 00:07:10,311
It is believed that through the priest, the spirits will make themselves felt and seen.

60
00:07:10,311 --> 00:07:15,473
Papa Jouy signals the beginning, the first joyous call for the spirits to enter and

61
00:07:15,473 --> 00:07:22,474
join the festivities.

62
00:07:33,877 --> 00:07:40,878
From the cadence of the drums comes a moving force that borrows into the human psyche.

63
00:07:47,279 --> 00:07:53,521
The bass voice of the biggest drum, the manman, awakens perceptions and feelings that overwhelm

64
00:07:53,521 --> 00:07:55,401
the participant.

65
00:07:55,401 --> 00:08:02,403
To hear the sound is to feel Voodoo.

66
00:08:03,883 --> 00:08:10,884
To hear the sound is to feel Voodoo.

67
00:08:10,884 --> 00:08:17,886
To hear the sound is to feel Voodoo.

68
00:08:17,886 --> 00:08:24,887
To hear the sound is to feel Voodoo.

69
00:08:24,887 --> 00:08:30,889
To hear the sound is to feel Voodoo.

70
00:08:30,889 --> 00:08:37,890
Surrounded by the ritual movement, the music, the singing, there comes a release from the

71
00:08:42,251 --> 00:08:44,612
hardships of life.

72
00:08:44,612 --> 00:08:51,613
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

73
00:09:00,895 --> 00:09:07,897
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

74
00:09:07,897 --> 00:09:14,898
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

75
00:09:14,898 --> 00:09:21,900
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

76
00:09:21,900 --> 00:09:28,901
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

77
00:09:28,901 --> 00:09:35,903
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

78
00:09:35,903 --> 00:09:42,904
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

79
00:09:42,904 --> 00:09:49,906
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

80
00:09:49,906 --> 00:09:56,907
To the Haitian the feeling clearly tolls the arrival of the good spirits.

81
00:09:57,907 --> 00:10:00,908
There is no time limit.

82
00:10:00,908 --> 00:10:06,909
For as long as Papajiweed decrees, the Hunsai will dance, the drums will speak, and the

83
00:10:06,909 --> 00:10:10,910
spirits will enter the sanctuary.

84
00:10:10,910 --> 00:10:14,911
One symbol of success will be a possession.

85
00:10:14,911 --> 00:10:20,912
The instant when a spirit will enter the body of a Hunsai and take over complete control.

86
00:10:26,914 --> 00:10:33,915
The possession occurs.

87
00:10:33,915 --> 00:10:37,916
A principal Hunsai goes rigid.

88
00:10:37,916 --> 00:10:40,917
Her body is beyond her own control.

89
00:10:40,917 --> 00:10:45,918
Now through her, the spirit is believed to speak and act.

90
00:10:45,918 --> 00:10:47,918
And good will come of it.

91
00:10:47,918 --> 00:10:51,919
For this is Rada, white budu.

92
00:10:56,920 --> 00:10:59,921
Rada.

93
00:10:59,921 --> 00:11:02,921
Rada.

94
00:11:02,921 --> 00:11:05,922
Rada.

95
00:11:05,922 --> 00:11:08,923
Rada.

96
00:11:08,923 --> 00:11:13,924
They believe that the only possible harm that can come is that the spirit will

97
00:11:13,924 --> 00:11:19,925
vacate the body of the possessed and take with it the body's soul, leaving behind a

98
00:11:19,925 --> 00:11:20,925
zombie.

99
00:11:20,925 --> 00:11:23,926
Tonight that will not happen.

100
00:11:23,926 --> 00:11:24,926
Tonight is Rada.

101
00:11:24,926 --> 00:11:31,928
Tomorrow night is Petro, the red ceremony, the celebration of the angry spirits when

102
00:11:31,928 --> 00:11:34,928
anything can happen.

103
00:11:37,929 --> 00:11:44,930
During ages of intricately woven superstition, the role of Papajiweed, the Hun Gan, has been

104
00:11:44,930 --> 00:11:52,932
tainted by the black arts of the magician.

105
00:11:52,932 --> 00:12:02,934
For the most part, he is not a sorcerer, but a priest, as was his father.

106
00:12:02,934 --> 00:12:08,936
Through study and purification, he has achieved an exalted role among his people.

107
00:12:08,936 --> 00:12:12,936
Each day he is called on to produce cures and spells.

108
00:12:12,936 --> 00:12:16,937
He banishes demons and applies curses to wrongdoers.

109
00:12:16,937 --> 00:12:23,939
It seems a difficult task for so common appearing a man.

110
00:12:23,939 --> 00:12:29,940
His sanctuary holds the peculiar blend of elements that have become voodoo.

111
00:12:29,940 --> 00:12:33,941
Catholicism has been adapted to the warp of African magic.

112
00:12:33,941 --> 00:12:38,942
A roll call of saints mingles in a liturgy filled with the likes of Baron Samadhi,

113
00:12:38,942 --> 00:12:40,942
Overlord of the Dead.

114
00:12:40,942 --> 00:12:47,944
In the innermost stronghold of the Petro Sanctuary, the walls bear dire threats.

115
00:12:47,944 --> 00:12:50,945
Vengeance is a part of voodoo.

116
00:12:50,945 --> 00:12:55,946
To arouse anger against an enemy, it is said that two nails must be driven into the beam

117
00:12:55,946 --> 00:12:59,946
of his house after a family member has died.

118
00:12:59,946 --> 00:13:05,948
Then the dead spirit will be trapped, and in his wrath he will turn against the dead spirit.

119
00:13:05,948 --> 00:13:12,949
Then the dead spirit will be trapped, and in his wrath he will turn against his former kin.

120
00:13:12,949 --> 00:13:20,951
Where wolves abound in voodoo literature, so do vampires, normal people by day,

121
00:13:20,951 --> 00:13:24,952
Blood-sucking terrors by night.

122
00:13:24,952 --> 00:13:31,953
For those who believe in voodoo, the living dead are also real, the zombie.

123
00:13:32,954 --> 00:13:38,955
They haunt the nightmares of almost every Haitian child.

124
00:13:38,955 --> 00:13:42,956
Papajou must cast spells and create amulets.

125
00:13:42,956 --> 00:13:48,957
He is required to interpret dreams and to reach into the future to predict events.

126
00:13:48,957 --> 00:13:56,959
Tarot cards and talismans are part of his working paraphernalia.

127
00:13:56,959 --> 00:14:00,960
Often he will be asked to give immunity from sorcerers.

128
00:14:00,960 --> 00:14:05,961
In complicated ritual, he will receive a lock of hair and fingernail clippings.

129
00:14:05,961 --> 00:14:10,962
Place them in a bottle with a part of the person's soul and presto.

130
00:14:10,962 --> 00:14:16,963
So long as the bottle is protected, the person is safe from sorcerers.

131
00:14:20,964 --> 00:14:24,965
Soon he will be ready to begin the Petro Ceremony.

132
00:14:24,965 --> 00:14:30,966
It is crucial that all goes well, for the anger that might be set afoot is awesome.

133
00:14:30,966 --> 00:14:33,967
Spirits with malicious natures must be appeased.

134
00:14:33,967 --> 00:14:40,968
If they are not, the consequences he believes are dire to all who take part in the service.

135
00:14:42,969 --> 00:14:48,970
Occasionally, the in-search of camera ventures into a world where few have been privileged to travel.

136
00:14:48,970 --> 00:14:50,970
The Petro Ceremony is won.

137
00:14:50,970 --> 00:14:53,971
Such a place is not for the timid.

138
00:14:53,971 --> 00:14:55,971
Sacrifice is part of the firmament.

139
00:14:55,971 --> 00:14:58,972
So is fire, so is possession.

140
00:14:58,972 --> 00:15:03,973
It is a ceremony tainted by blood and enveloped by noise.

141
00:15:06,974 --> 00:15:11,975
The coming of darkness signals the first greeting to the vengeful spirits of Petro.

142
00:15:11,975 --> 00:15:17,976
There will soon be dangers set loose by the very acts poppaged weed decrees.

143
00:15:17,976 --> 00:15:24,978
The spirits that are called Loa in Voodoo might overrun the ability of the priest to control them.

144
00:15:24,978 --> 00:15:32,979
In the very first moments, after the completion of the complicated Veve, the special designs in sand,

145
00:15:32,979 --> 00:15:37,980
Poppaged weed leads his people in prayer that is drawn from Catholic liturgy.

146
00:15:37,980 --> 00:15:42,981
The cross drawn upon the floor has for them dual significance.

147
00:15:42,981 --> 00:15:49,983
For in Voodoo, any crossing point, the center of all X's is a place where magic abounds.

148
00:15:56,984 --> 00:16:02,986
There exists a great gulf between the people and the spirits which they try to appease.

149
00:16:02,986 --> 00:16:05,986
The ceremony provides a bridge between the two worlds.

150
00:16:12,988 --> 00:16:32,992
The very act of touching the animal brings each person closer to his God.

151
00:17:13,001 --> 00:17:40,007
In the ultimate moments of the Petro, when the Loa, the spirits are said to invest themselves in the bodies of believers,

152
00:17:40,007 --> 00:17:44,007
there will still be no actual contact.

153
00:17:44,007 --> 00:17:50,009
In Voodoo, in order to be possessed, the person's own spirit must first leave.

154
00:17:50,009 --> 00:17:52,009
The gods are separate beings.

155
00:17:52,009 --> 00:18:02,011
A god and a person cannot occupy the same space at the same time.

156
00:18:02,011 --> 00:18:12,013
So the person possessed leaves his own body and becomes a horse, carrying the Loa wherever it wants to go.

157
00:18:12,013 --> 00:18:20,015
When the Loa, the spirit departs, the person may return to his own body and end devoutly wished.

158
00:18:20,015 --> 00:18:27,017
If the person does not return, the body becomes a zombie, a member of a walking, living dead,

159
00:18:27,017 --> 00:18:32,018
cursed for eternity to live without feeling or thought.

160
00:18:50,022 --> 00:19:10,026
Legba, the spirit who makes communication possible with the other gods, is present.

161
00:19:11,026 --> 00:19:23,029
He has opened the door to possession and the so-called horses are carrying the spirits around the sanctuary.

162
00:19:23,029 --> 00:19:27,030
The possessed will remember nothing of what has occurred.

163
00:19:53,035 --> 00:20:23,042
The spirit of the god is the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit of the spirit

164
00:20:23,042 --> 00:20:25,362
save

165
00:20:25,722 --> 00:20:28,923
they now feel safe

166
00:20:28,963 --> 00:20:32,724
Papua Jui has led them through all the dangers of Petra

167
00:20:32,724 --> 00:20:35,004
the spirits have been appeased

168
00:20:35,124 --> 00:20:37,605
the Loa of Vengeance are calm

169
00:20:38,285 --> 00:20:40,925
momentarily, they are content

170
00:20:42,006 --> 00:20:45,146
the Petra is finished

171
00:20:45,146 --> 00:20:56,109
The crowded, noisy, ragged world of Haiti breeds the demons of Voodoo.

172
00:20:56,109 --> 00:21:00,930
But there are those who contend that the spirits that are set loose in the Rata and Petro are

173
00:21:00,930 --> 00:21:04,390
the very center of an ennobling religion.

174
00:21:04,390 --> 00:21:10,472
Maya Dern, author of The Divine Horseman, has put it this way.

175
00:21:10,472 --> 00:21:16,353
Known by the spirits is a reminder that man is of divine origin and heir to an uncounted

176
00:21:16,353 --> 00:21:20,114
multitude of hearts and minds.

177
00:21:20,114 --> 00:21:26,075
That at the root of the universe, the principles of cosmic good endure.

178
00:21:26,075 --> 00:21:31,636
That even under his torn shirt, his hunger, the failures of his wit and the errors of

179
00:21:31,636 --> 00:21:39,358
his heart, his very blood harbors monumental spirits.

180
00:21:39,358 --> 00:21:46,079
Yes this is why Voodoo holds sway on the hearts and minds of Haiti.

181
00:21:46,079 --> 00:21:49,840
When you think of Cleopatra, you think of an Egyptian beauty.

182
00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:50,840
She wasn't that beautiful.

183
00:21:50,840 --> 00:21:52,881
Okay, then what was she like?

184
00:21:52,881 --> 00:21:57,642
A young woman who knew exactly how to get what she wanted.

185
00:21:57,642 --> 00:21:59,042
Her body was a tool.

186
00:21:59,042 --> 00:22:04,163
The myth of Cleopatra on secrets of the ancient world tonight at 8 on the History Channel.