I have been watching the fascinating documentary Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti by experimental filmmaker and dancer Maya Deren.
Being a huge lover of percussive music and polyrhythmic drumming, I was instantly captivated. Not knowing much about the Haitian religion, Voodoo, I have found it hugely informative.
From an initial watch I have gathered a few notes on the documentary;
- Essentially the practice of Voodoo is an ongoing concept that weaves itself into everyday Haitian life, it is what holds the community together. The many Gods and Spirits follow very much in the same vain as all gods around the world; a good of love, death, agriculture etc. These are called the Loa. However unlike Christianity or even the Greek gods, the Loa are summoned through ritual and ‘posses’ the partaking dancers. The spirits of the gods manifest through movement and performance from particular members of the community, this is an ever evolving process.
- Instead of just praying to a benevolent god, Voodoo invites the believer to self reflect, take part and ‘become’ the god itself. I think this is a very interesting idea because it gives people the chance to sometimes act a different way, move in a strange form or play a funny trick or two.
- Almost all the rituals involve dance accompanied by chanting and drumming. The chanting and drumming reflect the tone of the ritual. Dancing is considered Sacred in voodoo, not secular.
One section of the film spoke of the Ezril ritual in which a female becomes ‘possessed’ during the ritual dance. This is a harmonious, joyful dance filled with grace and smiles. “Only one dancer can outshine everyone else”–this is when they know the spirit has entered, the most graceful dancer is considered to be possessed. I like to see this as a ritualistic dance battle where the winner is agreed upon by general consensus and the fact the best dancer knows it. The possession from Ezril is described to be extremely pleasurable, your arms become weightless, and a constant but gentle breeze rushes across your body.