How would one even begin practicing Vodoun?
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Vodoun is the religion, hoodoo is the practice, both contain communing with the voodoo spirits and magick but the first requires an initiation either by a priest or by the Loa Gods themselves.
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You don’t need to be initiated to begin working with them.
Lucifer introduced me to Papa Legba. And that’s how I began to work with the Loa. I’ve been working with them for a while.
You can get initiated, but in my experience, it’s better to wait until you’ve built up a couple of working relationships first. I’ve got a few working relationships and one of the loa I work with regularly has begun to talk about initiation, but due to circumstances, that’s a while off for me.
Don’t be afraid to begin working with Papa Legba - he is the first one called during any working with the loa anyway.
What you need to do is dedicate a spot for his altar. Make sure it’s clean and uncluttered, and away from other altars. You’ll need some rum, water, a white candle, and his veve (which you can Google for). Consecrate his altar with rum, then put a white cloth over it. Set the rest of the stuff on top of the altar. Open his veve, and then you can call him by saying something like, “Papa Legba, I, invite you to come forward to speak with me and to claim your offerings. Hear me now. Come, come, come.” Something like that.
Papa Legba has always said to me that you only have to say their name with intention for them to be there with you, and they are there. (But if you want them to manifest more fully, then you’ll need to be in a meditative state or a trance, I guess.)
Summoning and commanding isn’t the done thing with the loa. It’s more of a conversation with them, preceded by an invitation to come and be with you. So, respectful requests are the way to go. Also, the loa respect people who are true to themselves. So don’t put on airs and graces. Be yourself. Be respectful, but speak your truth. Don’t be an arsehole, but stand up for yourself.
It’s rewarding working with the loa. Have fun. 
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Voudon is the religion, you do need to initiated to follow the religion. You’re confusing the magick practice with the religious practice. The latter does not require initiation.
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Nope, I follow what the loa tell me. 
I don’t do the religious stuff either (I’m not interested in religion). The loa know this, and they still tell me I’m good enough to go for initiation. Which tells me what you’re claiming isn’t accurate.
Btw Velenos, it’s not an invitation to debate with me. I just shared, based off what the loa teach me and my personal experiences serving them. Okay? If you have a different opinion, that’s fine, but don’t try to correct me on this topic, since that’s a futile endeavour. You might as well be saying the loa are wrong.
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Doesn’t matter if you work with them, you follow the magick practice not the religious practice the religious practice is voudon the magick practice is hoodoo. I do not care if you work with them but do not confuse the two otherwise you give poor advice. My grandmother practiced the religious aspect of it Voudon, you practice the folk magick form of it which is hoodoo.
I can speak on it because it was my grandmother’s culture, no I can say you’re wrong without saying they are the religious practice requires initiation either from the Loa themselves or the Priests.
Again learn the difference voudon the religion Hoodoo the magick practice.
You just stated you’re not interested in the religion so you literally aren’t practicing voudon the religion further proving my point.
Haitian voudon isn’t the same which can be folk magick but Vodun is practiced by the Fon people of Benin, and southern and central Togo; as well in Ghana, and Nigeria is their religious ties.
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Thank you for this explanation.
I know I am late to the topic, but I have just recently become interested in Voudon and have even purchased and read E.A’s book The spider and the green butterfly, from what I have read @anon48079295, E.A would disagree with you, in the book he explains that while hoodoo and voodoo are thought to be part of Voudon they are more westernized versions if not completely new paths based on it. While I am sure you believe you know based on your grandmothers experiences I am sure you do not know all of what you speak of, I have only meditated on Papa Legba’s veve and even he came to me in dream last night. while yes I did use meditation which all nonabrahamic paths, practices, and even religions use. Think of it like this Voudon is the parent path to voodoo and hoodoo, and while there is a basis of Voudon in both paths, they are different and only have little connection to Voudon anymore. Anyway have a good one and remember everyone has their gnosis and that’s ok, there is no need to be right, Magick will always be changing and the practitioner always adapts.
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EA can disagree with me all he desires. It doesn’t quite change anything I stated. I’m sure my ancestors would have a different view of EA as well.
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Religion Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com . Religion Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster …Two dictionaries ( free online ), define religion. Magic Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster . MAGIC | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary . Definition of magic… One can include Magic in the Religion, but the two are two different things.
Indeed Voudon is relatively new. It seems they have a clear hierarchi, even bishops… like a church or organised belief system.
Voudon isn’t “new”
west african voudon
voudon is an alternate spelling of voodoo which is far from new.
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I think Rav meant that to the western practitioner Voudon is new because we couldn’t practice it until people brought it over here, like when the settlers came they brought christianity, as far as I know there is only one book that teaches people new to the path without putting them in complete danger and that is EA’s book. And just because your ancestors would have a different view on EA and that you disagree with EA does not change the fact that I a western practitioner chose and follow Voudon until the Loa have no more to teach me, including the fact that I have already had success without any initiation by an order or hierarchy. And even in the interview that EA had with someone who was initiated by the hierarchy in Haiti, the interviewee tells that Voudon is different than hoodoo or voodoo.
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Voudon was brought over by slaves just as it was brought to Brazil and other various Spanish countries by slaves.
The fact is point blank simple voudon is the religious aspect and hoodoo is the magick practice. Nothing is going to change that.
The literal factual definition even proves you wrong.
Vodou, also spelled Voodoo , Voudou, Vodun , or French Vaudou, a religion practiced in Haiti. … The word Vodou means “spirit” or “deity” in the Fon language of the African kingdom of Dahomey (now Benin).
So there’s really no point in trying to debate this 2 month old issue with me.
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Kind of a feeble point of view huh? I don’t think anyone gives two shits about that, in this particular talk at least.
As far as I am concerned, a lot of Voodoo/Hoodoo practitioners legit hate what Koetting did. An author doesn’t equal authority.
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Voudon Gnostic Workbook ?
Hi, would you consider having a conversation with me about this in pm? I’m extremely drawn to the Loa and I’ve had a dream of Legba. Talking about the tradition gets me emotional and I’m almost brought to tears by the stories and the history.
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