Secrets of Voodoo | Milo Rigaud | Classic Exposition of Esoteric Voudon from the 1950s

Secrets of Voodoo | Milo Rigaud | Secrets of Voodoo

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Secrets of Voodoo

	Secrets of Voodoo Milo Rigaud City Lights Publishers, 2001 - 256 pages average customer review:based on 13 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Secrets of Voodoo traces the development of this complex religion (in Haiti and the Americas) from its sources in the brilliant civilizations of ancient Africa. This book presents a straightforward account of the gods or loas and their function, the symbols and signs, rituals, the ceremonial calendar of Voodoo, and the procedures for performing magical rites are given.

"Voodoo," derived from words meaning "introspection" and "mystery," is a system of belief about the formation of the world and human destiny with clear correspondences in other world religions. Rigaud makes these connections and discloses the esoteric meaning underlying Voodoo's outward manifestations, which are often misinterpreted. Translated from the French by Robert B. Cross. Drawings and photographs by Odette Mennesson-Rigaud.

Milo Rigaud was born in Port au Prince, Haiti, in 1903, where he spent the greater part of his life studying the Voodoo tradition. In Haiti he studied law, and in France ethnology, psychology, and theology. The involvement of Voodoo in the political struggle of Haitian blacks for independence was one of his main concerns.

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Classic Exposition of Esoteric Voudon from the 1950s

To my mind only Milo Rigaud has so far written a truly profound, comprehensive and authentically esoteric exposition of Voudon in this classic study, originally published in French in 1953. Rigaud's grasp of the intricate inner symbolism and arcane mysteries of Voudon as a pathway of cosmic initiatory Magic goes deeper than all the others who have written on this subject, only he has really done the subject justice. His masterly study is especially useful because Rigaud is qualified to highlight the Hermetic and Cabalistic affinities within Servi Lwa as only a true initiate could and thus reveals the sublime mystical heights of Afro-Haitian esotericism in its dazzling complexity and detail. The erudition which he brings to bear in his description of the traditional symbolism, geometric secrets of the veves, langage chants and ritual songs is of the highest order and one must also admire the dense and beautiful texture of his prose as he articulates the inner aspects of this subject. The chapter on 'Performing Voodoo Magic' is a concentrated grimoire in itself and the Mysteries of Magic are superbly expounded. Voodoo has been written about by many authors and has even become faddish in latter years - Milo Rigaud's fantastic, scholarly and beguiling book is unsurpassed and stands as a true exposition of Voudon by a gentleman who clearly possessed a genuine understanding of the innermost Mysteries of Servi Lwa in their loftiest philosophical abstractions and their applied magical modes alike. Simply put this is the very best book available on Voodoo and a classic text of the Primordial Tradition of Esotericism.

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Secrets of Voodoo

I haven't finished reading it yet. The service of the seller was very good, prompt delivery.

The new "blue book"

Anybody who is a Pagan who knows about Raymond Buckland's Blue Book. Well, Milo Rigauld has his own blue book and it is a MUST for people interested in Voudoun minus the tv/movie hype!
Milo Rigauld cites the Holy Trinity of Voudoun, has many black and white photographs and thoroughly discusses the basics of Haitian Voudoun. You won't go wrong in reading this treasure.

AMber

Id say 4 to 4 1/2 stars

This book is nice and Im glad I bought it. The veves are nicely illustrated and the content is pretty informative. The only reason I am not giving this book 5 stars is because theres some small content on cabala which has nothing to do with voodoo. There are some other authors out there that want to mish mash everything together but its just not so. I would still reccomend MAMA LOLA over this book but this one is better than alot of the others out there. Just remember, avoid anything with the llewyllyn markings and it should be fine.

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Excellent Voodoo Reference

As an aspiring author myself, I purchased this book to use as reference.
I was pleasantly surprised for the most part. The book was written in the 1950's by a man who was raised in Haiti and thus offers first hand accounts of a few specific ceremonies and how they are performed. It also includes several lovely veves and interesting photographs along with translations of ritual chants used by Haitian practitioners.
Lists of Loas by nation and descriptions of some of the more prominent ones were quite helpful.
I am sure the religion has changed and adapted over the past few decades, and this book covers only the voodoo practiced in Haiti. I am still searching for a fresher take Voodoo practiced in America but this book is a wonderful starting point and I am sure it will help my Mama-Loa character seem much more realistic now that I understand more of the religion and its history.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

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