In the pantheon of Loa of Voodoo, there is a family of spirits whose members are not generally very benevolent towards humans. Although these spirits are known to be helpful to the priest as they support healing rituals and are mostly used in casting evil spells.

For the followers of the Voodoo, the summoning of dangerous spirits is necessary because they often help with powerful evil charms and healing charms too.

To coax these spirits the worshippers offer sacrifices at their selected locations. The sacrifices and offerings have only one goal: to make the dangerous Loa give up its hunt for man.

Nevertheless, during Voodoo ceremonies, the priest or priestess, as well as all participants, remain very vigilant if there is such a family of spirits. If one of the participants is possessed by one of these spirits, the priests or priestess will endeavor to put an end to it immediately, before irreversible damage is caused. For example, they blow up firecrackers next to the possessed to hijack or put the dangerous Loa to flight.

These Loas are often considered unfriendly and could request ridiculous sacrifices but irrespective of how they behave, a true voodooist would coax and not reject them.

The Gede or Guede:

  • The Guede are a family of spirits associated with death. They live in cemeteries and visit Catholic churches at night.
  • On November 2 the faithful visit cemeteries and light candles in honor of the dead.
  • There are countless Guede spirits, with Baron Samedi and Papa Guede probably the most well known.

These Loas are called the demon of death and they often appear when uninvited. The Gede Loas are known to have no followers and their sole mission is to destroy life.

Baron Samedi

The head of this family, Baron Samedi is known to have other forms of appearance namely; Baron Cimeteri and Baron La Crios.

Brave Ghede is considered the doorman between the door of the living and the afterlife. He often appears in a black suit and wearing a hat. He is often seen standing on a grave stone holding a cane and black cross. Death is considered a rebirth into a new life and followers of this Loa are often dressed as mourners.

Papa Guede

Papa Guede is the lord of cemeteries in New Orleans. He is a psychopomp. He waits at the crossroads to take souls into the afterlife and is considered the good counterpart to Baron Samedi. He has a very crass sense of humor. Papa Guede is supposed to be the corpse of the first man who ever died. He is widely recognized as a short, dark man with a high hat on his head, a cigar in his mouth and an apple in his left hand. It is said that he has a divine ability to read others’ minds and the ability to know everything that happens in the both worlds. If a child is dying, Papa Guede is prayed to. It is believed that he will not take a life before its time, and that he will protect the little ones. He is married to Manman Brigitte.

Ma’man Brigit (Grann Brigitte, Manman, Manman Brigit, Manman Brijit) is the mother of cemeteries, the loa of money and death, and the wife of Baron Samedi. She may be related to the “triple” Celtic goddess of poetry, smithcraft, and healing, Brigid/St. Brigit, as her name is Irish in origin. She is usually depicted as a white woman. The first woman’s grave in a cemetery in Haiti is dedicated to her. Her colors are black, purple and white, her number is nine, and her particular days of service include Monday and Saturday. Her sacrificial animal is a black chicken. She drinks rum laced with hot peppers – “gaz lakrimojen Ayisyen” (Haitian tear gas), and like her husband and the rest of the Guede Spirits, she is a “potty mouth” and uses profanity. Ma’man Brigit is known to rub her private parts with hot peppers, and those who appear to be faking possession by her in a Vodou ceremony may be subjected to this test, which they obviously would not pass if their possession is not genuine. She is a very sexual dancer, and her skill in the banda dance is legendary.

Ma’man Brigit is invoked to cure those who are near death as a result of magick. She will protect gravestones if they are marked properly with a cross.

Baron Criminel:

This is a much-feared spirit in the Haitian voodoo as he is considered the murderer who has been condemned to death. A possession with Loa Criminel makes the individual to devour himself thereby leading to bodily mutilation. The possessed initiate also tries to stab people around him.  His colors are black, purple and blood red.

Loa Ti Jean Zandor:

He is another violent and angry Loa known for hunting men while hopping on one foot. He is considered the dwarf who roams the bush seeking who to devour. He also assists sorcerers who practice black magic.

Loa Krabinay

People are often warned against these Loa because possession induced by them is so violent that spectators are advised to stay far away. The possessed is often dressed in red and performs very dangerous jumps. Although these loas are considered tough they can also offer great assistance to the houngan.

Loa Marinette:

She is said to be the wife of Jean Zandor and is considered a fierce loa in the Haitian tradition. She is represented by a screech owl that protects the werewolves (her worshippers) and becomes very cruel when people burn humans and animals.

Her colors are black and deep red and she is often offered black pigs and black roosters plucked alive.