LoadingLoadingLoadingthe temples, convents, sacred forests, and ritual sites where Vodun spirituality is still actively practiced in Ouidah today.
Facing the basilica, the shrine of Dangbé, serpent deity of the Xweda people, where royal pythons come and go freely
Ouidah's Temple of Pythons is the shrine of Dangbé, the serpent deity of the Xweda people. Europeans described the cult as early as the late 17th century, and royal pythons still live there, facing the Catholic basilica.
Four hectares of coastal forest at the heart of Ouidah, where founding king Kpassè is said to have turned into a sacred iroko tree
At the heart of Ouidah, the Sacred Forest of Kpassè holds a centuries-old iroko tree, statues of Vodun deities, and a royal legend. What the history actually says, and how to visit.
A divination system of 256 signs, inherited from Yoruba Ifá, that still guides life decisions in Benin
Fa is Benin's great divination system: 256 signs, thousands of stories learned by heart, and a diviner, the bokonon, who connects them to your question. Here is how it works, where it comes from and how to consult it.
Spinning raffia masks and keepers of the night, the Zangbeto have watched over the neighborhoods of southern Benin for centuries
Tall stacks of raffia that spin on the spot, the Zangbeto are the night guardians of the Gun people. Their history, their role, their secrets, and the best times to see them in Ouidah.
The ancestors return to the living under layers of cloth: the Yoruba cult of the Egungun, from Oyo to Ouidah and on to Bahia
The Egungun are ancestors who come back to dance among the living, hidden under layers of cloth. A Yoruba tradition from Oyo, alive in Ouidah and still practiced on the island of Itaparica in Brazil.
Every year, around the second Friday of January, Ouidah becomes for four days the center of Benin's national Vodun festival
Vodun Days turns Ouidah, every January, into the center of Benin's national Vodun festival. Its origins, how it unfolds, and how to attend respectfully.
Spirit of the waters, of wealth and of beauty, honored along the whole West African coast and across the Americas
Mami Wata, "Mother Water," is honored along the West African coast for wealth, beauty and healing. In Ouidah she has a temple on the beach and a convent in town. Her best-known image, though, has a very unexpected past.
The supreme spiritual leader of the Vodun cult in Ouidah, guarantor of ancestral traditions and a true bridge between the past and present.
Every year on January 10th, during the Grand Vodun, Daagbo Hounon emerges in palpable veneration. This iconic figure embodies a centuries-old tradition rooted in Ouidah since 1452.
8 pillars in this category