Vodū

Origins

According to ancient myths, Buluku, the supreme all-father of the Vodū, merged with the primordial Earth Mother Gaea (later known among the Vodū alternatively as "Nana," "Ale," and "Asase Ya"), and sired twin offspring: the sun god Lusa and the moon goddess Mahu. As a result of this merging, the "supreme creator" was sometimes worshipped by mortals as the androgynous "Nana Buluku." Vodū worshippers believe that Lusa and Mahu joined forces to create the mortal world, mortal life, and mortal technology in four days' time. Buluku remained in Orun, content to leave this newborn mortal world's care to his children. Lusa and Mahu, in turn, sired several divine pairs of twins, including Avlekete and Ezili, Ogun and Shango, Dam-Ayido Wede and Sagbata, and Eschu and Legba.^[1]

2900 BC

The Vodu were worshiped as early as 2900 BC.^[4]

12th century

As early as the 12th century, the Yoruba people of the Niger River valley (in modern-day Nigeria) started worshiping the Vodū gods (as did the Fon people of Dahomey (in modern-day Benin). The Yorubans knew the Vodū Sky Father Buluku as "Olorun".

Lusa, Mahu, and their family became directly active in mortal affairs and descended to the ancient city of Ife, the legendary first city of the Yoruba people. Eventually, their twins, who each possessed a unique aspect of Buluku's omnipotence, strayed from Ife and settled in other mortal cities in Western Africa.^[1] Shango himself went on to rule the mortal city of Oyo (in modern-days southwestern Nigeria) for a brief time.^[5]

When many of their worshippers were forcibly relocated to the Caribbean islands as slaves in the 16th century AD, Dam-Ayido Wede, the Vodūn god of serpents, followed the slave ships across the Atlantic Ocean and brought Vodū worship to the New World.^[1]

20th Century

For centuries, tribes in the Congo worshiped the Vodū goddess known as Mamalu, until the 1950s when white settlers convinced the tribes that Mamalu did not exist. Furious, Mamalu blamed the jungle adventurer Lorna the Jungle Queen as being responsible for stealing her worshipers. She influenced a tribesman named Kabu with offers be her mate if he performed a sacrifice to bring her to Earth. Lorna attempted to stop Mamalu but it was not until that Mamalu decided to take Lorna's companion Greg Knight as a mate did her plan fail as the jealous Kabu seemingly slew her.^[6] Waku, prince of the Bantu Tribe, South Africa, found his rule briefly usurped by his own friend Jobu, who convinced the locals that the "Fire God" were mad at Waku. Waku clashed with Jobu, who was slain in a fire. Following Jobu's defeat the real "Fire God" appeared before Waku and decreed that Waku was fit to lead his people.^[7]

Modern Age

Cuban-American entertainment entrepreneur Nestor "NeRo" Rodriguez consulted a priest of Santeria (a "santero") and invoked Eschu to empower him so that he could avenge his father, who had been murdered by the Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) years earlier. Eschu answered Rodriguez's call and granted him superhuman abilities. Calling himself "Eleggua" in honor of his patron deity, Rodriguez used his family's fortune to bankroll the Santerians, a street-level vigilante team operating out of New York City and comprised of his childhood friends, who were similarly empowered by Ezili, Ogun, Oya, and Shango.^[1]

• Immortality: They are true immortals who cease to age upon reaching adulthood, and they cannot die by conventional means. The Vodu are immune to all terrestrial diseases and are resistant to conventional injury.^[8]
• Superhuman Durability: The skin, bone and muscle tissues of the gods are much tougher and more resistant to physical injury than the bodies of humans. The average Vodu god and goddess is capable of withstanding falls from great heights, exposure to temperature extremes, great impacts without sustaining injury.^[8]
• Regenerative Healing Factor: If a Vodu is wounded, his or her godly life force will enable him or her to recover at a superhuman rate. It would take an injury of such magnitude that it incinerates a Vodu or disperses a major portion of his or her bodily moledules to cause him or her to die. Even then, it may be possible for a god of greater or equal power, or several gods acting together, to revive the deceased god before the god's life essence is beyond resurrections.^[8]
• Superhuman Stamina: The gods' metabolism gives them superhuman endurance in all physical activities.^[8]
• Superhuman Reflexes: Members of the race's reflexes are similarly enhanced and are superior to those of the finest human athlete.^[8]
• Superhumanly Dense Tissue: The skin, muscle, and bone tissue of the race's members are about two-and-a-half times the density of the same tissue in a human's body.^[8]
• Superhuman Strength: All West African gods possess superhuman strength. However, they are physically weaker than some other pantheons of gods on average, such as the Olympians and Asgardians. The average Vodu male god is able to lift (press) about 25 tons under optimal conditions and the average Vodu goddess is able to lift (press) about 25 tons under optimal conditions.^[8]

Many Vodu possess unique abilities.^[8]

Average male god can lift about 25 tons, a female goddess about 20 tons.^[1]

Orun

Council of the Vodû^[3]

Ananai, Avlekete, Babalú, Buluku, Damballah/Dam-Ayido Wede, Eschu/Ellegua, Ezili, Gorilla God/Ghekre, Ngi, Legba, Lusa, Mamalu, Mahu, Ogun, Oya, Sagbata/Baron Samedi, Shango

• In West Africa, the Òrìshà or Vodu religions are not gathering their gods in pantheons like we know for ancient European believe systems like Thor's Asgardians or Hercules' Olympians. Instead every family has one special Òrìshà or Vodu they worship. Said fact leads to the result that there are unmanageable accounts of Òrìshàs and countless variations in stories, origins, manifestations and interpretations in West Africa.
• In the Marvel Universe, 'Vodun' is depicted as some kind of magic^[9][10] -especially as 'Black Magic'.^{[10][11][12][13][14]} It is also suggested that 'Vodun' has or had human sacrifices a couple of times,^[15][16] but in reality 'Voodooists' sacrifice production animals, alcohol and even vegetables. It is also shown misleadingly that the oracle uses bones to predict the future.^[17] In fact the oracle uses kauri mussels.
• The name Damballah was previously used by spawn of the Elder God Set,^[18] and the name of Set in Zembabwei, one of the Black Kingdoms during the Hyborian Age.^[19][20][21]
• The pantheon of Wakanda is known as The Orisha,^[22][23] although it is composed of gods from various African origins: Bast, Thot, and Ptah from Egypt,^[24] Kokou from Benin,^[25] and Mujaji from South Africa.^[26] One possible explanation for the use of the term orisha is that Yoruba is one of the languages spoken in Wakanda.^[27] In addition to the main pantheon, other gods are worshiped in Wakanda like the Lion God (which is also another deity from Egypt, Sekhmet)^[28][29] and the gorilla gods Ghekre^[30][1] and Ngi, the latter adored by the tribe that would become Jabari.^[31][32]
• In Black Panther: Protectors of Wakanda, a text attributed to Changamire introduces some new details to Originators and the Wakandan mythology:
  • The Vanyan race, which resemble gorillas, descend from Ghekre.
  • The names of the two unidentified races are revealed and inspired by orishas from Yoruba mythology: the sea-creatures are called the Children of Olokun and the two-headed creatures are called the Ibeji. Olokun is an orisha of the seas^[33] and Ibeji is an orisha representing a pair of twins.^[34]
  • According to the Appendix to the Marvel Universe, Olokun is Avlekete's husband.^[35]
• Fire god has not been identified, but may be associated with Ogun.^[36]
• Eshu refers to Ptah as Ptah-Ogun,^[37] Ogun also a Smithing deity.^[38]

Glossary:Voodoo