New Orleans: Crescent of Darkness- A Threads of Damocles "A" Universe


	Petwo Lwa The Petwo Lwa are generally the more fiery, occasionally aggressive and warlike Lwa. They include Erzulie Dantor, Marinette, Ogoun, and Kalfu (Carrefour). Their traditional colour is red. Erzulie Dantor In her Petro nation aspect, Erzulie Dantor is often depicted as a scarred and buxom woman holding a child protectively in one hand and a knife in the other. She is a warrior, and particularly a fierce protector of women and children; She is also the patron of lesbians. It has been said that a common depiction of Erzulie Dantor has its roots in copies of the icon of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa, brought to Haiti by Polish soldiers fighting on both sides of the Haitian revolution from 1802 onwards. Marinette Marinette is represented by a screech owl and is often seen the protector of werewolves. Her Catholic counterpart is the Anima Sola who can either free one from bondage or drag you back. Her name is also Marinette Bwa Chech, which translates into Marinette of the Dry Arms suggesting that she is skeletal. Her colors are black and deep blood red. Her offerings are black pigs and black roosters plucked alive. Marinette was elevated to a lwa after her death. She is believed to be the Mambo who sacrificed the black pig at the culmination of the start of the first Haitian Revolution. While she is feared and tends to ride the horses violently, she can also be seen as one who frees her people from bondage. Ogoun Ogoun presides over fire, iron, hunting politics and war. He is the patron of smiths and is usually displayed with his attributes: machete or sabre, rum and tobacco. He is one of the husbands of Erzulie. Ogoun is the traditional warrior, similar to the spirit of Ares in Greek mythology. As such Ogoun is mighty, powerful, triumphal, yet also exhibits the rage and destructiveness of the warrior whose strength and violence can turn against the community he serves. He gives strength through prophecy and magic. It is Ogoun who is said to have planted the idea, led and given power to the slaves for the Haitian Revolution of 1804. Ogoun comes to mount people in various aspects of his character, and the people are quite familiar with each of them. Some of these aspects are: Ogoun the wounded warrior. He assumes a Christ-figure pose which the people know well from their Christian associations. Ogoun Feraille. He gives strength to the servitors by slapping them on the thighs or back. Ogoun Badagris. He may lift a person up and carry him or her around to indicate his special attention and patronage. To all the aspects of Ogoun there is the dominant theme of power and militancy. His possessions can sometimes be violent. Those mounted by him are known to wash their hands in flaming rum without suffering from it later. They dress up in red, wave a sabre or machete, chew a cigar and demand rum in an old phrase "Gren mwe fret" (my testicles are cold). Often this rum is poured on the ground then lit and the fumes pervade the peristyle. The sword, or much more commonly, the machete is his weapon and he often does strange feats of poking himself with it, or even sticking the handle in the ground, then mounting the blade without piercing his skin. Kalfu Kalfu is the Petro manifestation of Papa Legba and can be quite dangerous, whereas Legba, his kinder Rada counterpart, is associated with the sun, Kalfou is regarded as a lwa of the moon. Kalfu also controls the crossroads. Not unlike Pandora in Greek religion and myth, Kalfu controls the evil forces of the spirit world. He allows the crossing of bad luck, deliberate destruction, misfortune, injustice. Kalfu controls the in-between points of the crossroads, the off-center points. Legba controls the positive spirits of the day; Kalfu controls the malevolent spirits of the night. When Kalfu mounts a person everyone at the service stops speaking because he allows evil loa to come to the ceremony. He claims that most of the important loa know him and he collaborates with them. Kalfu says that some people claim he is a demon but he denies this. A respected loa though he is not liked much, he is the grand master of charms and sorceries and is closely associated with black magic.

Petwo Lwa

The Petwo Lwa are generally the more fiery, occasionally aggressive and warlike Lwa. They include Erzulie Dantor, Marinette, Ogoun, and Kalfu (Carrefour). Their traditional colour is red.

Erzulie Dantor

In her Petro nation aspect, Erzulie Dantor is often depicted as a scarred and buxom woman holding a child protectively in one hand and a knife in the other. She is a warrior, and particularly a fierce protector of women and children; She is also the patron of lesbians. It has been said that a common depiction of Erzulie Dantor has its roots in copies of the icon of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa, brought to Haiti by Polish soldiers fighting on both sides of the Haitian revolution from 1802 onwards.

Marinette

Marinette is represented by a screech owl and is often seen the protector of werewolves. Her Catholic counterpart is the Anima Sola who can either free one from bondage or drag you back. Her name is also Marinette Bwa Chech, which translates into Marinette of the Dry Arms suggesting that she is skeletal. Her colors are black and deep blood red. Her offerings are black pigs and black roosters plucked alive. Marinette was elevated to a lwa after her death. She is believed to be the Mambo who sacrificed the black pig at the culmination of the start of the first Haitian Revolution. While she is feared and tends to ride the horses violently, she can also be seen as one who frees her people from bondage.

Ogoun

Ogoun presides over fire, iron, hunting politics and war. He is the patron of smiths and is usually displayed with his attributes: machete or sabre, rum and tobacco. He is one of the husbands of Erzulie.

Ogoun is the traditional warrior, similar to the spirit of Ares in Greek mythology. As such Ogoun is mighty, powerful, triumphal, yet also exhibits the rage and destructiveness of the warrior whose strength and violence can turn against the community he serves.

He gives strength through prophecy and magic. It is Ogoun who is said to have planted the idea, led and given power to the slaves for the Haitian Revolution of 1804.

Ogoun comes to mount people in various aspects of his character, and the people are quite familiar with each of them. Some of these aspects are:

Ogoun the wounded warrior. He assumes a Christ-figure pose which the people know well from their Christian associations.
Ogoun Feraille. He gives strength to the servitors by slapping them on the thighs or back.
Ogoun Badagris. He may lift a person up and carry him or her around to indicate his special attention and patronage. To all the aspects of Ogoun there is the dominant theme of power and militancy.

His possessions can sometimes be violent. Those mounted by him are known to wash their hands in flaming rum without suffering from it later. They dress up in red, wave a sabre or machete, chew a cigar and demand rum in an old phrase "Gren mwe fret" (my testicles are cold). Often this rum is poured on the ground then lit and the fumes pervade the peristyle. The sword, or much more commonly, the machete is his weapon and he often does strange feats of poking himself with it, or even sticking the handle in the ground, then mounting the blade without piercing his skin.

Kalfu

Kalfu is the Petro manifestation of Papa Legba and can be quite dangerous, whereas Legba, his kinder Rada counterpart, is associated with the sun, Kalfou is regarded as a lwa of the moon.

Kalfu also controls the crossroads. Not unlike Pandora in Greek religion and myth, Kalfu controls the evil forces of the spirit world. He allows the crossing of bad luck, deliberate destruction, misfortune, injustice.

Kalfu controls the in-between points of the crossroads, the off-center points. Legba controls the positive spirits of the day; Kalfu controls the malevolent spirits of the night.

When Kalfu mounts a person everyone at the service stops speaking because he allows evil loa to come to the ceremony. He claims that most of the important loa know him and he collaborates with them. Kalfu says that some people claim he is a demon but he denies this. A respected loa though he is not liked much, he is the grand master of charms and sorceries and is closely associated with black magic.