28.01.2015 Views

Satanism Today - An Encyclopedia of Religion, Folklore and Popular ...

Satanism Today - An Encyclopedia of Religion, Folklore and Popular ...

Satanism Today - An Encyclopedia of Religion, Folklore and Popular ...

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

100 Gris-gris<br />

Gris-gris<br />

Gris-gris refers to the practice <strong>of</strong> using dolls <strong>and</strong><br />

cloth bags to keep away evil or to attract good<br />

luck. Shaping dolls in the image <strong>of</strong> gods is an<br />

ancient practice, more recently replaced by filling<br />

cloth bags with various kinds <strong>of</strong> objects <strong>and</strong><br />

personal items. In vodoun (voodoo), gris-gris are<br />

very common. In places like New Orleans,<br />

America’s vodoun capital, people carry them for<br />

many different reasons. They are believed to<br />

protect the carrier <strong>and</strong> his or her belongings,<br />

attract richness <strong>and</strong> love, maintain health, etc. The<br />

preparation <strong>of</strong> gris-gris is a complicated process,<br />

<strong>and</strong> varies according to the person <strong>and</strong> the<br />

purposes for which it is made. At present, there are<br />

numerous websites from which one can purchase<br />

gris-gris bags for specific purposes.<br />

See also Vodoun<br />

For Further Reading:<br />

Hinnells, John R., ed. A New Dictionary <strong>of</strong> <strong>Religion</strong>s,<br />

2nd ed. London: Blackwell, 1997.<br />

Rigaud, Milo. Secrets <strong>of</strong> Voodoo. 1953. San Francisco,<br />

CA: City Lights Books, 1985.

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!