washed seven times with a special mixture made
with plants, as one cleans oneself spiritually in
order to be able to receive the Lwa.
A Servant’s RoleTo become a Mambo means that one agrees to act as
an intermediary between the Lwa and the people. In
actuality, being a Mambo equates with being both a
servant of the Lwa and a servant of the people. One
of the functions of a Mambo is to perform divination.
This allows the living to find out what may be going
on or going wrong in their lives. It also allows the
Lwa to inform the living of what they need to do to
restore harmony and peace in their lives, if necessary.
It is the Mambo’s responsibility to assist the living in
following the Lwa’s recommendations. Thus, they
must be willing to organize and lead whatever for-
mal ritual may be required.
They must, for instance, hold ceremonies aimed
at feeding the Lwa, or they may have to preside
over the wedding of a Lwa and a human being if
the situation demands it. Mambos must also be
healers. They must prepare medicines, often fol-
lowing recipes dictated to them by the Lwa, to
restore someone’s health or good luck. They may
also have to give purifying baths. They may also
have to prepare amulets to protect someone, or
they may be asked to perform magic to attempt to
change the course of things. All this, however,
they will do with the assistance of the Lwa.
Another important and obvious responsibility
of Mambos is initiation of new members into the
Vodu religion and the teaching of the tradition.
For this, they must seek the assistance of other
Mambos and Houngans.
Community LeaderWhatever ritual a Mambo may perform, it will most
likely take place within the confines of heroumfò,
that is, her Vodu temple or spiritual center. However,
in addition to being a place where spiritual cere-
monies are held, an oumfò also functions as a com-
mune. Indeed, attached to the Mambo who presides
over the oumfò are a number of persons who were
initiated by her or who have come to gravitate
toward her, that is,Hounsis. The latter owe total
respect and complete devotion to the Mambo,
whom they call Manman (“Mother”), out of respect.
In fact, they form a society with clear rules cen-
tered on the Mambo. They usually spend a signif-
icant amount of time at the oumfò, may even sleep
there at times, and certainly must come when
called for help, especially during ceremonies,
when dancers and singers are needed. They may
also be called on to cook for the Lwa or the
Mambo, to clean the peristyle, and, generally
speaking, to get things ready for ceremonies.
In return for their loyalty, the Mambo must act as
their counselor and protector and is ultimately
responsible for their needs. If necessary, she must
feed them and help pay for their hospital bill or
children’s school tuition. In other words, the
Mambo is at the center of a network providing spir-
itual, social, and psychological comfort and support
to all attached to it. Indeed, the Mambo, with the
assistance of the Lwa whom she serves diligently,
is ultimately responsible for the welfare of the
members of her society.
Furthermore, Mambos are known to have
played a critical role during the Haitian
Revolutionary War in the 19th century. Mention
is made, for instance, of the participation of
Mambo Cécile Fatiman in the famous ceremony
of Bois Caiman held on August 14, 1791. In con-
clusion, it must be remarked that African religion
in general, and Vodu in particular, seems to be the
only religion that allows women to reach the high-
est positions of authority. In Haiti, as a matter of
fact, there are more Mambos than Houngans.Ama MazamaSeealsoHounganFurther Readings
Deren, M. (1972).Divine Horsemen:The Living Gods
of Haiti. New York: Delta.
Desmangles, L. (1992).The Faces of the Gods:Vodou
and Roman Catholicism in Haiti. Chapel Hill:
University of North Carolina Press.
Mazama, A. (2005). Vodu. In M. K. Asante &
A. Mazama (Eds.),Encyclopedia of Black Studies
(pp. 468–472). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
McCarthy Brown, K. (1991).Mama Lola:A Vodou
Priestess in Brooklyn. Berkeley: University of
California Press.
Métraux, A. (1958).Le Vaudou haitien. Paris:
Gallimard.Mambo 403