Peace be with you my friends! Thank you once again for taking the time to check out by blog. Today I wish to continue our more in depth discussion of the various spirits in the Voodoo pantheon by talking about an extremely important lwa-Papa Legba.
Legba is associated with St. Peter of the Catholic faith - both are known as gatekeepers.
Legba is one of the original lwa of the Rada family brought to Haiti during colonial times and subsequently to New Orleans by refugees fleeing the Haitian Revolution. He is the gate keeper. The spirit to which one must appeal at the beginning and end of every major Voodoo service to open and close the gates of communication to the spirit world. Due to his role as gate keeper, Legba is associated with St. Peter of the Catholic faith who according to tradition holds the keys to Heaven.
Legba exists in various forms throughout the African diaspora. In Brazil he is known as Eshu, coming from his original Yoruban name Exu. In Cuba he is known as Ellegua and is often depicted as a young playful child or a trickster. In Haiti and New Orleans he is often thought of as either an old wise man and other times as a strong hard working young man. No matter how he is depicted, every Voodooist knows that Legba must be invoked at the beginning and end of every service and that any major Voodoo work must be undertaken with his permission and blessing.
Papa Legba’s most important role is that of the gatekeeper, but he may be petitioned directly for help in any matter, especially to create positive change and new opportunities in one’s life. I would like to teach you a simple service to Papa Legba that you may perform at home to seek his help and blessings. Take a statue or an image of St. Peter which you can easily find online and print out, and in front of it place a glass of water and as many as you’d like of Legba’s favorite offerings. These include a shot glass of rum, black eyed peas, white rice, popcorn, roasted peanuts and roasted sweet potatoes. Light a green candle along side the offerings and talk to Legba as you would a friend. Present your needs to him and make whatever requests you would like. Let the candle burn out on its own and then place his offerings in a piece of white cloth or a brown paper bag and leave them at the nearest crossroads. This simple service is powerful and has proven effective for me and others countless times. If you decide to give it a try, please let me know how it goes!
I hope you have enjoyed learning about this most special and important of lwa. If you have further questions about Papa Legba or any other aspects of Voodoo or would like to order a service to Legba or a charm prepared under his patronage, please do not hesitate to contact me. Until next time, I wish you peace, happiness and the sweetest of blessings!
