Interview With Voudon Gnosis Author David Beth – Part II

Last updated on: July 25, 2016 at 1:11 pm by Lilith Dorsey

Interview With Voudon Gnosis Author David Beth – Part II 2016-07-25T13:11:52-05:00 Lilith Dorsey

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This is part two of my amazing interview with David Beth. For those who missed out on part one please check it out here- Part 1.

I was very pleased and greatly excited to be able to interview David Beth about his work and his current projects. David Beth is one of the most influential initiates in contemporary esotericism. Born in 1974 to German parents in Angola and raised in Nigeria he lived and traveled for over a decade in various African countries where he developed a strong interest in indigenous polytheist and animist forms of spirituality. Living all over the world from Africa to the USA, UK and Brasil, David spent more than 20 years researching and studying within Afro-centric cults and spiritual systems but also received advanced initiation and empowerments in European initiatic currents.

What is the Voudon community in Europe like now?
Very diverse but also very fragmented. You have some of the usual Houngan/Mambos who have received their questionable dignities through what we call ‘spiritual tourism’ in Africa and mostly Haiti (and who ironically tend to be the most radical when it comes to defend whatever they perceive to be ‘orthodox’, often failing to understand or know that Voudon is extremely diverse and can appear very different even from area to area within a country and that Voudon is also very fluid and alive and thus ready to adapt when a ‘master’ of the tradition makes what spiritual leaders call ‘lawful’ changes) and who are usually internet voudoisants, spamming mailing lists and forums. Then you have of course genuine practitioners as well, especially West-Africans and Latin Americans serving their respective communities. It is however in general very much more invisible than it is in the USA. Our own initiates within the S.V.G., which is an international initiatic Voudon society, largely work in private but with regular personal meetings. We work in the mode and structure of a Haitian or African Secret Society rather than a traditional Vodou House and peristyle.

There have been lots of changes in light of events in Nigeria. Has that made the climate more amenable?

Hard to say. I have recently spoken to a Yoruba priest who is afraid that radical Islam (but also radical Christianity, here more in the guise of evangelicalism) is again threatening the integrity and health of indigenous African spirituality. One can only hope that such a threat may bond people of indigenous beliefs closer together rather than have them abandoning them. The climate in Nigeria may bring a bit of awareness to the rest of the world just how precious and rich indigenous religious systems are and under what pressures they find themselves. It is unfortunate that when many Westerners hear about Nigeria and spirituality it is too often through the tabloids who limit themselves to sensationalist stories about Juju magic, often in connection with human trafficking and even murder. This is certainly not at the heart and soul of Nigerian or any African spirituality and religion.

Your book Voudon Gnosis has provided access and expansion to a different audience. How is it received by traditional Vodousaint? By Ceremonial magicians?

The book was generally received extremely well indeed. While there had been some of the usual criticism from the ‘spiritual tourists’ on how this book is not orthodox enough, most vodouisants were very appreciative for an inside look into not only Bertiaux’ particular approach to Gnosis but also to some of the operational modes of Haitian secret societies and into my own particular esoteric observations. My book was the annual ‘bestseller’ at Fulgur Limited where this last edition was released in 2010. What one must keep in mind though is that my book ‘Voudon Gnosis’ did not intend to explain traditional orthodox Voudon but the essence of Voudon Gnosis as transmitted by Bertiaux but already shaped through my own particular tendencies towards a primordial ‘African’ chthonic Gnosis. The book was a kind of hybrid we can say, on the one hand it served to explain important aspects of Michael Bertiaux’ work and system and on the other hand it already contained the seeds of future developments where I isolate the Haitian Zobop Voudon elements and transfer them to our own Afro-centric environment within the ‘Kosmic Gnosis’ movement which celebrates the pan-daemonic mysteries. (please see kosmic-gnosis.org for more)

What is your advice for someone who is just getting interested in the religion of Voudon?
Read the easy to digest classics: Alfred Metraux, Milo Rigaud, Maya Deren etc. If the interest then still continues and one feels a pull towards a fuller immersion into the religion I would suggest a spiritual journey to Haiti or Benin for ex. with some time at hand to immerse oneself in the culture and spiritual environment of the country. Attend some ceremonies as a guest and see how it feels, speak to some practitioners. Once back home and if the vocation continues, one could approach local practitioners or make arrangements for a return to Africa or Haiti or other places where the religion is ‘native’. Following a vocation however also means readiness for sacrifice and the will to make this spiritual life a priority – this is what separates such people from spiritual amateurs and consumers in the supermarket of religions.

I see you have an upcoming lecture this Fall? Can you tell us about that, and What else is next for you?
Yes, I will be giving two lectures at the Pagan Gathering Europe 2016 in September, one is Voudon related and entitled: “The Dead are the truly alive: The realm of the Dead and ancestral worship from a Voudon and Afro-spiritual perspective”. For more information please see their website .
Next I will be travelling to the USA in January 2017 to meet with my American students for a retreat and initiatic work. I am also preparing my next book which I hope will be released in early 2017 with Theion Publishing. I also co-run the aforementioned Theion Publishing, an esoteric press which publishes titles on Voudon as well, for ex. the expanded and revised ‘The Vodou Quantum Leap’ by Haitian M.D. Reginald Crosley to which I contributed the preface. If you are interested in our publications, have a look here: http://www.theionpublishing.com/

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Interview With Voudon Gnosis Author David Beth - Part I

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