Jean-Daniel Lafontant
For 25 years, Jean-Daniel Lafontant was a professional marketing executive. Additionally, he spent a few years working for the Haitian Government, including two as a diplomat. Lafontant is a Vodou initiate and healer, who’s area of expertise includes Haitian art and culture. In 1997, he founded the sacred Vodou temple Na-Ri-VéH 777. He has worked as a producer for various media and has appeared in a handful of films. Among them, an episode of “Believers” for CNN; and the British documentaries “Caribbean with Simon Reeves” for BBC and “Hidden Caribbean with Joanna Lumley” for TV4. As a Houngan, cultural entrepreneur, and art specialist, Lafontant spends his time in various places and consults museums, universities, and cultural institutions worldwide.Lafontant’s conversation with Moira Ivana Millán, The Earth's Remembrance, was most recently published in Duke University journal of critical thinking.
They will be speaking at the symposium at New Orleans National vodou Day on the topic of : Earth is a Living Lwa
Their Presentation
In Vodou, the earth is central to our spirituality, with the Lwa inhabiting water sources, caves, rocks, and rivers. The four natural elements form the foundation of Haitian Vodou, emphasizing that earth is a living entity with its own soul and intelligence, deeply connected to us and the universe.
In honor of our Taíno ancestors, Dessalines renamed the island Hayiti, which translate as "Land of Mountains", but means “higher-land.” This sacred perspective remains unaffected by Christianity, preserving the view of the earth as a divine territory rather than a fictive paradise.
Each territory in Vodou is a unique microcosm, together forming Mother Earth, which reflects our galactic universe. Since 1492, Indigenous peoples, including Kalinago and Taíno, have resisted colonialism, joined by millions of Africans enslaved from various regions, primarily West Africa. Their traditions merged under the harsh conditions of slavery, leading to the birth of Vodou and Haitian Creole.
A significant turning point occurred in August 1791 with Bwa Kayiman, a clandestine congress that united those seeking liberation, marking the genesis of creole, modern Vodou and consecrating Hayiti as a sacred egregor. This event was the first Pan-African Congress and led to the formation of the 21 Nanchon of Vodou.
Vodou has helped enslaved people maintain their dignity and humanity, promoting communal living and a strong connection with nature. Each tree and animal in Vodou signify a Lwa, reinforcing the belief that in this tradition, both flora and fauna are sacred and the earth a divine living entity.