Gede Family (Haitian Vodou)
The Gede (French: Guede) Gede are the dead–spirits who were once human and have since been elevated (by Bawon) to serve as Gede. There are Gede of all genders.
The Gede are souls that never went through the funeral rites and became lost then Baron finds then and elevate them to Gede.
They are the family of spirits not Lwa, that represent the powers of death and fertility. All are known for the drum rhythm and dance called the "banda". Banda is danced at funerals to assist the passage of the dead to the world of the spirits within vodou thinking about death is the notion of rebirth. The dance is a sexual dance with grinding , cussing etc..
The Gedés are spirits and guardians of the dead. The dead reside in the cemetery, but so do liminal spirits who straddle the frontier between life and death.
Gede is born under the water, of souls that are unclaimed by families, usually. Bawon selects souls to serve as Gede and does whatever he does to make that particular Gede, and then the new Gede exists. Even very well known Gede like Gede Nibo or Gede Mazaka vary wildly from lineage to lineage.
The Barons are a family of lwa who are the aspect of life of death. They oversee the Gede.
In possession sometimes they can be the life of the party in most lineages it can be the exact opposite. In possession, he falls to the ground and is arranged as a corpse.
Baron Samedi.: is the leader of the Gede family, he's the lwa that represent death. He's the chief spirit of the dead, the Baron guards the veil between life and death, welcoming new souls into the underworld and deciding who lives and who dies. He is recognized as a man with a high hat on his head, sunglasses with one lens gone who likes to smoke cigars. Papa Gede- is a spirit who guides souls into the afterlife. He is a great healer when it's a life and death situation. can help with fertility and is fine if children.
However, he is also the patron of young children and a great healer, when there is a life or death situation.
Maman Brigitte ("Mother Bridget") is the wife of Baron Samedi. She is syncretized with St. Brigid, perhaps because she is the protector of crosses and gravestones.
Now some may say that Gran Brigit is not presented as white and she may not be, some consider her to be a light skinned black woman. When you have a lwa spirit who embody death, such as her and her husband Bawon Samdi, sometimes they can often appear pale because they are deceased. They are other spirits that do portray themselves passing for white like Damballah Wedo, Agwe Tawoyo, Ezili Freda, Ogou Sen Jak, and others.
For practitioners of Haitian Vodoun and the New Orleans Voodoo religion, Maman Brigitte is one of the most important loa. Associated with death and cemeteries, she is also a spirit of fertility and motherhood.
She can be called on for a number of different matters. Like healing—particularly of sexually transmitted diseases—and fertility, as well as divine judgement. She's known to be a mighty force when the wicked need to be punished. If someone suffers from long term illness, Maman Brigitte can step in and heal them, or she can ease their suffering by claiming them with death.
"We here in New Orleans call upon Mama Brigitte to clear our path of negativity and evil, to help our memory and to bring us the protection and wisdom of our Ancestors and Spirit Guides."
Brav Gede: is the guardian and watchman of the graveyard. He keeps the dead souls in and the living souls out. He is sometimes considered an aspect of Nibo.
Gede Bábáco: is Papa Guede's lesser known brother and is also a psychopomp. His role is somewhat similar to that of Papa Guede, but he doesn't have the special abilities of his brother.
Gede Nibo (Haitian Creole) is a lwa who is leader of the spirits of the dead in Haitian Vodou. Formerly human, Gede Nibo was a young man who was violently killed.
After death, he was adopted by Baron Samedi and Maman Brigitte. Nibo wears a black riding coat or drag. He is a intermediary between the living and the dead. And is the patron of those who died by unnatural causes (disaster, accident, misadventure, or violence). He can help to give a voice to the dead spirits whose bodies have not been found or that have not been reclaimed from "below the waters".
"Baron Kriminals" is the enforcer of the Gede. He was the first person to kill another (probably Nibo). He's the second man to be buried in the cemetery. As the first murderer, he is master of those who murder or use violence to harm others. He's the guardian of the cemetery and watch over the tombs and what's in them. He has a skull painted face and smokes a cigar and rest under the tallest tree in the cemetery. He call sometimes captain zombi you'll see him in an image wearing a bottle around his neck which contains the zombies spirits in the bottle. He is called apon to help when the matter is serious not when ever you want to. The families murder victims and the abused pray to him to get revenge on those who wronged them. He's know to work with Met Kalfu. You can put a pic of him by the door to protect from criminals.
He is syncretized with St. Martin de Porres, perhaps because his feast day is November 3, the day after Fèt Gede.
Baron LaCroix, says to be Barons brother, but he's the cemetery groundskeeper and maintains the graves. He is one of the Gede, a lwa of the dead and sexuality along with Baron Samedi and Baron Cimetière in Vodou. He is syncretized with Saint Expeditus. Baron La Croix is also known as Azagon Lacroix. He's another aspect of Semedi not the same but similar.
He is generally not invoked unless under certain circumstances but people avoids him do to can try to kill and turn one to a zombi.
Baron Cimetière is one of the Gede, a spirit of the dead, along with Baron Samedi and Baron La Croix in Vodou. He is said to be the guardian of the cemetery, protecting its graves.
Ghede Masaka and Ghede Oussou Known as the twins, these two Loa are Haitian Voudou’s gravediggers gifted with divine insight. Masaka is depicted as an androgynous or transgender male who assists Ghede Nibo, while Oussou is his rum-loving brother dressed in opposite colors.
Baron Del Cementario: Although technically Baron Del Cementario’s name is the Spanish version of the French Baron Cimitière, (they are not the same spirit.) In the Vodou traditions of the Dominican Republic, the first man buried in a cemetery becomes that cemetery’s Baron Del Cementario. To identify or contact him, locate his grave. In Dominican tradition, Baron Del Cementario is the Baron with the closest relations with the living, perhaps because he, unlike most Barons, has had a relatively recent human incarnation.
JustBaron Del Cementario is contacted or invoked in the cemetery at midnight. Enter by one gate; make your offerings and petition, then leave by another gate, not the one by which you entered. Throw nine coins over your left shoulder (have them ready in your pocket) and then go home via a circuitous route without looking back.
