Baron Samedi
In Haitian Vodou Samedi, not to be confused with Papa Ghede (good counterpart), is one of the loa (spirit) of the dead. He is the loa of resurrection, and is often called upon for healing by those near or approaching death, and is the only one who can accept an individual into the realm of the dead. He is usually depicted with a top hat, black tail coat, dark glasses, and cotton plugs in the nostrils, as if to resemble a corpse dressed and prepared for burial in the Haitian style. He has a white, frequently skull-like face (or actually has a skull for a face).
Samedi spends most of his time in the invisible realm of vodou spirits. He is married to another Ioa named Maman Brigitte. He loves smoking and drinking and is rarely seen without a cigar in his mouth or a glass of rum in his bony fingers. He can usually be found at the crossroads between the worlds of the living and the dead. When someone dies, he digs their grave and greets their soul after they have been buried, leading them to the underworld. Samedi is the leader of the Guédé (death/fertility spirit), loa with particular links to magic, ancestor worship and death. These lesser spirits, all dressed like Samedi help carry the dead to the underworld.
He is Venerated in Haitian Vodou, Louisiana Voodoo, Folk Catholicism. Feast day is November 2. Attributes are rum, tobacco, cigar, top hat, glasses with missing lens. Patronage: Death, tombs, gravestones, cemeteries, dead relatives, obscenities, healing, smoking, drinking, disruption, spirits.
Adela
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