Sacrificial Ceremonies of Santería: A Complete Guide to the Rituals and Practices

For Santeros who need assistance

This book provides true insight into a religion that has been kept secret for many years. It eloquently, honestly and lovingly explains the sacrifices and ceremonies that form the foundation of Yoruba belief systems. In doing so, light is shed on a beautiful, real religion that serves to further the human race; a religion that has been grossly misunderstood due mainly to the fact that the public at large was not privy to its foundations and belief systems.I highly recommend this book, not only to those that know little of Yoruba beliefs, but also to practioners. Education is power!Thank you, Ochani Lele!!

The list of works in English on "Santeria" (alt. Lukumi Religion) has become extensive. Newcomers value careful introductions, yet the majority of works published have given us introductions. The historiography is reasonably rich and the offerings reasonably accessible via Amazon and libraries. The writer has provided a number of clearly written, though controversial, prior books on Santeria. Arguably, now, priests and lay-people hunger for depth, nuance, and development of theme. Hence, "Sacrificial Ceremonies" and "A Complete Guide to the Rituals and Practices" in the title and subtitle quickly drew my attention.Systematic treatments of this particular subject are few; what exists is dispersed among numerous hard-to-find "treatises" of the Lukumi religion, most of which are in difficult Cuban Spanish, which few can read at all; moreover these authors intentionally withhold crucial information to guard their knowledge base and exclude others.In the book at hand, the terms "ceremonies," "rituals," and "practices" denote the actual doing of sacrifices, plural. And "complete," if it were possible at all to provide an exhaustive treatment of the religion's vast sacrificial technologies, raises the expectation, at minimum, of thoroughness. The author devotes twenty four pages of this 242 page book to sacrificial ceremonies/rituals/practices, following a brief discussion of sacrificial "preparations" (Chapters Six and Seven) Chapters One and Two discuss cosmology and divination; Chapters Three and Four deal with Santeria's history and "globalization"; Chapter Five discusses the famous Santeria (Lukumi) animal sacrifice Supreme Court triumph of 1993. And the final Chapter Eight provides mythological stories (Pataki) on the theme of sacrifice. The two chapters devoted to practice are admirably detailed and systematic, though narrowly confined to a single paradigm.It might be inappropriate to critique a work for what it does not do, rather than praise it for what it does. However, a number of other authors have already outlined the same basic paradigm in Spanish and English (e.g., M. Ramos and J. Mason). A cursory review of the more esoteric treatises (not to mention, the ceremonies themselves, in which we all participate) and of which the writer is certainly aware) indicates that sacrifices significantly differ with respect to the kinds of offerings, deities, pertinent ecologies (e.g., inside, outside--road, forest, ocean, river, hill, tree, etc.) and other variables, though the basic paradigm is observed--though significant variation exists. For example, who should use only their hands and who a knife? What offerings require the hands or the knife? How do you give a conejo to one deity, an ayapa to another, an eure to yet another, an igbin, ekute, aya, or agbani, eran...? How many of each offering; what colors should they be; in what sequence should they come? When should the ceremonies take place in the sacred room and when in a joro-joro in the forest? How do the particulars of the preparation for these acts change depending upon the deity? When do a coconut, thunderstone, bamboo knife, a golpe, and/or a romper enter as additional sacrifical tools? What are the implications for the ritual sequence for dos patas or cuatro patas? If it is the latter, what is the crucial relationship of "sacrifice" to the "acheses" taken out, and how are the different classes of transformed offerings and bodily reconstructions (not to mention the prayers and dances that accompany them) presented and represented to the deities? If you're concentrating on the Dead or upon Yemaya, how should the particular litany of the names of the deceased differ in the moyuba prayer?In short, a thorough guide (covers the principal bases) would help me and many others a lot. An exhaustive guide (perfectly "complete") would probably exhaust anyone's patience. For many reasons, I cannot claim to have mastered any of the questions just alluded to. As an author, I am guilty of writing long and wide-ranging books, which do not cover what some readers would like to have in their hand. Hence, I do not expect the author of "Sacrificial Ceremonies" to do it all. However, someone with his experience in writing for lay and priestly constituencies, as well as whose author's persona has always attempted to project great expertise, should attempt to focus more intensively on the topic at hand. It appears that the knife is not only too short, but also requires significant sharpening.

All of Ocha Ni lele's books, have help illuminate my path, as a Priest of the Religion ... His books take us, to the core, of our oral tradition and make it understandable ... I often wonder about why rituals, ceremonies etc are done a certain way ... Elders, don't always have the answers, but his books do ... Something as simple as what the meaning of our singing while pouring honey over the Orisha's and what the actually words mean ... To providing extensive detailed history on the Diaspora are invaluable resources ... I highly recommend all his tomes ...Modupue,OniOni

I have been so enlightened by this book. It give a clear understanding of the Afro-cuban beliefs and history. Understanding the Palo Santeria beliefs and what they have gone through just to be able to worship and carry on the traditions of the ancestor, gives me a deep respect for the African ways of life. Not everything that looks bad or evil is evil.We need to open our minds and our spirit and really see things for what they are, not what we assume them to be.

I am a traditional African Babalawo and I was just looking for some information on the Santaria style of doing things. I found this book to be very well written and very well-researched. Presented in a light-hearted yet serious style that kept my interest. I am not a big fan of the dry text books style that others often use to present this kind of material. I will definitely be reading some more of his books.

If you are a Santero then you should not miss this book. Exposes what Santeria is all about and how Santero help others. Ochani is absolutely great writer