Ayizan
In Vodou, and especially in Haiti, Ayizan (also Grande Ai-Zan, Aizan, or Ayizan Velekete) is the loa of the marketplace and commerce.
She is a racine, or root Loa, associated with Vodoun rites of initiation (called kanzo). Just as her husband Loco is the archetypal Houngan (priest), Ayizan is regarded as the first, or archetypal Mambo (priestess), and as such is also associated with priestly knowledge and mysteries, particularly those of initiation, and the natural world.
As the spiritual parents of the priesthood she and her husband are two of the Loa involved in the kanzo rites in which the Priest/ess-to-be is given the asson (sacred rattle and tool of the priesthood), and are both powerful guardians of "reglemen," or the correct and appropriate form of Vodoun service.
She is syncretised with the Catholic Saint Clare, her symbol is the palm frond, she drinks no alcohol, and is the wife of Loko Atisou. Her colours are most commonly gold, yellow and white.
External links
- An overview of Ayizan
- The meaning of Ayizan's name by Max Beauvoir
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