Difference Between Voodoo and Witchcraft

The main difference between voodoo and witchcraft is that voodoo is an African religion brought by slave ships, while witchcraft is the use of magic or sorcery to obtain the required results.

voodoo vs witchcraft

Both voodoo and witchcraft are scary. They both get people involved in doing unwanted things and even worse. Voodoo is known as an African religion brought by the slave ship; on the other hand, witchcraft is the use of magic or sorcery to obtain the required results. Voodoo is derived from the Fon language, whose literal mining is ‘Spirit’. or “Holy”, while Witchcraft is derived from Old English Wicca, meaning “Wise”. Vodun first originated in the West African religions of Ewe, Fon, Yoruba, etc. It originated after the arrival of African slaves in the Caribbean, while witchcraft was originated by Gerald Gardner in the 1950s. Some people claim its ancient origin, but there is no evidence for it. The goal of Voodoo is to honor God and the lwas (saints) and the celebrations of life, on the other hand, the goal of witchcraft is to honor the ancient gods and goddess and respect the cycles of life. Both still have practitioners, but they do not make their belief public. Hollywood has shown a different image of them.

Comparison chart

What is voodoo ?

Voodoo is an African religion according to which our world is divided into two worlds, that is, the visible and the invisible. And this is the only thing that separates the living from the dead. On this note, the dead can return as Iwa, a spirit that can enter the body of a priest or pastor and speak to those who need to give them advice or help them out with life’s problems. If animal sacrifices are made in this case, they are said to help revive enthusiasm in their journey among nature. Voodoo dolls, although most are Hollywood inventions, as we know, are tools for priests and voodoo priests to ask for blessings and help from the recipients. Today, this is not a general practice. There is no black and white magic in voodoo. But whenever an evil spirit entered the body of a priest, it was said that his eyes could turn red. Therefore,

What is witchcraft ?

It is the largest religion created in the last century. When we refer to witchcraft, we allow all the magical practices that occur to us to include in this word. Someone who practices magic is a person who performs rituals to produce the desired results. If we refer to wizards when accepting European and American terms, we could refer to members of the Wiccan belief system, a religion that was officially accepted as a choice for many people. Mahir Wiccan is known for chanting mantras, casting spells on the dead, and performing other paranormal actions. It all depends on the strength and experience level of the person. The history of magic is tumultuous, as in the Middle Ages people used to hunt witches and arbitrarily burn women at stake when they were only supposed to be witches. There wasn’t even anything the accused could say to escape death because the entire community was made to scare witches and demons so much that mere accusations were enough to turn the entire community on someone. Witches are blamed for misfortune, war, plague, and the wrath of God, etc.

Key differences

1. Voodoo is known as an African religion brought by the slave ship; on the other hand, witchcraft is the use of magic or sorcery to obtain the required results.
2. Voodoo is derived from the Fon language, whose literal mining is ‘Spirit’. or “Holy”, while Witchcraft is derived from Old English Wicca, meaning “Wise”.
3. Vodun first originated in the West African religions of Ewe, Fon, Yoruba, etc. It originated after the arrival of African slaves in the Caribbean, while witchcraft created by Gerald Gardner in the 1950s. Some people claim its ancient origin, but there is no evidence for it.
4. The place of origin of voodoo is in Benin while that of witchcraft is
5. The goal of Voodoo is to honor God and the Lwas (Saints) and the celebrations of life, on the other hand, the goal of witchcraft is to honor the ancient gods and goddess and respect the cycles of life.
6. Voodoo is worshiped at altars and temples; on the other hand witchcraft is worshiped in Atlatrs, temples, at home, outside in nature or anywhere in the world.
7. Voodoo has numerous deities. Bondye is known as a main deity (God). All the deities are known as a reflection of the masculine and feminine aspects and the belief that the gods are real people, while witchcraft depends on the person and the faith of him.
8. Women are high priestesses in voodoo; on the other hand, men and wmen are equal in witchcraft.

Final Thought

Based on the discussion above, Voodoo is an African religion to retrieve spirits for advice etc, while witchcraft is the use of magic to achieve desired results.