The ''potomitan'' (also spelled ''poteau-mitan'', ''poto mitan'', ''poto-mitan'':

Haitian Creole Haitian Creole (; , ; , ), or simply Creole (), is a French-based creole languages, French-based creole language spoken by 10 to 12million people worldwide, and is one of the two official languages of Haiti (the other being French), where it ...

: "central pole" - from the French: , "post", and , an archaism for "half") is an essential structural feature of the '' hounfour'' (temple) in

Haitian vodou Haitian Vodou () is an African diasporic religions, African diasporic religion that developed in Haiti between the 16th and 19th centuries. It arose through a process of syncretism between several traditional religions of West Africa, West and ...

. Occupying the central position in the peristyle (sacred space at the centre of the / ), the ''potomitan'' takes the form of a decorated wooden post (occasionally a living tree) by means of which, it is believed, the ''

loa , also called loa, are spirits in the African diaspora religions, African diasporic religion of Haitian Vodou and Dominican Vudú. They have also been incorporated into some revivalist forms of Louisiana Voodoo. Many of the lwa derive their iden ...

'' descend to Earth to inhabit, for a time, the bodies of the faithful through

spirit possession Spirit Possession is an altered state of consciousness and associated behaviors which are purportedly caused by the control of a human body and its functions by Supernatural#Spirit, spirits, ghosts, demons, angels, or Deity, gods. The concept ...

. The structure consists usually of the whole trunk of a

palm Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae ** List of Arecaceae genera **Palm oil * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music ...

tree, being fixed to the ground by a masonry pedestal commonly known as a ''socle'' and attached at the top to the roof of the temple. A ''potomitan'' is often painted with designs in bright colours, featuring usually the motif of two intertwined serpents, symbolizing the primordial male and female divine couple

Damballa Damballa, also spelled Damballah, Dambala, Dambalah, among other variations (), is one of the most important of all loa, spirits in West African Vodun, Haitian Voodoo and other African diaspora religious traditions such as Obeah. He is traditi ...

and Ayida Weddo who, according to the cosmogony of the Haitian religion, support the sky, preventing it from crumbling and falling to Earth. Taken its entirety, however, the ritual post represents the deity

Papa Legba Papa Legba is a lwa, or loa, in West African Vodun and its diasporic derivatives ( Dominican Republic Vudú, Haitian Vodou, Louisiana Voodoo, and Winti), who serves as the intermediary between God and humanity. He stands at a spiritual crossroa ...

, the

gatekeeper A gatekeeper is a person who controls access to something, for example via a city gate or bouncer, or more abstractly, controls who is granted access to a category or status. Gatekeepers assess who is "in or out", in the classic words of manage ...

or messenger of the ''loa'', without whose intercession communication with the realm of the divine would be impossible. Sacrifices are carried out regularly to sanctify the structure and honour the deity, either at the foot of the ''potomitan'' itself or at the base of the ''socle'' - most notably prior to Vodou ceremonies proper - in order to keep it a fit conduit for the transmission of the divine powers. The ''potomitan'' constitutes a ritual representation, in a specifically Haitian context, of the

axis mundi In astronomy, is the Latin term for the axis of Earth between the celestial poles. In a geocentric coordinate system, this is the axis of rotation of the celestial sphere. Consequently, in ancient Greco-Roman astronomy, the is the axis of ...

and, more specifically the world tree.Gordon, Leah, (1985), ''The Book of Vodou'', Barron's Educational Series

References

{{Reflist Haitian Vodou Voodoo art