Chameleons and Kings in Abomey

January 4

Day #8 – Started : Bohicon                           Ended: Klouekanme                      Distance Covered: 48 km

Highlights

• Chameleon Vodoo Temple
• Royal Palace/Museum of Abomey

Today we paid a visit to one of the more touristic centers of Benin – Abomey.  Before reaching the city with its lines of palaces and commonly-visited sites, though, we got to a chance to tour something much less well-known.

A voodoo temple shaped like a chameleon.  Chameleons 

are said to be symbolic of god on earth to most

divinities of voodoo.

Due to some awesome connections that one of our fellow volunteers has, we got to visit a voodoo temple shaped like a chameleon.  It’s huge!  It's been under construction for the past 6 years, and although there is still much to be completed within it, it looks pretty remarkable.  I mean, who doesn’t think walking into the mouth of a chameleon to get into a temple is cool?!

The temple is a private project being financed by a voodoo priest who resides on the outskirts of Bohicon.  Its purpose is not to serve as a tourist attraction, but as a place for followers of the Tohouiyo divinity to worship.  I'm not too well versed in the theology of all the different deities and spirits within Voodoo, but I can tell you that there are many.  Voodoo is a polytheistic religion, and one may find a spirit involved in just about anything.

We had the chance to talk with the voodoo priest who was financing the temple, and he told us that many people claim that different religions – Christianity, Islam, etc. – are all different things.  He said that when one understands Voodoo, however, they understand that they are all the same.  Everything is a part of Voodoo.  For example, he said that the God that one worships in Christianity is also one of the Gods worshipped in Voodoo. 

This statement matches up almost to a tee with what I’ve heard when discussing voodoo with other Beninese people as well.

After the chameleon voodoo temple, we took a tour of the Royal Palace and Museum of Abomey.   These two places are combined into one, established within the grounds that used to be the palaces of King Gelele and his son King Guezo (when they were alive).  Nowadays, there are a lot of displays within the palaces explaining the culture and history of this southern region of Benin. 

We witnessed part of a huge ceremony being put on

for the king of Abomey when we arrived at the palace.

Tons of people were partaking in the procession and

also standing by to watch; apparently it was the first

time this particular ceremony had taken place in 40

years.

The tour is packed with loads of interesting information (tours in French or English too!), and there’s no way I can really do it justice.  Taking pictures within the royal palace is also forbidden, so I have none to show.  However, if your travels ever take you to this region of Benin, I would highly recommend visiting this museum.  You will come to understand the spread of the Fon people throughout Benin, see a king’s throne that is mounted atop the skulls of four enemy kings and a King’s tomb whose walls were built with the blood of 41 people, and you might even witness a traditional ceremony going on within the palace walls.

Abomey’s a very cultural place, and even though it is a bit touristy, I think there’s a load of history to pick up if  you look in the right places.

 

A small house made from machetes.  Abomey is also
home to some pretty innovative artists