Mambo Ayizan
Mambo Ayizan is the patroness of initiation into Vodou, the Kanzo ceremony. She is the wife of Loko and one very important Mambo. She is usually seen during Kanzo ceremonies and almost never comes at any other time.
She is seen as a market woman wearing a white dress. This dress usually has large pockets where she keeps small candies, change and other items to hand out to her children. She is linked to public places and high people traffic areas.
During initiation an important ceremony goes on in honor of Mambo Ayizan, which is known as the Chire Ayizan. During this ceremony palm fronds are shredded in a particular ceremonial manner. Also the Kouri Ayizan, running of Ayizan, is done by an agile member of the peristyle. Ayizan is fed secret foods and receives appropriate salutes.
During the Kouri Ayizan, the person performing it will inevitably become possessed by the Lwa. Ayizan will then proceed to use the ayizan to cleanse, bless, and empower people. She is then taken into the djevo, or initiatory room, to perform certain secret ceremonies to bless it for the candidates going in for initiation.
Ayizan is most often associated with Our Lady of Fatima. Her sacred tree is the palm. She can be fed with white foods. The truth is, however, that the majority of information on her is secret. She has secret foods and ceremonies.
