Potomitan

Around this poteau-mitan revolve the ritual movements and the dance; at its base the offerings are placed; and through it the loa enter the peristyle.

Across from us two young men were setting up a battery of drums; they cast furtive glances at Rachel as she cracked open a bottle of rum, tipped it three times toward the poteau mitan, and took a drink.

Next, swinging a censer, Divié blessed the poto mitan and all the ounsis who raised their skirts and swished them around to get the full effect of the incense.

The poteau-mitan is a ladder between Heaven and Earth, a pathway by which the ancestors can rise from below and the spirits descend from above.

The Lwa are believed to ascend or descend through the potomitan, which is therefore seen as a magical axis.