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Fascination with the sensational imagery of possession by seemingly sympathetic observers of Vodou has obscured appreciation of some of the unremarkable aspects of Haitians’ embodied communication with spirits. Modern narratives of Vodou have reproduced the unsubstantiated concepts of Haitian spirits as abstract, universalistic gods. Access to these archetypal spirits, called lwa, is theoretically open to anyone who chooses to serve them. The most profound mode of individual access—possession—is viewed as a transformative experience, the consummation of a quest for a pure self, unfettered by a crisis-ridden society and at one with a good and peaceful universe. This self-centered use of possession informs the practices of converts to invented Vodou traditions but would be immoral in the ordinary ritual communications of Haitian descent groups. 1 Drawing upon ethnographic research over the past three …