FILE PHOTO: Devotees perform as they take part in the annual celebration of Voodoo festival in Ouidah, Benin January 10, 2023. REUTERS/ Charles Placide Tossou/File Photo
OUIDAH, Benin (Reuters) - Modeste Zinsou, manager of Benin's Python Temple, gently drapes a live snake around a visitor's neck at the country's annual voodoo festival, as spectators learn about the reptiles' sacred connection to voodoo spirituality.
Practitioners like Zinsou seek to combat negative stereotypes of voodoo, a 500-year-old religion that celebrates a rich pantheon of deities and spirits.
