The word voodoo, which has many different names and spellings (like "vodun, vodou, voudou, vudu, vodoun, vowdown, vooodooo, vundun") is the name of a West African animist, spiritual folkway. Some class it as a religion. However, voodoo is more a way of life. It is a supernatural ancestral connection, passed from generation to generation by word of mouth (oral tradition), rituals and spiritual practices. Voodoo has variations from tribe to tribe. Religion, on the other hand, is based on formal organization, myths and dogma in texts, buildings constructed for worship, and a hierarchy of ordained leaders.