orisha gods and goddesses pdf

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The Yoruba gods became more anthropomorphic due to the agriculture spread, metallurgy, and modernization. Oduduwa by Jianing Hu Renewed and grateful deities in turn bless their supportive wor- WebFREE DOWNLOAD Knowing The Orisha Gods Goddesses book in PDF, EPUB and Kindle format. It is understandable how one would conclude that Olodumare is too far away from human affairs for mortals to make contact, but at the same time, it should be recognized that each Orisha is an emanation of Olodumare and so the supreme being is aware of every prayer of thanks or supplication made to any Orisha. WebOshun, also spelled Osun, an orisha (deity) of the Yoruba people of southwestern Nigeria. Books Metaphysical personifications or spirits. Another daughter of Nana is Olokun, an ocean goddess. The contribution of Yoruba culture to the history of Nigerians is unique and has a lot of exciting facts. Sometimes, a Yoruba divinity can fit simultaneously into more than one orisha category. Elegua, Yemay (Yemja), Oshn (un), Shang (Sang), Obatal, Oya, and Ogn etc. Orisha devotion became a profound influence upon the emergence of such new religions as Vodou in Haiti and Santera in Cuba. Associated with Ifa, Orunmila is considered both the personification of human fate and prophecy. Shango was the third king of the Oyo Kingdom. Oba is a domestic goddess, also married to Shango, who presides over the home. WebThe reciprocity of service between gods and humans is essen- tially the giving of strength, the renewal of ase to the orisa through blood sacrifice of animals designated as belonging to a specific deity. Her first children were the cosmic twins Mawu (Moon Goddess) and Lisa (Sun God) who were said to be the first man and woman. Yemoja is the orisha that reigns over all bodies of water, although she is especially linked to rivers (in Nigeria, the Osun River is consecrated to her). He understands the secrets of dreaming, meditation, psychic ability and healing. This list includes the major Orishas honored in the United States, according to scholars and practitioners. Oshun arrived at Orun, exhausted and ill. Olodumare released the rains, healed her, and appointed her as the only Orisha allowed to bring messages to heaven. At this stage of the tale, the orishas were simply intermediaries between humans and the gods. Keep reading to get acquainted with Yoruba mythology, the most mysterious phenomenon of Yoruba culture. He can see into the distant past and the far-flung future, granting him with a profound wisdom. Yoruba gods and goddesses. The high gods of the Yoruba are called Orishas (ancestral spirits or nature gods the Yorubas worship). Yoruba people usually think of Yemoja as the metaphysical mother of all the orishas, but, according to myth, she also took part in the creation of the human race. Oshun transformed into a peacock and flew to Orun/Orunmilla (Heaven) to tell Olodumare that the Orishas were remorseful. The Yoruba religion is constituted by a conglomerate of beliefs, primarily from the territory comprising modern-day Nigeria, Ghana, Togo, and Benin. Jhonfrank Snchez is a Venezuelan writer and Literature major interested in studying ancient civilizations, history, symbolism, and how they have shaped modern thought. 12 African Gods and Goddesses: The Orisha Pantheon Syed Rafid Kabir | African History , Ancient Civilizations , Gods and Goddesses | January 9, 2023 July 2, 2022 Lions, elephants, vast stretches of the jungle with venomous snakes, or an endless sea of sand stalked by nefarious scorpions. Two gods rule over both these primordial realms. The Orishas exist to help humans reach their goal of self-actualization, but these entities are not perfect themselves and sometimes get in peoples way, often without meaning to, because they each have their own individual personality and flaws just as humans do. She is kind and generous to her followers, but when brought to anger she can cause untold destruction. She is married to Shango, the sky god, who favored her for her excellent cooking and skills in bed. As the people began to reproduce, new lands were required for them to settle. In this way, he is certainly a difficult teacher, but in the end, is usually found to be a good one. There are several stories regarding how the deification of Erinle occurred. With her destructive qualities, she brings change to the cosmos, an important element of the balance of life. Some personifications of natural forces are: Related to the sea, especially the seabed, Olokun is considered one of the most powerful, mysterious, and impulsive deities of the Yoruba pantheon. He created the Orishas to be mediators between himself and the people. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. In isolation he learned humility, becoming Babal-Ay. The Orisha deities now enjoy a global following, flourishing in many parts of Africa, South America, and the Caribbean. Yoruba mythology states that Olodumare is the most powerful god. Metaphysical personifications or spirits. Olofi - the conduit between Orn (Heaven) and Ay (Earth); Nana Buluku - androgynous Supreme Creator. (In 1989, it was believed that more than 70 million individuals in Africa and the New World participated in Yoruba religion in one way or another. He is known as the omnipotent ruler of the Yoruba pantheon, whose light brings life and vitality to all living things. This unity is represented by a witnessing object that acts as the material support of an orishas power to command and cause things to happen. On the same level as the Orisha are the Ajogun, who are difficult to define but are often associated with the Western concept of a demon. 50+ fashionable Yoruba native dress styles for men and women. The number of orishas varies among believers. (represents wind, lightning, fire, and magic) (Shango's third wife). Knowing The Orisha Gods & Goddesses Paperback Illustrated, October 8, 2020 by Waldete Tristao (Author), Caco Bressane (Author) 148 ratings See all formats and editions Paperback $8.99 5 Used from $8.99 15 New from $4.99 Because of the importance of culture and geography in defining the worship, there will never be a comprehensive list of Orishas one should not conclude that other Orishas are not Egungun-oya by Another Wanderer Most populated religion in Nigeria: is it Christianity or Islam? Even so, not all the multitude of Orishas appear in the stories frequently only 20 or 30 at most do so but there are seven that appear often who have become the most popular and are referred to as gods and goddesses: These are all only the most basic descriptions of the dominions of the Seven Orishas. Some of these orishas are primordial in the sense that they existed before the creation of human beings. He subsequently becoming a river god. They also performed the same work as the Catholic saints after death, which was being intermediaries between a believer and the supreme deity. The rapids formed between these two rivers symbolize the rivalry between the two wives, a most turbulent relationship. Goddess of love, intimacy, fertility, beauty, wealth, and diplomacy, Goddess of the Niger River; the guardian of the dead. In the original African belief system from which Santeria originates, there are hundreds of orishas . The orishas are the gods of Santeria, the beings that believers interact with on a regular basis. WebLooker Studio turns your data into informative dashboards and reports that are easy to read, easy to share, and fully customizable. Below is the Yoruba gods' family tree: The Yoruba creation story has different versions. The worship of other deified ancestors, however, remained confined to the towns where it originated, even sometimes restricted to particular families or lineages. Thank you! Last modified October 06, 2021. The Orishas Gods GET BOOK Download The Orishas Gods Book in PDF, Epub and Kindle Millions of people worldwide have been inspired by the Yoruba people, their culture, and their teachings. Each orisha has its own powers and domains of authority. Copyright Ancient Code. There are many spirits of this kind, but some of them are so preeminent that they supersede all others; they too are orishas. She can summon lightning and tornadoes be whirling her skirt in a dance. Because each orisha has particular occupations, places, skills, preferences, diseases, problems, capabilities, and misfortunes with which it is closely associated, devoteesthrough the orishas priesthoodcan make appeals to the orisha that is best able to resolve the problem they are experiencing. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/Orisha/. Prophet's Birthday: history of the holiday, when is it in 2022? He represents the power of fortune. The Yoruba faith and several other religions that derived from it are also popular in many Caribbean and South American countries. Mark has lived in Greece and Germany and traveled through Egypt. Olorun eventually forgave his son and gave Obatala the responsibility of creating the human race (which he brought into being via his breath of life). Yoruba mythology states that Olodumare is the most powerful god. In another story, the Orishas refuse to obey Olodumare anymore because they want the power to run the world as they see fit without consulting anyone else. WebOrishas (singular: orisha) are spirits that play a key role in the Yoruba religion of West Africa and several religions of the African diaspora that derive from it, such as Cuban, Dominican and Puerto Rican Santera and Brazilian Candombl. She is also often associated with the notions of death and rebirth, as the Yorubas believe she assists those who have recently died in their transition to the land of the dead. "Orisha." Get the hottest stories from the largest news site in Nigeria. Her emblem is a large seashell which she uses as a currency. Those who practice the traditional Yoruba religion are spread worldwide. He is a patron of sexual diversity, celebrating lesbian, gay and bisexual people. They may not perform rituals and other practices in foreign countries but uphold some of their traditional beliefs. Obatalas story can also be used to explain the divine origin of human fallibility. This goddess is also particularly linked to storms, violent winds, and the Niger river. For instance, according to myth, Olokun once got enraged and tried to destroy the human race with a deluge. Its worth noticing that, in the case of certain Yoruba divinities, these categories can be overlapped. He is revered by all the hunting communities and is often employed by the Orishas as a scout, helping them to locate lost items. As master of the deep, he has a great insight into the mysteries of nature. Their number is usually given as 400 + 1 as a kind of shorthand for "without number" or innumerable. However, it becomes the responsibility of the orishas human descendants to transmit to subsequent generations the objects and secrets through which human beings can interact with the orisha. The heaven realm is the domain of Olorun, a sun god. However, despite his mistake, Obatala redeemed himself by taking on the task of creating the human race. He inspires humans to overcome their physical and psychological barriers which impede their growth. An orisha may be said to be a deity. Some of these divinities are regarded as primordial spirits. Their number is usually given as 400 + 1 as a kind of shorthand for "without number" or innumerable. Oduduwa joined with the humans and begat a new bloodline of kings (the Yoruba called him Ooni of Ife, the progenitor of the Yoruba people). The Orishas are never represented as perfect beings, and there are a number of stories of them behaving badly, but they are depicted as trying their best to do what is expected of them in very human terms. Io and Zeus: A Tale of Deception and Transformation, Top 10 Dreadful Deaths in the Bible and Why Theyre So Terrible, The Myth of Eros and Psyche: A Tale of Love and Self-Discovery. Luckily, Obatala exiled him to the wilderness, where he has lived as an outcast. An Orisha is a God or a Goddess from the Yoruba Religion and Mythology. Oshun turns herself into a peacock and flies to Orun but, passing too close to the sun, loses most of her feathers and, because the journey was so long, arrives exhausted and ill but still delivers the message of the Orishas contrition. In the Caribbean, where millions of Yorubas were brought as slaves during the colonial period (16th-19th centuries AD), Yemoja began to be also associated with oceans. An orisha, therefore, is a complex multidimensional unity linking people, objects, and powers. In the original African belief system from which Santeria originates, there are hundreds of orishas . Orisha worship today is practiced by people around the world in a number of forms including the systems of Santeria, Candombl, and Vodun, as well as nominal Catholics and those who identify as Neo-Pagan, Wiccan, or New Age practitioners. The Orishas are proud of their plan but forgot to include Esu (also known as Eshu and Elegua, the messenger god who presides over doorways, crossroads, and change) in what they were doing. Human ancestors appear in the hierarchy because the spirits of those who have gone before are understood to still exist and able to exert their influence over the living. The seven most popular Orishas are Esu, Ogun, Obatala, Yemaya, Oshun, Shango, and Oya. A number of modern-day works on the Yoruba faith claim that Olodumare dwells high in the heavens remote from the concerns of those on earth and cannot hear peoples prayers, but this does not seem to be supported by the stories in which the entity is both aware of and engaged in the struggles of both Orishas and mortals. Most powerful god return to Olodumare to confess their failure in this of. Religions that derived from it are also popular in many Caribbean and South American countries it are also popular many! Existed before the creation of human fallibility those who practice the traditional Yoruba religion and mythology spirits or gods. Also popular in many parts of Africa, South America, and the gods of balance. Living things wives, a sun god how the deification of Erinle.... Share, and fully customizable her for her excellent cooking and skills in bed Catholic saints death... 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