home
> afro-brazilian
culture > Candomblé: Orixás
Candomblé:
Orixás
Orixas (Candomblé Dieties)
This
text was written by Dario Firmino and Babalorixá
Leandro de Xangô.
Exú
Ogum
Oxossi
Osain
Oxumarê
Obaluayê
Nanã
Oxum
Logun Edé
Oyá/
Yansan
Obá
Ewá
Xangô
Yemanjá
Oxaguian
(young), Oxalufan (old)
Exú
Axé,
the connection of the material with the spiritual,
communication, fecundation, opening of the way for
business success and spiritual cleansing.
Day
of the week: monday
Colors:
red, red and black, black.
Salutation: Larôye
exú
Domain:
roads, trails, paths, crossings, gates, etc.
Tools and symbols:
key, trident, erect penis, etc.
Archetypes
Exú
is the lord of the trails, the pathways that take
and bring and allow people to come together or distance
themselves. It is he that sees that rites are followed,
he is mainly responsible for the connection of the
spiritual world and the material world (orun-ayé).
He is there at the crossroads, waiting and pointing
the way. Nothing may be done in candomblé before
pleasing bará/exú, because he is the
only orixá who makes the link with the other
orixás, both in travel and communication. For
this he is considered a messenger.
Exú stands above other orixás for being
more connected with the terrestrial world. He has
certain customs and temperments similar to those of
humans. Exú is erroneously syncretized as the
christian devil.
Because he is an orixá who takes care of pathways
where people, orixás, spirits, etc. Travel
and is the link between these worlds, exú has
many contradictions: good and bad; astute, gruff,
indecent, protective, happy, playful, violent, etc.
In other words, he is the most humanized orixá
in the pantheon, because his archetypes include the
impurities caused by or existing in huans.
Because of these aspects, he was syncretized by the
first missionaries as the christian devil.
His
children
The children of bará/exú have unpredictable
characters. They can be brave, calculating and very
contrary. They can be intelligent and understanding
of others’ problems. They do not accept defeat,
they are finicky, with difficult temperments. If you
have a misunderstanding with a child of exú,
watch out because there will be repercussions.
His children always need to be active to use up all
the energy they possess.
They have a tendency to spirituality. They are fervently
faithful and spread the faith...
[back
to top]
Ogum
Day of the week: tuesday,
thursday (batuque).
Color:
dark blue
Salutation: Ogunhê.
Domain:
all connections established between different places
– railroads, highways, etc.
Lord of the defenses, battles, iron, etc.
Tools: swords
and things made of iron
Offerings:
baked yams
Archetypes
The sons of ogun have a bit of a violent temper, they
are impulsive, feisty and do not take offense lightly.
They are not very demanding of their food, dress or
dwelling. With rare exceptions they are friends, but
they are always involved with demands. They are masters
of atirar verde pra colher maduro, they are often
very suspicious. They always attract the interest
of women, they have many sexual relationships but
are rarely faithful. They are full of physical energy
and rarely get sick. Their main goal is to win in
life, no matter what type of work or effort they must
undertake to achieve their ideals.
[back
to top]
Oxossi
Day of the week:
thursday
Color:
turquoise
Salutation:
okê aró.
Domains:
forests and woods where there is abundant hunting
and food.
Adornment:
ofá (bow and arrow)
Lord
of the forests, his natural habitat, where he lives
by hunting and gathering. He is the divinity of ecological
harmony and balance. He protects both hunters and
the hunted, not permitting predatory hunting, only
for food.
He is associated with living in the open air and with
nature. As a good hunter, he is solitary and individualistic,
but he does not withdraw from society, and he never
lives without a great love.
Archetypes
Solitary, at work they demand silence and concentration.
Observant and jovial, agile and clever, always attentive.
Their objectives are always placed first, showing
leadership and independence at the same time they
are patient with others. They are quick and spontaneous
to act.
They are communicative and orderly, lovers and dreamers.
At bottom they are romantic and proud people, who
pass for snobs and exhibitionists and who need people
around them to empower their leadership qualities.
[back
to top]
Osain
Day of the week:
thursday adornments/tools: metal rod with seven points
and a dove in the center.
All the force of plants, both for cures and for ceremonies.
Colors:
green and white
Salutation:
ewê, ewê assa ewê,ewê ô
Domains: leaves
and herbs.
Introduction
Divinity of medicinal plants and liturgies, holder
of axé (force, power, vitality). His symbol
is an iron rod with seven points facing upward, with
an image of a dove on the centreal point.
Holder of the secret of the leaves, he is considered
the physician of candomblé. He is so important
that no ceremony may be performed without his presence.
Archetypes
Ossain’s archetype is that of people who are
balanced, able to control their feelings and emotions,
defenders of nature, but without judging or condemning.
Sympathies and antipathies never interfere in their
decision or influence their opinions. They have intimate
knowledge of leaves.
Lengends
Ossain was the youngest son of iemanjá and
oxalá e, and since he was small he lived in
the forest. He had a special ability to treat any
disease, and for this reason he traveled the whole
world, always being received affectionately by the
king of each tribe. He received from olodumaré
the secret of the leaves. He knew which cured diseases,
brough vigor or made people calmer.
Ther other orixás envied him because they didn’t
have this power and depended on ossain to have success.
He charged for each work, accepting honey, tobacco
and cane liquor as payment for his cures.
Xangô, who was tempermental, did not accept
being dependent on the services of ossain, and asked
his wife yansã, the orixá who controls
the winds, for all the leaves to be carried to all
the other orixás, so that each could have dominion
over one of them. In the middle of a windstorm, ossain
repeated: "eu, eu assa!", which means "oh,
leaves!".
With this type of prayer, although each orixá
had taken possession of a leaf, ossain kept his power
from being spread among his siblings, because only
he know the axé of each of the leaves and the
secret of pronouncing these words in a way to preserve
the power over them. With his wisdom, until today
ossain remains king of the forest and the orixá
of medicine.
[back
to top]
Oxumarê
Equilibrium
and wealth.
Day
of the week: thursday
Colors:
yellow and black
Salutation:
a run bobôi !
Domain:
rainbow
Adornment:
two metal snakes
Introduction
The exotic and mysterious are his domains. Everything
about him is repeated, only the forms varying like
in the cycle of the rains: the water that evaporates
returns as rain. Or as in the universe of celestial
bodies, where the moon, sun, earth and other stars
and planets move methodically and harmoniously.
He is also present in the cycle of “life and
death”, and his strongest symbol is that of
the snake biting his own tail, which represents the
vital cycle: life, death and rebirth. The most evident
mark of oxumaré is the rainbow, of which he
is the master.
Archetypes
They are persistent and patient, sparing no efforts
to attain their goals. They are generous or avaricious,
depending on the economic situation. Energetic and
observant, they always try to find balance and harmony.
Their great strengths are eloquence and intelligence,
weapons they use well whether on the attack or defense.
[back
to top]
Obaluayê
Day of the week:
monday
Colors:
black and red and white
Salutation:
atotô
Domain:
earth
Adornment:
xaxará
Introduction
Obaluayê means "king and owner of the earth",
his clothing is straw and hides the secret of life
and death. He is related with the hot and dry land,
as in the heat of fire and the sun – heat that
harks to the fever of infectious diseases. He completely
dominates the diseases he rules. At the same time
he causes them, he can cure them.
Archetypes
They are never fully satisfied, they always want something
else...Even when they think all is against them, they
persist in their purposes. Children of obaluaiyê
care more about the ends than the means. Outwardly
strong, they are really fragile and voluble and subject
themselves to rigid disciplines and moral rules.
[back
to top]
Nanã
Colors:
white streaked with blue
Salutation: salubô
nanã.
Domains:
calm, deep and still waters, mud, swamps.
Adornments:
ibirin
Introduction
Nanã has a shepard’s staff. Nanã
is splattereed in red, her clothes appear to be bathed
in blood, orixá who obliges the fon to speak
nagô (ketu). Still water that kills suddenly,
she kills a goat without using a knife.
She is considered the "oldest orixá in
the world". When orumilá arrived here
to make the earth fruitful, she was already here.
Nanã does not know of iron, because she is
an orixá from prehistorical times, before the
iron age. The term nanã means root, that which
is found in the center of the world.
Archetypes
They are conservative and subject to conventional
standards established by men. Normally calm, they
sometimes change their behavior suddenly, becoming
warlike and aggressive, at which time they can be
dangerous, scaring people. They take their point of
view to the final consequences. As mothers they are
doting and very protective of their children. They
are jealous and possessive. They demand attention
and respect, are not overly happy and do not much
like games and jokes.
They are majesterial and secure in their actions and
always seek the way to wisdom and justice.
[back
to top]
Oxum
Goddess
of fecundity, riches and love.
Day of the week:
saturday
Colors:
yellow, gold
Salutation:
ora yeyê o!
Domains:
fresh water, springs and waterfalls.
Adornments/tools:
abebé, a fan of gilded brass, indé (bradelets)
Offerings: omolocum
Introduction
Lady of the waters, in africa she lived in the oxum
river. Goddess of fertility, gestation and birth,
she takes care of the newborn, washing them with her
refreshing waters and leaves. A young and beautiful
mother, she maintains her adolescent characteristics.
Full of passion, she avidly seeks pleasure. Coquettish
and vain, she is the most beautiful of the divinities
and the very cattiness of the child-woman. She is
sensual and exhibitionistic, aware of her rare beauty,
and she uses these attributes to seduce people and
achieve her objectives.
When Orumilá was creating the world, he chose
oxum to be protector of children. She was charged
with looking after the little ones from the moment
of conception up through birth and until they can
use their reasoning and speak. For this reason, oxum
is considered the orixá of fertility and maternity.
For her beauty, oxum is also considered the goddess
of vanity, a young and beautiful orixá, looking
into her mirrors and fanning herself with her fan
(abebê ).
Archetypes
They are gracious and elegant people who love jewelry,
perfume and expensive closthes. They are symbols of
charm and beauty, voluptuous and sensual. Underneath
a gracious and seductive appearance, they hide a very
strong will and a huge desire for social ascension.
[back
to top]
Logun
Edé
Colors:
turqoise and golden yellow.
Salutation:
lóci, lóci, logun.
Domains: forest
and waterfalls, river margins.
Tools and symbols:
ofá (bow and arrow), abebé (fan).The
same as odé and oxum.
Introduction
The only hermafrodite of the pantheon, vain like oxum
and astute like oxossi. Lives in the heart of forests,
in clearings on the banks of rivers. A great hunter,
uses ofá (bow and arrow) when hunting and abebé
(fan) in moments of vanity. Sleeps in the depths of
rivers and bathes there to keep the fishing plentiful.
Archetypes
They are inconsistent and indecisive, reflecting the
dual character of the divinity. They find difficulty
in situations where definition is needed. For this
reason, besides being warm, loving and sensual, they
can also be cold and calculating. Beautiful, proud
and vain, they are at the same time reserved and a
bit closed, but also jealous and somewhat solitary
and discreet. They are seductive and attractive.
[back
to top]
Oyá - Yansan
Protection against eguns.
Day of the week:
wednesday
Color:
brown
Salutation:
epa hey oya
Tools:
copper sword, iruexim ;
Domain:
winds, storms, eguns;
Offering: acarajé
Introduction
Orixá
of the winds, lightening and storms, she is also a
warrior, agile and agitated just like the wind. Extroverted
and sensual as few others, she is the absolute goddess
of the egúns, besides the favorite wife of
xangô, she divides dominion with him over storms.
Dauntless and a warrior seeking justice, she is afraid
of nothing.
Archetypes
They love adornments, mainly jewelry and copper. They
are extroverted, frank and lovers of nature.
Ambitious and tempermental, they are feisty and communicative
and love to travel. Honest and secure, they leave
others at a disadvantage. In general they are happy,
audacious, intriguing, authoritarian, sensual and
conclusive. They can also be negative, tend to depression,
disquiet and excessive jealousy.
[back
to top]
Obá
Day of the week:
wednesday
Color:
orange
Salutation:
obá xirê
Adornments: sword
and shield of copper.
Domains: turbulent
waters. Impossible loves, conquests.
Introduction/legend
Oba, turbulent river;
Oba, mystical and elderly, with good manners, but
also gruff.
Oba, valiant woman; orixá with only one ear.
Archetypes
They are enveloping, seductive, with strong tempers,
aggressive and objective.
[back
to top]
Ewá
Day of the week:
saturday
Color: red
Salutation:
irrô
Domains:
springs
Introduction
Ewá is the orixá of happiness, beauty,
songs, life and the beautiful things life gives us.
It is ewá who rules all mutations, whether
organic or inorganic; she is the orixá responsible
for the change of water from its solid to gas state
and vice versa. She generates the clouds and rains.
When we look to the sky and see the clouds forming
figures, ewá is there, giving different forms.
Ewá is responsible for the unending cycle of
tranforming water into its various states. She is
linked to the mutations of plants and animals, she
is linked to changes and transformations, whether
sudden or gradual. Ewá is the blooming of a
rosebud, she is a caterpillar that turns into a butterfly,
she is the water that turns to ice and the ice that
turns to water. She does and undoes. Ewá is
the very beauty contained in animate things, embued
with enchanting sounds. She is happy, the transormation
of bad into good. She is life itself.
Archetypes
Those ruled by ewá are very happy people who
love to sing, dance and take full advantage of all
the good things life has to offer. They are generous
and benevolent. They love novelties. They are creative
but a bit volutable and easily change their minds,
mainly with a new subject in their lives. They are
always modifying things and situations, because they
detest routines. Besides this, they are generally
endowed with beauty, both external and internal.
[back
to top]
Xangô
Day of the week: wednesday
Colors:
red and white or brown
Salutation:
káwo-kabiesile
Domains:
stone quarries, thunder and lightening, fire.
Adornments: oxé,
a double-sided ax, sculpted in wood.
Offerings:
amalá
Introduction
God of thunder, lightening, justice and fire, he is
a feared and respected orixá. He is virile
and violent, but a dispenser of justice. It is usually
said that xangô punsihes liars, thieves and
malefactors. His main symbol is the two-sided ax and
the balance scales, symbol of justice. Everything
referring to studies, justice, law, contracts belongs
to xangô. Ambitious, he took the throne from
his brother ajaka. He began to reign as an authoritarian
and tyrant, not permitting his will to be challenged,
which possibly leads him to commit injustices in his
symbol of respect.
Gallant and seductive, he arouses the love of the
divinity oya, one of his three wives – the others
are oxum and obá.
Archetypes
Eloquent, sociable and good listeners, but always
like to get in the last word, showing who is boss.
Contradictlory, they are aristocratic and libertine,
unfaithful in their relationships, but they manage
to establish lasting friendships.
Fickle, they forget past loves quickly. They are always
involved in new adventures, and the passion of the
moment is always the greatest, the only, the true...
[back
to top]
Yemanjá
Axé
(emanated force): purification, family, mental health.
Day of the week:
saturday
Color:
crystal
Salutation:
omi ô odo iyá ;eruiá
Adornments: abebê
(fan)
Domain:
oceans, inlets (salt water),
Introduction
Her name means mother of the fishes. Originating from
the ogum river in nigeria, her domains are the ocean
depths, from where she emerges to serve her devotees,
mainly women, who attribute to her powers of fertility
and fecundity. She is maternal, always ready to breast
feed babies in her domain, but she also knows how
to be delicate, and keeps a sword in her hand to defend
her children.
Archetypes
They are bossy and persistent in relation to their
childrens, concerned, responsible and decisive. They
are friends and protectors, and are at times act like
supermothers. They are aggressive and even can be
treacherous when the safety of their children and
families is at stake. They a talkative and do not
like solitude.
[back
to top]
Oxaguian
(young), oxalufan (old)
Day of the week:
friday
Colors (oxalufan):
white, ivory, pearl and lead.
Colors (oxaguian):
white and light blue
Salutation: epa
babá-epa ô.
Domains:
air, sky (orun), rivers, mountains
Adornments/tools (oxalufan):
opaxorô, staff of silver, lead or other white
metal,
Adornments/tools (oxaguian):
sword and "mão de pilão" (“pile-driver”),
also of white metal.
Domains:
purification, wisdom, creation, tranquility. Father
of clarity, lord of decisions and conquests.
Offerings:
acaçá
Introduction
"The great orixá", occupies a unique
and uncontested position as the most important orixá
and the highest of the yorubá gods.
He is lord of the clay and of creation, where he molded
human beings. He is the lord of silence, the cold
and calm void where words cannot be heard. Because
he loves palm wine, he frequently gets drunk. He lost
the chance to create the earth and became responsible
for molding people and was prohibited from drinking
wine.
Stubborn, sometimes he ignores these rules. People
with birth defects, caused by him, belong to him.
He protects people to allow redemption. He changes
names according to the situation. Slow like a periwinkle,
all in white like his ritual demands, he is known
as oxalufan.
Energetic and warlike, with a white and royal blue
collar, he is oxaguian. In all these versions he is
orixalá, obatala, the god of the white cloth.
Archetypes
The children of this diety are calm and deserving
of trust. They are endowed with great wisdom, because
they always seek the meaning of everything that occurs
around them. They never tire of studying and seeking
knowledge.
The children of oxalufan (old) have a tendency to
be lazy.
Manual labor does not appeal to them. They prefer
to look for places where they can put their ideas
and projects into action. They are very responsible,
are good designers and organizers. Their main defects
are: laziness, stubbonness and slowness. They are
calm, but one should never try their patience.
The childrewn of (young), on the other hand, are more
active, aggressive, happy and harder workers. They
are tireless in their works and projects, and also
have a tendency to be stressed for devoting too much
time to their functions.
They are responsible as no one else. Just like oxalufan
(old), they are also stubborn, proud and intelligent.
They are the famous lores of all or nothing, of right
or wrong, whether in business, love or friendship.
[back
to top]
[back
to afro-brazilian culture]
|
|
|
