Orisha

Orisha (Yoruba: òrìṣà) names the divine powers in Yoruba religion and in the African Diaspora traditions descended from it including Santeria (Cuba), Candomble (Brazil), and various Yoruba-derived practice across the Americas and the Atlantic world[1]. The exact etymology of the Yoruba term is debated; possibilities include a sense of selected head or chosen one.

outsiders often collapse all African Diaspora traditions into one model, but understandings of orisha vary by community.

Orishas are powerful spiritual beings in Yoruba religion. Each orisha has specific attributes, domains, sacred objects, songs, dances, food offerings, and ritual protocols. Major orishas include Olodumare (the supreme creator, beyond direct human contact in most theology), Obatala (associated with white, with wisdom and creation), Yemoja (associated with motherhood and the rivers and ocean), Shango (associated with thunder and royal power), Ogun (associated with iron and warfare), Oshun (associated with love, beauty, and rivers), and many others. The classical count includes 401 major orishas, though the number is symbolic and the practical pantheon varies by region and lineage.

Practitioners (devotees) often have a specific orisha relationship: they may be initiated to a particular orisha and undertake devotional obligations to that orisha. The relationship is personal and reciprocal: the devotee makes offerings, performs rituals, and lives in connection with the orisha; the orisha provides guidance, protection, and presence. The relationship is mediated by trained priests (in Cuba, santeros and santeras; in Brazil, pais and maes de santo).

Yoruba religion and its diaspora descendants are characterized by extensive ritual practice including drumming, dancing, divination (especially Ifa divination), offerings, and ceremonies of possession in which the orisha briefly takes the body of a devotee. Each orisha has specific drumming rhythms, songs, and dance movements that are part of the religious heritage.

In African Diaspora contexts, the orishas have often been associated with Catholic saints, allowing covert practice under colonial conditions and producing complex syncretic developments. Yemoja is associated with Our Lady of Regla (in Cuba) or Our Lady of Stella Maris (in Brazil); Shango with Saint Barbara; and so on. The relationship between orishas and saints varies by tradition; in some contexts they are identified, in others they are paired but distinct.

Modern orisha tradition is global, with practitioners in Africa, the Americas, Europe, and elsewhere[2]. The Yoruba religion has been formally registered and recognized in various contexts, with significant scholarly attention and growing public visibility.

Yoruba religion and its diasporic forms have been extensively studied. Jacob Olupona[2], J. Lorand Matory, Stephan Palmie, and many others have produced major scholarship. The relationship between African Yoruba religion and its diasporic developments is itself a productive scholarly topic.

• African Religions: A Very Short Introductionby Jacob K. Olupona
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• Santeria: The Religionby Migene Gonzalez-Wippler
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