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18-470: According to the teachings of these religions, the orishas are spirits sent by the supreme creator, Olodumare , to assist humanity and to teach them to be successful on Ayé (Earth). Rooted in the native religion of the Yoruba people , most orishas are said to have previously existed in òrún —the spirit world—and then became Irúnmọlẹ̀ —spirits or divine beings incarnated as human on Earth. Irunmole took upon

36-553: A human identity and lived as ordinary humans in the physical world, but because they had their origin in the divine, they had great wisdom and power at the moment of their creation. The orishas found their way to most of the New World as a result of the Atlantic slave trade and are now expressed in practices as varied as Haitian Vodou , Santería , Candomblé , Trinidad Orisha , Umbanda , and Oyotunji , among others. The concept of òrìṣà

54-526: A way of pushing conversion. The first translation of the Bible into Yoruba in the late 1800s by Samuel Ajayi Crowther controversially adopted traditional Yoruba names, such as "Olodumare/Olorun" for "God" and " Eshu " for the devil, and thus began associating Olorun with the male gender. For Yoruba traditions, there is no centralized authority; because of this, there are many different ways that Yoruba people and their descendants or orisa-based faiths can understand

72-461: Is divine energy that comes from Olodumare, the creator deity , and is manifested through Olorun, who rules the heavens and is associated with the Sun. Without the Sun, no life could exist, just as life cannot exist without some degree of ashe. Ase is sometimes associated with Eshu , the messenger orisha. For practitioners, ashe represents a link to the eternal presence of the supreme deity, the orishas, and

90-508: Is outlying, distant, and does not partake in human rituals. There are no shrines or sacrifices dedicated directly to them, although followers can send prayers in their direction. Olorun has no gender in the Ifá Literary Corpus, and is always referred to as an entity who exists in spiritual form only. Christian missionaries, such as Bolaji Idowu , aimed to reinterpret traditional Yoruba culture as consistent with Christian theology as

108-743: Is similar to those of deities in the traditional religions of the Bini people of Edo State in southern Nigeria, the Ewe people of Benin , Ghana , and Togo , and the Fon people of Benin. Yoruba tradition often says that there are 400 + 1 orishas, which is associated with a sacred number. Other sources suggest that the number is "as many as you can think of, plus one more – an innumerable number". Different oral traditions refer to 400, 700, or 1,440 orishas. Practitioners traditionally believe that daily life depends on proper alignment and knowledge of one's Orí . Ori literally means

126-478: Is the life-force that runs through all things, living and inanimate, and is described as the power to make things happen. It is an affirmation that is used in greetings and prayers , as well as a concept of spiritual growth. Orìṣà devotees strive to obtain Ase through iwa-pele , gentle and good character , and in turn they experience alignment with the ori, what others might call inner peace and satisfaction with life. Ase

144-473: Is unmarked (a), except for disambiguation on a nasal (n̄, etc.). Combinations of these tones produce falling and rising tones, written e.g. â, ǎ when they are combined on a single vowel letter. These may appear on nasal consonants as well, as in ńkọ́ (how...?), nǹkan (things). An apostrophe may be used to mark an elided sound, at the choice of the writer, as in ń'lé ( transl.  at home ), from ní ilé , but sọ́dọ̀ ( transl.  to

162-575: The Yoruba. The Supreme Deity or Supreme Being in the Yoruba pantheon , Olorun is also called Olodumare ( Yoruba alphabet : Olódùmarè ), Eledumare and Eleduwa/Eledua. In Yoruba culture, Ọlọrun is credited with creating the universe and all living things. Ọlọrun is frequently perceived as a compassionate entity who protects its creations and is thought to be omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. Humans do not worship Olorun directly; there are no sacred areas of worship, no iconography, nor ordained person. Olorun

180-432: The additions of Ẹ , Ọ , Ṣ and Gb . However, many of the excluded consonants are present in several dialectal forms of Yoruba, including V, Z, and other digraphs (like ch, gh, and gw). Central Yoruba dialects also have 2 extra vowels that are allophones of I and U. It is somewhat unusual in that the letter P usually transcribes [k͜p] , being [p] only in restricted situations like onomatopoeia. The Beninese alphabet has

198-480: The ancestors. The concept is regularly referenced in Brazilian capoeira . Axé in this context is used as a greeting or farewell, in songs and as a form of praise. Saying that someone "has axé" in capoeira is complimenting their energy, fighting spirit, and attitude. The orisa are grouped as those represented by the color white, who are characterized as tutu "cool, calm, gentle, and temperate"; and those represented by

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216-522: The believer is bound to be grateful and loving towards all existence, and all beings, since Olorun IS everything. However, there are those who also worship Olodumare directly. Olodumare is the origin of virtue and mortality, and bestows the knowledge of things upon all persons when they are born. Olorun is omnipotent, transcendent, unique, all knowing, good, and evil. These orisa or orishas are supernatural beings, both good ( egungun ) and bad ( ajogun ), who represent human activity and natural forces, all at

234-519: The colors red or black, who are characterized as gbigbona "bold, strong, assertive, and easily annoyed". Like humans, orishas may have a preferred color, food, or object. The traits of the orishas are documented through oral tradition. Ọrunmila Osanyin Oshun Olodumare Olorun ( Yoruba alphabet : Ọlọrun ) ( Ede language : ɔlɔrun ) is the ruler of (or in) the Heavens creator of

252-518: The head, but in spiritual matters, it is taken to mean a portion of the soul that determines personal destiny . Some orishas are rooted in ancestor worship; warriors, kings, and founders of cities were celebrated after death and joined the pantheon of Yoruba deities. The ancestors did not die but were seen to have "disappeared" and become orishas. Some orishas based on historical figures are confined to worship in their families or towns of origin; others are venerated across wider geographic areas. Ase

270-441: The idea of Olorun. Historically, the Yoruba worship Olorun through the agency of the orisa; thus there is no image, shrine or sacrifice made directly towards Olorun, since Olorun is known to BE everything, and everywhere. There is some controversy about whether Olodumare is directly worshiped, due to their aloofness from humanity, or due to the belief that Olorun already is ALL manifestation of life and existence, and

288-419: The letters Ɛ and Ɔ , and previously had C. The nasal vowels are written with digraphs: ⟨in⟩ , ⟨ẹn⟩ , ⟨an⟩ , ⟨ọn⟩ , ⟨un⟩ , unless they come after ⟨n⟩ . Long vowels are written double, as in dáadáa ( transl.  fine, okay ). The high and low tones are written with acute and grave accents (á, à), while mid tone

306-524: The phrase "O ní odù mà rè" meaning "the owner of the source of creation that does not become empty," "or the All Sufficient". Yoruba alphabet The Yoruba alphabet ( Yoruba : Álífábẹ́ẹ̀tì Yorùbá ) is either of two Latin alphabets used to write the Yoruba language , one in Nigeria and one in neighboring Benin . The Nigerian Yoruba alphabet is made up of 25 letters, without C Q V X Z but with

324-454: The same time, and is all harmonious, all possessed of equilibrium and worth. In Trinidad Orisha, this God is known as Orun. Creator of the cosmology and all that exists, Ayé . From the Yoruba language , Olorun's name is a contraction of the words oní (which denotes ownership or rulership) and ọ̀run (which means the Heavens , abode of the spirits). Another name, Olodumare, comes from

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