What is a Yemaya ceremony?
In a ceremony for Yemaya, everyone dances in a circle and the altar is in the form of a circle. The circle represents the eternal cycle of life.
What does Yemaya represent in the Bible?
But just like the ocean she represents, she can be incredibly courageous and fierce when necessary, manifesting as a tidal wave to destroy enemies in her wake. Devotion to Yemaya has survived despite the best efforts of Christian missionaries to stamp out all traces of goddess worship.
How can I offer offerings to Yemaya?
Yemaya’s fellow water spirit, Oshun, spirit of sweet waters, will accept offerings on her behalf. Deposit gifts for Yemaya in flowing streams or rivers. Nothing is free, however: if utilizing Oshun’s services, be sure to speak to her first, explaining that you would like her to deliver your offering to Yemaya.
Who is Yemaya the ocean god?
One of the most widely worshipped Orishas (which translates to “Deities,” “Divinities,” or “Gods”), Yemaya’s origins are in the Yoruba religion of Nigeria. Originally a river goddess, her traditions were preserved by those forced across the ocean in slave ships, making her known as the goddess of the ocean in the process.
What does the goddess Yemaya represent?
For practicing witches, Yemaya has a fierce, nurturing, gentle energy often associated with the moon and sorcery. As the "Mother of All," she is said to help in matters of self-love, fertility, emotional wounds, trauma, and healing work.
Is Yemaya My orisha?
Yemanjá (Yoruba: Yemọja) is a major water spirit from the Yoruba religion. She is the mother of all Orishas. She is an orisha, in this case patron spirit of rivers, particularly the Ogun River in Nigeria; and oceans in Cuban and Brazilian orisa religions.
What is Yemaya candle for?
GREAT FOR: Fertility, healing, spiritual guidance, love, motherhood, peace. Yemaya is one of the most beloved lua in the Orisha religion, often associated with the Virgin Mary.
What kind of fruit does Yemaya like?
Yemaya's favorite color is blue. She rules the oceans and all marine creatures, which she loves to eat. She also enjoys watermelon, plantain chips, pork rinds, pineapples, sugar cane syrup and ducks.
Who is the daughter of Yemaya?
Lisa, she's the daughter of Yemaya, who is the sea, and I'm daughter of Shango, who is thunder. And it's really us. Our characters are really like that. Lisa-Kaindé: In the Yoruba religion, you are chosen by an orisha, which is a divinity.
Who is Yemaya married to?
AganjuIn Yorùbá mythology, Yemoja is a mother goddess; patron deity of women, especially pregnant women; and the Ogun river. Her parents are Oduduwa and Obatala. There are many stories as to how she became the mother of all saints. She was married to Aganju and had one son, Orungan, and fifteen Orishas came forth from her.
What color is Yemaya?
white and blueYemaya is the orisha of lakes and seas and the patron of women and of motherhood. She is associated with Our Lady of Regla, the protector of sailors. Fans, seashells, canoes, coral, and the moon all represent her. Her colors are white and blue.
How do you know if you are a daughter of Oshun?
She is one of the most popular and venerated orishas. If you see the number 5 a lot (my two most recent apartments were on the 5th floor), are attracted to the color yellow or gold and enjoy sweets, specifically honey, then you too may be a child of Oshun.
Who is Yemanja?
Yemanja (or Yemọja) originated as the Water Goddess of the African Yoruba tribe. With the diaspora of the Yoruba, Yemanja has come to be known throughout the world and by different names. She is very well known in Brazilian culture and is celebrated around New Year's every year during the Yemanja Festival in Brazil.
What does Yemaya like?
Yemaya likes sea shells, fish, net, sea horses, anchors and everything related to the sea. She is generally kept in a blue flowered porcelain soup tureen full of water. She is also associated with stars and the full moon, ducks and peacocks. Yemaya controls the parts of the sea that a human knows.
What is the meaning of Yemaya?
Yemaya is a mother Goddess. The Goddess of home, fertility, love and family. She also represents change and consistency - bringing forth life, protecting it, and changing it as is necessary. Yemaya is the daughter of a mortal god-human, Obatala, and his wife. Yemaya and her brother, Aganyu had a son together.
What is the name of the river goddess of the ocean?
Originally, Yemaya was a river Goddess of the Yoruta in Nigeria, which is far from the ocean. She was a nature spirit, an orisha. An orisha shows itself as a force of nature. When her people were loaded on the ships, she went along, becoming the Goddess of the ocean.
What is the difference between Olukun and Yemaya?
Yemaya statue www.amazon.com. Yemaya stays in the uppermost part of the ocean while Olukun is the orisha who resides in the dark depths. Olukun is respected for his ominous power that has no perceived limits or boundaries while Ye maya is associated with life, fertility and creation. Therefore, they balance each other.
How did Yemaya learn divination?
She's also associated with the creative and nurturing forces of the sea. She learned how to do divination by watching her husband, Orula, do consults. Women weren't supposed to do consults but Yemaya was so good at it, her husband made a pact with her that she could use cowry shells to divine.
What is Olukun's power?
Olukun balances her strong feminine powers with his steadfast male energy. In Santeria and Candomble, Olukun and Yemaya have been separated into two Orisha. Yemaya has the largest following in both religions. One possible explanation for her following is her connection to the sea and the Africans who were brought over.
What does the tide represent in the story of Yemaya?
By rocking the world as a cradle, the tides represent Yemaya's desires to protect and nurture all her children. With Yemaya considered to be the greatest mother there is no surprise that she is very sexual. Since nothing can resist water, she is respected for her strength. Those who hurt her children, Yemaya drowns.
How to decorate Yemaya's shrine?
Yemaya’s shrine should evoke the sea. Decorate it with nets, seashells, sea stars, and sea horses. Add salted water to a crystal glass containing small seashells.
How to pray to Yemaya?
Invoke, petition, or pray to Yemaya. • Sprinkle the water over your naked body from head to toe using your fingers or a roseMary branch. • Let the water remain on your body for a little while, and then gently pat yourself dry with a brand-new clean white towel or cloth. • Put on clean clothes.
What is the name of the Red Sea Queen?
The Red Sea is her official hideout, but she sails where she chooses. (To complicate matters further, Yemaya and her daughter, love goddess Oshun, may be alter-egos of Lady Asherah, another Red Sea Queen and her daughter, love goddess Astarte.) She is also known as Yemaya Ibu Okoto.
What is Yemaya Okoto's crown?
Yemaya Okoto, the Pirate Queen, causes shipwrecks and drags ships and treasure down to the ocean floor. Her name means “the one who lives amongst the seashells.”. Her crown is a shark’s jawbone. She clenches a dagger between her teeth.
How beautiful is Yemaya?
Whether manifesting as woman or mermaid, Yemaya is always spectacularly beautiful. She can be sexually provocative with a rolling, hip-swaying walk that evokes the sea. Her traditional costume includes seven skirts. Her hair, clothes, and body may be ornamented with crystals, pearls, coral, or tiny bells.
What color is Yemaya's path?
Yemaya’s different paths are symbolized by different shades of blue (and sometimes by unique attributes). The particular hue represents each path’s specific natureand home. Thus the aspects of Yemaya who live closest to land or the water’s surface are represented by paler shades than those dwelling in the depths.
What does Yemaya eat?
Yemaya’s favorite food offerings include wet seedy fruits like pomegranates and watermelon plus fish, duck, and lamb dishes. She likes to snack on pork cracklings, plantain or banana chips and pound or coconut cake.
Offerings for Yemaya
Being the Orisha of waters and also our Mother, you should bring offerings to her to bodies of water. If you are unable or need to be discreet, you can make a small pool by digging a hole and pouring water in, or by getting a tub or bowl of water.
Yemaya Oil
Some find the more traditional versions of Yemaya oil (some have fish oil in them) a bit unpleasant. There is a less traditional modern version using essential oils that is prettier smelling yet reminiscent of the sea and life.
Myths and Stories of Yemayá
Yemayá was born to Oludumare, the Supreme Being in the Yoruba religion. Oludumare tasked Yemayá with assisting the Orisha Obatala with the creation of humans. Leaving the dwelling place of Oludumare, Yemayá slid down a rope with sixteen other Orisha and engaged in the creation of mankind.
Yemayá: Characteristics
Yemayá serves as the patron of the Ogun river (in Nigeria), although she is not limited to that particular body of water. Her followers may worship Yemayá at any feature of running water. She is depicted as a mermaid, capable of venturing into any body of water freely.
Yemayá and Olokun
Yemayá has another deity associated with her. Olokun is another Orisha associated with water and androgyny. While Yemayá has dominion over the surface of the ocean and the life thereupon, Olokun is the Orisha of the depths. They complement one another. While Yemayá is the goddess of life, none may return from Olokun’s depths alive.
Worship of Yemayá
After slavers brought slaves to the New World via the Middle Passage, Yemayá’s presence increased in the Americas and the Caribbean. Again, Yemayá was originally known as Yemọja, with Yemayá being one of her names she came to be known by in the New World.
How to make yemaya offerings?
It is traditional to make Yemaya offerings and set them afloat on the water in a small boat. Write a note with your desires and thoughts on a small piece of paper. Anoint the paper with Yemaya perfume and place it on the boat. Focus on your intentions as you send your boat out to sea for Yemaya to find.
What does Yemaya do?
Yemaya gives life and offers support to all who inhabit the Earth. Her generous and protective nature endears her to those who worship her. Yemaya works with the Orisha Olokun to rule the sea and all of the oceans. Olokun guards the tumultuous depths of the ocean, while Yemaya protects the upper surfaces of the ocean where ...
What is the difference between Olokun and Yemaya?
Olokun guards the tumultuous depths of the ocean, while Yemaya protects the upper surfaces of the ocean where the light reflects and living things thrive. She oversees the waves and the myriad of life forms that call the ocean their home. Together, these two Orishas create a balance that ebbs and flows as naturally as the tides.
What is the meaning of the Yemaya necklace?
Present a Yemaya statue with offerings of watermelon and yams. Wear a Yemaya Camino necklace to invoke her strength and protection or present one to a loved one who is preparing to have a baby.
How many Orishas are there in Yemaya?
The daughter of Oddudua and Obatala, Yemaya is mother to 14 Orishas, as well as Obafulom and Lyaa, the first human male and female and the ancestors of all humans.
Who is the goddess of the ocean?
The Orishas: Yemaya. Known as the goddess of the ocean, the mother of all living things and the guardian of mothers and children, Yemaya is one of the most powerful Orishas worshiped in Santeria. She is a nurturing caretaker who watches over all things with a keen eye.
Does Yemaya cure infertility?
It is said that Yemaya can cure women of their infertility. As she creates life, she also protects it during all of its happiness and despair. She reminds women to nurture their needs and celebrate their many gifts and strengths.
How to make an altar for Yemaya?
To create an altar for a meditation with Yemaya, place in front of you: -Shells (legend has it you can hear her voice through a sea shell, so if you have one, put it to your ear) -Candles. -Incense. -Silver; seven is her number, and seven silver coins or rings can be used as an offering.
Where did Yemaya originate?
One of the most widely worshipped Orishas (which translates to “Deities,” “Divinities,” or “Gods”), Yemaya ’s origins are in the Yoruba religion of Nigeria. Originally a river goddess, her traditions were preserved by those forced across the ocean in slave ships, making her known as the goddess of the ocean in the process.
What do you bring to Yemaya?
-Flowers (blue and white are her favorites) -Fruit, especially melon and citrus. -Molasses and sugar cane syrup. -Fish.
What is the Mother of All?
Often referred to as the “Mother of All” life on Earth, her energy is loving, nurturing, healing, graceful, and motherly. But just like the ocean she represents, she can be incredibly courageous and fierce when necessary, manifesting as a tidal wave to destroy enemies in her wake.
Who is the goddess of the ocean?
In honor of World Oceans Day amidst the tumultuous seas of 2020, let’s talk about how we can connect with Yemaya, goddess of the ocean, and channel her energy to aid in the healing of our planet.