Orixás
Orixás are deities of the Yoruba religion, originating in what is now southwestern Nigeria and Benin, each associated with forces of nature and human existence. Brought to Brazil by enslaved people during the transatlantic slave trade, this tradition gave rise to Candomblé, which preserves and adapts the worship of the Orixás on Brazilian soil — alongside the Yoruba tradition that remains alive in West Africa.
- ExuThe messenger of the crossroads — neither good nor evil, and essential to every ritual.
- OgunThe orixá of iron and war — opening paths through force where Exu opens them through speech.
- OshosiThe hunter of the forest — provider of abundance and Ossaim's inseparable partner.
- OssaimThe guardian of leaves — the botanical secret without which no ritual is complete.
- ObaluaiêThe orixá of epidemic disease and healing, covered head to toe in ritual straw.
- Xangô (Ṣàngó)The thunder king — one of the few orixás with clear origins as a deified human figure.
- Iansã (Oyá)The orixá of winds and storms, guardian of the boundary between life and death.
- Oxum (Ọ̀ṣun)The orixá of fresh waters, love and wealth, anchored to a real river in Nigeria.
- NanãThe orixá of mud and still waters — the eldest, guardian of natural death.
- IemanjáThe great mother of the seas — universal protector, celebrated in Brazil's largest popular festivals.
- OxaláThe orixá of creation and purity — molded the human body, but is not the supreme being.
- IbejiThe child-orixás of twins — joy, mischief and the sacredness of childhood.
- Orunmila (Ifá)Witness to creation, orixá of wisdom and Ifá divination.
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Frequently asked questions
- Are Candomblé and traditional Yoruba religion the same thing?
- Not exactly. They share the same origin and the same pantheon of Orixás, but Candomblé is a Brazilian tradition that formed from the 16th century onward, shaped by the experience of the diaspora, contact with other enslaved African ethnic groups (forming different 'nations,' such as Ketu, Angola and Jeje), and colonial repression — which led, among other things, to syncretism with Catholic saints.
- Do Candomblé and Umbanda worship the same Orixás?
- Both worship Orixás, but they are distinct religions. Umbanda, founded in Rio de Janeiro in 1908, blends elements of Candomblé, Kardecist Spiritism and Brazilian Indigenous traditions, with its own cosmology and practices — different from those of Candomblé.