Who is Oshun?

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Oshún is an Osha and she is in the group of the Head's Oshas. She represents the intensity of the feelings and the human spirituality and sensuality, the gentleness, the refinement, the love and all things related to women. She protects the pregnant women. She is represented by a beautiful woman who is cheering and smiling but inside she's very severe, suffered and sometimes sad. She represents the religious rigor and symbolizes the implacable punishment. She is the only one capable to appear before Olofin to beg for the human beings. In the nature she is symbolized by the rivers. She is the apetebí (wife) of Orunmila. She is related to jewels, adornments and money.

She is the goddess of the river of the same name in Nigeria. It's said she lived in a cave that still exists in Ijesa, Nigera, to the north towards the river Nile. She was the second wife of Shangó.

In Nigeria she is adored in many parts of Yorubaland, although it is in the city of Osogbo, through where passes her river where she has the greater amount of believers. The Osogbo name comes from the union of Oshun and Ogbo. She saved this city for that reason the king called it that way. In Africa her messenger is the crocodile. Their followers take offerings to the river and requests her favors.

Oshun is the Orisha of the fresh water. Her name comes from the Yorùbá Osún. She saved the world flying like a (Ibú Kolé), specie of vulture. Also she spoke with Olofin, when Olokun brought the deluge. It was Yemayá who gave her fortune and gave her as house house the river waters. She was the one who requested the intervention of the women in the Orishas meeting.

She is received like a tutelar Orisha, and takes a ceremony in the river 5 days before the crowning. Because she saved the world all the Iyawó before crowning Osha Akua Kua Lerí must go to the river to give account to her with its respective Ochinchin and Obí.

She compares with the Virgin of the Caridad del Cobre, patron of Cuba. Her number are 5 and its multiples. Her color is the yellow in all its tonalities. She is greeted Yalodde Yeyé Kari! Yeyeo! Omoriyeyeo.

Family of Oshun:

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Daughter of Obbatala and Yemayá, sister of Oyá and Obbá, was wife of Oggun, Orunla, Oshosi with whom she had Logún Ede and of Shango with whom she had the Twins Talako and Salabí (Ibeyis). Intimate friend of Eleggua, who protects her.

Diloggún in Oshun:

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Speaks in diloggun by Oshé (5), Obbara meyi (66), Eyeunle (8) and by Ofún Mafún (10).

Tools of Oshun:

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Oshun lives in a sopera of yellow color or several colors predominating the yellow. She takes 5 Otá that lives within the sopera with water of river. Their main attributes are a sun, a hand of cauries, mirrors, combs, hoops, 5 oddanes (handles), fish, fans, fans of sandalo, pens of Ibú Kolé, pens of peacock, crowns, hearts, snails, shells, water stones, irukes, bells, handkerchiefs, half moon, two oars, a star, etc. Her Elekes or necklace are made putting in 5 yellow beads, 1 amber, 5 gilded.

Oshun´s Power Objects:

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She uses a yellow fan of sandalo or peacock's feather. She sound her five gold bracelets. A half moon, two oars, a star, the sun and five small bells that go with her. These objects can change according to the path of Oshun.

Suits of Oshun:

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Oshun wears a yellow dress, fitted by a strip with a rhomboid in the stomach. The dress takes bells in some points.

Dances of Oshun:

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The dance of Oshun is the most sensual one. She laughs as Yemaya and shakes her arms to sound her bracelets. Oshun raises her arms over the head to emphasize her enchantments. While she dances, she makes sexual movements and asks for sex to the men with her extended hands and abrupt movements of her hips. She requests honey, showing the sweetness of sex and life. She also can imitate that rows in a small boat. She combs her hair or admires herself in the mirror, she sometimes watch over her nose those around her.

Offerings to Oshun:

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He is offered her favorite food whis is Ochinchin, done with shrimps, beet, onion, red pepper, escarola, olive oil, dry white wine and eggs, palaquetas of gofio with honey, honey of bees, lettuce, escarola, beet, yellow rice, tamales, flour of maize, ekó, ekrú, olelé with saffron, candies of all type and fruits of the river. To her are immolated capon, hens, hens of Angola, doves, tortoise, etc. Her ewes are dry love, anise, indigo, sea turtle, sweet potato, witch, pumpkin, spinach, cinnamon, sunflower, lettuce, beet, malvaté, handle, manzanilla, parsley, grass of the girl, vetiver, grass cayman, pomarrosa, geranium of scent, hazel of coast, melon of castile, chayote, currant, etc.

Paths of Oshun:

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Her paths are:

To crown Oshun. Kari-Osha:

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To crown this Osha one has to receive first the Orisha Warriors. Then during the crowning the following Oshas and Orishas are received:

Elegguá, Obbatalá, Oke, Yemayá, Shangó, Ogué, Oshún, Aggayú and Oyá.

Characteristics of the Omo Oshun:

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Likeable and glad, they have the great desire of social ascent, likes to command others, they are peculiar, sensual, they love jewels, clothes and good perfumes. Often they fear to contradict people as the public opinion is important to them. They love candies so they tend not to be thin persons.

Patakies of Oshun:

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Oshun in her efforts to help the world lost her fortune. Then she started washing clothes in the river and people paid her with coins. One day she dropped a coin in the waters and the current took the coin to the sea. She beg to Yemaya and Olokun to give her back the coin, because it was all that she had to buy food for her children. They heard her prays and took back the waters from the ocean and Oshun could see the treasures of the seven seas. But she only took the coin she lost and returned. The gods didn't understand why she only took that coin and told her: "for your honour and for being honest, we give you part of our wealth and the river as your home, but never again give everything you have"

Oshun saves the world.
When Olofin created the world, the heavens and the earth communicated through Iroko, the tree. But men disrespected the trust of Olofin and he separated heavens from earth. From the begining he gave all that men needed, so, men didn't cultivated or planted anything. Since men began to die of hunger, Oshun, transformed into a vulture and took a full basket of bread and took it to the heavens. There she found a hungry Olofin and she fed him. Been thankful for the food Olofin asked Oshun what she wanted in return and then she interyielded for the human race. Olofin responded that he could not do nothing as they have defrauded him but in gratefulness of the food, he indicated her that half between the sky and the earth lived a man called Orisha Oko that cultivated and kept its harvests. Oshun arrived to where Orisha oko lived and took everything what she could of which Orisha Oko offered originated of his harvests of hundreds of years. She returned to the Earth and fed the world. By this act of generosity they crowned queen.