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Candomblé arose in 19th-century Brazil, where the imported traditional African religions of enslaved West Africans had to adapt to a slave colony in which [[Christianity|Roman Catholicism]] was the official religion. It is thus one of several religions that emerged in the Americas through the interaction of West African and Roman Catholic traditions, and for this reason is considered a "sister religion" of Cuban [[Santería]] and [[voodoo|Haitian Vodou]]. | Candomblé arose in 19th-century Brazil, where the imported traditional African religions of enslaved West Africans had to adapt to a slave colony in which [[Christianity|Roman Catholicism]] was the official religion. It is thus one of several religions that emerged in the Americas through the interaction of West African and Roman Catholic traditions, and for this reason is considered a "sister religion" of Cuban [[Santería]] and [[voodoo|Haitian Vodou]]. | ||
==Name== | ==Name== | ||
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==Orixás== | ==Orixás== | ||
[[File:Oxira 2.jpg|400px|thumb|Candomblé practitioner possessed by the orixá Ossain]] | |||
Candomblé revolves around spirits termed orixás (orishas) or santos ("[[saint]]s"). In the Angola tradition they are sometimes termed inkice, and in the Jeje tradition vodun. The males are termed aborôs, the females iabás. Believed to mediate between humanity and Olorun, the orixás have been varyingly conceived as ancestral figures, or embodiments of forces of nature. Their names may differ according to nation; in Nagô they commonly possess Yoruba names, but in the Jeje nation they are instead given Fon names. | Candomblé revolves around spirits termed orixás (orishas) or santos ("[[saint]]s"). In the Angola tradition they are sometimes termed inkice, and in the Jeje tradition vodun. The males are termed aborôs, the females iabás. Believed to mediate between humanity and Olorun, the orixás have been varyingly conceived as ancestral figures, or embodiments of forces of nature. Their names may differ according to nation; in Nagô they commonly possess Yoruba names, but in the Jeje nation they are instead given Fon names. | ||
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==Beliefs== | ==Beliefs== | ||
Candomblé adopts its cosmology largely from Yoruba traditional religion. The material world of humanity is called aiê (or aiye); the realm of the spirits is termed orun, and is divided into nine levels. | Candomblé adopts its cosmology largely from Yoruba traditional religion. The material world of humanity is called aiê (or aiye); the realm of the spirits is termed orun, and is divided into nine levels. | ||
Candomblé teaches the existence of a supreme divinity called Olorun or Olodumare. This entity is regarded as the creator of everything but is thought distant and unapproachable, and thus not specifically worshipped in Candomblé. | |||
Spirits of the dead are called eguns. The recently deceased are termed aparacá; after they have been "educated" by receiving sacrifices they become babá. After death, the egun can enter orun, although the level they reach depends on the spiritual growth they attained in life. Sometimes, eguns will seek to help the living but inadvertently harm them; given this potential, Candomblé stresses precautions in dealing with these entities. | Spirits of the dead are called eguns. The recently deceased are termed aparacá; after they have been "educated" by receiving sacrifices they become babá. After death, the egun can enter orun, although the level they reach depends on the spiritual growth they attained in life. Sometimes, eguns will seek to help the living but inadvertently harm them; given this potential, Candomblé stresses precautions in dealing with these entities. | ||