Oshun
Yoruba orisha / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Oshun?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Oshun (also Ọṣun, Ochún, and Oxúm) is an orisha, a spirit, a deity, or a goddess that reflects one of the manifestations of the Yorùbá Supreme Being in the Ifá oral tradition and Yoruba-based religions of West Africa.[1] She is one of the most popular and venerated Orishas. Oshun is an important river deity among the Yorùbá people. She is the goddess of divinity, femininity, fertility, beauty, and love.[2][3] She is connected to destiny and divination.[4]
Oshun | |
---|---|
Goddess of Water, Purity, Fertility, Love, and Sensuality | |
Member of the Orisha | |
Other names | Ọ̀ṣun, Ochún, Oxúm |
Venerated in | Yoruba religion, Dahomey mythology, Vodun, Santería, Candomblé, Haitian Vodou, Dominican Vudú |
Region | Nigeria, Benin, Latin America, Haiti, Cuba |
Ethnic group | Yoruba people, Fon people |
Personal information | |
Spouse | Changó, Erinle |
During the life of the mortal Osun, she served as queen consort to King Shango of Oyo. Following her posthumous deification, she was admitted to the Yoruba pantheon as an aspect of a primordial divinity of the same name.
She is the divine patroness of the Osun River in Nigeria, which bears her name. The river has its source in Ekiti State, in the west of Nigeria, and passes through the city of Osogbo, where Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove, the principal sanctuary of the deity, is located.[2] Oṣun is honored at the Osun-Osogbo Festival, a two-week-long annual festival that usually takes place in August, at the Oṣun-Osogbo Sacred Grove on the banks of the river.[5][6]
Oṣun is one of the 401 Yoruba gods.