YEMOJA – Mother of Waters

July 31, 2016

“The Mother Whose Children Are The Fish.”

Yemoja is motherly and strongly protective, and cares deeply for all her children, comforting
them and cleansing them of sorrow. She is said to be able to cure infertility in women, and
cowrie shells represent her wealth. She does not easily lose her temper, but when angered
she can be quite destructive and violent, as the flood waters of turbulent rivers. Yemoja is
often depicted as a mermaid, and is associated with the moon, water, and feminine
mysteries. She is the protector of women. She governs everything pertaining women;
childbirth, conception, parenting, child safety, love, and healing. She oversees deep secrets,
ancient wisdom, the moon, sea shells, and the collective unconscious. According to myth,
when her waters broke, it caused a great flood creating rivers and streams and the first
mortal humans were created from her womb.

In traditional Yoruba culture and spirituality, Yemoja is a mother spirit; patron spirit of
women, especially pregnant women; She is the patron deity of the Ogun river but she is
also worshiped at streams, creeks, springs in addition to wells and run-offs. This represents
the vastness of her motherhood, her fecundity, and her reign over all living things. In West
Africa, Yemoja is worshiped as a high-ranking river deity, but in Brazil and Cuba she is
worshiped mainly as a sea/ocean goddess. River deities in Yoruba land include Yemoja,
Oshun, Erinle, Ọbà, Yewa, etc. It is Olókun that fills the role of sea deity in Yoruba land,
while Yemoja is a leader of the other river deities. The river deity Yemoja is often portrayed
as a mermaid, even in West Africa, and she can visit all other bodies of water, including
lakes, lagoons, and the sea, but her home and the realm she owns are the rivers and
streams, especially the Ogun River in Nigeria.

In mythology, the West African and Caribbean Goddess of creation, the sea, moon, ocean
and healing is Yemoja. She is considered to be a guardian of women and keeper of our
mysteries. She is said to wear a dress with seven skirts that represent the seven seas.
Sacred to Her are peacocks, with their beautiful blue-green iridescence, and ducks. The
number seven is Hers, also for the seven seas.
Yemoja = Yemaya is one of the most powerful Orishas in Santeria. She is the mother of all
living things, rules over motherhood and owns all the waters of the Earth. She gave birth to
the stars, the moon, the sun and most of the Orishas. Yemaya makes her residence in life-
giving portion of the ocean – although some of her roads can be found in lagoons or lakes in
the forest. Yemaya’s Ashé is nurturing, protective and fruitful. Yemaya is just as much a
loving mother Orisha as she is a fierce warrior that kills anyone who threatens her children.

Yemaya can be found in all the waters of the world, and because of this she has many
aspects of roads, each reflecting the nature of different bodies of water. Contrary to popular
belief she is not just a loving mother. Some of Yemaya’s roads are fierce warriors who fight
with sabers or machetes and bathe in the blood of fallen enemies. Other roads are masterful
diviners that have been through marriage, divorce and back again. Some roads of Yemaya
have been rape survivors, while other roads betrayed her sisters out of jealousy and spite.
No matter what road of Yemaya, all are powerful female Orishas and fiercely protective
mothers.

Some followers of Santeria say Yemaya is Chango’s mother. The two of them eat together
and Chango shares his wealth with Yemaya. She is one of the four pillars of the Santeria
religion along with Obatala, Oshun and Chango. Therefore every initiated Olorisha will
receive her mysteries at initiation. Yemoja energy is most present in people who are warm,
giving, sensitive and kind. However, the Orisha also exudes a strong sense of mystery, as
all of its secrets cannot be comprehended.

Goddess Yemoja domain is water, rivers, and what is often considered the birthplace of all
of life on earth – the oceans and the seas. She is specifically associated with the upper part
of the ocean, which contains the most life. Her first gift was a shell so that her people would
always be able to hear her voice. Her name Mother Whose Children are the Fish, denotes
that her children are countless and further relates her infinite and all-encompassing life
giving aspect. Yemoja also lovingly assists and supports the rebirth process, cleansing and
purifying the old energy, releasing that which has served its purpose, allowing for renewal
and new beginnings.
Most Yoruba myths of origin can be found in the divination narratives knows at Odu Ifa
which contains a number of poems called Ese Ifa. An Ese Ifa explains the origins of Gelede
as beginning with Yemoja, “The Mother of all the Deities and all living things.” Yewajobi –
Yemoja could not have children and consulted an Ifa oracle, who advised her to offer
sacrifices and to dance with wooden images on her head and metal anklets on her feet.
After performing this ritual, she became pregnant. Her first child was a boy, nicknamed
“Efe” (the humorist); the Efe mask emphasizes song and jests because of the personality of
its namesake. Yewajobi – Yemoja’s second child was a girl, nicknamed “Gelede” because
she was obese like her mother. Also like her mother, Gelede loved dancing.

After getting married themselves, neither Gelede nor Efe’s partner could have children. The
Ifa oracle suggested they try the same ritual that had worked for their mother. No sooner
than Efe and Gelede performed these rituals- dancing with wooden images on their heads
and metal anklets on their feet- they started having children. These rituals developed into
the Gelede masked dance and was perpetuated by the descendants of Efe and Gelede.

The commonality between them all is relatively brief. She rules the waters and oceans. She
takes the form of a woman with long, black hair, and appears either wearing a flowing blue
dress, a flowing white dress, or a flowing blue and white dress. She wears a type of veil with
beaded fringes that hide her face, and holds a mirror in one hand representing her beauty.
Her colors are, as you might imagine, blue and white. She’s always represented as one of
the superior divinities, and associated with femininity and fertility, but her exact station
changes with the person talking about her.

At the same time though, she is seen as the loving and protective mother of mankind. She
cares deeply for all her children, comforting them and cleansing them of sorrow. She does
not easily lose her temper, but when angry she can be like the Sea in a storm—wildly and
indiscriminately violent and destructive. However, this aspect of strength that she possesses
is as much a part of her character as her role as a mother. In total, she is the main
Feminine Principle of Candomblé, Yòrúbá, and Santería, and all that that entails.
Her dance movements represent the sea’s tumbling waves, these moves resemble the art of
sewing nets, but also commonly represent a story line. Her ocean dancing represents the
salty water cleansing the distressed soul, or a newborn. She usually dances with a silver
blue dress and something which resembles a fishing net, so as to represent herself as both
fetus and fish. Her metals are lead and silver, and her colors are blue hues and whites.