Ọṣun, is an orisha, a spirit, a deity, or a goddess that reflects one of the manifestations.
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. She is connected to destiny and divination. Osun is one of the 401 Yoruba gods.
In one myth, Oshun is incensed by her devotees and sends down rain, nearly flooding the world.Yet once she has been appeased, Oshun saves Earth from destruction by calling back the waters.
Oshun, the wife of Orisha Oko. This Oshun is pictured as a furrow to be plowed and a giant vulva, while her husband Orisha Oko is a farmer and pictured as a giant phallus.
The Abẹ̀bẹ̀ is the ritual object most associated with Ọṣun. The Abẹ̀bẹ̀ is a fan in circular form.
Osogbo (also Oṣogbo , rarely Oshogbo) is an ancient Yoruba-speaking city in Nigeria, the capital of Osun State and a Local Government Area. The Local Government Area has an area of 47 km² and a population of about 2 million people live here
Worshipers of the Osun goddess make there way to the Osun Shrine in appease the goddess of the Osun river and other spirits in Osogbo, Nigeria.
Osogbo is the venue of the annual Osun-Osogbo festival along the River Osun. The festival is centered around the sacred grove of the river goddess Ọsun, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The festival of Osun-Osgobo, which takes place every year in Osogbo, Nigeria, celebrates the goddess of fertility, Osun.
This is one of Oshun’s most obviously procreative manifestations. The festival renews the contract between humans and the divine: Osun offers grace to the community; in return, it vows to honor her Sacred Grove.
Tradition holds that the first interaction between Oshun and human beings took place in Osogbo (Oshogbo), Nigeria.
Ọṣun is a female orishá adopted and worshiped in all Afro-Brazilian religions. She is the orishá of the fresh water of rivers and waterfalls; of wealth and prosperity; of love; and of beauty. Followers seek help for romantic problems from Osun; the orisha is also responsible for marriage and other relationships. As the orishá of financial life, she is also called the “Lady of Gold”. This referred to copper at one time for being the most valuable metal of the time. Osun is worshiped at rivers and waterfalls, and more rarely, near mineral water sources. She is a symbol of sensitivity and is identified by weeping.
Afro-Brazilian Osun devotee at the palace of Oshogbo for Osun Oshogbo festival
Osun is the goddess of beauty, sensuality and love was said to be the favourite Orisha of Obatala because of her beauty. Oshun is the Goddess of the river of the same name, and She is especially worshipped in river-towns Oshun, like the other Orishas, has a number associated with Her-five or six a color-yellow or amber; and a metal-gold or bronze.
The peacock and the vulture are sacred to her. Offerings to Oshun include sweet things such as honey, mead, white wine, oranges, sweets, or pumpkins, as well as perfume If a goddess ever was a diva, it was Oshun.
There are accounts of how she manipulated other gods with her beauty. One of her encounter with Ogun went like this; Ogun was pissed and went into the woods. This was a problem because Ogun is the Orisha of Iron, craft and civilization. All the machines stopped working and cities began to fall apart.
Each one of the Orishas tried in vain to get him to come back but he wasn’t having any of it. Finally, Oshun, in a very sexy outfit went out to the forest. She had her “honey pot” tied around her waist as usual. She began to dance and as she moved, Ogun watched her from afar. She kept dancing and he kept getting closer, When he got within arms reach of her she dipped her hand into her honey pot and then smeared some of the honey onto his lips. Ogun was enchanted, he followed the goddess from behind back to civilization.
According to different Ifa verses and the history Osun; there many male Orisa that make attempt to marry Osun but at the end Orunmila is her husband, Osun is very powerful women and all Orisa recognize her important among them, ( Said in odu-ifa Ose tua).
She is the main Orisa of Osogbo (state capital of Osun), she has many followers mostly females.
Why did Osun turn to a river?
In Yoruba cosmology, Osun was said to have metamorphosed into a river as a result of a misunderstanding between her and “Oba”, a co-wife of Sango. The Osun River takes its source from Igede-Ekiti, flows through Ilesha to Osogbo town and empties itself in the Atlantic Ocean. Osun River in Osun state-source of origin. It is a sacred and reserved area where dirt and other unlawful activities are not meant to take place.
History of the Festival
River Osun takes its source from Igede-Ekiti through Ilesha and the grove in Osogbo. The Osun goddess established her kingdom there.
On the river-side, Yeye Osun the river goddess appeared from the water in front of Olutimehin and requested him to lead people to a special place (the present-day Osogbo town). The goddess promised to protect the group and bring them prosperity in return for an annual sacrifice to her.
How is Osun celebrated?
Events lined up for the festival include the traditional cleansing of Osogbo, which is known as ‘Iwopopo’, on August 1, followed by the lighting of the 500-year-old six-point lamp called ‘Atupa oloju merindinlogun’ which comes up three days after the cleansing of the land.
Importance Of Osun
She is goddess of love, fertility in all senses and of multiplication (for more of everything are children, money, success, good luck, hope, protection) She is the keeper of our love.
She is worshiped in order to have luck in love, to have luck in business too, so that our efforts would be crowned with success.
Have you ever wondered why the Osun devotees drank the contaminated river during ‘Osun Festival’?
The Osun State Ministry of Health had warned that the Osun River had been contaminated by the activities of gold miners in the state.
But the devotees, who also took some of the water home, said drinking from the Osun River offers them healing.