The Goddess of the Oceans and Sea
Queen of Mothers
Mo juba awo Yemoja.
Iwo ni Ayaba Iya.
Iwo ni Iya Orisha.
Iwo ni Inu Iye Odidi.
Iwo ni Ifihan Ti Abo Ase.
Iwo ni Inu Aiye.
Iwo ni Orisha Obinrin Okun Nla ati Odo.
Iwo ni Oluwa Awo Ti Abo Ipilese.
I humble myself before the mystery of Yemoja.
You are the Queen of Mothers.
You are the Mother of the Orisha.
You are the Womb of all Life.
You are the Feminine Manifestation of the Ase.
You are the Womb of the World.
You are the Goddess of the Oceans and Rivers.
You are the Owner of the Mystery of the Feminine Principle.
Orisa Yemoja represents the highest order of the Love
Principle. The prolific creative energy of the ocean is indicative of
this generous, allowing, expressive, nurturing, Omnificent energy of
the Ase. Although Olofi-dumare is the Masculine creative aspect of Olorun
(God), it is the Feminine Principle, the Womb, the Mother, the Ase,
that is the essential Source of all life. This reality is symbolically
evidenced in the fact that all of the godseekers are conceived female,
and then if certain harmones are infused in the early gestation period,
the fetus goes through a metamorphosis to become a male. The female
is the prototype of the godseekers.
Orisa Yemoja is the Mother of All Life and she has encoded
the record of her procreative process in the blood of her children.
Both Yemoja (Yemaya in the Santeria tradition) and Obatala are
considered ‘cool’ Orisha - having life-giving powers.
Yemoja is often represented as a beautiful matron with prominent breasts
- indicative of her maternal and nurturing nature. Her colors are blue
and white (crystal), and her number is seven. Orisa Yemoja
is the matriarchal head of the cosmic universe. She is the amniotic
fluid in the womb of the pregnant woman, as well as, the breasts which
nurture. She is known to be very stern and temperamental and expresses
the protective energies of the feminine force. Her full name is Orisa
Yemoja/Olokun, Olokun representing the depths of the Ocean floor and
the treasures and secrets that are buried there. Being of the earth-essence,
she is proficient in the secret arts (sorcery) and will use them to
protect her devotees.
