#yemoja

Mother of the Orishas and the source of all life and water on the planet, from small creeks to the mighty sea. She has many myths, being one of the most widespread West African deities overall, having extensive worship especially in Brazil and Cuba, being syncretized with Our Lady of Regla and the Virgin Mary. In some myths she is said to have given birth to all things when her water broke, or in others she is said to have given birth to 15-16 orisha when she ran from her incestuous son Orungan, causing them to burst out of her like rivers. She is married to the orisha Aganju, personified as the fiery earth and soil, whom she is often at odds with. She is the protectress of the Ogun River in Nigeria and she is especially prayed to by women as she protects children and aids in birth; her name itself means "mother of the fishes" or "mother of fish children".

Pantheon: Yoruba, Santería, Candomblé, African diaspora religions.

Domain or Function: Mother of the Orisha and all sealife and waters.

Alternate Names: Yemaja, Yemaya, Iemanja, has many many variations of her name.

Character Traits: She is predominately seen as a protectress, she defends her children at all costs and aids the women who worship her. To anger her is to anger life.

Visual Traits: She is usually depicted as a black woman wearing blue or white, adorned in pearls, crystals, and cowries. Often she can be depicted as a mermaid.

Symbolism: The number seven, the colors blue and white, crystals, cowries, shells.