Yemaja
Yemaja is an
orisha, originally of the
Yoruba religion, who has become prominent in many
Afro-American religions. Africans from what is now called Yorubaland brought Yemaya and a host of other deities/energy forces in nature with them when they were brought to the shores of the Americas as captives. She is the ocean, the essence of motherhood, and a protector of children.
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Yemaja
[African] The mother goddess of the Yoruba people of Nigeria. She is the patroness of birth and worshipped primarily by women. The river Ogun is associated with her because the water of this river is considered to be a remedy for infertility. She is the daughter of the gods Odudua and Obatala, and her brother is Aganju. Orungan, her son, raped her once and when he tried again, her body burst open and fifteen gods sprang forth (among which Ogun, Olukum, Shango and Shakpana). Among the Brazilian Umbandists, Yemaja is the goddess of the sea and patroness of shipwrecked persons. In Santeria, Yemaja (Yemaya) is the equivalent of the Catholic saint Our Lady of Regla.