The Yemayá sisters, Oshun and Oyá » Pataki of the 3 Orishas (2024)

The inseparable sisters of the Yoruba religion, Yemayá the goddess of the sea, Oshún the queen of the river and Oyá the owner of the spark, together they are love and strength, they represent powerful natural forces.

Yemayá, mother of all and owner of the sea

YemayaShe is the Yoruba deity of the salty waters and the orisha of motherhood. It is in nature, in the sea and on the crests of the waves against the coasts and rocks.

She is the mother of all children on earth, mother of fish, lives in the blue of the ocean and represents the source of life, fertility and motherhood. She likes to protect future mothers.

Oshún, owner of the river and fresh waters

OshunShe is the Yoruba goddess of Love and represents the intensity of feelings and spirituality, human sensuality and femininity. Goddess of incomparable beauty and goodness.

The Yoruba goddess adores rivers and lives among the current of their waters, since it is her representation in nature and in favor of her femininity and sensuality, she likes to wear jewelry, body ornaments and adores money.

She is a Yoruba queen, orisha and goddess, has an impetuous character and you never know if she is upset.

Protect pregnant women and women in labor from all evil, so that the little ones in the womb are born healthy and blessed.

Oyá, reckless warrior and owner of the spark

Oyáis the accompanying goddessañante of the regent orisha Obbatalá and represents pure air. She is the goddess of sparks, storms and the strong wind that precedes them. She lives in the dark, she dances in the dark with her iruke scaring away curses. She owns nine colors and the rainbow.

She can dominate the Eggunes (spirits) and her cult is extremely important, due to her relationship with storms and her association with the dead.

Patakí of the sisters Yemayá, Oshún and Oyá

Yemaya, Oshun and OyáThey were sisters without parents and for that reason they felt immense love for each other.

Yemayá, the oldest, worked to support her sisters while the middle one, Oshún, was in charge of taking care of her little sister, Oyá.

They were very poor, so Yemayá fished in the sea to look for food while Oshún dedicated herself to taking care of Oyá. They went every day to wash clothes in the river and Oshún took the opportunity to fish while Oyá He collected small stones of all colors to later sell in the towns and make some money.

One day his tribe was invaded by an enemy tribe and the warriors captured Oyá who was playing in the river.

Oshún was underwater and did not hear her little sister's cries for help, nor did Yemayá, who was fishing off the coast and was very far away.

A Oyá They took her prisoner and the days passed and Oshun was sadder and sadder, until she found out the amount of money they were asking for as a reward to free her sister.

So little by little he kept copper coins to pay the ransom. When he had finished collecting the money they were asking for, he went to the enemy tribe.

But Oshún did not know that the chief of the tribe was madly in love with her. So when he was about to pay the ransom, he asked for double the amount of money, so Oshún knelt down and began to cry begging for his sister's freedom.

The chief of the tribe then proposed that he would free his sister if Oshún gave him her virginity. And because he loved his sister so much, she agreed.

When they both returned home, they told Yemayá what had happened, and to give Oshún recognition for the sacrifice he had made, he took the copper coins and placed them on his forehead and arms.

The distribution of powers:

Also during the time he was Oyá Captive, Olofin distributed the earthly goods and made Yemayá the sole owner of all the seas and Oshún of the rivers and so on until everything was distributed.

As Oyá was not present, he was left with nothing.

Oshun then went to see Olofin to ask him to give his little sister his share and not leave her unprotected. Olofin, after listening to Oshún's plea, realized that there was still a site left undivided, the cemetery, and so he offered Oyá to be the owner and lady of the place where the spirits rest, the cemetery.

She gladly accepted Olofin's offer, since then she rests there calm and happy, always grateful to her sister Oshún.

In honor of her, he was ordered to make copper tools and in the afternoons he went to the riverbank to eat fish with his sisters.

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