Oshumare- Yoruba GodDeity"Rainbow Serpent"
Also known as: Ọ̀ṣùmàrè, Oxumarê, Oshumaré, and Osun-Mare
Titles & Epithets
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Description
After Shango's thunder has discharged and the rain has fallen, Oshumare appears as the rainbow, the divine serpent who bridges heaven and earth, carrying water back up to the sky so the storms can begin again. Gender-fluid and ever-transforming, alternating between male and female with the seasons.
Mythology & Lore
The Rainbow Serpent
When rain falls after one of Shango's thunderstorms, Oshumare appears as the rainbow that arcs between land and sky. In some traditions, the serpent actively carries water from the earth's surface back up to heaven, replenishing the stores from which future rain will fall. Without this return, the cycle would break and the storms would end.
Oshumare alternates between male and female manifestations, some traditions saying six months of each, mirroring the seasonal changes the orisha governs. Just as water transforms between liquid and vapor, just as day turns to night, even the most fundamental categories shift and return.
The python is sacred to Oshumare. In many Yoruba communities, pythons are protected. Killing one invites misfortune, while finding one in your compound may signal the orisha's blessing. The serpent moves by coiling, advances through circular motion, and sheds its skin to be reborn. Sometimes it is depicted swallowing its own tail.
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- Serves