Oshunmare
Encyclopedia
In Yoruba mythology
, Oshunmare (also Oshumare, Oxumare) is a divine serpent
which is believed to create the rainbow
, both male
and female
, and is a symbol of creation, human procreation and the link between the world of the mundane and that of the ancestors. This idea is more a part of worship in the Americas than it is in West Africa.
Yoruba mythology
The Yorùbá religion comprises the original religious beliefs and practices of the Yoruba people. Its homeland is in Southwestern Nigeria and the adjoining parts of Benin and Togo, a region that has come to be known as Yorubaland...
, Oshunmare (also Oshumare, Oxumare) is a divine serpent
Serpent (symbolism)
Serpent in Latin means: Rory Collins :&, in turn, from the Biblical Hebrew word of: "saraf" with root letters of: which refers to something burning-as, the pain of poisonous snake's bite was likened to internal burning.This word is commonly used in a specifically mythic or religious context,...
which is believed to create the rainbow
Rainbow
A rainbow is an optical and meteorological phenomenon that causes a spectrum of light to appear in the sky when the Sun shines on to droplets of moisture in the Earth's atmosphere. It takes the form of a multicoloured arc...
, both male
Male
Male refers to the biological sex of an organism, or part of an organism, which produces small mobile gametes, called spermatozoa. Each spermatozoon can fuse with a larger female gamete or ovum, in the process of fertilization...
and female
Female
Female is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces non-mobile ova .- Defining characteristics :The ova are defined as the larger gametes in a heterogamous reproduction system, while the smaller, usually motile gamete, the spermatozoon, is produced by the male...
, and is a symbol of creation, human procreation and the link between the world of the mundane and that of the ancestors. This idea is more a part of worship in the Americas than it is in West Africa.