Goddess of fresh water, beauty, and sensuality, Oshum embodies love and delicacy. Her jewelry is golden like honey, as gentle as sacred rivers. It envelops the body in a sovereign tenderness, a powerful, feminine radiance. Each creation pays homage to her grace, her fierce gentleness, her fluid light.

OSHUM

Oshum is the Orisha who reigns over fresh waters, considered the deity of beauty, fertility, wealth, and sensitivity. She is closely associated with spiritual and material wealth and the emancipation of women, gold being one of the principal minerals. She is depicted seated by a riverbank, holding a round, golden mirror, while nursing a baby on her lap.

Upon arriving at the terreiro, I observed worshippers taking water from an earthenware jug placed near the allegorical statue of Eshu and then pouring out its contents. I understood this gesture to ward off negative energies, driving away the grimy shadows that sometimes cling to our shoes. While awaiting the start of the festivities, scheduled for late into the night, everyone was busy with preparations, arranging flower bouquets, evening attire, and the food to be served to all the guests. The sacred trees and statues dedicated to the Orishas had been adorned with fabrics in their respective colors, onto which offerings and candles had also been placed. In the small, tree-lined square, lavishly decorated, the main temple was illuminated by beams of colored lights. Called barracão, in the candomblé house it is the space for conviviality between members of the community, where the great festivals in homage to the deities take place.
Babá Cláudio of Oshum finally appears, accompanied by Mother Carmen and Father Karlito, elegantly dressed with a turban and adorned with dazzling jewelry. The sound of drums and praises to the Orishas now drift into the dark night, as members of the community gradually settle into the temple. I follow Babá Cláudio as he enters, into a world whose codes and mysteries are unknown to me, before the adrenaline takes over.

Inside, the walls are painted yellow and adorned with paintings of the venerated deities, alongside photographs of Babalorishas and family members. Devotees dressed in white dance around a central pole, called the "ariashe," made of twisted vines forming a large conical spiral towards the ceiling. Several wooden sculptures representing the Orishas are also intertwined, reinforcing the idea that within this circle, humans and gods dance, invoking the energies that unite them. It is during the Shire—the dance with the deities, in Yoruba—that all the devotees engage in a true artistic performance to honor the Orishas, ​​following a sequence of praises and dances for each one. I also learned that the circle rotates counterclockwise, symbolizing a return to Mother Africa and the ancestors. Isn't Candomblé itself an object of collective memory?
After the priests introduced the festivities, giving the floor to other prominent members of the community, the faithful paid homage, kneeling before them. As the crowd, adorned with ivory and jewels, continued to swirl, casting countless sparkles, the rhythm of the drums quickened. The Candomblé orchestra consists of three percussion instruments called atabaques, the gã (an iron bell), and the xequerê (a gourd covered in beads). The hymns are sung in a call-and-response format in the Yoruba language, for which the Ogans are responsible. After reciting a verse, everyone repeats a second verse in response.

The sacred chants now resonate within the temple with such intensity that a feeling of weightlessness washes over me. An ethereal atmosphere rises in the air, heralding the imminent manifestation of the Orishas. The vines of the central pole seem to reach for the heavens, while a sculpted serpent winds its way along the spiral of vegetation.

The atmosphere is already electric, but when the Orishas manifest, the temple transforms into a ball of immeasurable energy. As I try to follow Baba Claudio through the effervescent crowd, the priesthood enters a trance. Oshum, his Orisha, appears, accompanied by an Ekedjy, holding the bell used to invoke the deities and give instructions.
The manifested deities are then taken to the roncó, where they are dressed, decorated, and adorned with their specific garments, ornaments, and objects, before returning to the hall to commune through dance. In a trance, with their eyes closed, each manifested Orishá will dance for a large part of the ceremony, which will last until dawn. Babá Cláudio de Oshum now wears the Orishá's robes, delicately embroidered, adorned with a sumptuous array of golden beads. The crowd is ecstatic; the Orishás have been honored.
The festivities ended at dawn with a meal served to all those present. It was then that the first glimmers of dawn appeared on a horizon hidden beneath the pink veils of a light mist. As we approached the reservoir that runs alongside the road, gradually moving away from the Atlantic Forest, a few rays of light finally reached the surface of the water, a sacred element of Oshum, sparkling like a mirror of the heavens.
After spending the night with the kings and queens of Africa, I changed my white tunic into a suit, then went to take photographs for the Belgian delegation in Brazil, which was accompanied by Her Royal Highness Princess Astrid!

THE FESTIVITIES

Each Candomblé ritual is celebrated during a public festival called Xirê, which resembles an artistic performance. The performance takes place in the main hall of the terreiro, where priests and members of other houses are invited, as well as the local community, sympathizers, and the families of members, most of whom attend as spectators.
To the sound of the atabaques, the members dance in a circle, arranged in a line beginning with the priest or priestess, followed by each member in order of seniority in the religion or their function, from oldest to youngest. When the circle closes, the oldest joins the youngest, symbolizing the humility and fairness of Candomblé.
Within this circle, everyone dances together to praise the Orixás, following a sequence of reverential chants for each of them. The circle rotates counter-clockwise, symbolizing a return to Mother Africa and the ancestors.
Most of the songs and dances are performed in African languages ​​(Yoruba, Nagô, Bantu) and, at certain times during the festival, the Orixás manifest themselves through trances in their followers.

THE END OF THE FESTIVITIES

After the dance, the Orixás who manifested bid farewell and are taken back to the Roncó, where the devotees are awakened from their trance. The Xirê resumes, and everyone dances together. The ritual concludes with songs and dances, just as it began. The ceremony ends with a dinner during which all those present share the food offered.