Trained in sociology and education, Vincent Bosson is a photographer who has been based in São Paulo, Brazil, for ten years. After producing various reports on Brazilian politics, he dedicated himself to a long-term project on the Amerindian tribes described by Claude Lévi-Strauss in his book "Tristes Tropiques." This work resulted in an exhibition and several lectures. He has also had the honor of being included in the "Best Images of Brazilian Photojournalism" awards three times. A former correspondent for a newspaper aimed at French expatriates, he now collaborates with the Foto Arena agency and the French-speaking community in Brazil.
São Paulo, the vibrant and chaotic Brazilian megalopolis, harbors mystical places where humanity seems to commune with the unseen. It was while exploring these objects of memory that I discovered the fascinating world of Candomblé, guided by priest Cláudio de Oshum. The Candomblé house is located on the outskirts of the city, at the edge of the majestic Atlantic Forest, draped in its emerald hues and delicate foliage. As you approach this sanctuary, a soft mist embraces the landscape, revealing a tableau of ethereal beauty where a body of water blossoms within the lush embrace of the vegetation. Known as Ilê Olá Omi Asé Opô Aràkà, the "House of Honor of the Waters of Oshum, sacred symbol that connects the heaven and earth of Oshumarê" embodies a timeless space, where spirituality and memory intertwine.
I've always wondered about the origin of the offerings I've seen at intersections here and there during my wanderings around São Paulo. According to a Brazilian friend, "it's macumba stuff," pejoratively and erroneously associating Afro-Brazilian religions with satanic practices or black magic. This idea emerged in the 1920s, a time when Christian religious institutions in Brazil expressed reservations about macumba, considering it incompatible with biblical values.
In reality, the term macumba refers both to the drum which is used during the ceremonies, but also to the cult itself, the word for which is more popular in Rio de Janeiro; elsewhere in Brazil, it is called candomblé or shangô.
Emerging from the darkness of the slave quarters of Black people brought from Africa, Afro-Brazilian religions have, over time, blended with the cultures of white Christians, mulattoes, Indigenous people, and Cafuzos (descendants of Black and Indigenous people), forming part of the cultural heritage of the Brazilian people. In Candomblé, worship is divided into nations, and followers venerate African deities, the Orishas, who are pure forces of nature. However, the misunderstanding and exclusion stemming from the historical process of slavery in Brazil have led to the condemnation of African religious practices, resulting in discrimination and intolerance.
This is how Babalorishá Cláudio de Oshum shared his commitment to his community with me during our first meeting: “I am an activist, Black, gay, and a practitioner of Candomblé, and I am very proud of it, because I believe it is essential to become aware of what is so good in each of us. Faith is something that is the air I breathe, and the air I breathe is called Oshum. Oshum provides me with food, money, health, love, happiness, and I am increasingly experiencing this feeling of love within Candomblé.”
Over the past few decades, public policies have recognized the historical and cultural legacy of Afro-Brazilian populations in the building of national society, inscribing the Candomblé places of worship, called terreiros, as tangible and intangible heritage. It is in this context, and after years of struggle, that the community of Mother Carmen and her sons, Karlito de Oshumarê and Cláudio de Oshum, inaugurated Ilê Olá Omi Asé Opô Aràkà in 1996, demonstrating the vitality of Candomblé in contemporary Brazilian life.
According to Cláudio de Oshum, the Orishas contributed to the acquisition of the land. Just as Mother Carmen's family was about to abandon the purchase due to the payment terms, the owner discovered that the buyers intended to build a Candomblé house on the property, which facilitated negotiations. She was the daughter of a professor at the University of São Paulo, a specialist in religions and a friend of Pierre Verger, a renowned French scholar known for his work on Candomblé.
ABOUT AFRO-BRAZILIAN RELIGIONS
The cults called "religions of African origin" or "Afro-Brazilian" were created on Brazilian territory by African slaves.
Having emerged in the darkness of slave quarters, mocambos and quilombos, they have blended over time with the culture of white Christians, mulattoes, Indians, cafuzos (descendants of Blacks and Indians) and even enslaved Africans of Muslim culture, and have ended up becoming part of the cultural heritage of the Brazilian people.
Originating from the fusion of various religious beliefs among African peoples, as a means of expressing their faith and preserving their culture, languages, and traditions, they are known as Candomblé, Umbanda, Xambá, Batuque, Omolokô, Tambor de Mina, and Cabula. These different cults exhibit varying characteristics depending on the Brazilian region where their original inhabitants settled.
Despite their artistic and cultural richness, religions of African origin have been demonized and scorned over time. Ignorance and marginalization stemming from the historical process of slavery in Brazil ultimately led to the prohibition and condemnation of religious practices of African origin, resulting in discrimination, disrespect, racism, and intolerance.
LE TERREIRO – THE HOUSE OF CANDOMBLÉ
Candomblé temples have different names: terreiro, ilê, roça, abassá, casa de axé. They include a main hall, called "barracão", as well as "quartos de santo", where liturgical representations and devotional objects are kept.
Each terreiro is a family, made up of members called fathers, mothers and children, in which hierarchical respect, the treatment of reverence and respect for age, ancestry and ancestors are the main foundations.
The religious tradition spreads through the "Casas Matrizes," the oldest Candomblé houses, called "Raiz," most of which are located in Bahia. It is from these houses that the priests and priestesses come who spread the religion throughout Brazil, opening new houses and perpetuating the faith.
The terreiro is a space for learning and socialization. It is there that practitioners learn to value religious knowledge and mythology, and to understand and respect sacred rites. Their internal rituals, called "functions," are not open to the public.
This knowledge is disseminated hierarchically by the babalorixá (the "father of the saint") or the yalorixá (the "mother of the saint").