Obá: Stories, Syncretism And Much More From Orisha Warrior!

Known as the warrior Orisha, yay has great strength.

It is also called Queen of the River Nigerthan the main river that passes through West Africa, being the third longest in the entire African continent.

Owner of great strength, this Orisha is always represented with shield and sword in hand, expressing her ability to defend everything she believes in at any time. That way, when she is called, the Orisha always appears to help.

Anyone can pray for her, but those who use the Orisha the most are women who need strength and protection. This is because the Orisha is also considered the mother who welcomes and understands the pain of the heart.

Want to know more about this important Entity of Light? So keep reading until the end and find out all about oba.

Obá: Warrior Orisha

Who is Oba?

Daughter of the Orixás Oxalá and IemanjáObá is an Entity of Light with great power over the revolting fresh waters. Warrior, strong and protective, Orixá is always looking for balance and fighting to defend what is fair.

Therefore, she is also symbol of the struggle for justice, as she seeks balance and defends the wronged. In addition to these characteristics, the Orisha is known for being the queen of the Niger River and for her spiritual strength capable of defend and fight for those who resort to it.

The kinship of Obá says a lot about the Orixá, it is not for nothing that she is always present in the revolting fresh waters such as pororocas, waterfalls and other types of strong freshwater breaks. That way, whenever you go through places of this type, know that the Orixá is there. Another interesting feature of Orixá is that it controls floods and mud, as well as nanã.

The physical strength and battles experienced by Obá made Orixá the representation of female power. As such, she is considered the female power in all kinds of struggles, offering help, guidance and paths to women who need strength.

Stories of the Orisha

The two main stories of the Orisha are:

The Orisha’s Defeat

Obá has already won in several battles with other Orixás, defeating Exu, Oxalá, Iansã, Oxumaré, Oxossi, Orunmila and omolu. However, he lost to Ogun, who was much smarter than Obá during the fight.

Ogun consulted Ifá shortly before the fight and received guidance on how to prepare a paste with corn and okra. Ifá told Ogun that he should place this content in a corner of the arena and that would make him victorious.

Following what Ifá instructed, the fight began and Ogun had the opportunity to bring Obá to the dough made with okra and corn. Thus, it is not difficult to imagine what happened, the Orisha fell and was defeated. So, at that moment, the Orisha found herself in love with Ogun and ended up marrying him.

Passion for Xango

Married to Ogun, Obá still hadn’t discovered her true love. That’s when she found Xango who felt an uncontrolled love and had no doubts that she would be Xangô’s first wife. Alongside the Orisha of justice, Obá became jealous and very possessive.

Married to three wives, Obá was very jealous of Xangô, especially his relationship with Oxum. That’s when she asked Orisha why Xangô liked her so much, if it was Obá who fought and took risks alongside Xangô.

Oxum took advantage of the situation to say that he was doing a spell to arrest her husband. The spell, according to Oxum, needed an offering seen as proof of love. So, she told Obá that she should cut off her own ear to trap Xangô. Hopeful, Obá didn’t think twice and cut her own ear.

She served the ear next to Amalá to Xangô, who was extremely furious when he noticed what had happened. Of course, the spell was just an invention of Oxum, and Obá was innocent in not realizing that Orisha had both ears intact.

Who is Oba in the Catholic Church?

Obá is syncretized in the Catholic Church by Saint Joan of Arc, also considered a great warrior. In this way, the strength with which both women fight, defend and win their battles is what makes them very similar.

Obá in Umbanda and Candomblé

At Umbanda and not Candomblé Obá represents an Orisha with very different characteristics. She is portrayed as a woman full of life, energy and strength. Among the Orixás, Obá is quite feared and almost always dominates the circle. That’s because she is capable of defeating anyone, as long as the fight is honest.

Obá’s main characteristics are her determination and fiber, aspects desired by many women. In this way, the Orisha is not afraid of taking risks, moving forward and showing how powerful she is.

Unlike other Orixás, Obá does not have great physical beauty, as her skills in battle make her less feminine. However, her real beauty lies in the way she fights injustice and acts like a true warrior.

She completely escapes the stereotype of a stay-at-home wife, she doesn’t even like dengos or pampering. So, for her, the best of life is in battles and disputes, where she always fought alongside Xangô helping him to achieve several victories.

Worship of Orisha

Oba celebrations take place on May 30, which is the date dedicated to the worship and commemoration of the Orisha. In addition, the Entity of Light is celebrated on Wednesday, which is its day of the week.

Thus, for the celebrations, the devotees wear clothes with white and red colors, in addition to adornments and various elements that adorn the festivities of Obá.

In the case of those who seek this Orisha, it is possible to resort to her through various artifices, such as in her celebrations, in Spiritual Consultations, greeting her and in prayers.

Thus, the salutation made to this Orisha is as follows: “Hi Siré!“, which means “Mighty Queen!“.

Did you like to know a little more about Obá? See also the history and characteristics of the cult of other Orixás here at Restart Space: