Santeria is More Than Just a Religion — It is a Way of Life.
As a crowned child of Shango, I felt this worth sharing. Ocha is so much more than a religion. It is an ancestral call; a legacy; a philosophy; a connection to an unseen, yet seen worlds; the ultimate combination of African and Western beingness; an elevated intertwining with nature; and a deeper understanding of “The One Thing”. Many thanks to the people of the Caribbean and the Americas who risked and sometimes sacrificed their lives to keep this way of life alive.
Who Did the Africans Kidnap and Want to Get Rid Of During the Slave Trade?
Definitely, it was not the average Joe, who was not making much noise. Also, it was not the white man that went into the African bush to get the slaves.
White slave traders remained along the coast of Africa with their ships, barricaded in fortresses, waiting for slaves to be brought to them thru the coastal marketplace. So which Africans were brought to the coast, never to return home again? It was the rich and the royal, whose land and wives others wanted. It was the true heir to many thrones coveted by usurpers. It was the shaman and witch doctor who could make things happen, not the ones who were useless and pretending. All of this rich royalty and spirituality ended up in the Americas.
Why are African Traditional Religions (ATRs) Important?
The current scriptures as you know them are drenched with wisdom from the patakis and other ancient spiritual texts of Africa. Anyone who has studied IFA will recognize parallels between the verbally bequeathed scriptures of the Yoruba and the Jewish text, which was also passed down verbally, yet finally written down during the Babylonian captivity — there is not much difference between the Hebrews and the Nigerians. Where do you think the Nigerians came from? What does Jehovah-Jireh, -Nissi, -Rapha and -Shalom have in common with Oduduwa, Ogun, Babalu aye and Obatala? If you believe the Elohim (pl) created you in their image, are they not your Ancestors?
It’s time that we divert from so much Christian wording and see things clearly.
The ancestors are now calling you to remember who you are. Yes, I know that some of your recent grands and great grands considered themselves to be serious Christians and that is fine — just another type of manifestation. Be sure to read my post about what Ancestors really are.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter how the Universal Creator/Holy Spirit is revealed to you. The most important thing is that you don’t get lost in Christian wording, and that you understand what (S)he is saying to YOU and that you do not miss the message of WHO you truly are!
RT
