Ayomide Ogundele

FIQWS HA23/HA24

Professor David Stoler

Abstract

“The new villagers to arrive were horrified to witness the scene before them. Ogun told the newcomers that he was sorry, and he asked for forgiveness, in which some granted him forgiveness, and others couldn’t. Ogun then tells the people that if they ever need him, he will always be ready to help. Curses could be heard for miles on end”(Ogundele). Ogun is one of the many gods in the Orisha religion, which is native to the Yoruba culture in the country of Nigeria. The story of Ogun may appear differently through different cultures and countries.This paper will argue the position of the Yoruba deity having a presence in other countries and cultures, it will do so by using evidence from Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora: Origins, Experiences, and Culture(Vol. 3. ) by Brazeal Brian, to highlight the way religion has traveled to the Americas through the help of slave trade. Further it will discuss the Cuban culture and how it relates to the Yoruba deity using the article Deterritorialization and Reterritorialization of the Orisha Religion in Africa and the New World (Nigeria, Cuba and the United States) by Dianteill Erwan to elaborate on the different ways the orisha religion has influenced Cuban culture. The use of a song lyric will be used to show how the Orishas are being used in modern music. It will also use the narrative paper Ogun written by Ayomide Ogundele to show one of the ways the story of a god of the Yoruba deity has been passed down. The article Shifting Multicultural Citizenship: Trinidad Orisha Opens the Road by Castor N. Fadeke will be used to show the importance of the orisha in the country of Trinidad. It will also use The Orisha Religion In Trinidad by Abc-Clio to elaborate on the previously stated point. The point of view of Bunmi Lawal, a native of the country of Nigeria will be used to further explain the importance of the orisha religion in Nigeria. Also the point of view of a native from Haiti will be used to show how gods are worshipped in Haiti. The point of this paper is to argue/show the importance of the Yoruba deity and orisha religion in many countries other than Nigeria.