Eshu
Eshu-Elegbara is the orisha of the crossroads, the messenger of Olodumare and the keeper of ashe, the power that makes a thing happen. He carries the ebo (offering) that a divination prescribes, and every rite salutes him first because he holds the opening; the Ifa odu and the oriki carry him.
The orishas are not a Western pantheon: Yoruba and Ifa tradition assigns them no planets, no zodiac signs and no Wiccan sabbats, and reckons time by the four-day traditional week. The planetary (Mercury), zodiacal (Gemini, Sagittarius), tarot (the Fool, the Magician, Wheel of Fortune) and sabbat values in this entry are modern Western overlays, and the sabbat list is left empty. Eshu is not the devil: the equation with Satan is a missionary and colonial misreading, repeated in modern popular culture, and the entry rejects it plainly. The Fon/Dahomey Legba is a cognate, not the same deity, and the Afro-Catholic identifications are St Anthony of Padua in Cuba and St Peter and the Holy Child in Brazil, which are diaspora mappings rather than Yoruba tradition. The corpus also holds an 'elegua' entry, the Cuban form; Eshu-Elegbara and Elegua are one root under different diaspora emphases, and the two entries should be read together rather than as two unrelated deities. The weekday value is diaspora practice.
Correspondences
- Planetary Correspondence
- Mercury
- Zodiac Affinity
- GeminiSagittarius
Offerings
- Offerings
- Kola nutPalm oilCoconutRoosterSmoked fishThe first portion
Sacred timing
- Sacred Timing
Symbols and forms
- Alternate Names
- EleguaElegguaLegbaEshu-ElegbaraElegbaraExu (Brazil)
- Gender Expression
- Masculine
- Titles
- Eshu-ElegbaraLord of the CrossroadsThe One Who Carries the OfferingThe Messenger of OlodumareKeeper of Ashe
- Symbols
- CrossroadsOgo staffCowrie shellsThe stoneThe door
Practice
- Invocation Approach
- ToneQuick and exactAddressEshuElegbaraLaroyeRelationshipThe one who must be saluted firstWarningHe takes his share and he does not ask twiceResonanceThose at a crossroads those beginning anything
- Modern Practice
Eshu is saluted first with a small offering at the door or the crossroads, and his practice is the opening done properly: the first portion, the ebo carried, the greeting before anything else. In Cuba the Elegua is received as a warrior and kept by the door; in Brazil the Exu is a separate line with its own houses. The offering is the first portion, not the last.
Nature and meaning
- Domain
- The crossroadsAsheThe openingThe eboMessengersTrickeryChanceThe door
- Mythology Summary
Eshu-Elegbara is the orisha of the crossroads, the messenger of Olodumare and the keeper of ashe, the power that makes a thing happen. He carries the ebo (offering) that a divination prescribes, and every rite salutes him first because he holds the opening; the Ifa odu and the oriki carry him. He is not Satan: the equation is a missionary and colonial misreading, and the Fon/Dahomey Legba is a cognate figure, not the same deity. In the Americas he becomes Elegua in Cuba (the child at the door, St Anthony of Padua) and Exu in Brazil, and the diaspora forms have their own emphases.
Details
- Correspondences
- ColorsRedBlackWhiteScentsTobaccoPepperCedarMetalsIronCopperAnimalsGoatRoosterDog
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Referenced by 29
Every entry that names Eshu, grouped by the system it comes from.
☥ Deities 13
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- Olokun Related Deities
- Obatala Related Deities
- Orunmila Related Deities
- Babalu Aye Related Deities
- Oshosi Related Deities
- Yewa Related Deities
- Olodumare Related Deities
- Osanyin Related Deities
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‖ Ifá odu 6
- Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Meji (Oyeku) Orisha
- Ọ̀wọ́nrín Meji (Owonrin) Orisha
- Òtúrá Meji (Otura) Orisha
- Ọ̀yẹ̀kú-Ọ̀bàrà (Oyeku-Obara) Orisha
- Òṣé-Ọ̀gbẹ̀ (Ose-Ogbe) Orisha
- Òtúrá-Ìrẹ̀tẹ̀ (Otura-Irete) Orisha
🧿 Folk magic 5
- Louisiana Voodoo Deity or saint
- Santería (Lucumí) Deity or saint
- The Atlantic Crossroads of the Folk Traditions Deity or saint
- The Crossroads in Vodou Deity or saint
- Hoodoo's Relation to the Atlantic Traditions Deity or saint
⚒ Ritual tools 3
- Opele (divining chain) Associated Deities
- Ikin (palm nuts) Associated Deities
- Opon Ifá (divining board) Associated Deities
☉ Planets 1
- Mercury Deities Associated
🕛 Planetary hours 1
- Hour of Mercury Deities Enhanced
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