Part 1: Oshun, goddess of the Osun river.
Olodumare, the supreme god, sent his 17 Orishas down to the earth to populate and revitalize the earth.
They rushed down, eager to start the task Olodumare sent them.
In their folly, they looked down upon the female deity, Oshun, and went along on their task.
Oshun did not take offense to this and returned to her abode in the skies
The other deities soon realized the futility of their task and sought the face of Olodumare
Olodumare told them that the answer to their questions lies with Oshun.
The deities realizing the errors of pride sought out Oshun for her great powers of fertility
Oshun, the goddess of love, sensuality, fresh water, and the protective deity of the river Oshun.
Oshun, the goddess of fertility, lushness, greenness, and life.
Brought forth her sweet and powerful waters, bringing life back to Earth and humanity
She flooded the earth with species great and small.
As the legend says, humanity would not exist if Oshun, the goddess of life and fertility, had not acted.
Oshun, one of the most powerful of all orishas,
She who possesses great powers of the rivers also possesses the human ways of vanity, jealousy, and spite.
Bedecked in crystal beads and swathes upon swathes of golden fabric and jewelry as bright as the sun
She is the Mother of everything sweet and good.
An intermediary between Olodumare and men.
She who brings forth life, and takes it back in a fit of anger
Bringing forth floods and destroying crops and the livelihood of her beloved devotees.
Upon appeasement, she pulls back the flood and blesses her devotees with wealth and fertility to multiply.
Bringing forth sweet waters of the earth, prosperity, and wealth
Protector of the sick and poor, bringing them health, joy, music and dance, and healing.
Others consider it vanity when she admires herself in the golden mirror,
Instead of vanity, Oshun sees self-love, self-appreciation, and sensuality.
Regarded as one of Olodumare’s favored, most beautiful, vivacious, with skin as dark as cocoa and hair as black as midnight.
She teaches her devotees self-love, confidence, and beauty come from inner reflection and appreciation of one’s true self
Through her stories and worship, she teaches great devotion, compassion, determination
Note: I’ve always been interested in African mythology and with the help of A.I generated images, I finally found the avenue to tell the story.
#africanmythology #storytelling
