"Discover the Magic of the African Orishas in Cuba: A Visual and Explanatory Guide" Delve into the fascinating world of the Orishas with this unique work, which reveals the secrets and richness of the Afro-descendant tradition in Cuba in a clear and accessible way. "Synthesis of the African Orishas in Cuba" is your gateway to an ancestral culture that has endured throughout the centuries. In its pages, you will explore: - The Main Orishas: Get to know the central deities of this tradition, their characteristics and their influence on daily life. - Religious Synchronization and Mythology: Discover how the Orishas integrate with other traditions and explore the legends that bring their stories to life. - Settlements and Avatars: Learn about the different places where they are found and their symbolic representations. - Tools and Herbs: A full-color photo gallery illustrates the sacred objects and plants associated with each Orisha, revealing their uses and meanings. This book not only offers you a comprehensive explanation of the fundamental elements of Afro-descendant religion in Cuba, but also provides you with a rich visual experience that enriches your understanding of these fascinating spiritual beings. Ideal for those who wish to delve deeper into the culture, history, and art of the Orishas.

"An important contribution to the field of Afro-Cuban beliefs and its impact on contemporary Cuban literature."--Antonio Benitez-Rojo, Thomas B. Walton, Jr. Memorial Professor, Amherst College African-based religion plays a prominent role in the Cuban imagination and national identity. In this semiotic, postmodern, and interdisciplinary study, Eugenio Matibag reveals the ways in which 20th-century literary texts unlock the mysteries of Afro-Cuban belief systems. During the colonial period, the West Africans who were transported to Cuba and forced into slavery reinvented their African religions. They combined them with Catholicism to create a distinctive Afro-Cuban religious culture, one that offered a basis for collective identity and an avenue of psychic resistance to oppression. Using a vast number of texts that include stories and myths as well as manuals and guidebooks on belief and practice, Eugenio Matibag surveys the rituals, doctrines, and cultural origins of four major Afro-Cuban religious traditions--Santeria, Naniguismo, Palo Monte, and Vaudou. The list of Afro-Cubanist authors that he studies reads like a modern Who's Who of Cuban letters and includes Fernando Ortiz, Alejo Carpentier, Lydia Cabrera, Dora Alonso, Miguel Barnet, and Manuel Cofino, all writers who incorporate elements of religious ritual, myth, or doctrine into their writings. Matibag's analysis of their literary texts examines both social perspectives on religion and religion's life-affirming, often subversive role in society. Quoting an Afro-Cuban proverb that reflects this opposition, he writes, "Una cosa piensa el caballo y otra el que lo ensilla"--the horse thinks one thing and he who saddles him, another. Eugenio Matibag is associate professor of Spanish at Iowa State University. He has published articles in Hispamerica, Journal of Interdisciplinary Literary Studies, Journal of Caribbean Studies, Revista Hispanica Moderna, and Postmodern Culture.

★55% off bookstores! Discounted retail price now of $29.95 instead of $36.95★ Which Orisha calls to you? Your clients will never stop thanking you for enriching their knowledge of the Yoruba religion (Santerìa). Orishas are African spirits respected and served in Cuban Santeria, as well as other Caribbean traditions. Santería is a religion with Afro-Cuban roots, born of the cultural clash between the Yoruba people of West Africa and the Spanish Catholics who brought them to the Americas as slaves. What makes Santeria so unique is the fact that it is a syncretic religion - it combines the beliefs and practices of several religions, primarily the African Yoruba religion with Roman Catholic elements mixed in. Today, many people still turn to the Orishas for help and guidance in not only their little problems, but also the big ones of life. You will learn that each Orisha have specific actions and temperament. Where you can find Yemaya Oshun's favorite food How to petition Changò What are you waiting for? Take advantage of this launch offer ★★Buy it now and let your customers find out what their Orisha is.

This introduction to the Afro-Cuban religion called Santeria explores how it emerged and developed in Cuba out of transplanted Yoruba beliefs and continues to spread and adjust to changing times and contexts. Systematically exploring every facet of Santeria's worldview, Sandoval examines how practitioners have adapted received beliefs and practices to reconcile them with new environments, from plantation slavery to exile in the United States.

"A comprehensive, almost encyclopedic, introduction to Santeria . . . Cros Sandoval's greatest contribution is in tackling the question of why Santeria's Yoruba cosmology has proven so durable and compelling over time, even as it has been transplanted across an ocean and brought into contact with very different traditions in very different societies than its place of origin."--Kristina Wirtz, Western Michigan University "A broad and deep synthesis of scholarship on Santeria . . . fully recognizes the heterogeneous nature of Afro-Cuban religious belief and successfully explores the origins of that heterogeneity."--Theron Corse, Tennessee State University Cros Sandoval's authoritative introduction to the Afro-Cuban religion called Santeria explores how it emerged and developed in Cuba out of transplanted Yoruba beliefs and continues to spread and adjust to changing times and contexts. Systematically exploring every facet of Santeria's worldview, Sandoval examines how practitioners have adapted received beliefs and practices to reconcile them with new environments, from plantation slavery to exile in the United States. Offering a distinctive perspective based on a lifetime of extensive research and firsthand knowledge, Cros Sandoval illuminates Santeria as a theological system and as a vital, continuously evolving community. The adaptation process that gave birth to Santeria was not the singular result of cultural resistance, she argues, but a successful attempt to find meaning linked to alien religious elements in a way that appealed to a diverse following. Beginning with the transatlantic history of how Yoruba traditions came to Cuba and were established and adapted to Cuban society, Sandoval provides a comprehensive comparison of Yoruba and Cuban mythologies, followed by an overview of how Santeria has continued to diffuse and change in response to new contexts and adherents--with an especially illuminating perspective on Santeria among Cubans in Miami. As a reference work and historical treatment of Santeria, Sandoval's work will appeal to both scholars and nonscholars alike, ranging from anthropologists and students of religion and the African Diaspora to psychologists, social workers, and those curious about or inspired by this remarkably durable and adaptable belief system.

First published in 1996. Currently there is a strong trend in the metal health professions to look at the whole picture when dealing with clients. Religion and spirituality are now officially accepted as a major portion of this picture. In keeping with this trend this book assesses the role of spiritually oriented assessments and interventions in clinical practice. By providing examples of both spiritual cosmologies and anthropologies, it offers a cross-cultural theoretical orientation and therapeutic rationale for spirituality in clinical settings. The book is an essential resource for social workers, mental health counsels, bereavement specialists, professional clergy, and others in the helping professions.

An iconic symbol and sound of the Lucum'/Santer'a religion, Afro-Cuban batá are talking drums that express the epic mythological narratives of the West African Yoruba deities known as orisha. By imitating aspects of speech and song, and by metaphorically referencing salient attributes of the deities, batá drummers facilitate the communal praising of orisha in a music ritual known as a toque de santo. In The Artistry of Afro-Cuban Batá Drumming, Kenneth Schweitzer blends musical transcription, musical analysis, interviews, ethnographic descriptions, and observations from his own experience as a ritual drummer to highlight the complex variables at work during a live Lucum' performance. Integral in enabling trance possessions by the orisha, by far the most dramatic expressions of Lucum' faith, batá drummers are also entrusted with controlling the overall ebb and flow of the four- to six-hour toque de santo. During these events, batá drummers combine their knowledge of ritual with an extensive repertoire of rhythms and songs. Musicians focus on the many thematic acts that unfold both concurrently and in quick succession. In addition to creating an emotionally charged environment, playing salute rhythms for the orisha, and supporting the playful song competitions that erupt between singers, batá drummers are equally dedicated to nurturing their own drumming community by creating a variety of opportunities for the musicians to grow artistically and creatively.