Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
Beyonce, Oshun, and Behavior Befitting A Queen

Beyonce, Oshun, and Behavior Befitting A Queen

Last updated on: February 15, 2017 at 9:57 pm by Lilith Dorsey

Beyonce, Oshun, and Behavior Befitting A Queen 2017-02-15T21:57:21-05:00 Lilith Dorsey

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Beyoncé photo courtesy of wikimedia commons.

The world is buzzing with Beyonce’s latest performance at the Grammys this week. I’ve heard her called everything from a Demon to a Goddess to a Crazy person. I even saw one article who just called her “Mammy.” In case you are out of the loop here’s what the commotion was all about- during her performance she donned herself in gold, a rosy crown, and spoke of the ancient mothers and women’s power. Many thought she was putting on the guise of the Virgin Mary, others thought it just looked religious, others… those familiar with Afro-Caribbean Religion, knew she was dressing as Oshun. Again for those who may not know Oshun also spelled Osun, Ochun, Oxun, or Oxum (depending on which tradition she is appearing in) is the Orisha of Love, Beauty, Money, Fertility, Gold, Dance, and much more.

Back in April I wrote about her Oshun imagery in the video Lemonade, you can read that post here : #Beyonce Pours Out Oshun’s Honey and Lemonade. As a native Brooklyn girl, I was proud to hear she and Jay-Z are expecting twins (we have to have pride in Brooklyn, many of us don’t have much else.) The Grammy performance and the latest video have brought Oshun, and the other Orisha into the spotlight. This is the first time many people have even heard of Oshun or Yemaya. I applaud her reverence for the ancestral mothers, and obviously support her powerful message of self-love. The fact that she is having twins draws the parallels between her and the Orisha Oshun (believed by many to be the mother of the sacred twins Ibeji,) even clearer.

However, Beyonce has opened a door here, and I’m not quite sure what will come through. How many people are taking the time and dedication to learn the true beauty and power of these religions ? You can’t play in the fields of the gods… they must always be met with respect and honor. There is a Yoruba saying “you can’t get Awo (sacred knowledge) from a book.” You also can’t get it from watching a video or a grammy performance.
La Regla Lucumi (more commonly known as Santeria) is a religion of teachers and students that operate as parents and children. Proper devotion involves years, if not a lifetime, of tribute and learning. There is still no clear word from the Beyonce camp about her participation, or initiation in the religion. No one in the community is claiming her, and many are not happy.

Statement about Beyonce from Babalawo Ogbe Di –

My initial response was that I didn’t understand the need to see a manifestation of pop culture in terms of the Orishas, especially when it was divorced from any religious context. Beyonce is an entertainer, and a very good one; she is a specialist in creating a spectacle, and as she has aged her talents (and budgets) in this regard have only grown. What she isn’t, at least as far as I and the rest of the internet have been able to determine, is any form of Orisha worshipper whatsoever. My first reaction was to ask, sarcastically but (I think) reasonably, where does this trend end? If entertainers can be identified as Orisha, is the greengrocer now Osain? Is every scuba diver Olokun, every nursery school teacher Yemaya, every fireman Shango?

The responses startled me a bit, and I appreciated them because they made me sit back and think. The general response was mostly twofold: first, “why shouldn’t I celebrate an image of an Orisha when I see it in daily life?”, and second “this will draw people to the religion”. Both of these are perfectly legitimate (the first more than the second to my mind) but I think both responses missed what I was saying to a certain degree with my original thoughts and posting. I will address these two in order.

“Why shouldn’t I celebrate an image of an Orisha when I see it in daily life?” Short answer, you should. When I see a vulture I salute if I can, to honor ibu Kole. I always ask permission symbolically before crossing a river. I don’t eat certain foods, not because they were specifically taken from me in Ita, but because they belong to Oshun, and so do I (Oshun passed me to Orunmila, but all of my signs made it clear that She gets the final say, as anyone who knows Odu Ogbe Di will already recognize). I honor Oshun every day… but I don’t see the automatic connection with a woman just because she wears a gold crown, or a yellow dress. This connection only seems apparent to Orisha worshippers who are desperate to find some representation of our beliefs in the public square, and will clutch onto anything that seems even somewhat appropriate.

Second, as to drawing people into the religion… I don’t see that American consumer culture is ever going to lead anyone to anything that isn’t American consumer culture. If our deities and culture are being used to sell music, or products, it should be fought, not celebrated. We are already suffering the consequences of consumer culture in our religion – all our sacred ceremonies are being whored out for money, the media and movies represent us as witches and worse to get viewers and ad revenue, and everything the elders of our religion fought to keep sacred and secret is being filmed and thrown out on Youtube to get a few Likes, Follows and Google Ad dollars. Beyonce isn’t celebrating anything but Beyonce; she is doing her job, advancing her brand, and promoting her product. What she isn’t doing is any form of open devotional work to Oshun or anyone else.

At the end of the day, I think the issue is cultural in nature. If we were in Nigeria, Brazil or Cuba, where everyone knows fully who Oshun is and what the Orishas are and aren’t. In America, because that awareness isn’t present in the general culture, the boundaries are far too permeable. My concern is that soon enough we will see Beyonce merchandise being marketed in botanicas because there isn’t that cultural awareness of what is appropriate and what is not. Celia Cruz sang about the Orisha constantly, but people didn’t proclaim her one no matter what she wore on stage. Virginia Rodrigues is a mae de Santo in addition to being a phenomenal singer, but people don’t assume she is a manifestation of Iemonja when she wears a blue dress. I would love to see more celebrations of the Orisha in popular culture; I think that Ifa, Orisha and iwa pele are much needed in this country, in this culture, and in the world. I think we would all be better off finding ways to make those celebrations a reality, so we don’t have to go looking to the Grammys to find an illusion of Oshun.

While I may not agree with exactly everything he expressed, I wanted to present his opinion along with mine. I believe Beyonce is a true icon, and as such is an inspiration for millions of women. Many of these are women of color, like myself, who are seriously desirous of positive images that echo our reality. If these are truly Beyonce’s beliefs I pray that she makes them openly known. I say this both as a daughter of Oshun (with initiations in the tradition,) and as a scholar and performer who has dedicated my life to promoting accurate and respectful information and practices about these religions.

There has been a lot, a damn lot, of misinformation circulating about the Orisha Oshun. Naturally as a child of Oshun, I have written about her, and proper ways of honoring her in your life if you are just beginning in the tradition. Nothing however replaces the proper guidance and teaching of your godparents. My godparents are a support and inspiration to me every moment of my life. It is a very important relationship that is the foundation of the religion. If you are unsure how to go about finding godparents, see my post 6 Questions You Need to Ask Before finding Godparents.

Please refer to and share the following posts about Oshun if possible, and explore the rest of the content here on Voodoo Universe.

Sensuous and Sacred: Oshun’s Feast Table How To

An Orisha Oshun Herbal

Oshun Orisha of Love Recipes

Oshun Butternut Squash Soup Recipe

Santeria Etiquette 101: Can’t Touch This

Previous Post

February 11, 2017

Top Ten Weird Sex Facts For Valentine's Day

Next Post

February 21, 2017 Mardi Gras Magick : Creating Change at Carnival Time

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Ancestors astrology Candomble Crystals Divination Entertainment Goddess Herbs Hoodoo Ifa Pagan Ritual Recipes Santeria Spells Uncategorized Vodou Voodoo Witchcraft

Select a Month May 2025 January 2025 September 2024 August 2024 April 2024 March 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 September 2023 June 2023 March 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 January 2022 November 2021 October 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What was the purpose of the Ark of the Covenant?

Select your answer to see how you score.

To serve as a throne for Moses To store sacrifices To hold the Ten Commandments To be carried in battle