Customer Reviews

Tales of Yoruba: Gods and Heroes

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Harold Courlander, has written many books on African Legends and Folklore, but this one has to be one of his most important works, especially for the devotees of the Orishas, both here in the Americas as well as the world over. This book should be in the collection of every Aborisha, as it is the sacred Patikis that have been passed down from Elder to Elder from West Africa, unto the Diaspora, and present. These are the Stories as told buy the Santeros and Santeras in the New York barrios, as well as the Babalorisha and Iyalorishas of the Forest of the tropics.

The Stories presented here are as colorful and as intriguing as the mythology of Greek and Rome, with the exception that the Greek Gods have lost their followers. While the Orishas portrayed in this classic book, as still loved and adorned buy Millions upon millions of Worshippers and Followers thought the world.

The stories told in this book are Patikis, the sacred tales as told buy the Elders to teach moral lessons and also are used in Divination with Oracles. This book gives you a good selection of the folklore as passed down from the Yoruba culture. But not just the Yoruba orisa culture. There is a section titled, The Yoruba Culture of Cuba. A section of Yoruba music from Haiti, Cuba and Brazil.

The Patikis are as follow
1) The Decent from the Skies. --- 2) The Orishas acquire their powers. -- 3) Why Eshu (Eleggua) Lives outside. -- 4) Iron is received from Oggun. -- 5) Sonpono's Excile. (Babalu Aye) -- 6) The Scattering from Ife. -- 7) Moremi and the Egungun. -- 8) Oranmiya The Warrior Hero of Ife. -- 9) The Friendship of Eshu (Eleggua) and Orunmila. -- 10) Eshu and Death -- 11) Oshun learns the Art of Divination. -- 12) Orunmila Visits Owo. -- 13) The Division of the Cowries. --14) Shango and the Medicine of Eshu. -- 15) Obatala Visits Shango. --16) The Quarrel Between Oya and Oshun. -- 17) How Shango Departed from Oyo. -- 18) Obatala's Farm at Abeokuta. -- 19) The Women's War. -- 20) The Coming of the Oba River. -- 21) Ogbe Baba, Warrior of Ibode. -- 22) The burning of the Elekute grove. -- 23) The Oba's Food. -- 24) Ogedengbe's Drummers. -- 25) How Twins (Ibeji) Came Among the Yoruba. -- 26) The Stone People of Esie. -- 27) The deer Women of Owo. -- 28) Ologun and Apasha. -- 29) Olosun of Ikere. -- 30) Erinle hunter of Ijebu. -- 31) How Ijaba became a Sacrifice. --32) The Medicine of Olu Igbo.

Plus a whole chapter on Cuban Orisha Paikis. A Must Have For all Orisha devotees, and African History buffs alike.

Love it. A great read, background in african stories and the belief of the yorubas.

This is an excellent book for storytelling and to use with both children and adults. The stories can be told with imagination and animation. Children will enjoy hearing the stories about Orisa and is an excellent resource for your library.