Nanã

Nanã: the queen.

She is the oldest Orisha in the Pantheon.

She is referred to as the oldest among the elderly.

Nanã is the Orixá of the breath of life.

This deity dwells in the swamps, in the mud.

Clay represents the beginning of life in many cultures.

Also in Yoruba traditions, human beings were made of clay.

When placing Nanã in this element, oral tradition tells us that it was she who modeled the human body with the mud, while the head, the part of the body where the Ori is placed, was modeled by Olodumare.

Nanã connects the soul to the body through "Emi": the breath.

In fact, Nanã represents the beginning of life and it is she who breathes the spirit of life into the human body.

When a child is born, Nanã links the material part, the body, to the spirit, the Ori.

It is she who disconnects the spirit from the body at the moment of death.

That is why she is highly respected and feared.

People turn to her in times of illness, begging her to ward off death and prolong life.

Saluba!