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Yemaya the Great Mother: Became a Mom on Earth

Yemayá, revered as the spiritual mother of all living things, once walked the earth with an ache many understand, the inability to conceive. Though she nurtured the world, she longed for a child of her own. Through devotion, ritual, and divine instruction, her prayers were answered. This Mother's Day, we honor Yemayá’s path to motherhood and every woman who carries the heart of a mother, whether through birth, love, or legacy. May your care continue to shape generations.

Iya Leti

5/11/20252 min read

There was once a time when Yemayá, known throughout the Yoruba spiritual world as the great mother of the seas, longed for something she did not yet have; biological motherhood. Though revered for her maternal protection and nurturing spirit, Yemayá herself had not been able to conceive. Month after month, year after year, her womb remained empty. Her prayers unanswered, she finally turned to a fortune teller to go for divination.

The shells revealed the sign of Oshe Meyi, a powerful message of divine promise and sacrifice. Conception would come, but only through strict devotion to spiritual ritual. Yemayá was instructed to prepare a sacred ebó. She made akara, olele pie, and oshinshin. To these dishes, she added five coconuts and five sweets. Then, at the riverbank, she bathed and drank deeply from the flowing waters.

She did this not once, but every single month.

Over time, the impossible occurred: Yemayá conceived. Her heart burst with joy. When she went again for divination, the shells revealed that she must continue the ebó each month until the birth of her child. Nine months later, Yemayá gave birth to a radiant baby girl.

But joy was followed by crisis. Just days after the child’s birth, the baby began to bleed from her navel. Terrified, Yemayá returned for divination. The a revelation: the child was divine. This was Ogba Imale, one of the oldest orishas. The bleeding was a sacred sign. The cure was to bathe her in cold river water. Yemayá obeyed, and the bleeding ceased.

Still, the baby remained weak. With a mother’s worry, Yemayá turned to her husband, Aggayú, the orisha of volcanoes and strength. He sought the guidance of Osain, the orisha of herbs and healing. Osain provided a sacred remedy, a carefully prepared herbal infusion to restore the child's vitality. Yemayá administered the treatment daily, with devotion and care, until her daughter was strong enough to be named.

The naming ceremony was a celebration for the ages. The orishas gathered, and the child was given her name: Oshe Nbun Omi, “The one who was brought from the depths of the water.” In time, she became known simply as Oshún, the orisha of love, sweetness, rivers, and fertility. She is the one who flows.

I hope you felt the love and strength in this story. Yemayá’s journey reminds us that motherhood is is devotion, protection, and legacy. To every mother in spirit, in body, in community; Happy Mother’s Day! May your love continue to flow like the river.

Asè!