Trisha Shetty (Editor)

Dahomean religion

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The Dahomean religion was practiced by the Fon people of the Dahomey Kingdom. The kingdom existed until 1898 in what is now the country of Benin. Slaves taken from Dahomey to the Caribbean used elements of the religion to form Vodou and other religions of the Afro-Caribbean diaspora.

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Mawu and Lisa

Lisa (male) and Mawu (female), married twin siblings of Nana Buluku, are the creator spirits, occasionally combined as Mawu-Lisa, an androgynous spirit. Mawu-Lisa created the world and made it orderly, then made plants, animals, and humans; the entire process took four days.

  • The first day, Mawu-Lisa created the world and humanity;
  • The second day the earth was made suitable for human life;
  • On the third day, humans were given intellect, language, and the senses;
  • Finally, on the fourth day, mankind received the gift of technology.

    • Offspring-spirits of Mawu and Lisa

  • Gbadu
  • Da and Gu
  • Dan

    • Other spirits

  • AgĂ©
  • Avrikiti
  • Ayaba
  • Egberun
  • Fa
  • Gleti
  • Gu
  • Legba
  • Loko
  • Nana
  • Okanu
  • Sakpata
  • Sogbo
  • Xevioso
  • Zinsu and Zinsi

    • References

    Dahomean religion Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA