Essence Of The Rainbow
OSUMARE, TRANS MESSENGER OF THE ALMIGHTY 🌈
Can you believe we're already halfway through 2022? Where did all the time go? Yep, it's the 1st of July and summer is well underway and people have an extra spring in their steps these days despite the gloomy economic outlook.
Talking of which, I opened my banking app this morning to see the money in there had been halved by a torrent of bills. They are brutally automated and relentless, my bills, and they don't give to shytes about my financial situation. They do care, however, about inflation. They've all magically increased to match both inflation and interest rates. Magically. Funny how income doesn't do that eh?
Looking outside my window I was reminded of the abundance of nature and how, if we know where to look, we already have everything we need. There were not one, but two, rainbows outside. The second one was too faint to capture with my iPhone's camera, but I could see it with my eyes.
They say there's treasure at the end of the rainbow.
Osumare 🌈
Also known as Oxumare in Brazil, or Ochumare in Cuba, Osumare [oh-shoo-mah-ray] is a deity in the Yoruba and other west African and Yoruba-descent spiritual systems like Candomblé and Santería. "Olodumare" [The almighty creator/initiator of everything] is so aloof and unreachable. Deities like Osumare, are intermediaries between the human/physical realm and the "Infinite Intelligence" that is Olodumare. These deities are referred to as Orisa [oh-ree-sha] or Orixa in Brazil and Oricha in Cuba (and other Spanish speaking Latin American countries).
Osumare is a special case and is quite unique amongst the deities for a few reasons. Osumare is the only orisa that shares the "mare" suffix with "Olodumare". The other deities carry messages from humans to Olodumare while Osumare carries the message the other way; from Olodumare to humans.
Osumare is also depicted as a serpent, being the only non-humanoid deity.
The final part, which may delight members of the LGBTQ+ community, is that Osumare is "transgender". He/She (notice this is the first time I've used pronouns) is male for one half of the year, and becomes female for the other half. I thought it quite interesting that I saw the rainbow exactly halfway through the year. Also, "Osumare" isn't only the rainbow serpent deity, but literally the Yoruba word for "rainbow". Isn't that interesting?
Anyway, to bring it all back, I thought it interesting that despite the changing times and beliefs, the rainbow still stands for similar things. 100 years ago my great grandfather would have looked up into the sky and see Osumare and be assured that, despite the apparent hard times, Olodumare was still in control of everything. Similarly now, I look and feel the same, if for different reasons.
You can imagine the impact Osumare had on the ancients. Of all the deities, who where often themselves aloof and definitely unseen, Osumare actually literally appeared to people. It was there, clear in the sky in the physical realm. That's why it was so reassuring. Osumare is the "Lord of welfare and assurances, guardian of introverts".
Christians derive similar assurances from the rainbow:
“I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth: When I bring clouds over the earth, and the bow is seen in the clouds . . . I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant.”. (Genesis 9:13-14, 16).
In scientific terms, the rainbow is a refraction of sunlight in the water molecules in the clouds, of course. We living beings, too, are a collection of billions and billions of molecules jumping about in electric charge, obeying the laws of physics. Yet, we're somehow sentient.
I wish you all a great rest of the year 2022 and may the essence of the rainbow reassure you and bring you many treasures.🌈
Peace & Love,
Adé
PS: Very strange bit of synchronicity. As I literally finished typing this and went to hit publish, a woman walked past me with a rainbow painted on her face. I wish I was ready to take photo! That's some woowoo shit!! 😮😲🤯 Ok, bye.