The dance of Yemayá, the dance of the Waves

Yemaya, the blessing of the waters, the restless blue of the ocean, the Goddess of the waves, the pearls of the depths, the maternal bliss ...

Yemayá is the Orisha of the salty waters. She must be looked for in the sea, on the crests of the waves against the coasts and rocks. She is the mother of all children on earth and represents the uterus in any species, since she herself is life, fertility and motherhood.

And so, like the dance of the waves, with a fluid and loving movement, like the song of the oceans, like a caring mother, it is the Yemayá dance.

Orisha Yemayá dance, water and passion

El Yemayá dance it is passionate and slow, sensual and joyful, like the movement of the ocean and its fish.

When Yemayá dances, he does it laughing out loud and his body moves like the waves of the sea, at first gently and then agitated by a storm, shaking his blue clothes with the fury of the winds.

Thus, it begins to rotate like a whirlpool and can imitate swimming or diving in the ocean. She also pretends to collect a treasure from the bottom of the sea and bring it to her children.

In one of her movements, the Orisha dance of the waters imitates the oars of a boat.

The other dancers circle her and spin in gentle movements at first, like the waves on a calm day. Then they increase in speed until they begin to turn like a rough sea.

Yemayá dance, syncretism and culture

El Yemayá dance, as the numerous exponents of Afro-Cuban dances constitute an example of the culture in Cuba, of union and resistance to colonial pressure.

The dances of the Orishas are today heritage of Cuban culture and an essential element for the knowledge of the history of the yoruba religion and their deities.

Yemayá, for example, reflects in her dance the image of universal motherhood with calm and restful steps, but she also has agitated concentric turns, showing the force of nature and its representative element, the sea.  

The dancers who lend their bodies to the Orisha wear blue and white skirts in honor of the ocean waves.

Most read content: