Olokun

Most-venerated Benin deity, king of the waters and giver of wealth and children; senior child of Osanobua.

Parentage

• parent: Osanobua

Domains

• waters sea
• wealth fertility

Powers

• Rules the global waters
• Grants wealth and children
• Bestow purity, peace and cleansing through white chalk

Epithets

• Olokun edo · Olokun'owner/lord of the great waters' — Benin deity of the sea, wealth, fertility and prosperity; senior son of Osanobua and most widely worshipped of Edo deitiesBradbury, R. E. The Benin Kingdom and the Edo-speaking Peoples, 1957 (secondary scholarship); Ben-Amos, Paula. The Art of Benin, Thames & Hudson, 1980 (secondary scholarship)

Relations

• sibling: OgiuwuFull sibling — shares the same attested parentage (Osanobua) per the figures' cited genealogy.
• equated with: OlokunReciprocal of olokun.equated-with — Same sea-wealth deity venerated under one name by Yoruba and Edo; the cult is most elaborated in Benin, where Olokun is male and senior child of Osanobua; Yoruba traditions vary gender and rank. Shared coastal cult.Paula Ben-Amos, 'Men and Animals in Benin Art' / The Art of Benin (1980), on the Olokun cult (secondary); R. E. Bradbury, The Benin Kingdom (1957), on Olokun worship (secondary)

Sources

• existence: Encyclopedia.com, Edo Religion; Edofolks, The Olokun (secondary)