Shango
Yoruba · quartigod · oyo empire · quartigod
Third generation. Third Alaafin of Oyo. Apotheosed at his death (or self-hanging) into the orisha of thunder and lightning. The Oba ko so liturgical cry — "the king did not hang" — is the foundational liturgical formula of the Shango cult and a core piece of Yoruba political theology.
Parentage
Children
Powers
- thunder call
- lightning strike
- fire breathing
- kingship yoruba foundation
- Spew fire from the mouth
- Generate thunder and lightning
- Hurl thunderstones at offenders
- Work charms/magic to draw down lightning
Epithets
- Ọba Kòso
- Jàkúta
- Aláàfin
Relations
- sibling: Ajaka
- equated with: Thunder God of the Storm
- equated with: Sogbo
Sources
- Johnson, History of the Yorubas (1921)
- Verger, Notes sur le culte des orisa et vodun (1957)
- Yoruba oral tradition
- Idowu, Olódùmarè (1962)
- Verger (1957)