Oba (Orisha)

Oba (known as Obá in Latin America) is the Orisha of the River Oba, whose source lies near Igbon, where her worship originates. During the wars of the 19th century, her centers of worship moved to the more secure town Ogbomosho. She is traditionally identified as the first wife of Shango (the third king of the Oyo Empire and an Orisha). Oba was tricked by Oya or Oshun into cutting off her ear and trying to feed it to Shango. She is syncretized with Saint Catherine of Siena.

Worship in Ogbomosho

At her center of worship in Ogbomosho, Oba is described as the wife of Aganju and is praised as "Oba, who owns parrot tail feathers and fights on the left".

Myths of Oba's Ear

Oba's humiliation by a rival co-wife is one of the most well-known tales associated with this Orisha. While William Bascom's study identified several unusual variations of it, the most popular myth found in West Africa, Brazil, and Cuba has Oba cutting off her ear to serve to her husband Shango as food, because one of her co-wives (most often Oshun) has convinced her this will secure Shango's attention. Once Shango sees the ear and realizes Oba has mutilated herself, he chases her from his house and into permanent exile. Bascom notes that though this story is known in many parts of Yoruba country, it was not recognized by her priest in Ogbomosho.

OBA

Oba or OBA may refer to:

OBA

Oba (ruler)

Oba is the word for King in the Yoruba language of contemporary West Africa Nigeria. Kings in Yorubaland are known as Obas, for example Oba Sijuade of Ile ife, Oba Aromoralan of Ijeshaland, Oba Adeyemi of Oyo. The yoruba people adopted the word from the the Binis. The Benin word for King is Ogie or Ogiso changed to Oba when Eweka l son of yoruba prince Oranmiyan(who could not rule bini) came to the throne in Benin.

Aristocratic titles among the Yoruba

The Yoruba chieftaincy system can be divided into four separate ranks: royal chiefs, noble chiefs, religious chiefs and common chiefs. The royals are led by the Obas, who sit at the apex of the hierarchy and serve as the fons honorum of the entire system. They are joined in the class of royal chiefs by the titled cadets of their royal families. The three other ranks, who traditionally provide the membership of a series of privy councils, sects and guilds, oversee the day-to-day administration of the Yoruba traditional states and are led by the Ogbonis, the Babalawos and the titled elders of the kingdoms' constituent families.

Book of Obadiah

The Book of Obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of Edom and the restoration of Israel. The text consists of a single chapter, divided into 21 verses, making it the shortest book in the Hebrew Bible.

In Judaism and Christianity, its authorship is attributed to a prophet who lived in the Assyrian Period and named himself in the first verse, Obadiah. His name means “servant of Yahweh”.

In Christianity, the Book of Obadiah is classified as a minor prophet of the Old Testament, due to its short length.

In Judaism, Obadiah is considered a “later prophet” and this Masoretic Text is chronologically placed in the Tanakh under the section Nevi'im in the last category called The Twelve Prophets.

Content

The book of Obadiah is based on a prophetic vision concerning the fall of Edom, a mountain dwelling nation whose Founding Father was Esau. Obadiah describes an encounter with God who addresses Edom’s arrogance and charges them for their violent actions against their brother nation, the House of Jacob.