Bones of the Ancestors:
The Symbols of Yemaya
by Sara Hoover
In the Yoruba religions of West Africa and the African diaspora, Yemaya is the Divine symbolized as water. This study describes Yemaya in Her aspects as creator, destroyer, nurturer, and guardian of dreams and the Underworld. With primary focus on the latter aspects, Sara studies her own dreams and those of others for flashes of Her presence. In a metaphorical visit to the Underworld, Sara describes the psychological aspects of her relationship with her dead mother and creates rituals and ritual objects in fabric and clay for the purpose of distilling and translating the knowledge she gained from her Underworld journey. Through her combination of academic and experiential encounters with the power and complexity of Yemaya, Sara reveals the interconnection of the personal with the universal.
Master's Thesis, December 1997
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In the Yoruba religions of West Africa and the African diaspora, Yemaya is the Divine symbolized as water. This study describes Yemaya in Her aspects as creator, destroyer, nurturer, and guardian of dreams and the Underworld. With primary focus on the latter aspects, Sara studies her own dreams and those of others for flashes of Her presence. In a metaphorical visit to the Underworld, Sara describes the psychological aspects of her relationship with her dead mother and creates rituals and ritual objects in fabric and clay for the purpose of distilling and translating the knowledge she gained from her Underworld journey. Through her combination of academic and experiential encounters with the power and complexity of Yemaya, Sara reveals the interconnection of the personal with the universal.