SONGS OF PRAISE AND INVOCATION: The Orisha Sacred Songs of Trinidad
RICHARD PAUL
THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO STUDY AND TRANSLATE RECORDED YORUBA
CHANTS AND PRAISE SONGS OF TRINIDAD OVER THE PAST 65 YEARS. BECAUSE OF THE
HORRIFIC CONDITIONS OF THE T R A N S - AT LA N TI C SLAVE TRADE, ALMOST ALL ORISHA
DEVOTEES HAVE LOST THE MEANING OF THE CHANTS, AND CONSEQUENTLY, THE EM-
PHASIS IS ON THE RITUALS. I SEEK TO DETERMINE TO WHAT DEGREE THE CHANTS
SUNG IN TRINIDAD HAVE REMAINED THE SAME OR CHANGED AND TO WHAT DEGREE
THEY HAVE ALL DEPARTED FROM CONTINENTAL YORUBA. ACQUIRING THE TRANSLA-
TIONS ALLOWS DEVOTEES TO ATTAI N A PHILOSOPHICAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE RE-
LIGION, AND IN DOING SO, THIS STUDY AIMS AT RECONSTRUCTING AND UPLIFTING
THE ORISHA RELIGION OF TRINIDAD. I received an advanced study grant and traveled to Benin cestors. With the exception of some of the sacred West Africa in the summer of 2005 to conduct field re- songs/chants that I sang, the collection of chants translated search into the Yoruba origins of the Orisha chants of in this research included those recorded and sung by Ella Trinidad. I conducted the first segment of my research in Andall, a prominent Trinidadian Orisha devotee, in her Ketu, an historic Yoruba district located in the eastern part most recent CD, Shango Babawa. The translations are not of Benin, 86 miles from Cotonou and 67 miles from Port literal per se, but they do convey the ideological, sociologi- Novo, the two main cities in the Benin Republic. Ketu has cal, and contextual meanings. Sung to praise and honor a population of approximately 100,000 inhabitants, 77 per- some of the most revered Orisha, in the Orisha spiritual re- cent of whom constitute the Yoruba people, crowded into ligious traditions, the Oriki praise songs enabled diasporic two of the six communities, namely Ketu (the city) and Africans to reaffirm their Yoruba identity. Their unques- Idigny/Idahin (a rural town). It was in Idigny that I met tioned trust in their Orisha spiritual traditions enabled di- with King Oba Thomas Atanda Idowu Arolagbade II and asporic Africans to remember and mentally transport their interviewed the chief priests and Orisha devotees. Orisha to the Americas. Shango, who is the spirit of light- ning and thunder, the Orisha of justice of righteousness, In Trinidad, the Orisha movement, better known as the the protector of children and the innocent, became the pa- Shango religion, which venerates the forces of nature, the triarchal head, the bearer and the representation of the Orisha, is the cultural link between Afro-Trinidadians and Orisha spiritual tradition in Trinidad. Shango, in addition the Yoruba peoples of West Africa. Streams of Yoruba cul- to several Orisha, is the cultural remnant that enslaved ture have flowed from the rivers of Africa and into the seas Africans brought to the Americas, including the Caribbean of the Americas. In Trinidad, the essence of Yoruba culture island of Trinidad. still exists, and Yoruba language has survived in song, pri- marily because of the vitality of the Shango religion. This Orisha devotees remember the horrors of slavery through collection of Orisha chants translated demonstrates the life the chant of Ara romi 0, but they regain hope and assurance experiences of African-Trinidadians, from the African con- in songs like Babawa ye rona ye rona and Shango mu asefun tinent, to the Middle Passage, the oppressive slave planta- wa. These lamentations of hope not only reveal their de- tion, and finally the present communities of Trinidad. pendency on Shango, but they also show the power and- Unfortunately, most Trinidadians still have a colonized heightened self-esteem they have gained. mentality and continue to devalue, ridicule, and demonize the Orisha religious movement. Their contempt for African-based religions does not diminish the joy and ful- fillment Orisha devotees gain from their faith.
Over the course of my research experience in the Benin Republic, I was privy to Orisha religious celebrations and observed that the Orisha sacred songs of Trinidadians are reflections of the rhythms and expressions of Yoruba cul- ture. The invigorating drums, the heartbeat of the tradi- tion, and their pulsating rhythms have the power to awaken anyone in their vicinity. The beauty of the Orisha drums is that they elevate our being to higher states of consciousness where, through joy in trance, we dance the dance of our an-
ELEMENTS SPRING 07 ARA ROM I O In times of hardships, many questioned their faith and sub- Ara romi o jected themselves to despair as seen in Ka rele. However, My body is in pain some of the devotees' unquestionable trust in their religion Ara romi Shango corrects those doubts when they reminded others of SHANCO my body is in pain Shango's vitality, as observed in Emi ni ape Shango I'ojo. Ara romi emitibini SHANCO I do not want my body to pain KA RELE Ara romi Shango Ka rele SHANGO my body is in pain Let us go home Ojo romi e e Ka rele o The rain is falling on me [I am experiencing hard times] Let us go home! Ojo romi Shango Ka rele ojo moni owo Let us go home, the rain has no regards for anyone The rain is falling on me [I am experiencing hard times] Ojo baa de Let the rain come! Onian wa, bi ojo baa de onian wa BABA YE RONA YE RONA People come, even if there is rain, people come Babawa ye rona ye rona Our father has found a way to be with us EMI NI APE SHANGO L'OJO Shango rona Emi ni ape Shango l'ojo SHANCO has found a way to be with us I say that they [devotees] call SHANCO during the rain [hard Babawa ye rona ye rona times] Our father has found a way to be with us Shango de omi lala l'ojo Shango rona SHANCO has come [even if] there is plenty water [hard times] SHANCO has found a way to be with us Omi lala l'ojo SHANGO MU ASE FUN WA There is plenty water [hard times] Shango mu ase fun wa
SHANCO give us the power Orisha devotees have no qualms about portraying or about Orriwo celebrating Shango's aggressiveness, his omnipotence and You have the power his unscathed vengeance as the fierce protector in songs Shango fun wa like Shango oloro. SHANCO has given us the power Orriwo SHANGO OLORO You have the power Shango oloro Mu ase fun wa SHANCO is deadly Give us the power Shango olo oloro Orriwo SHANCO owns snake venom [SHANCO is lethal] You have the power Shango o Babawa fun wa Hail SHANCO! Our father has given us the power Shango oloro SHANCO is deadly
SONGS OF PRAISE AND INVOCATION: THE ORISHA SACRED SONGS OF TRINIDAD Shango Babawa is a typical song of invocation and Fere ku Most Shango ceremonies dismiss Shango and bring closure few yero and Emi I'awa ko pemi la fise emi I'awa are tradi- with Fete ma lo Shango and/or Eru dele O. tional praise songs.
TETE MA LO SHANGO
SHANGO BABAWA Tete ma lo Shango Shango Babawa Depart quickly SHANGO Our father SHANGO Tete ma lo Shango Alado karele Depart quickly SHAN co, the wearer of powerful amulets, let us go home and Shango o! Tete ma lo pay homage Hail SHANGO! [NOW] depart quickly Shango Babawa Olododo Tete ma lo Baba Our father SHANGO, the most powerful Depart quickly father Kabiese O! Tete ma lo [Prostrating gesture/greeting of respect] Depart quickly Shango o! Tete ma lo
FERE KU FERE YERO Hail SHANGO! (NOW) depart quickly Fere ku fero yero You [SHANGO] are worthy to be praised gracefully ERU DELE La finsi Babawa Eru dele O Our dear father Your servant has come to your shrine Fere ku fere Shango Eru de SHANGO is worthy to be praised gracefully Your devotee has arrived La finsi Babawa Mo juba Our dear father I pay homage Mo lo
EMI L'AWA KO PEMI LA FISE EMI L'AWA I leave Emi I'awa ko pemi la fise emi I'awa Eru de Whenever you [SHANGO] call me, I will come and serve you Your devotee has come Shango ko pemi la fise Mo juba SHANGO I will come and serve you I pay homage Emi I'awa ko pemi la fise emi I'awa Mo lo o! Whenever you [SHANGO] call me, I will come and serve you [And] I leave Shango ko pemi la fise SHANGO I will come and serve you
"Emi I'awa ko pemi la fise emi I'awa Whenever you [SHANGO] call me, I will come and serve youv