Emily M’s Reviews > Chronicles of Ori: An African Epic > Status Update

“As the humans…who had survived the ocean crossing set foot on the dock, they carried more than…scars…They also bore the knowledge to sustain their revered Orishas upon the foreign shore…Yemaya, the nurturing matron of humanity, had transformed into Mary…Shango, the wielder of thunder and lightning, was altered into Saint Barbara…Eshu, the guardian of crossroads, was now Saint Anthony of Padua”

The retelling creativity in this part is really good! “Eve” being a savior, not a villain. The painting of her getting carried West on the back of the white lion echoing paintings of “the rape of Europa”. The trans-Atlantic slave trade never being NAMED, but still being used to transition Yemaya from freshwater African deity to ocean New World deity, who frees the chained primordial ocean goddess… 🔥🔥

OMG, this image of Obba with her ear on a plate (it was a love spell ingredient) like it’s the head of John the Baptist, and her mauve robes shimmering against her skin and the dark background…stunning and disturbing all at once! Might be my favorite painting.

“Oranmiyan, the conqueror, has sought conquest and glory, viewing other kingdoms as territories to be claimed. Moremi, the sovereign, saw that it was her sacred duty to lift up her people and enrich their lives, and to create a society rooted in compassion, innovation, and unity…Through her, Ife became…a legend, evidence of what is possible when you lead with love.”

“If you are filled with pride, then you will have no room for wisdom - African proverb”

Huh! Interesting alternate history of the Trojan war here!

(Catching the references to real countries like Punt and Kush and now Troy and Hellas is making me want to do some history googling)

“Olokun’s womb ruptured, and a powerful spawn arose - Bida, the seven-headed golden serpent. Each head embodies the darkest shadows of human nature: Igberaga, the prideful; Ojukokoro, the greedy; Ilara, the envious; Ibinu, the wrathful; Ifekufe, the lustful; Alajeun, the gluttonous; and Ole, the slothful.”

Well, seven deadly sins as a golden hydra is definitely not a take I’d seen before!

“‘What you fail to realize,’ [Obatala] said, ‘is that without destruction, there can be no creation…True change is vaster than a single mortal lifetime. It demands sacrifice!…The truth is far heavier than your preaching of hope.’…Oduduwa gathered his thoughts. ‘…We mortals do not have the luxury of immortality…But it is precisely because of this that hope is our foundation’”

OK, now I feel torn. Loved science syncretism of ocean goddess Yemaya and Olokun (here described as a god of magma/undersea volcanoes) giving rise to life. BUT when I looked up Olokun, they are an ocean deity who can be male, female, or androgynous. And while Yemaya is an ocean deity in the Americas she’s a freshwater/river goddess in West Africa. And now I want an ocean-river sapphic romance, damn it!

“If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try spending the night with a mosquito- African proverb”

😂True.