Brazilian Macumba: Candomblé, Umbanda, and Quimbanda
Macumba is the generic name for magic of African origin, primarily practiced in Brazil, although it also occurs in several South American territories. Macumba is a word of Bantu origin, that is, from the language and cultures of central and southern Africa, which appears to be related to a percussion instrument used in their religious and magical cults. The word was undoubtedly imported by African slaves brought to the Americas, but the association with magic in particular seems to be the fault of the Catholic Church, and the dissemination of the name by Peruvians, who began using the word macumba as a synonym for "black magic." The area where macumba spread the most was Rio de Janeiro; however, despite its diverse population and culture, macumba always had a negative connotation, and even today, "macumbeiro" can be an insult.
The negative perception may stem from the fact that, unlike other African cults, macumba places special emphasis on communication with the dead and spirit possessions. In other words, it maintains a much closer connection with death, and this provoked rejection from the West and Native Americans from the outset. However, this seems to have only a social impact, since culturally, most prayers and spells are in Portuguese rather than African dialects. It is more likely that, apart from the usual pressure from the Catholic Church, the negative publicity given by the Church to its cults as "satanic" from the 1920s onward was what gave this phenomenon a negative visibility.
Macumba, as a generic term, is divided into two main groups: Umbanda and Candomblé. On the other hand, although macumba has been used to refer to black or negative magic, there is a specific name for it: Quimbanda.
Note: Macumba is a term used primarily in Rio de Janeiro and its surrounding areas. In other parts of Brazil, the generic term is Candomblé, hence the confusion that can arise when searching for information that treats them interchangeably!
Candomblé is a religion very reminiscent of Santeria, especially if its history and deeper meanings are unknown. The confusion stems from the fact that here, too, people believe in orixas, parallel to the orishas, African deities—although they are also called nkises or voduns—and equate them with the iconography and powers of Christian saints, and very similar offerings and vows are made to them. It is generally considered a naturalistic religion, as the vast majority of orixas evoke elements of nature such as the sea, fire, etc. They are also considered guardian angels, and personal connections are made, such as the use of patuá or amulet-bags hung on sculptures or in which specific herbs are placed so that the magical power of the orixá rests with the person.
In the case of Brazil, the Black slaves belonged to various ethnic groups: Bantu, Yoruba, Jeje, Ewe, Fon, Ketu, and so on, native to the territories of Nigeria and Benin. Although they held distinct beliefs, religious communions and syncretisms arose, which converged in the orixas and in a supreme god, although he receives various names—the Ketu god is Olorum, the Bantu god is Zambi, the Jeje god is Mawu…—but, ultimately, he is a supreme God who, in terms of worship and syncretism, is practically the same as the Father God of Christianity.
There are also unions under the names of Mama Africa or under the orixa Oxalá, who is associated with Jesus Christ.
Legend has it that the first Candomblé temple was founded in 1830 in the city of Salvador, Brazil. The "Three Mothers of the Saints" were three enslaved women who, since their husbands were taken away to work, took charge of religious and spiritual matters, in turn training the younger slaves, "the daughters of the saints." For this reason, Candomblé predominantly has a female priesthood, unlike Santería, where we have seen that women are, to some extent, excluded from official status. However, the first official temple (terreiro, in Portuguese) is Ilê Axé Iyá Nassô Oká, also known as the "Terreiro de Casa Blanca," in Salvador de Bahía.
Worship is celebrated according to the days of the week, the months, and the seasons. Each orixá has their preferences and domains - in colors, foods, decorations, etc. - although it seems that Sunday is a day for all of them. Some ceremonies, such as the feast of Yemanyá, the goddess of the sea, on February 2 (coinciding with other religious festivals, such as Candlemas) have a purely religious character: large processions of faithful dressed in white led by the Mothers to the shores, where offerings are left on water or in small boats.
But others, where possessions take place in less friendly environments, are considered magical and spiritualist, deviating from the religious frameworks understood as "traditional" by Westerners. The main difference between Candomblé and Santería is that spiritual union with the orishas is achieved through mediumship and possession. In fact, there is a "branch of Candomblé" called Caboclo Candomblé (caboclo means "spirit of a dead Indian"). In Candomblé, communication with the orishas or spirits is more direct, and is often used for urgent cases—an illness, for example—or on special holidays to obtain predictions or messages. These possessions can be subtle or very violent, depending on the strength and personality of the orisha, with the peculiarity that the stronger the possession, the more effective it will be, and the more perfect the spiritual union between the two will be. Simply the act of invoking the presence of an orisha would be outside the most orthodox Christian thought, even more so if it is performed on several of them, and even more so if it is accompanied by dances, drum rhythms, and finally, by a person falling into a trance whose new attitudes are taken to be those of the incarnate god. Despite religious syncretism, this completely breaks the molds of monotheism and the "external" religiosity of Christians. The seriousness of the accusations of Satanism and black magic stems above all from blood rituals, such as those held for the orisha Exú, associated with the figure of the devil, and whose invocation requires the ritual sacrifice of black goats or poultry. However, his invocation does not seek any evil in itself.
Umbanda is another of the most popular Brazilian religions, but also more recent, as it officially began in the 20th century and has also spread to Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay with some success. Moving away from the more popular aspect, several congresses and events for Umbandist encounters have been held, and the so-called Faculty of Umbandist Theology was even in operation from 2003 to 2016. Some trace its origins back to the 19th century, dividing Umbanda into popular, which has survived to this day, and "white," practiced by local elites. For many practitioners, however, there is an official beginning date: November 15, 1908 (or 1907), when Zelio Fernandino de Moraes, a young middle-class Catholic living in Rio de Janeiro, was possessed by the "Caboclo das sete encruzilhadas" ("the spirit of the seven crossroads"), a path-opening spirit.
There are two possible etymological origins of Umbanda. One theory states that it comes from Kikongo, an Angolan language used by the Bantu, which would mean "medicine" or "art of healing." Its rituals, therefore, would predominantly have this purpose, and its practitioners would originally have been healers or shamans.
Due to its relatively recent formation, the second theory states that, based on the African religion of the Orishas, communication with them becomes a kind of spiritual need, a spiritual healing, which intersects with Buddhist and Hindu ideas, giving rise to Aun-ghanda, which in Sanskrit means "divine principle."
However, many varieties of Umbanda can be classified today: traditional Umbanda, Umbandomblé (a blend of Umbanda and Candomblé), sacred Umbanda, Omoloko Umbanda, Christian Umbanda, and so on. Umbanda is characterized by monotheism with a main God (Zambi, Olorum, or the Christian God himself), who sends his orixás, the spirits of the Orixás, as guides.
Direct contact with divinity is too risky for Umbanda, and therefore, individual possessions are rejected as such. Communication takes place through the guiding orixás or the spirits of ancestors, who act as intermediaries between the human and the divine, through a trained medium, who is in turn supervised by a Pai or Mae de Santo or Babalá, that is, a priest or priestess. This "father of a saint" or "mother of a saint" is the one who will invoke and then interpret the dark and abstract words and messages spoken by the medium. These possessions, although open to the public, must take place in places ritually purified and prepared for the occasion, called "tendas" or houses.
Healing in Umbanda is a key element of their belief, as they do not consider physical healing possible without spiritual healing. Hence the need for the spirits to identify what is wrong with a person's spirit and why it causes external physical ailments. In addition to mediumship, there are also other minor forms of purification, such as meditation and the opening of the "third eye." ", located on the head, and through which spirits can serve as a guide and companion to the person who has opened their doors to them.
They believe in reincarnation, because spirits do not die, they simply travel between worlds, and they share some divinities that are actually avatars of the Virgin Mary or the Christian Jesus, or images of Pentecostalism. These Christian spirits are joined by angels, orixas, caboclos (indigenous spirits), pretos (literally "blacks," meaning African spirits), and éguns (ancestors, already with a mythical character). Some of the most popular are the preta velha (old black woman), one of the first African slaves; the preto velho (old black man), the "first" black Brazilian; or O caboclo do menino (the men's caboclo), the spirit of a dead child. There are also caboclos "serving" certain orishas, such as Oxossí, Xangó, or Jemanyá, with powers over their Domains, or also the so-called Caboclos of Hunters (of lança, etc.), spirits of ancient African hunters.
Offerings similar to those of other African American cults are made to all these spirits and divinities: rice, tobacco, perfumes, liquor, and also animal sacrifices, especially chickens. These offerings are often preceded by a small procession, and when they are carried out, they are called "communion." In the initiation rites, several animal sacrifices also take place, and the new Umbandista is "baptized" by cutting their hair and washing their head with the blood of the animals they have offered, which the new follower will have been feeding for the previous months.
Among the main precepts of Umbanda are the so-called "Seven Lines." These are seven human values, each governed by an element, a mineral, a plant, an animal, a planet, and a specific divinity or spirit, which vary depending on the branch of Umbanda that is being practiced. is followed. In this way, every Umbandista understands that their mission in life is the prevalence and manifestation of these seven values, and they know which divinity to turn to or which natural, magical, or astrological elements they can use to achieve them. These seven precepts are faith, love, knowledge, balance, order, transformation, and life.
Quimbanda, also spelled cuimbanda and kimbanda, is the part of macumba that could be considered black magic. It is practiced in the utmost secrecy and is as feared as it is punished. Quimbanda also makes use of communication with spirits, but these are evil, and their purposes are equally destructive: ruining someone's life, causing romantic or work breakups, accidents, illness, and even death.
For some linguists, Quimbanda comes from the Bantu language, meaning something similar to "one who speaks with the beyond," and would have originally referred to priests or shamans specialized in this field. Therefore, Therefore, we have one more fact: Quimbanda is not a cult in itself, but rather a separate practice, independent of any cult the person may have.
The main spirit invoked is Exú, a triple being associated with the Christian Devil, who even carries a trident and may have a cape or horns. He is not an orixá; he is "something else," a more cosmic being, so to speak.
There are different paths of Quimbanda in Brazil, or "Houses of Exu." King Exú is a "triple" being, who can be found in the trinity of Exu Mor, Exu Morcego, and Pomba Gira Maria Padilha, or in the trinity of Exu Lucifer, Exu Tranca Ruas, and Pomba Gira Cigana, as well as other trinities that equate the Exú associated with the Judeo-Christian demons Lucifer, Beelzebub, and Astaroth. Depending on the dominant trinity in the Quimbanda path, it will be understood and developed in one way or another. manner.
In general, a large group of spirits receive the generic name of Exú. They are also associated with the Pomba Gira, the feminine part of Exú. Exú receives different names depending on their facet. Among the most feared is the Exú of the Closed Paths, whose work can lead to death, denying the person summoned any possibility of escape. There are two ways of viewing Exú: on the one hand, as a cosmic force, similar to the concept of "karma," which somehow avenges injustices and brings balance between good and evil, even if this implies misfortune. On the other hand, they are seen as varied and necessary entities for the balance between good and evil to maintain its eternal universal struggle. When they are invoked by a person, the greater or lesser effect of the Exú and its effectiveness will depend on the person's own intention.
However, they are still independent spirits, and these demons, although usually vengeful, malignant, powerful, and respected, can also simply be mischievous beings who ignore the orders of the person who invoked them. Despite this idea, there are individual figurines and statues of Exú and Pomba Gira so that the quimbandist can establish a closest link with their particular spirit, such as spirit guides.
A necklace consecrated to that spirit through ritual washing and left near the Exú or Pomba Gira for one or three nights, depending on the date, is usually called a "guide." This necklace can serve as a spiritual guide for the quimbandist or as a ritual support tool, similar to a patuá. Processions to wash statues are common to purify and ritually consecrate them.
Offerings of tobacco and alcohol are made to Exú and Pomba Gira, usually by placing the lit cigar or cigar diagonally over the glass containing the wine, whiskey, cognac, etc. Pomba Gira likes seven thornless roses, and Exú is pleased with meat with peppers. However, for certain works, black animals, blood offerings, noisy dances, and red and black candles are required. Possessions also take place, where the term "cabalho" (horse) is still used, as in traditional magic of sub-Saharan Africa, where the deity is the medium's "rider."
Fridays, Saturdays, and Mondays are considered the most auspicious nights for petitions and spells. Some of the spells and charms performed resemble European black magic, such as binding spells or sacrifices at crossroads. Cemeteries are also auspicious places for invoking evil and vengeful spirits, to whom offerings are left on graves. Other acts have more indigenous components, such as placing one's name in the throat of a frog. We frequently find the use of rag and wax figures to represent the person to be harmed. All these acts must be carried out in the darkness of night, never during the day.
The only remedy for this black magic is found in the "white magic" of the saints and the orishas, the only entities capable of confronting them, with the exception, of course, of Jesus, Mary, and the Christian God the Father himself.
Pietro V. Carracedo Ahumada - pietrocarracedo@gmail.com
Bibliography:
-Klein, F. Quimbanda y umbanda. Cultos afrobrasileños en el Río de la Plata. Gazeta de antropología, n22. (art. 29) Universidad del Trabajo del Uruguay, Montevideo. 2006
-Liberio del Zotti, C. Brujería y magia en América. Plaza & Janés, Barcelona, 1975
-VVAA. Diccionario Akal de las Religiones. Ed. AKAL, 2001.
Related articles:
> Santería (I). Saints and Orishas.
> Magic and Witchcraft in Traditional Black Africa (notes)
