The duel sides of the battle axe: Chango and St. Barbara
- spoiled bean dip
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
Today we will be discussing about a unique figure within the African derived religion of Santeria, Chango- orisha (or power) of thunder, lightning, fire, and justice. Much like with the Elegua article that I wrote earlier this year he is a complex figure in these systems of ATR (African traditonal religions) and is also assiocated with the christian Saint Barbara. So let's look into both and understand their origins, functions, and how they could be applied to our own lives!
Just a disclaimer before we go into this article, I myself (the writer) am not an initiate of any ATR religions (Santeria, Palo myombe, Ifa, etc.) and so therefore I am simply using the information that is present online and in public books written about the practice. These religions are extremely diverse and to summarize how thousands of active practitioners view their deities/ beliefs is a severe understatement in the complexity that is these religions. My intention is not to expose the mysteries of these religions but rather to educate active seekers who are interested in the hopes that they receive the proper indoctrination of these given paths.
With that out the way, let's look into Chango!
Chango: Love and thunder
So there is a unique practice in Yoruba where certain deities were actually once humans who the became deified later on after their death. Chango (sometimes spelled Shango) was said to be the third ruler of the Oyo kingdom, exact dates are murky but its believed he existed during its pre-Imperial period around the 15th century. He is believed to have claimed the throne after his brother Ajaka stepped down for lacking the proper military virtues of the Yoruba, and upon becoming the leader of the kingdom its said that he was a mighty and powerful ruler- but was often noted to be very violent at times. He ruled over the Yoruba for seven years until his palace was struck by lightning, and shortly afterwards it was said that he hung himself. Then at some point the cult of Chango grew within the kingdom, with his devotees even blending him with the pre-existing orisha of lighting Jakuta, and eventually he became deified as the god of lighting, thunder, virility, justice, and dance.
Unlike Elegua, Chango is said to be tempermental and sometimes wild as he embodies all that is masculine. He wields a double-ended axe that symbolizes his duel nature as the ruler of the orisha, showing his ability to bring destruction as well as order to situations. For this reason devotees of Chango listen to him carefully as his word is the way and should not be confused or misinterpreted.
Chango is often seen beside either one or two female orisha, Oshun and Oya. Oya is often viewed as his wife or main consort, with her dominion being the wind and lightning in the sky- whereas Oshun embodies all that is feminine and is sometimes referred to as his favorite consort. As you can tell Chango loves his women as he is viewed as the macho man among the seven main orishas, but ironically enough there exists a story where Chango is being pursued by an enemy (who is sometimes said to be Ogun) and wears women's clothing to escape him.
Another unique aspect of Chango is his attributes with lightning and dance. Like I mentioned before Oya is often seen as the lightning in the clouds, whereas Chango is the lightning that strikes that earth. Places that have been struck by his divine power are viewed as sacred and even the dirt or stones from the site are believed to possess his essence. Now how Mr. Macho Man became linked with the art of dancing is also explained in a story- its said that when the great creator made the sky, land, and sea they gave out duties and gifts to the orishas. One orisha named Orumila (also known as Orula) who was given the ability of dance, whereas Chango was given the ability of divination. Understandably Chango was upset because he didn't care much for this gift as he'll rather have Orumila's gift, who was seemingly just as upset with his gift for he is a wise man and not much of a dancer anyway. So the two orisha traded their gifts, with Chango becoming the master of dance and Orumila becoming the disciplined diviner. Below is a small list of his various offerings and correspondences to appease the orisha if you seek to work with him:
Colors: Red and white.
Beasts: Red roosters, rams, black cats, horses, turtles
Plants and herbs: Hibiscus, saw palmetto, nettles, sarsaprilla, cayenne, cedar, boneset, sugarcane
Symbols: Places struck by lightning, the base of trees, double axe, ram heads, drums, thunder stones
Offerings: Plantains (the banana), yams, okra, green bananas, tobacco, rum, being a good leader, standing up to injustice, being confident in yourself.
Now why this macho man is connected with the female Saint Barbara is another tale in itself, because why specifically her of all saints? Why not choose Saint Michael or someone else for this role? To explain this topic I'll have to mention very briefly how this occurred in the first place. As I mentioned in the Elegua article the west African people who were taken into the new world had to endure the many hardships of slavery, which also included them trying to preserve their religious practices and traditions. Many of their native deities underwent religious syncretism with christian saints to disguise them while also producing a unique practice in the process, and for Chango that was blending him with St. Barbara.
The other half of the battle axe: Saint Barbara
Saint Barbara was an early christian martyr who lived somewhere in ancient greece during sometime during the 3rd century. She was said to be the daughter of a noble pagan named Dioscrous who locked her up from the outside world to protect her. At some point she became a christian and although she intially kept it a secret from her father, she would sometimes display her faith in subtle ways like having three windows in her bathhouse to represent the holy trinity. But eventually she told her father about her faith who in response was absoluty furious and had her tortured, but miraculiously her wounds were healed every night in the prison where she stayed (spoiler alert- it was because of GOD). On the day she was sentenced to death by beheading its said that her father, who carried out the sentence, was struck by lightning and burned from where he stood. Barbara was then buried and eventually her tomb became the site of many more miracles which are still said to occur to this very day. Here are some of her other qualities and offerings:
Saint Barbara is the patron saint of prisoners, soldiers, firefighters, mathematicians, and those who work in dangerous fields- she is also called on for protection during thunderstorms and lightning strikes.
Her colors are also depicted as red and white
Offerings to her include apples, burburra (a sweet wheat berry porridge), cookies, and by cutting fruit tree twigs (traditionally cherry or apple) on December 4th and then placing them in a bowl of water its said if they bloom by Christmas the omen is said to be in your favor.
So what does this greek lady and a black guy have in common? Well like you could've seen already with the story they both have a connection to lightning, but this link could be further expanded on if we specially look into a unique aspect of Saint Barbara as also being the patron saint of gunpowder and explosives. On their own they offer many advantages on the war front but their power from mishaps, accidents, and direct contact makes them dangerous and unpredictable; a a near perfect description of Chango's nature. It is also said that St. Barb is depicted wielding either a sword, double axe, or both in some cases- further tying her catholic qualities to the orisha and thus solidifying her role as Chango's alter ego- and lastly they share a feast day coming up on December 4th.
Conclusion:
Over all this article only captures but a small glimpse into the unique system of orishas and saints in ATR, with Chango and Elegua only being the start of future articles to come on this topic. If you practice an ATR how does this relationship differ in your system, and also do you know of any other saints that correlate with Chango? I wish you all a happy holiday as we wrap up this month's article and see you in the coming year, blessed be!
The hand book of Yoruba relgious concepts: By Baba Ifa Karade (a great way to learn more about the orishas!)
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