![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/files\/2017\/11\/IMG_3039-213x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe staff (paxoro) for the God Oxalufa is my object of interest for this analysis. The uniqueness of this object was very compelling to my eye. I walked around the museum, and my eyes and mind stumbled upon a high staff surrounded by various crowns. Mounted on a block, standing about 5 feet tall stood this particular all silver staff. At the top of the staff is a silver crown with a single standing dove up on top. Hanging out of the mouth of the dove is a silver pendant of a bell. Pendants fall from the bottom of the crown in symbols of bells, mortars, fish, butterflies, and feathers. Approximately halfway from the top of the staff down to the middle of the staff are six equally placed tier-like structures. Starting from the topmost tier, slightly under the crown and then going down, each tier progressively gets larger. Identical to the crown mounted at the top of the staff, each of the tiers has the same pendants hanging from them. Each pendant represents an Orisha or God of the Candombl\u00e9 religion. Visually analyzing this object lead to my curiosity about the use of this object and the symbolism this piece provides the individual who uses it in the Candombl\u00e9 religion. Through research of the God associated with this staff, I was able to figure out the meaning and its interpretation to those who are in possession of the staff.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The religion this object is associated with is the religion of Candombl\u00e9, an Afro-Brazilian religion. Candombl\u00e9 was founded in the late eighteenth century around Bahia. The elements in Candombl\u00e9 resemble aspects of Yoruba religion. This decent of Candombl\u00e9 from Yoruba was due to the prominent practice of the Yoruba religion among slaves. Candombl\u00e9 focuses on the traditional dispensing of sacraments to the orixas or spirits or deities. Specifically, this object is for the orixa Oxalufa also known as Oxal\u00e1 or Obatala.<\/p>\n
This staff is meant to be a symbol of higher power and higher authority. It\u2019s relation to the God Oxal\u00e1 gives those in possession of the staff the view that they are a superior and are a follower of Oxal\u00e1. The staff is a symbol of power and the mixture of this and the association with the supreme God gives the staff the symbolism of royal power or authority power. The dove at the top of the staff symbolizes that purity of Oxal\u00e1. The dove is also the preferred sacrificial animal to give to Oxal\u00e1. This purity and power are shown through the staff with its numerous pendants. Each pendant has an association with another orixa or God in the Candombl\u00e9 religion. For example, the pendant of the fish represents the goddess of the sea Iemanja, and the butterfly represents the goddess Iansa. Oxal\u00e1 is the father or the senior brother to each other orixas. Therefore, their involvement in the staff dedicated to Oxal\u00e1 symbolizes his authority to all kinds, Gods, and humankind. The style and presentation of this staff are essential, \u201cPurity of sculptural presentation; symmetry; balance: these qualities can memorably imply iwa. Iwa also means custom, the traditional ways of life\u201d (Thomson 1983, 11). This staff respectfully implies iwa, its carefully crafted pendants and balance of the tiers reflects a simple and traditional style of art. This finely crafted object is seen to be a symbol of authority and purity given explicitly to the highest elder in charge.<\/p>\n
The orixa Oxal\u00e1 is known in the Candombl\u00e9 religion as the father of all Gods and the creator of humankind. He is known as the high God or the supreme God and is also the seniority figure. This position was gained by his high moral standards and the integrity of his priests and worshipers. Oxal\u00e1\u00a0is visualized as the oldest of the orixas and walks with the staff to support his hunched over body. Each aspect of this staff is meant to represent Oxal\u00e1 himself, \u201cThe orisha, or deities, in the Yoruba pantheon, distinguish themselves in altars by their colors, food, banners, and icons\u201d (Thompson 1995, 51). In respect to his staff, silver is known to be one of his colors and white is also related to him. These two colors are represented by Oxal\u00e1 because they are seen to be the simplest and purest colors. Seniority, purity, and whiteness are all used to describe him. White clothing is broadly associated with Candombl\u00e9 but is more specifically worn by Oxal\u00e1\u00a0worshipers. In the Candombl\u00e9 religion the festival of Bonfim is a large gathering of people to celebrate the God Bonfim, \u201cBonfim had come to be identified with Oxal\u00e1, old king of all the Orixas; his colour is white, and he descended from heaven so that the intensively bright hill of Bonfim was his \u2018natural site\u2019\u201d (ROCA, ROGER SANSI 2005, 184). This festival, though dedicated to Bonfim, is closely associated with Oxal\u00e1 himself. The white color is suggestive of both Gods.<\/p>\n
Specifically, leaders like Magalh\u00e3es represents Oxal\u00e1 in this particular festival, \u201cMagalh\u00e3es is the single most powerful political figure in Bahia and has been present at Bonfim since his periods in office as mayor of the city in the early 1970s. Despite his advancing years, Magalh\u00e3es dressed in white, wore the necklaces of Oxal\u00e1 and led the procession with a remarkable vitality. Often referred to by his initials ACM, or simply as \u2018Cabe\u00e7a Branca\u2019 (\u2018white head\u2019), Magalh\u00e3es is strongly linked to Candomble and is a \u2018son\u2019 of Oxal\u00e1\u201d (ROCA, ROGER SANSI 2005, 189). ACM participates in this festival by dressing in all white and bringing vessels of water to the house of Oxal\u00e1. Though the staff may not be present during this festival, the staff is representative of the power of the highest power and their purity and authority.<\/p>\n
In an altar created by Mai Jocelinha in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, two staffs of Oxal\u00e1 are placed on either side of a white draped cloth making it look like Oxal\u00e1 as the center with the crown on his head (Thompson 1995, 51). In front are white and silver offerings including bells, white flowers, metals and ceramic tiles. This altar is meant to convey Oxal\u00e1s glory, honesty, and purity. The staffs on either side of the altar are to signify the maturity and wisdom of the eldest figures. Their presence in this altar, especially their placement next to the God-like figure made out of the cloths represent their use as an object portraying royalty and power.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/files\/2017\/11\/Screen-Shot-2017-10-30-at-11.12.37-PM-222x300.png\")
<\/p>\n
The representation of authority and seniority are given off by the staff of Oxal\u00e1. All figures in possession of this staff are not questioned to have high power in their community. Usually, these characters are the eldest authority or priests who are in possession of this staff. The pendants that hang from each of the tiers are heard to make the noise associated with Oxal\u00e1. Metals striking against each other is the sound of Oxal\u00e1 walking with the staff to support him. Staffs are a royalty symbol, and in the Candombl\u00e9 religion, this particular staff is seen similarly as a way to identify a person of higher power.<\/p>\n
My initial thoughts about researching this object were about the use of this staff in particular festivals or rituals for Oxal\u00e1. A lot of my research was centered on Oxal\u00e1 himself to find the significance of the staff.\u00a0 The staff itself I see is not very significant in the way that it is used but more in its symbolism for those in possession. Most uses of this object are detected in altars or directly used by the highest elder to hold to show his authority. The significance of the staff mostly comes from the pendants and the structure of the physical object which come together to bring meaning to the reason why someone may be in possession of this object.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Staff of Oxala Annotated Bibliography<\/p>\n
Beier, U. 1956. Nigeria magazine: Obatala festival,\u00a0<\/em>10-28.<\/p>\n Cahn, Peter S. “Brazil.” In Worldmark Encyclopedia of Religious Practices, 2nd ed., edited by<\/p>\n Harding, Rachel E. “Afro-Brazilian Religions.” In Encyclopedia of Religion, 2nd ed., edited by<\/p>\n Lindsay Jones, 119-125. Vol. 1. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. Gale Virtual Reference Library<\/p>\n ROCA, ROGER SANSI. “Catholic Saints, African Gods, Black Masks and White Heads: Tracing the History of Some Religious Festivals in Bahia.” Portuguese Studies 21 (2005): 182-200.<\/p>\n Thomas Riggs, 217-226. Vol. 2, Countries, Afghanistan to Ghana. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2015. Gale Virtual Reference Library<\/p>\n Thompson, Robert Farris. “Face of the Gods: The Artists and Their Altars.” African Arts 28, no. 1 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 (1995): 50-61.<\/p>\n Thompson, Robert Farris.\u00a0Flash of The Spirit. New York, New York: Random House Inc, 1983<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The staff (paxoro) for the God Oxalufa is my object of interest for this analysis. The uniqueness of this object was very compelling to my eye. I walked around the museum, and my eyes and mind stumbled upon a high staff surrounded by various crowns. Mounted on a block, standing about 5 feet tall stood […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4542,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-588","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/588","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4542"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=588"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/588\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":592,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/588\/revisions\/592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=588"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=588"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/vlbrenna-rel095fall2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=588"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}