The Yoruba religion, comprising the traditional religious concepts and practices of the Yoruba people, is found mainly in southwestern Nigeria and the adjacent parts of Benin and Togo, commonly known as Yorubaland. The Yoruba religion is ancestral or partially ancestral to the Afro-American religions Santeria, Trinidad Orisha, Palo, Umbanda, Brujeria, Hoodoo, Candomblé, Quimbanda, Orisha, Xangô de Recife, Xangô del Nordeste, Comfa, Espiritismo, Santo Daime, Obeah, Candomblé, Abakuá, Kumina, Winti, Sanse, Cuban Voodoo, Dominican Voodoo, Louisiana Voodoo, Haitian Vodou and Vodun. Yoruba religious beliefs are part of itan, the complex cultural concepts that make up Yoruba society.
According to Kola Abimbola, the Yoruba have developed a robust cosmology. In short, it holds that all human beings possess what is known as " Ayanmo " (destiny) and are expected to become one in spirit with Olodumare (Olorun, the divine creator and source of all energy). Furthermore, the thoughts and actions of each person in Ayé (the physical / Life realm) interact with all other living things, including the Earth itself.
Each person tries to reach transcendence and find his destiny in Orun-Rere (the spiritual realm of those who do good and beneficial things). One's ori-inu (spiritual consciousness in the physical realm) must grow to consummate union with his "Iponri" (Ori Orun, spiritual self).
Most of the Yoruba men are farmers, yamis, corn and millet as staples; bananas, peanuts, beans and peas as subsidiary crops; Cocoa is an important cash crop. Others are merchants or artisans. Women work little on the farm, but control much of the complex market system (their status depends more on their own position in the market than on the status of their husbands). The Yoruba have traditionally been among the most skilled and productive artisans in Africa. They worked in the trades such as blacksmithing, weaving, leather, glass making, ivoryand wood carving. In the 13th and 14th centuries, Yoruba bronze casting using the lost wax method reached a peak of technical excellence never subsequently equaled in West Africa. Yoruba women are involved in cotton spinning, basket weaving, and dyeing.
