Norse
Odin
wisdom, poetry, war
Èṣù
Also: Elegba, Legba, Eleggua
Yoruba (Orisha) tradition. See the whole pantheon.
- Domains
- crossroads, messenger, communication, trickery
- Symbols and attributes
- Crossroads; hat in two colours
- messenger between
- Olodumare
Key myth
He carries sacrifices to the other orishas and is honoured first at ceremonies. In a well-known story, he walked between two friends wearing a hat red on one side and black on the other, and made them quarrel about what they saw.
Where sources differ or caution applies. Christian missionaries equated Èṣù with the devil; this is not a Yoruba understanding. He is an upholder of balance.
Primary sources
- Ifá corpus (many odu)
- Bascom, Ifa Divination
Place in the family graph
More traditions
Elsewhere in the world
Deities in other traditions who share a theme with Èṣù: trickery, boundaries and travel, wisdom, writing and divination. This is overlap in one area only.