Ṣọ̀pọ̀na
Ṣọ̀pọ̀na is the god of smallpox in the Yoruba religion. He is seen as a vengeful aspect of the Yoruba deity Ọbaluaye. Smallpox was believed to be a disease foisted upon humans due to Ṣọ̀pọ̀na's “divine displeasure.”
↻ synthesized from 4 sources
When
- First attested
- 0 CE
- Attested period
- 0 – 2020
- Historical notes
- Worship banned by British colonial rulers in 1907.
Relationships
- enemy of
- Ọbàtálá
- syncretized with
- Babalú-Ayé, Omolu, Ṣakpanna
- manifests as
- beetles, black butterflies, flies, mosquitoes
- aspect of
- Ọbaluaye
Mentioned by
Sources
Source passages
“Ṣọ̀pọ̀na (or Shapona) is the god of smallpox in the Yoruba religion. The Yoruba people took their traditions about Shapona to the New World when they were transported in the slave trade. He is seen as a vengeful aspect of the Yoruba deity Ọbaluaye and has become known as Babalú-Ayé”
#20576 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Ṣọ̀pọ̀na (or Shapona) is the god of smallpox in the Yoruba religion. The Yoruba people took their traditions about Shapona to the New World when they were transported in the slave trade. He is seen as a vengeful aspect of the Yoruba deity Ọbaluaye”
#21082 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001