Oxossi (also Oshosi, Ochosi, Ososi, Oxosi, or Osawsi), is the deity or Orisha, (also spelt, Orisa or Orixa), of the forest, and one of the three warrior orishas "Ibori" in the Yoruba religion. Oshosi is a hunter, and his role as an often solitary figure in the wilderness lends him another role as a shaman. Oshossi is connected with all hunter cultures as well as the caboclos in Brazil know as the spirits of the native American dead, as well as the nature spirits of the forest. Oshosi is most important to the people of Brazil in Candomblé (a Latin American religion derived from the traditional spiritual practises of the Yoruba people of West Africa), as the Amazon Rainforest brings this element to the fore[citation needed] in Candomblé more than it is found in its cousins, the island religions of Cuban Santeria and Haitian Voudoun.
During the period in which the majority orisha venerators in Latin America were slaves to Catholic Europeans, Oshosi came to be identified with Saint Sebastian in the Rio de Janeiro area of Brazil. San Sebatian is most often depicted tied and shot full of arrows, which led to his association with the hunter orisha. He is alternately depicted as Saint George in the Bahia region, and in Cuba, he is identified with Saint Norbert.
Oshosi is the patron Justice, Hunters, Master of all air attacks, The true "GPS", and prayed to when devotees are looking for Justice or something, a job or a house for example. He also is the patron of those who work with animals, dogs in particular.
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