Mawu-Lisa

African deities are generally grouped as primary deities, secondary deities, and tertiary deities, the latter group including clan spirits, local divinities, and personal gods. In the Dahomean Vodun pantheon, Mawu-Lisa (also spelled Mahu-Lisa, Mahou-Lissa, or Mahu-Lissa) is the first on the list of primary deities. In other words, in the hierarchy of powers, Mawu-Lisa comes at the top and assumes the role of commander-in-chief.

Mawu and Lisa are the creator couple of Heaven and Earth. Mawu, the female principle, corresponds to the moon and is associated with night, fertility, motherhood, gentleness, forgiveness, rest, and joy, all characteristics that one sees in women. Lisa, the male principle, corresponds to the sun and is associated with day, heat, work, power, war, strength, toughness, and intransigence, all things that characterize typical male persons. Hence, Mawu and Lisa are the sky gods who absorb the nature of the Supreme Being or God Almighty in the Fon Cosmology.

Indeed, Mawu among the Fon of Dahomey (now Benin Republic) is the same spiritual principle or entity as Odoudouwa (also known as Olou Odawa) among the Nago and the Yoruba of Nigeria. In the same vein, Lisa among the Fon corresponds to Obatala (also called Orisba N'la, Itchala, or Itch ala Mon) among the Nago and the Yoruba. These and many other similarities between the Dahomean Vodun and the Nigerian Orisha are so clearly discernible and striking that [Page 411]eminent Benin scholar, diplomat, and African traditional religion critic, Dr. Joseph Yai Olabiyi Babalola once suggested that one refer instead to this important religion as Orisha-Vodun. Of course, one could well say Vodun-Orisha had there not been a need for alphabetical order in Babalola's formulation of the compound word.