If Candomblé presents itself as the guardian of an African heritage, Umbanda presents itself as a religion born in Brazil, the fruit of the meeting of many currents. It took shape during the twentieth century, mainly in the Rio de Janeiro area, and is now present throughout the country and in Brazilian communities abroad. It is often called «the Brazilian religion par excellence», because it brings together the three great components of the country's history: African, European and Indigenous.
The roots
At least four main strands can be recognised in Umbanda:
- African-rooted traditions, especially the Bantu and Yoruba ones already present in Afro-Brazilian cults, which provide the orixás, the drums and trance;
- Kardecist Spiritism, the doctrine formulated in nineteenth-century France by Allan Kardec and widespread in Brazil, from which comes the idea of communicating with the spirits of the dead for the sake of teaching and help;
- popular Catholicism, with its saints, images and prayers;
- Indigenous traditions, present above all in the figure of the spirits called caboclos.
A founding narrative widely shared among Umbandistas dates the birth of the religion to 1908, when a young man named Zélio Fernandino de Moraes, during a Spiritist session, is said to have manifested an Indigenous spirit, the Caboclo das Sete Encruzilhadas, who announced a new cult open to all. Historians regard this account mainly as a foundation myth: Umbanda most likely arose from a longer and more diffuse process.
The principle of charity
A distinctive trait of Umbanda is the importance of caridade, charity. Sessions are conceived as moments of service: the spirits come down to advise, console and guide the people who come to the centre. Many centres ask no fee for consultations, in keeping with the Spiritist heritage.
The entities: who comes down in the gira
The Umbanda ceremony is called a gira. It takes place in the terreiro or centro, with songs called pontos cantados and, in many houses, the sound of drums. The mediums, mostly dressed in white, go into trance and «incorporate» the entities, spirits belonging to different categories.
| Entity | Who they are | Traditional character |
|---|---|---|
| Caboclos | spirits of Brazil's Indigenous peoples | strong, proud, linked to the forest and hunting |
| Pretos-velhos | spirits of elderly enslaved Africans | patient, wise, humble, smoking a pipe |
| Crianças or erês | spirits of children | cheerful, playful, fond of sweets |
| Baianos | spirits linked to the Northeast | lively, direct |
| Marinheiros | spirits of sailors | swaying, as if on a ship's deck |
| Exus and pombagiras | spirits of crossroads and streets | intense, tied to the earthly world |
The pretos-velhos are perhaps the best-loved figures. Seated on small stools, they speak slowly, in simple language, and listen to those who turn to them. Their character carries a precise historical memory: the suffering of slavery transformed into wisdom and compassion.
The orixás and the «lines»
In Umbanda the orixás are regarded as elevated forces, rarely incorporated directly. The spirit world is organised into lines (linhas), each governed by an orixá and divided into phalanxes of spirits. For example, many caboclos are linked to the line of Oxóssi, the hunter; some water spirits to the line of Iemanjá.
The number and makeup of the lines vary from house to house: Umbanda has no central authority, and each centre enjoys a certain freedom of interpretation.
A plural religion
Within Umbanda there are many sensibilities:
- centres closer to Spiritism, with few drums and a didactic approach;
- houses closer to Candomblé, with a strong African presence in the rite;
- esoteric currents that have sought to give Umbanda a doctrinal systematisation.
Alongside Umbanda there is Quimbanda, a tradition focused on working with exus and pombagiras, which has developed in its own way.
Cultural value
Umbanda offers a cross-section of Brazilian history: its entities represent the Indigenous person, the enslaved African, the child, the sailor, the man of the street. It is a religion in which history's humble return as spiritual guides. For the student of traditions, this reversal is one of the cult's most profound aspects.
In short
- Umbanda is a religion born in Brazil in the twentieth century, mainly in the Rio de Janeiro area.
- It combines African heritage, Kardecist Spiritism, popular Catholicism and Indigenous presences.
- In the gira, mediums incorporate entities such as caboclos, pretos-velhos, crianças and exus.
- The orixás are elevated forces governing the lines of the spirit world.
- Charity and counsel are at the heart of practice in Umbanda centres.
