Inle and Abatan
Where the river meets the sea, the Orisha of Medicine.
Ayayá!
The brackish waters where rivers flow in the ocean is where we find Inle, the fisherman Orisha. Often described as refined and even androgynous, Inle is the husband of Yemayá and the secret lover of her sister Oshún. He uses the herbs that grow along the river to make medicine, earning him the title of “doctor of the Orisha,” and alongside him walks his nurse, Abatan. Some say Abatan is a woman, some say Abatan is a man, and often Abatan is said to be Inle’s lover.
Despite his refined tastes, Inle’s praise name is Ayayá - the ferocious one! The spear he hunts with is razor sharp, just like the tongues of many of his children. We shouldn’t forget that he is one of the Warriors, through whom he shares an especially close relationship to Ochossí. Their relationship is so close that in Brazil, he is considered a road of Ochossí, Ibualama.
Inle carries with him the trident, Ibojutó or Ibu Ojutó. This represents his cunning herbal medical knowledge, gained from the Orisha Osain, and is also used by him to hang up the fish he has caught. In Yorubaland, Inle’s name is Erinle - elephant hunter.
Shrines of Inle and Abatan (left), in the home of late Cuban Babalorisha Rigoberto Rodriguez “El de Madruga” Oshunyemí, iba’e.
In the Odú Odi’she (7-5), Yemayá caught her husband Inle in bed with her sister Oshún. Yemayá snuck away, without them noticing, but as soon as she was out of sight, she flew into a rage the likes of which she had never experienced! How could they betray her like this, her husband and her sister? When Inle left Oshún’s bed, Yemayá crept back in. While Oshún lay sleeping, Yemayá cut off all of the long, beautiful hair her sister placed such pride in. Next was Inle’s turn. Yemayá confronted him. For lying and deceiving her, Yemayá grabbed her machete and cut out Inle’s tongue. She continued to rage through the night, only breaking out of this frenzy when she heard Oshún wake up screaming! Her little sister started screaming hysterically when she discovered that all of her hair had been shorn off, and she wouldn’t stop until she covered her head with the closest thing at hand: watercress. But as soon as Oshún stepped outside with her new hair of watercress, all of the other Orisha laughed at her and she ran back inside crying inconsolably. Regretting her harsh punishments, Yemayá brought her prized peacock over to Oshún and helped her wear its tail feathers into an exquisite wig, restoring Oshún beauty. As for Inle? Yemayá told him that from that day on he could speak through her mouth.
Maferefún Inle!