Oogun Àṣẹ: Candomblé practices and health care in New York City, USA

Abstract

This article presents the results of an ethnography carried out between 2013 and 2017, which relied on participating observation, interviews and monitoring of the everyday life of three Brazilian mães de santo (mothers of saint) who sought to reinvent Candomblé in New York City, USA. The article follows them as they attempt to transpose their religious beliefs and practices to this new, foreign context. It describes their relationship with practitioners who seek health care through the use of plants and prayers during religious rituals and ceremonies.