The annual Orisha Ocean Festival– Ase Odun Olokun– will be held over 3 days from this Friday 7^th– Sunday 9^th October 2016.

 On Friday 7^th October the opening ceremony will be held at the Shrine on #12 First Street, Sparrow Drive, Simeon Road, Petit Valley from 7-9pm. On Saturday 8^th October the festivities move to the Banwari Heritage Site in San Francique, Siparia from 10am- 1pm. The Banwari Site is the site of the oldest human fossils in the region- dating human life in Trinidad to almost 7000 years ago. The Site is sacred to the Amerindian peoples of T&T- particularly the Warao People in the South who will be hosting the ceremony. On Sunday 9^th October the festival culminates in Matelot at the point the Matelot River meets the Sea by the Matelot Community School. Transport will be provided to both Banwari and Matelot locations on the day.

 Olokun is the Orisha God of the Ocean and the theme of this year’s Olokun Festival is ‘Retrieving Our Memory’ which is apt as Olokun is also custodian of planetary memory. The Olokun Ocean Festival is the ceremony in which man’s indispensable link and connectivity to the force of the Ocean is celebrated. Olokun is the deity of the deep ocean, marshes and wetlands, and is protector of the African diaspora.

 For the last 20 years the Olokun Festival has been hosted by Egbe Onisin Eledumare- an African spiritual organization functional in Ile-Iere- the Republic Trinidad Tobago- since 1971. The organisation has consistently been one of the most progressive voices for Orisha and African traditions in Trinidad and Tobago pioneering numerous firsts in the nation as regards Orisha practice- from campaigning for the passage of the Orisha Marriage Act to staging the first Orisha carnival band with Queen of Carnival contestant. The Olokun Festival is one of the major Festivals in the Egbe’s annual Festival calendar.

 The Festival is an environmental Festival which acknowledges our oceans and seas as source of food, life-giving water, raw materials, medicine, recreation, transport and communications for millions of the planet’s inhabitants. Many Old World societies recognize the importance of the seas and oceans- and special propitiatory rites were performed each year to encourage the co-operation of the living force called sea or ocean.  The Orisha community continues to believe that communion with the Ocean is necessary for our survival.

 Olokun’s colours are white and red but participants can wear any colours. To book transport and for further information you can call: Oloye Orawale Oranfe @ 678-7121 or Rubadiri @ 797-0949 or contact rubadiri@yahoo.com Maxis will leave for the Banwari Site on Saturday from the western side of City Gate by the Lighthouse from 7am and the contribution is $100. Maxis leave for Matelot on Sunday from the same point at City Gate from 6am and the contribution is $200. Offerings of fruits, silver coins, dried foods, honey, and other items will be accepted.