Os Exus no cosmo religioso umbandista: mudanças e ressignificações históricas com o diabo cristão, Viçosa/AL, (1960-2013).

Abstract

During the construction of the magic-religious heritage, “Exu-Devil” all the way from African territory to Brazil, suffered many bad interpretations from the monotheistic religions, such as by the black iorubá community and fonin Bahia state who also questioned Exu's dubious appearence, identifying him as a demonor an evil divinity, especially, starting in the eighteenth century in Bahia.The african traits of Exumodified themselves at thebrazilian territory. It is perceivable that the religion brings in its cultural arrangement indian, black and European elements. As to Exu, the christian devil image will persist as the mischievious and complicated divinity, that makes a connection between the sacred and the profane, whose altar stands separated by a curtain from other services. This scheme perfectly fit the rituals and way of thinking of this Orixá's, religions followers from the beggining of the nineteenth century and with, the Umbanda's resurgence or systematization in the beggining of the twentieth century, and it´s further development. The impracticability and silencing of the black religiousness in Alagoas were notorious in the twentieth century. The task of thinking all this historical route must resort, especially, to the sad episode that would mark for the saint's people history forever in this state of intolerance, the “Quebra-quebra” ofthe xangôs from Alagoas in the year of 1912. The african religions from Alagoas were not prioritized by the academic, especially, by the residents of Viçosa/AL, known as Alagoas's Athens since the last century. The Umbanda it's a cultural reality in the Brazilian everyday and Viçosa/AL, showed me a very propitious enviroment to the development of this religious modality. The "White table" or "Jurema's table" had been practiced in Viçosa since 1930's decade. Between 1959 and 1960, was founded the properly organized religious celebration in the city. The worship to Exus and Pombagiras– Spirits and entities – will take a featured place in the religious cosmos lived and felt in the multifaceted worship places from Viçosa, and in full state of social-religious metamorphosis. Exu's paradoxes known for it's unpredictability, unbridled sexuality and provocative role, attenuated in Brazil, finished teasing the "difficult demarcation", "right line" and "left line" in the Umbanda's ethical field, mainly from 1960. Exu in Viçosa may provoke state of morbidity, but also the spiritual vitality or axé feeling against life. One thing is for sure, “Devil does not, from his part, only”.