Aruanda or Aluanda [1] [2] is a concept present in Afro-Brazilian religions, especially in Umbanda, as well as in Brazilian Spiritism. [3] It describes a place in the spirit world, which varies greatly according to the religious current, but which could generally be equated with a kind of spiritual colony.
It is often understood as a spiritual citadel that would orbit the ionosphere of planet Earth. [3]
Despite the abundant literature, Umbanda is not considered a codified religion. For this reason, the term Aruanda may have several meanings, depending on the terreiro, or spiritualist center in which it is mentioned. It is even used by other spiritualistic religions such as Quimbanda and Candomblé, in generic reference to "spiritual plane", the place where the higher "guides" would live. [3]
For the traditional Umbanda, founded in 1908 by the Caboclo das Sete Encruzilhadas, the inhabitants of Aruanda are working spirits of goodness and charity, newly disembodied in learning, and light spirits who have not been returning to the physical realm for a long time. These spiritual guides, despite their spiritual evolution, remain in the vibrating dimension of Aruanda to continue assisting the incarnate and discarnate, manifesting on Earth under the fluidic clothing (in spiritual typology) of old blacks, caboclos and children. Its true forms, however, transcend race, creed, or ethnicity, and their manifestation is possible in any congregation that practices the love-charity binomial and admits spiritual communication. [4]
For Spiritism (codified by Allan Kardec), Aruanda would be the denomination of a spiritual colony, similar to the Nosso Lar colony, described in the book Nosso Lar (Our Home), by André Luiz (spirit), psychographed by the Brazilian medium Chico Xavier. In Aruanda, however, magical elements of African culture would be present, in syncretism with symbolisms of Judeo-Christian culture. [4]
Kardecist spiritism, also known as Spiritism or Kardecism is a reincarnationist and spiritualist doctrine established in France in the mid-19th century by writer and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail. Kardec considered his doctrine to derive from a Christian perspective. He described a cycle by which a spirit supposedly returns to material existence after the death of the old body in which it dwelled, as well as the evolution it undergoes during this process. Kardecism emerged as a new religious movement in tandem with spiritualism, the notions and practices associated with spiritual communication disseminated throughout North America and Europe since the 1850s.
Umbanda is a religion that emerged in Brazil in the 1920s. Deriving largely from Spiritism, it also combines elements from Afro-Brazilian traditions like Candomblé as well as Roman Catholicism. There is no central authority in control of Umbanda, which is organized around autonomous places of worship termed centros or terreiros, the followers of which are called Umbandistas.
Candomblé is an African diasporic religion that developed in Brazil during the 19th century. It arose through a process of syncretism between several of the traditional religions of West and Central Africa, especially those of the Yoruba, Bantu, and Gbe, coupled with influences from Roman Catholicism. There is no central authority in control of Candomblé, which is organized around autonomous terreiros (houses).
The predominant religion in Brazil is Christianity, with Catholicism being its largest denomination.
The Yoruba religion, West African Orisa (Òrìṣà), or Isese (Ìṣẹ̀ṣe), comprises the traditional religious and spiritual concepts and practice of the Yoruba people. Its homeland is in present-day Southwestern Nigeria, which comprises the majority of Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Kwara and Lagos states, as well as parts of Kogi state and the adjoining parts of Benin and Togo, commonly known as Yorubaland.
Macumba is a generic term for various Afro-Brazilian religions, the practitioners of which are then called macumbeiros. These terms are generally regarded as having negative connotations, comparable to an English term like "black magic". In a broader sense, the term Macumba is used for most Afro-Brazilian religious traditions, including Candomblé and Umbanda. In a more limited sense, macumba is used only to characterise traditions like Quimbanda that revolve around the lesser exu spirits, especially as they are practised in Rio de Janeiro. Some practitioners of Afro-Brazilian traditions call themselves macumbeiros, although in some instances this is done predominantly in jest.
Chico Xavier or Francisco Cândido Xavier, born Francisco de Paula Cândido, was a popular Brazilian philanthropist and spiritist medium. During a period of 60 years he wrote over 490 books and several thousand letters claiming to use a process known as "psychography". Books based on old letters and manuscripts were published posthumously, bringing the total number of books to 496.
Quimbanda, also spelled Kimbanda, is an Afro-Brazilian religion practiced primarily in the urban city centers of Brazil.
Vale do Amanhecer is a new religious movement and UFO religion founded in the 1960s, with around 40,000 adherents. It is centered around a mother temple located in an eponymous locality in Planaltina, Federal District, Brazil.
A caboclo is a person of mixed Indigenous Brazilian and European ancestry, or, less commonly, a culturally assimilated or detribalized person of full Amerindian descent. In Brazil, a caboclo generally refers to this specific type of mestiço.
A mãe-de-santo or mãe de santo (Portuguese pronunciation:[ˈmɐ̃jd ˈsɐ̃tu], or ialorixá, is a priestess of Umbanda, Candomblé and Quimbanda, the Afro-Brazilian religions. In Portuguese those words translate as "mother of [the] saint[s]", which is an adaption of the Yoruba language word iyalorishá, a title given to priest women in African religions. Iyá means mother, and the contraction l'Orishá means "of Orishá". As a product of the syncretism, the word Orishá was adapted into Portuguese as saint.
Espiritismo is a term used in Latin America and the Caribbean to refer to the popular belief that evolved and less evolved spirits can affect health, luck and other aspects of human life.
Spiritualism is a metaphysical belief that the world is made up of at least two fundamental substances, matter and spirit. This very broad metaphysical distinction is further developed into many and various forms by the inclusion of details about what spiritual entities exist such as a soul, the afterlife, spirits of the dead, deities and mediums; as well as details about the nature of the relationship between spirit and matter. It may also refer to the philosophy, doctrine, or religion pertaining to a spiritual aspect of existence.
Zélio Fernandino de Moraes was a Brazilian medium who is considered the announcer of the Umbanda religion.
Astral City: A Spiritual Journey is a 2010 Brazilian drama film directed by Wagner de Assis, starring Renato Prieto. It is based on the book of the same name by the medium Francisco Cândido Xavier, and features a soundtrack composed by Philip Glass.
Kongo religion encompasses the traditional beliefs of the Bakongo people. Due to the highly centralized position of the Kingdom of Kongo, its leaders were able to influence much of the traditional religious practices across the Congo Basin. As a result, many other ethnic groups and kingdoms in West-Central Africa, like the Chokwe and Mbundu, adopted elements of Bakongo spirituality.
Nosso Lar 2: Os Mensageiros, commonly known as Nosso Lar 2, is a 2024 Brazilian drama film, written and directed by Wagner de Assis, was released on January 25, 2024. The screenplay was based on the novel The Messengers (1944), psychographed by the spiritist medium Chico Xavier, under the influence of the spirit of André Luiz.
Brazil had a profound racial miscegenation, Brazilians have the most diverse physical characteristics. Research indicates that 44% of Brazilians have two religions. Official data from the Brazilian census indicate that 1,011,507 Brazilians have two religions or follow a syncretic religion. Because to miscegenation it is common for a person to have a father of one race and religion and a mother of another race and another religion, naturally that person can adopt the two beliefs or follow a religion that mixes the two beliefs.
This article is a chronological index of some of the main events in the prehistory and history of Spiritism, covering events from the 16th century - starting with the emergence of Spiritism in 1857 with the release of The Spirits' Book - until the end of the 20th century.
Jarê is a religious practice of African origin found exclusively in the Chapada Diamantina region, in the central region of the Brazilian state of Bahia, especially among the descendants of Africans from the Lençóis region. It is characterized as a less orthodox branch of Candomblé, forming an amalgam resulting from a process of fusion involving elements of the Bantu and Nagô nations, to which aspects of Candomblé are added.