Queima da Palhinha (Burning of the crèche), Casa de Iemanjá (São Luís, Maranhão)
One of the celebrations reported in an earlier post is the ceremony of Queima da Palhinha – the symbolic removal of the crèche/nativity scene and honoring of the Christ child.
The “straw” of the manger is burned – in this case an the herb murta which gives off a dense smoke and incense smell.
An earlier post showed the ceremony in a private home and in the Casa das Minas. The one in these photos took place in the House of Iemanjá, a spiritual house dedicated to the orixá of the sea.
It was a mixed ceremony with Christian songs and prayers in Portuguese. Later, there was another ceremony devoted to other entities of the house that are in the African-Brazilian tradition.
An unusual feature of religious life in São Luís, and in Maranhão generally, is the blending or juxtaposition of different spiritual traditions.
The photos below are from the queimada ceremony, except for the final photo which shows the pae de santo leading the ceremony that followed.
