Yemanjá is a major festival of the Candomblé religion in the Rio Vermelho district of Salvador, Bahia state, Brazil. Maes-de-santo and filhas-de-santo (men and women mediums, or followers of the saints) sing and dance from daybreak on, summoning Yemanjá, or Iemanjá (the goddess of the ocean), to the festival. Offerings are placed in boats and carried down to the sea, where they are set afloat. Thousands of people flock to the coast for the festivities. Discuss