Exu (Eshu) Sete Encruzilhadas candle
Seu Sete, guardian of all paths, to unlock life and decide with firmeza
Exu Sete Encruzilhadas candle
7-day candle · stays lit for 7 days7 dias
Whoever lights the Exu Sete Encruzilhadas candle is usually stuck at a crossroads in their own life: a job that won't happen, a relationship that isn't moving forward, a decision that keeps them awake at night. Seu Sete, as many houses call him, is the guardian of the seven crossroads, and the seven here means all directions. The red candle with his label is set in Umbanda and in Quimbanda, almost always on a Monday.
He is one of the oldest and most sung names of the povo de rua. In Sulivan Barros' research with pais and mães de santo (priests and priestesses) in Brasília, Sete Encruzilhadas commands one of the seven lines of Quimbanda. In Gaúcho Quimbanda, as Exu Rei das Sete Encruzilhadas, he helped to set the image of the Exu with a cape, top hat, and cane. There are houses that have him working with Ogum (Ogun), others do not, and there are those who set him on Friday instead of Monday.
Do not confuse him with the Caboclo das Sete Encruzilhadas, a caboclo line spirit guide: the name seems similar, but the line is different. The candle of Seu Sete opens a path, but it does not choose for you. It asks for clarity to see the exits and firmness to take one, and it is not used to close anyone's path.
What is it for
What is the Exu Sete Encruzilhadas Candle for?
Red, the color that the povo de rua shares with black, the candle of Exu Sete Encruzilhadas bears the label of one of the most well-known chiefs of the left. It is lit to unlock what has stopped, to request clarity in a difficult choice, and protection for those who are cornered.
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Unlock what has been stuck for a long time
A process that is stuck, a stalled construction project, a plan that never leaves the paper. The candle asks that Seu Sete move what is jammed and show which way to proceed.
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Clarity for a difficult choice
To stay or to go, to accept or to refuse. When all exits seem the same, light it asking to see the path with calm. The decision remains yours.
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Open path at work
Job search, change of position, new client. The request is for an open door and for firmeza to cross through. Resume, study, and effort continue with you.
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Guard for those who feel cornered
Persecution, envy, people surrounding you. Seu Sete is called to push away those who want your harm and give space for you to breathe and react.
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Movement after a bad phase
After loss, fight, or defeat, life sometimes comes to a standstill. The candle asks for the push back onto the path, without setting a date for anything.
Who rules this candle
Orixás and spirits of the Candle of Exu Sete Encruzilhadas
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Exu Sete Encruzilhadas
Seu Sete, king of the seven crossroads
The label is his. Chief of the line of the povo de rua, he guards all paths at the same time and receives red and black candle, farofa de dendê, cigar, and marafo at the open crossroads.
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Exu
Owner of the crossroads and communication
The crossroads is the territory of the orixá (orisha) Exu, and it is from there that Monday and the red and black come. In tradition, the orixá is greeted first, before any guardian.
Know Exu -
Ogum
Warrior orixá, lord of iron
In some Umbanda houses, Sete Encruzilhadas works in the radiation of Ogum, the opener of paths. It is not a consensus: there are terreiros that do not make this connection.
Know Ogum
Also settled for
- Exu Rei das Sete Encruzilhadas
- Street people (povo de rua)
- Line of Ogum (in some houses)
- Quimbanda
Prayer to light
Candle prayer of Exu Sete Encruzilhadas to open the path
“Seu Sete Encruzilhadas, guardian of all paths, I arrive with respect and ask permission from the povo de rua. I am standing at a crossroads and I cannot see the exit. Clear my vision so I can see the seven directions, and set my feet on the one that is right for me. What surrounds me with bad intentions, move away; what is stuck, make it move. I do not ask you to close anyone's path, I ask that mine be opened. I do my part, I fulfill what I promise and I return to give thanks at the crossroads. Laroyê, Seu Sete! Exu is Mojubá!”Light the candle and pray
Step by step
How to set the Candle of Exu Sete Encruzilhadas
- 1
Ask permission at the entrance
Before everything, a Laroyê to Exu and to the povo de rua. Seu Sete is a head of line, and a head likes to be called with respect and in the right order.
- 2
Set outside the house, near the gate
The place for the left-side candle is the backyard, the gate, or the tronqueira. Far from the altar of the orixás, from the bedroom, and from curtains or dry plants.
- 3
Say what the paths are
Hold the candle and speak in a low voice the options you have in front of you, one by one. It is the way to bring the crossroads into the prayer request.
- 4
Light and serve the farofa
Light with a match, place the marafo beside it and, if you are going to offer it, the farofa de dendê on the clay plate. Perform the prayer calmly and without rushing for an answer.
- 5
Close the ritual work without blowing
Let it burn until the end; if needed, smother it with a saucer. The cachaça and the farofa go to the earth or to a dirt crossroads, and the wax goes to the trash outside the house.
Precautions before lighting
- A 7-day candle in the backyard needs a clay saucer and distance from dry brush. Check the flame before sleeping and before leaving.
- Seu Sete opens the path, he does not block anyone else's. A prayer request to harm a third party is not the service of Exu, it is a deviation of the one who asks.
- Setting up the firmeza of a line chief, assentamento and obrigação are matters of the terreiro. At home, what is done is candle and prayer; the rest is with your zelador.
- Fulfill what you promised in the prayer. Exu values a given word, and a forgotten promise weighs more than a small promise.
Ceromancy
What the flame of the Vela de Exu Sete Encruzilhadas shows
Traditional terreiro reading. Before interpreting, check if there is no wind, crooked wick, or poor quality candle.
- Good sign
High, straight, and firm flame
Many houses read this as the guardian accepting the prayer request and the path beginning to open. Stay attentive to the doors that appear in the coming days.
- Observe
Flame leaning to one side
First check the wind and the candle's plumb. Some people read the inclination as the direction to observe, but this is a popular reading, not a rule.
- Observe
Flame that divides into two
In popular reading, it speaks of two paths or a choice still open. Observe without haste and let the candle finish before concluding.
- Attention
Black soot rising in the cup
It usually points to weight on the path, such as envy or demanda. A herbal bath before the next candle helps; if it repeats, seek a terreiro.
- Attention
Candle that goes out and does not light again
You can request another day or a simpler request. Check the wick, greet Exu again and try once more; if it persists, speak with a zelador.
Ritual bath and smoke cleansing (defumação)
Herbs that combine with the Exu Sete Encruzilhadas Candle
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Abre-Caminho / Lacre
Justicia gendarussa
The name says it all. A path-opening herbal bath from the neck down before lighting accompanies the request to unlock life.
See the herb -
Rue
Ruta graveolens
Cuts what surrounds and hinders. A branch of arruda next to the saucer, or behind the door, during the seven days of the candle.
See the herb -
guiné / Tipi
Petiveria alliacea
Strong leaf of protection from the povo de rua. Use in the smoke cleansing of the house on the first day, with doors and windows open.
See the herb -
Malagueta pepper
Capsicum frutescens
Pimenta de Exu, for movement. Some houses put some peppers on the farofa plate. Never in the ritual bath or in contact with the skin.
See the herb
Virtual Candle
Light the Exu Sete Encruzilhadas candle now
Choose the type, write your request, and pay by PIX. The flame stays on the altar and you follow along through the link.
Place on the altarFrequently asked questions
Questions about the Exu Sete Encruzilhadas candle
What is the Exu Sete Encruzilhadas candle for?
It serves to open and unlock paths, request clarity in a difficult choice, and protection for those who feel surrounded. Seu Sete is the guardian of all directions. The candle accompanies the prayer request and your effort; it does not decide for you nor set a deadline.
What is the day of Exu Sete Encruzilhadas?
Monday is the most cited day, as it is the day of the people of Exu. Some houses work with him on Friday, and others link his ritual work to the turn of midnight. Follow the custom of your terreiro, if you are from a house.
Are Exu Sete Encruzilhadas and Caboclo das Sete Encruzilhadas the same?
No. Caboclo das Sete Encruzilhadas is a spirit guide of the caboclo line, linked to the foundation of Umbanda by Zélio de Moraes. Exu Sete Encruzilhadas is the guardian of the povo de rua, of the left line. The name is similar, but the ritual work and the candle are different.
Can I blow out the Seu Sete candle and light it again?
The ideal is to let it burn until the end. If you need to leave, smother it with a saucer, without blowing, and relight it as soon as you return, repeating the Laroyê. Many houses see the breath as undoing the prayer request with your own breath.
What is the color of the Exu Sete Encruzilhadas candle?
The candle on the site is red, with his label. The colors of Seu Sete are red and black, and houses accept a red candle, a black candle, or both together. What changes is the custom of each terreiro, not the foundation.
What to do with the farofa and the leftover wax from Seu Sete's candle?
The farofa and the cachaça go to the ground, in a garden bed or at a dirt crossroads, without plastic or glass. The leftover wax should be wrapped and put in the common trash, outside the house. Do not reuse the leftover in another prayer request.
