Cuba, a fast-growing tourist destination in the Caribbean region, has a natural, cultural and historic wealth marked by key elements that attract thousands of foreign vacationers from everywhere in the world who visit the island every year.

Hundreds of kilometers of excellent beaches are combined with peculiar elements such as the Yoruba religion – a key component of Cuban culture – to create a unique environment in which traditions passed from generation to generation play a major role.

The presence of African slaves forcibly brought to Cuba by the Spanish colonizers also marked the development of religious traditions from the Yoruba tribe.

That way, the orishas – the gods of that religion – have been recognized in Cuba over the past five centuries, due to their human characteristics and other distinguishing elements such as colors, music, animals, and food and drink preferences.

Like other religious cults, the Yoruba religion worships a god known as Olurum or Olodumare, and believers follow the precepts of its sacred book, called "La Regla de Ifá" (The Ifá Rule), which contains the philosophic thought par excellence of that religion, and which is also considered the Bible of "Santería".

However, as a peculiar element, "The Ifá Rule" is not contained in manuals or books, as its philosophy is exclusively transmitted orally.

Generally, the Yoruba religion is based in the belief of God through the elements of nature, as part of purely African philosophy.

Like Catholicism, the Yoruba religion also proclaims a series of commandments that all believers must follow. They are known as the 16 laws of Ifá and their origin is attributed to pronouncements by Orunmila, the orisha of wisdom and prediction.

The aforementioned laws prohibit saying what you don't know, following unknown rites and leading people on false roads. They also command to be humble, keep the sacred instruments clean and respect the weak and the moral laws.

The commandments also prohibit betraying a friend and revealing secrets, and command to respect hierarchies and the elder, and not to pretend to be wise when you are not.

Under those precepts, the orishas give humans a vision of the past, present and future, in addition to helping them to solve their problems.

Generations of descendants of the first African slaves who arrived in Cuba have kept the Yoruba religion alive, attracting foreign visitors who consider it a key element of Cuban culture.

For that reason, the Yoruba religion is a major attraction for both Cubans and foreigners, who see it as a true cultural asset in the history of the Caribbean Island.