Exu and Exus
In Quimbanda the male spirits are known as Exus, they are considered very aggressive and immoral spirits. Note that they are not the same as the Eshu/ Ellegua of Lukumi/ Santeria; as Quimbanda has evolved as a religion, it has created a category of spirits collectively called Exus, whose name was borrowed from the deity Exu. Exus refers to the phalanx of spirits occupying the lowest levels of the spirit hierarchy. Religious professor Kelly E. Hayes outlines the purposes of exu spirits:“ is associated particularly with the cultivation of a set of boisterous spirit entities called exus, referred to by their devotees as povo da rua, people of the streets. In image, story, and song, exu spirits are linked with urban street life and its illicit desires — vice, lust, crime, and sensual indulgence.”
Exu spirits are characterized as having been criminals, hustlers and vagrants in former incarnations. However, exus, commonly referred to as ‘spirits of the left’, are not purely evil. Instead, they are more human-like in their qualities and share in human weaknesses. Exu spirits primarily deal with human and material matters as opposed to the ‘spirits of the right’ used in Umbanda, who deal with primarily spiritual matters. Exus are typically called for rituals to arrange rendezvous, force justice, or destroy enemies. Religion specialist Diana Brown of Bard college states, ”Exus seem to assert the power and autonomy of the individual to have and pursue his/her own self-interests, as against the interests and moral codes established by the state, civil society, and the family”. Exus are the most commonly used of the deities in Quimbanda and vary in their power and ability, which is often measured by their viciousness and immorality.