Aswins are the names that Hindus use to refer to the Divine Twins. This is the collective name used to refer to the Twins. Their names individually are Svarga and Vaidyau. They were twin physicians. Interesting comparison with the Catholic Saints, Cosme and Damian who were also twin physicians. Whereas Cosme and Damian were martyrs, Castor and Pollux were warriors. The Hindu Twins were also warriors, besides being physicians, and fought with the forces of Right and Light to overcome the demon hordes. Apparently they ascended into the heavens also after death, where they are identified as the Aswins of the constellation Gemini. Our efforts to relate the African Orishas to other cultures are motived by the desire to promote understanding among the different religious traditions. Understanding breeds tolerance. In this new age that is dawning, hopefully priests and priestesses from all different traditions will become more tolerant of each other's beliefs and learn to work together for the betterment of humankind.
We are sure that you are asking yourselves, "What do monkeys have to do with the Ibeji?" Well, in AFrican, it is believed that is a connection with the Ibeji and monkeys. Twins are sometimes refered to as "monkey children", due to their sometimes precociousness and special treatment. Also, in Haiti, the banana tree is sacred to the Ibeji or Marassa and we all know that monkeys like bananas. In our tradition, the Ibeji are also associated often with Eleggua, since Eleggua is often represented as a child. And remember that in the Hindu pantheon, we have made a correspondence with Hanuman the Monkey God and Eleggua. The connection of monkeys to the Ibeji is so old that noone really remembers why they are connected. Perhaps the elder priests and priestesses of Africa know the answers. We can only speculate. In some branches of Santeria, a special monkey doll or carving is prepared and placed with the Ibeji, which further underlines the connection of monkeys and the Ibeji.
