Ifa The true Religion of Yorubas.

Why We Must Reconnect With the Orishas & Other African Deities 12 28 14

The Truth About Black Religion and Spirituality & The Lies of Christianty, Islam Dr Umar Johnson

What is Ifa?

Religion only defines Ifa it doesn't limit it

Ifa The true Religion of Yorubas.

16 is the number of cosmos

February 10, 2015 kemetic45 Uncategorized






Yoruba-people-culture  Yoruba-bronze-head In the Beginning, Olodumare (God) gave the Orisa Orunmila a flawless method of communication between himself and the Orisa called Ifa. Ifa is linked to destiny through the Ifa the true religion of Yorubas . Sixteen is the number of cosmos; it represents the primal order that issued from the unity of Olodumare. (Sixteen is also a significant number in the world of computers.) When the world was first created, it spread out from an original palm tree that stood at the center of the world at Ile-Ife. The palm tree had sixteen branches, which formed the four cardinal points and the sixteen original quarters of Ile-Ife. In political terms, Odudua, the first oni of Ife, fathered sixteen sons who founded the sixteen original kingdoms of the Yoruba. On a deeper level still, Orunmila taught the art of divination to his sixteen sons; they, in turn, passed it down to the Babalawos who practice it today.

Through the linked concepts of order, creation, and destiny, the number sixteen represents the variables of the human condition, the sixteen possible situations of human life. For the Yoruba, the sixteen principle signs are called Odu or Olodu, from each of which are drawn sixteen subordinate signs (omo-Odu, “children of the odu” or Odus). These represent the sixteen essential life situations with sixteen possible variations each. This means 256 possible combinations (Odu’s) or two to the eighth power. Each Odu is a recital of a set of poems called ese, that provide clues for the resolution of the problem during a divination session. There are at least, and by far not the most, 16 different ese’s for each of the 256 Odu. This adds up to at least 4096 different scenarios. The goal of the Babalawo is to arrive at the appropiate Odu for the situation of his “querent”. Each of the 256 Odu reveals an archetypal situation that was resolved in the mythic past through sacrifice to an Orisa. In the thousands of Ifa poems, the Orisa are organized into a community of spirits whose ase (power) can can be brought to bear on the problems of individual men and women in need. In this way, Ifa and the Babalawo priesthood are responsible for directing the adherents of all the Orisa’s by leading querents to them. Nearly all the sacrifice/ebo of Ifa/Yoruba religion are offered to the Orisa’s as a result of divination. Ifa structures Orisa worship; the randomness of the system ensures that all the Orisa’s are duly venerated.


Through Ifa, the balance of the sacrificial relationship between heaven and earth is maintained, for Ifa, through Odu (word of God), provides human beings with information about their place in the world, their destiny, and what the God’s require of them. Ifa and the ceremonial life that it generates constitute the organizing principle of the traditional Yoruba religious vision. It is a view that finds human destiny “rooted in the breath of God Almighty”. Nothing happens by chance. There is a reason for everything, and it is the duty of human beings to recognize this mystery. Within the Odu lay the hidden messages of the unseen influences. These messages are best interpreted by a well trained Babalawo during a divination session.

This high system of virtue held by hundreds of thousands of Yoruba men and women survived the middle passage to the America’s where they (we) were taken as slaves. The deep-rooted virtues, expressed in each Odu, sustained the African through one of history’s darkest hours. Continue this cyber journey if you must, as we shed light on the virtues and power (Ase) of the Odu. Odu…The Orisa This is an insert from the holy Odu Irete-Ogbe. Let this page shed some light on the Orisa called Odu. You trample upon the brush. I trample upon the brush. We trample the brush down together. Ifa was consulted for Odu by these Awos. They said, Odu is going from heaven to earth. Whenever she arrive on earth. They said, thee Odu, this is your beginning. Olodumare gave her a bird. She took this bird with her to earth. Aragamago is the named that Olodumare gave this bird. Aragamago is the name that Odu’s bird carried. He said, “You Odu, any undertaking upon which you send this bird, it will do. He said, “Any place that it pleases you to send this bird, it will go. He said, “If it is to do bad or good.” He said, Anything that it pleases you to tell it to do, it will do. Odu brought this bird to earth. Odu has said that no other person will be able to look upon it. She said that it must not be looked upon. If any enemy of Odu looks upon it, She will shatter his eyes, With the power of this bird, she will blind the eyes. If another of her enemies peers into the calabash of this bird. This bird Aragamago, will shatter their eyes. She used this bird thusly. She used it even to get to the house of Orunmila. Orunmila went to consult his Awos. The Oracle said, “If we teach intelligence to someone, his intelligence will be intelligent. If we teach stupidity to someone, his stupidity will be stupid.”

The Babalawos of the house of Orunmila consulted Ifa in order to know the day that he would take Odu as his wife. In this manner Orunmila would take Odu for his wife. The Awos of Orunmila said “Hee.” They said, Odu that you wish to take for your wife. A power is in her hands. They said, because of this power Orunmila must make an offering to the earth. In the interest of all of his people. They said, so that with this power, she will not kill and eat him. Orunmila made the offering. When Orunmila had made the offering, they consulted Ifa for him. Orunmila carried the offering outside. At the arrival of Odu, she found the offering in the street. Hee! Who has made this offering to the earth? Ha! Esu said, “Orunmila has made this offering to the earth.” Because he wishes to marry you Odu. Odu said, not bad. All the things that Odu carried behind her, these are the bad things. She told them to eat. Odu opened the calabash of Aragamago, her bird, to the ground. She told it to eat. Odu entered the house. When she had entered the house, Odu called Orunmila. She said, “Orunmila, she had arrived.” She said, her powers are numerous. She said, but she did not wish that they should fight with him. She said, she did not want to fight with Orunmila. She said, even if someone asked her help, asked her help to fight him, she would not fight him. Because if Odu did not wish that Orunmila suffers. Otherwise, if they wished to make Orunmila suffer. Odu, with the power and with the power of the bird, would fight the people.

When Odu finished speaking thusly. Orunmila said, not bad. The time came, Odu said, Thou Orunmila, You are going to learn my taboo. She said, she wish to tell him her taboo. She said, she did not want his other wives to see her face. She said, that he should tell all of his other wives that they should not look at her face. Whoever looked into her face, she would fight. She said, she did not want anyone to look at her appearance. Orunmila said, “Fine!” He then called all of his wives. He prevailed upon them. The wives of Orunmila would not look at Odu’s face. Odu told Orunmila that. She said, with him she would make his burdens good. She said, she would heal all things. She said, anything that he causes to go wrong, she would repair it. She said, if he observed his taboo. She said, all things that she completed would be good. Anyone who would disturb them, she would in turn disturb them. If Oso (sorcerer) wished to destroy. She said, she would leave him nothing. Then he himself would be destroyed. All his children, who are Awo. He will implore them that they should never dare to trifle with Odu. Because Odu is the power of Awo. He said, if the Awo possesses Ifa, he will also have Odu. The power that Odu gives him says that. No woman must look upon her form. From this day no Babalawo is complete without possessing this Odu. One who does not have Odu will not be able to consult Ifa. The day that one comes into possession of Odu, On that day will he become a person that Odu will not allow to suffer. Àşẹ ÒRÌŞÀ lénu mi oò Acceptance of ÒRÌŞÀ blessings from my voice Àşẹ ÒRÌŞÀ lénu mi Acceptance of ÒRÌŞÀ blessings from my mouth Gbogbo ìre tí mo bá mòmò sú òò All my positive affirmation and prayers Ni IRÚNMỌLÈ o gbàà Will be accepted by the IRÚNMỌLÈ Yío gbàá òò Absolutely accepted . Àşẹ ÒRÌŞÀ lénu mi Acceptance of ÒRÌŞÀ blessings from my mouth Iba o, OLÓDÙMARÈ aba ajiki, ÈDÙMÀRÈ oba a ji ge, Ògègé Oba tiin gbele aye gun, Ògbàgbà nla Oba tolode-Orun. Homage to OLODUMARE, God of inertial, EDUMARE, The most respected with adulation, The pivot of life equilibrium, The grand commander of the cosmic zone. Ìbà o: Ati yo ojo, Ati wo oorun, Iba kùtùkútú awo owuro, Ganrín ganrìn Awo osan gaangan, Winríín winrìn Awo oru, Ati òkùkù-sú-wì, Awo oganjo. Homage to: The rising of the sun, The setting of the sun, Kutukutu, Priest of the Dawn, Ganrin ganrin, Priest of the Noon, Winrin winrin, Priest of the Night, and Okuku-su-wi, Priest of the mid-night. Ìbà Elewu ide, Ìbà Elewu ala, Ìbà Irawo sasa n be lehin f’supa. Homage to Elewu-ide, Orisa of the sun, Homage to Elewu-Ala, Orisa of the Moon, Homage to Irawo-sasa, Orisa of the cosmic stars. Afefelegelege Awo isalu aye, Efuufulegelege Awo isalu orun, Afefelegelege, Priest of the earth, Efuufulegelege, Priest of the universe Ìbà Àjàgùnmòlè oluwo ode Orun, Ìbà Àròmògànyìn onibode aye oun orun, Ìbà Àwònàmàjà babalawo tii n komo nIfa oju orun. Homage to Ajagunmole, Priest of the great beyond, Homage to Aromoganyin, Gateman of the great beyond, Homage to Awonamaja, Ifa Priest that teaches Ifa in dreams. Ìbà Èsù láàlú-òkiri-òkò, Kiri-ògo, Ìbà Eyin Ìyàmi, Afínjú ęyę tii n je loju oloko, Afínjú ęyę tii n fìyé sapa tii n fiko sehin, Afínjú ęyę tii n fìyé sapa tii n f’eekun sehin’ Afínjú ęyę tii n fìyé sapa tii n fehin sehin, Afínjú ęyę tii n fegungun sapa tii n fegungun sehin, Afínjú ęyę tii n firin n sapa tii n firin sehin Afínjú ęyę tii n fina sapa tii n fina sehin. Homage to Esu Laalu okiri-oko, kiri-ogo, the police of the whole universe. Homage to Eyin Iyami, The skillful bird that feeds in the presence of the owner, The skillful bird with feathers and beak, The skillful bird with feathers and teeth, The skillful bird with bones as feathers and bones as teeth, The skillful bird with iron feathers and iron teeth, The skillful bird with feathers of fire and teeth of fire Ìbà ILÈ,òtèté, langbua, Aterere kari aye, A gbohun maa fo, abiyamo tooto. Homage to Ile, otete, langbua, the mother earth, The special carpet of the universe, The mute listener, Mother of all. Ìbà IFA ohun OLÓDÙMARÈ, Ìbà Orunmila, eleri ipin, Atori eni tio sunwon se, Ìbà aboru, Aboye, Abosise. Homage to Ifa the voice of almighty God, Homage to Orunmila, the witness of destiny, The one that changes misfortune to fortune Homage to Aboru, Aboye and Abosise. Ìbà Ogun,yankan bi ogbe, Ìbà Otarigidi-tii n se yeye Ogun, Ìbà Omobowu oun Ewiri-maje, Ìbà Ìja, Ìbà Osoosi, Ìbà Olútasín tokoko bo Ogun, Ìbà Òpè ti a n tidi n be tii n tori gbe ni, Ìbà Òpè to fidi sekan to fori se pupo. Homage to Ogun, the bleeding of the flesh’s wound, Homage to Otarigidi, Ogun’s Godmother, Homage to Omobowu and Ewiri-maje, Ogun’s wives, Homage to Osoosi, Homage to Olutasin, the first to appease Ogun, Homage to the Palm-tree that is appeased at the base, that bring forth benefiting fruits at the top, Homage to the Palm-tree with one trunk but many branches. Ìbà Egbé oga-Ogo Ìbà Ogba, Ìbà Kórìkóto-Orisa ewe. Homage to Egbe, the cosmic companions, Homage to Ogba, The astral friends, Homage to Olunkori, The Orisa of children soul mates Ìbà Sàngó, Oluorojo,bambi-arigba ota segun, Ìbà Haawa, Iba Gambe-olu, Ìbà sere legelege tii n se gbaju fun Sango, Ìbà Oya Oriri,obinrin gbongbonran tii n yoko re loko ebu. Ìbà oke ganga, oke ganga, Ìbà Aganju, Iba Mojelewu, Iba Okeere, Ìbà Yemoja, Iba odo Ògùn, Ìbà Òsààrà, Ìbà Tòòròsí, Ìbà Iyalode lode Òró, Ìbà Moremi lode Òfà. Ìbà Oba. Homage to Sàngó, Oluorojo, Bambi- The Orisa of thunder with many thunderbolts, Homage to Haawa, Gambe-olu, wives of Sango Homage to Oya Oriri, the powerful woman that rescued her husband from ridicule, Homage to Aganju, Homage to Mojelewu, Homage to Okeere, Homage to Yemoja and her river- Ogun, Homage to Osaara, Toorosi, Sango’s God mothers, Homage to Iyalode, the custodian of Oro (Oro=town) Homage to Moremi, the custodian of Ofa (Ofa=town) Homage to Obà, Sango’s faithful and lovely committed wife. Ìbà o, Obatala, Oba taasa, Oba patapata lode Iranje, Ìbà Iranje’le Iba Iranje oko, Ìbà Ifon-Osun, Ìbà Igbin, Iba Igbin-Oosa, Ìbà Alágemo-téérekangé, Je a gbo Je a to; Ìbà Abamoda omo Oosa-Agbowujin, Mo daba ire aje, ire aya/oko, ire omo, ire gbogbo, Aba ti Alagemo bada lOosa-Oke n gba. Homage to Obatala, Oba taasa, King of Orisa, the custodian of Iranje (Irange=town) Homage to Iranje-ile, Iranje-oko, Homage to Ifon-osun (all towns) Homage to Igbin, the Sail, Homage to Igbin Oosa, the Obatala drum, Homage to Alagemo-teerekange, the Carmelion, We ‘re wishing for longevity Homage to Abamoda The child of Oosa-Agbowujin (plant bryophllum pinnatum) We ‘re wishing for all fortunes, It is the good wishes of Alagemon that Orisa accepts. Ìbà Gunyan gunyan ile Ido, Ìbà rokaroka obinrin Ibadan, Ìbà Aje tii n somo Olu-Ibini, Ìbà Okun tii n somo Ode-Irada, Ìbà Orò, òròpòtò pómùpómù, Tobi ‘mo léweléwe ti kan kan o sofun, Ìbà Osanyin –mògbòráyè, To gba opa lowo olókùnrùn sanu. Homage to Gunyan gunyan females of ile Ido (Ido=town), Homage to Rokaroka, the females of Ibadan (Ibadan=town) Homage to Aje the princess of Ibini (Ibini=town) Homage to Okun the princess of Irada (Irada=town) Homage to Oro, Oropoto pomupomu, The Orisa with many surviving children, Homage to Osanyin -mogboraye, the healer of the sick. Ìbà Olokun Iba Olosa, Ìbà Odù loogbo-oje, Ìbà Osun awura-Olu, Olóóyà-Iyun, Awede koto wemo, Ìbà Iyami-Osoroniga lode-Ipokia, Homage to Olokun, Orisa of ocean, Homage to Olosa, Orisa of the lagoon Homage to Odu loogbo-oje, Homage to Osun awura-olu The owner of beaded comb,She cleansed her brass and later bath her children, Homage to Iyami-Osoroniga, the skillful Orisa and custodian of Ipokia, (Ipokia=town) Ìbà Orí-eni, Ìbà Ikin-eni, Ìbà Baba, Ìbà Yeye, Ìbà Oluwo, Ìbà Ojùgbònà, Ìbà Ipárípá adáso-mámùró Ìbà èyin ìsòrò-Òrun Ìbà ará Ilè. Homage to One’s destiny, Homage to One’s Ikin (sacred palm kennels) Homage to All ancestral male Orisa, All ancestral female Orisa, Homage to Oluwo (one’s spiritual teacher), Homage to Ojugbona (one’s chief officiating priest), Homage to Iparipa Adaso-mamuro (Insects community), Homage to Isoro-sorun (Astral Ancestral Orisa), Homage to Ile (Houses). Àwa júbà kee je kíbà wa se, ÀSE! We sincerely pay our homage, Accept our homage with understanding, Wisdom and kindness, ASE! Sixteen is the number of cosmos Opon-Ifa yoruba_nigeria These are the 256 Odù Ifá. The first are the 16 Meji, or Oju Odù.

The next 240 Odù Ifá are combinations of the first 16. The Odù Ifá are patterns of binary code, opened and closed nodules, which represent all of the energies contained in Igba Iwa, The Calabash of Existence, or the Universe. These are the universal energies that give birth to all given circumstances and situations, all the blessings and misfortunes of the universe are contained within them. They hold the key to all the blessings and all the misfortunes of life and death. The Odù themselves are the oracles of the Yorùbá divination systems of Ifá, Obi, and Merindinlogun. It is through the knowledge of these energies, called Odù Ifá, that Babalawo and Iyanifa are able to work with individuals to achieve the greatest potential of their destiny. It is through these Odù Ifá that priests and priestesses of Oriṣa can help people to repair their Orí’s and better themselves. The Odù Ifá are like blueprints to all the energies possible in the universe. Each has verses of esoteric knowledge associated with it along with medicines, rituals, and sacrifices that accompany each of the 256 Odù. Included in this listing of the 256 chapters of Odù Ifá are the names and aliases of the Odù as taught in my lineage of Ifá, which is from Oyo State, Nigeria. Please note that the names and fixed esoteric order of the Odù Ifá may differ from lineage to lineage. I I I I I I I I II II II II II II II II II II I I I I II II I I II II II II I I 1 Ogbe Meji Ejiogbe 2 Oyeku Meji Ejioyeku 3 Iwori Meji Ejiiwori 4 Odi Meji Ejiodi I I I I II II II II II II II II I I I I I I II II II II II II II II II II II II I I 5 Irosun Meji Ejiirosun 6 Owonrin Meji Ejiowonrin 7 Obara Meji Ejiobara 8 Okanran Meji Ejiokanran I I I I I I II II II II I I I I I I II II I I II II II II II II II II I I II II 9 Ogunda Meji Ejiogunda 10 Osa Meji Ejiosa 11 Ika Meji Ejiika 12 Oturupon Meji Ejiologbon I I II II I I I I I I I I II II I I I I II II I I II II II II I I II II I I 13 Otura Meji Ejiotura 14 Irete Meji Ejiirete 15 Ose Meji Ejiose 16 Ofun Meji Ejiorangun (Eepa!) II I II I II I II I II I I I I I II I I I II I II I I I I I I I II I II I 17 Ogbe Oyeku Ogbeyeku 18 Ogbe Iwori Ogbewori 19 Ogbe Odi Ogbedi 20 Ogbe Irosun Ogberosun II I II I I I I I I I II I II I II I II I II I II I I I I I I I I I II I 21 Ogbe Owonrin Ogbewonrin 22 Ogbe Obara Ogbebara 23 Ogbe Okanran Ogbekanran 24 Ogbe Ogunda Ogbegunda II I I I I I I I II I I I II I II I II I II I I I II I I I II I I I I I 25 Ogbesa Ogbe Osa 26 Ogbe Ika Ogbeka 27 Ogbe Oturupon Ogbeturupon 28 Ogbe Otura Ogbetura Ogbejegbe I I I I II I I I I I II I I I II I II I I I II I I I 29 Ogbe Irete Ogbe Ate 30 Ogbe Ose Ogbese 31 Ogbe Ofun Ogbefun I II I II I II I II II II I II I II II II I II II II II II I II I II I II II II II II 32 Oyeku Ogbe Oyekulogbe 33 Oyeku Iwori Oyekuwori 34 Oyeku Odi Oyekuodi 35 Oyeku Irosun Oyekurosun II II II II I II I II I II II II II II II II II II II II II II I II I II I II I II II II 36 Oyeku Owonrin Oyekuwonrin 37 Oyeku Obara Oyekupalaba Oyekufabagoke 38 Oyeku Okanran Oyekukanran 39 Oyeku Ogunda Oyekugunda II II I II I II I II II II I II II II II II II II II II I II II II I II II II I II I II 40 Oyeku Osa Oyekusa 41 Oyeku Ika Oyekuka 42 Oyeku Oturupon Oyekuturupon 43 Oyeku Otura Oyekutura I II I II II II I II I II II II I II II II II II I II II II I II 44 Oyeku Irete Oyekurete 45 Oyeku Ose Oyekuse 46 Oyeku Ofun Yafokuu I II I I I I I II II II II I II I II II I II II I II I I II I II I I II I II II 47 Iwori Ogbe Iworiogbe 48 Iwori Oyeku Iworioyeku 49 Iwori Odi Iworiodi 50 Iwori Irosun Iworirosun II II II I I I I II I II II I II I II II II II II I II I I II I II I I I I II II 51 Iwori Owonrin Iworiwonrin 52 Iwori Obara Iworiobara 53 Iwori Okanran Iworiokanran 54 Iwori Ogunda Iworiogunda II II I I I I I II II II I I II I II II II II II I I I II II I II II I I I I II 55 Iwori Osa Iworiosa 56 Iwori Ika Iworika 57 Iwori Oturupon Iworioturupon 58 Iwori Otura Iworiotura I II I I II I I II I II II I I I II II II II I I II I I II 59 Iwori Irete Iworirete 60 Iwori Ose Iworiose 61 Iwori Ofun Iworiwofun I I I II I II I I II I II II II II II I II I I II I II II I I I I II II II II I 62 Odi Ogbe Idingbere 63 Odi Oyeku Odioyeku 64 Odi Iwori Odiwori 65 Odi Irosun Idinosun II I II II I II I I I I II II II II II I II I II II II II I I I I I II I II II I 66 Odi Owonrin Odiwonrin 67 Odi Obara Odibara 68 Odi Okanran Odikanran 69 Odi Ogunda Odigunda II I I II I II I I II I I II II II II I II I II II I II II I I I II II I II I I 70 Odi Osa Odisa 71 Odi Ika Odiika 72 Odi Oturupon Oditurupon 73 Odi Otura Idinatago I I I II II II I I I I II II I II II I II I I II II II I I 74 Odi Irete Idinileke 75 Odi Ose Odiose 76 Odi Ofun Odiofun I I I I I II I II II I II I II II II II II I I I I II II II I I II I II II I II 77 Irosun Ogbe * 78 Irosun Oyeku Irosunoyeku 79 Irosun Iwori Irosunawoye 80 Irosun Odi Irosunodi II I II I I II I II I I II I II II II II II I II I II II I II I I I I I II II II 81 Irosun Owonrin Irosunowonrin 82 Irosun Obara Irosunobara 83 Irosun Okanran Irosunokere 84 Irosun Ogunda Irosunogunda II I I I I II I II II I I I II II II II II I II I I II II II I I II I I II I II 85 Irosun Osa Irosunosa 86 Irosun Ika Irosunka 87 Irosun Oturupon Irosunturupon 88 Irosun Otura Irosunfakolade I I I I II II I II I I II I I II II II II I I I II II I II * Irosunogbe/ Irosunoniwata/ Irosunokanjuwa 89 Irosun Irete Irosunopemi 90 Irosun Ose Irosunoso 91 Irosun Ofun Irosunofun I II I II I I I I II II II II II I II I II II I II I I II I I II II II II I I I 92 Owonrin Ogbe Owonrinsogbe 93 Owonrin Oyeku Owonrinoyeku 94 Owonrin Iwori Owonriniwori 95 Owonrin Odi Owonrinodi I II I II II I II I I II II II II I II I II II II II II I I I I II I II I I II I 96 Owonrin Irosun OwonrinIrosun 97 Owonrin Obara Owonrinobara 98 Owonrin Okanran Owonrinokanran 99 Owonrin Ogunda Owonrinetun II II I II I I I I II II I II II I II I II II II II I I II I I II II II I I I I 100 Owonrin Osa Owonrinosa Owonrinaseyin 101 Owonrin Ika Owonrinika Owonrinojoose 102 Owonrin Oturupon Owonrinoturupon 103 Owonrin Otura Owonrinotura I II I II II I I I I II II II I I II I II II I II II I I I 104 Owonrin Irete Owonrinirete 105 Owonrin Ose Owonrinose 106 Owonrin Ofun Owonrinofun I I I II I II I II II I II II II II II II II I I II I II II II I I II II II II I I 107 Obara Ogbe Obaraogbe 108 Obara Oyeku Obaraoyeku 109 Obara Iwori Obaraikosi 110 Obara Odi Obaraodi I I I II II II II II II I II II I II I II II I II II II II I II I I I II I II II II 111 Obara Irosun Obarairosun 112ObaraOwonrin Obaraowonrin 113ObaraOkanran Obaraokanran 114 ObaraOgunda Obaraeguntan II I I II I II I II II I I II II II II II II I II II I II II II I I II II I II I II 115 Obara Osa Obaraosa 116 Obara Ika Obaraika 117Obara Oturupon Obaraoturupon 118 Obara Otura Obaraotura I I I II II II I II I I II II I II II II II I I II II II I II 119 Obara Irete Obarairete 120 Obara Ose Obaraose 121 Obara Ofun Obaraofun I II I II I II I I II II II II II II II I II II I II I II II I I II II II II II I I 122 Okanran Ogbe Okanranogbe 123Okanran Oyeku Okanranoyeku 124 Okanran Iwori Okanraniwori 125 Okanran Odi Okanranodi I II I II II II II I II II II II I II I I I II II II II II II I I II I II I II II I 126 Okanran Irosun Okanranirosun 127 Okanran-Owonrin Okanranowonrin 128 Okanran Obara Okanranobara 129Okanran-Ogunda Okanranogunda II II I II I II I I II II I II II II II I II II II II I II II I I II II II I II I I 130 Okanran Osa Okanranosa 131 Okanran Ika Okanranika 132 Okanran- Oturupon Okanranoturupon 133 Okanran Otura Okanranotura Okanranalase I II I II II II I I I II II II I II II I II II I II II II I I **Okanranaigoro Okanranadasenu 134 Okanran Irete Okanranirete 135 Okanran Ose Okanranose ** 136 Okanran Ofun Okanranofun I I I I I I I II II I II I II I II II II I I I I I II II I I II I II I I II 137 Ogunda Ogbe Ogundaogbe *** 138 Ogunda Oyeku Ogundaoyeku 139 Ogunda Iwori Ogundaiwori 140 Ogunda Odi Ogundaodi I I I I II I II II II I II I I I I II I I II I II I II II II I II I II I I II 141 Ogunda Irosun Ogundairosun 142 Ogunda-Owonrin Ogundaowonrin 143 Ogunda Obara Ogundaobara 144 Ogunda-Okanran Ogundaokanran II I I I I I I II II I I I II I II II II I II I I I II II I I II I I I I II 145 Ogunda Osa Ogundaosa 146 Ogunda Ika Ogundaika 147 Ogunda-Oturupon Ogundaoturupon 148 Ogunda Otura Ogundaotura I I I I II I I II I I II I I I II II II I I I II I I II ***Ogundagara Ogundabede 149 Ogunda Irete Ogundairete 150 Ogunda Ose Ogundaose 151 Ogunda Ofun Ogundaofun I II I I I I I I II II II I II I II I II II I I I I II I I II II I II I I I 152 Osa Ogbe Osaogbe 153 Osa Oyeku Osaoyeku 154 Osa Iwori Osaiwori 155 Osa Odi Osaodi I II I I II I II I II II II I I I I I I II II I II I II I II II II I II I I I 156 Osa Irosun Osairosun 157 Osa Owonrin Osaowonrin Osaonibu 158 Osa Obara Osaobara 159 Osa Okanran Osaokanran I II I I I I II I II II I I II I II I II II II I I I II I I II II I I I I I 160 Osa Ogunda Osaogunda 161 Osa Ika Osaika 162 Osa Oturupon Osaoturupon 163 Osa Otura Osaotura I II I I II I I I I II II I I I II I II II I I II I I I 164 Osa Irete Osairete 165 Osa Ose Osaose 166 Osa Ofun Osaofun I II I I I II I II II II II I II II II II II II I I I II II II I II II I II II I II 167 Ika Ogbe Ikaogbe 168 Ika Oyeku Ikaoyeku 169 Ika Iwori Ikaiwori 170 Ika Odi Ikaodi I II I I II II II II II II II I I II I II I II II I II II II II II II II I II II I II 171 Ika Irosun Ikairosun 172 Ika Owonrin Ikaowonrin 173 Ika Obara Ikaobara 174 Ika Okanran Ikaokanran I II I I I II II II II II I I I II I II II II II I I II II II I II II I I II I II 175 Ika Ogunda Ikaogunda 176 Ika Osa Ikaosa 177 Ika Oturupon Ikaoturupon 178 Ika Otura Ikaotura I II I I II II I II I II II I I II II II II II I I II II I II 179 Ika Irete Ikairete 180 Ika Ose Ikaose 181 Ika Ofun Ikaofun I II I II I I I II II II II II II I II II II II I II I I II II I II II II II I I II 182 Oturupon Ogbe Oturuponogbe 183 Oturupon-Oyeku Oturuponoyeku 184 Oturupon Iwori Oturuponiwori Oturuponlawi 185 Oturupon Odi Oturuponodi I II I II II I II II II II II II I I I II I II II II II I II II II II II II II I I II 186 Oturupon-Irosun Oturuponirosun 187 Oturupon-Owonrin Oturuponowonrin 188 Oturupon-Obara Oturuponobara 189 Oturupon-Okanran Oturuponokanran I II I II I I II II II II I II I I I II II II I II II I II II I II II II I I I II 190 Oturupon-Ogunda Oturuponogunda 191 Oturupon Osa Oturuponosa 192 Oturupon Ika Oturuponika 193 Oturupon Otura Oturuponotura I II I II II I I II I II II II I I II II II II I II II I I II 194 Oturupon Irete Oturuponirete 195 Oturupon Ose Oturuponose 196 Oturupon Ofun Oturuponofun I I I II I I I I II I II II II I II I II I I II I I II I I I II II II I I I 197 Otura Ogbe Oturaogbe Otura Orí Oturaoriko 198 Otura Oyeku Oturaoyeku 199 Otura Iwori Oturaiwori 200 Otura Odi Oturaodi I I I II II I II I II I II II I I I I I I II II II I II I II I II II II I I I 201 Otura Irosun Oturairosun 202 Otura Owonrin Oturaowonrin 203 Otura Obara Oturaobara 204 Otura Okanran Oturaokanran I I I II I I II I II I I II I I I I II I I II II I II I II I II II I I II I 205 Otura Ogunda Oturaogunda 206 Otura Osa Oturaosa 207 Otura Ika Oturaika 208 Otura Oturupon Oturaoturupon I I I II II I I I I I II II I I II I II I I II II I I I 209 Otura Irete Oturairete 210 Otura Ose Oturaose 211 Otura Ofun Oturaofun Oturemeeeye I I I I I II I I II I II I II II II I II I I I I II II I I I II I II II I I 212 Irete Ogbe Ireteogbe 213 Irete Oyeku Ireteoyeku 214 Irete Iwori Ireteiwori 215 Irete Odi Ireteodi I I I I II II II I II I II I I II I I I I II I II II II I II I II I II II I I 216 Irete Irosun Ireteirosun 217 Irete Owonrin Ireteowonrin Ireteolota 218 Irete Obara Ireteobara Iretealao 219 Irete Okanran Ireteokanran I I I I I II II I II I I I I II I I II I I I II II II I II I II I I II II I 220 Irete Ogunda Ireteaaya Ireteodunjo 221 Irete Osa Ireteosa 222 Irete Ika Ireteika 223 Irete Oturupon Ireteoturupon I I II I I II I I I I II I I II II I II I I I II II I I 224 Irete Otura Ireteotura 225 Irete Ose Ireteose 226 Irete Ofun Ireteofun I I I II I I I II II I II II II I II II II I I II I I II II I I II II II I I II 227 Ose Ogbe Oseogbe 228 Ose Oyeku Oseoyeku 229 Ose Iwori Oseiwori Oseonise 230 Ose Odi Oseodi I I I II II I II II II I II II I I I II I I II II II I II II II I II II II I I II 231 Ose Irosun Oseirosun 232 Ose Owonrin Oseowonrin 233 Ose Obara Oseobara 234 Ose Okanran Oseokanran I I I II I I II II II I I II I I I II II I I II II I II II II I II II I I II II 235 Ose Ogunda Oseogunda Osemolu 236 Ose Osa Oseosa 237 Ose Ika Oseika Oseolofa 238 Ose Oturupon Oseoturupon I I II II I I I II I I I II II I I II II I I II II I I II 239 Ose Otura Osetura 240 Ose Irete Oseirete 241 Ose Ofun Oseofun I II I I I II I I II II II I II II II I II II I I I II II I I II II I II II I I 242 Ofun Ogbe Ofunogbe 243 Ofun Oyeku Ofunoyeku Ofuntena 244 Ofun Iwori Ofuniwori Ofunigando 245 Ofun Odi Ofunodi I II I I II II II I II II II I I II I I I II II I II II II I II II II I II II I I 246 Ofun Irosun Ofunirosun 247 Ofun Owonrin Ofunowonrin Ofunsanyan 248 Ofun Obara Ofunobara 249 Ofun Okanran Ofunokanran Ofinranekun I II I I I II II I II II I I I II I I II II I I II II II I II II II I I II II I 250 Ofun Ogunda Ofunogunda Ofuneko 251 Ofun Osa Ofunosa 252 Ofun Ika Ofunika 253 Ofun Oturupon Ofunoturupon I II II I I II I I I II I I II II I I I II II I I II II I 254 Ofun Otura Ofunotura Ofuntopola 255 Ofun Irete Ofunrete 256 Ofun Ose Ofunse

IChing 64 Hexagram

Ifa 16 Main Odu reaching to 256

Understanding the Iching

Nana Akosua Baakan Agyiriwah

Ifa Divination and the I Ching

September 19, 2013 / Divination

What would happen if, when you consulted the I Ching, you did not stop after throwing the coins six times?  What if you threw them seven, or even eight times?

Essentially, if you did throw the coins eight times, you would have entered the world of Ifa divination.

Ifa is an oracular system that originated in Africa, and today has many variations. It is very instructive to compare the I Ching as an oracle with Ifa as an oracle, because both of them have a basis in binary mathematics, but are differently conceived. The Ifa oracle is very instructive to consider relative to many of the points we’ve made about considering the I Ching as an oracle.

To begin, we said that the oracular principle would always operate, so that whatever oracle you used, you would always obtain an apt and appropriate symbol that would really correspond to the question you have asked. But we also said that the total number of possibilities in the system have to be “manageable.” If the total number of possibilities is “too small,” then the oracle has no real content, which is a big handicap when it comes to interpretation.

Some people have tried doing consultations with only one coin, for example.  They designate heads as “yes” and tails as “no,” and start asking questions. This is usually done with the (mistaken) intent of asking God, or asking the oracle “a direct question” and trying to obtain “a direct answer.”

But again, we said that the answer obtained from an oracle is always symbolic, and always requires interpretation.  A person using a head/tail oracle may be ignorant of this feature of oracles, or may be deliberately trying to bypass it, but in either case it won’t work.

What really happens with the head/tails oracle is that it is symbolic anyway, so you end up with a very mild and not very indicative “yes direction” and “no direction” when you get your answer. It is as if you have trapped a great Buddhist teacher in a cave, and you don’t really want to bother with “all his wisdom,” you just want him to “tell you what to do” in the most plain terms possible. So you ask your questions, and you put a gun to his head and tell him he must say either yes or no. He is a great teacher, so he answers honestly, and really is wise, but this set of rules greatly restricts the interaction. Your question might have a ton of implied assumptions, but he can’t comment on any of these, or tell you why they are mistaken.  He has no way to “lead you beyond yourself,” or teach you anything.

In such a situation, the poor Teacher just has to say “no” and hope you start asking better questions. You might then ask a question which is only slightly less dumb, but still is full of mistaken ideas and bad assumptions, but now he will say “yes,” just because this question is a bit better than the last. The way you’ve got him tied up and forced him to do your will, he can’t really explain anything.  He can’t lead you “beyond yourself” because you are not allowing enough detail for a real conversation.  So as you continue your barrage of questions, his “yes” starts to really indicate nothing at all, and has a huge range, all the way from “that’s a little bit better, but you are still full of it,” to “yes indeed! Now you’ve got it!” The “no” answer also turns out to be shorthand for so many possible variants that, in effect, he isn’t really speaking to you in a meaningful way.

We said that the I Ching oracle avoids the problem of “not enough content” in the primary system by having 64 hexagrams, and then there are also symbols for each of six moving lines in each hexagram, so you have tremendous variation in the possible symbolism.  You are really letting the oracle speak to you with a very nice and nuanced vocabulary when you use the I Ching.

Yet the I Ching system is manageable, because the symbols break down into related groups, and you can learn their characteristics. All the answers are variations on a relatively small group of just 64 primary symbols. This is also true with Tarot, which is based on variations among 78 basic archetypes, and Astrology, which works off of variations of twelve signs, twelve houses and (usually) ten planets. In all these cases, you have enough symbolic variation that the oracle can give you a nuanced answer to your question, but don’t have so many variations that you can never learn the symbolic system because it is too big.

So how does Ifa divination avoid “symbolic overload” when they use the binary system (like the I Ching) but unlike the I Ching, they don’t stop at 64 possible answers, but go on to form 256 primary figures?

There are two answers to this question.  First of all, Ifa does not have the equivalent of the I Ching’s line symbols.  The I Ching builds basic units of six lines (hexagrams), and each line can be yin or yang, so there are 64 primary units. That actually wouldn’t be enough to give the oracle the possibility of nuanced reply, but the I Ching makes up for this by assigning  separate but related symbols to each of the six lines in each hexagram.  Since you can get no moving lines, one moving line, two, three, four, five, or even six, the number of variations is almost limitless, even though you will get only one of 64 basic hexagrams in your reply.

In Ifa, the symbolic structures are built with eight basic units, each of which can be (in effect) heads or tails, so they build up 256 possible structures. But in Ifa, they don’t think in terms of yin or yang, or assign symbols to the individual units within the structure.  So the overall system just has the 256 basic variables. If we translated to I Ching terminology, it would be like having 256 hexagrams (octograms, really!) – but no moving line symbols.

Structuring the oracle this way might have actually been a bit restrictive, but Ifa gained further flexibility by assigning each of the 256 basic units at least ten different symbols! Exactly as with the I Ching, these symbols come from proverbs, history, myth, and probably dreams as well.  Exactly as with the I Ching, these symbols were originally set in place by some group of holy people or visionaries who are greatly revered, but whose real identities and real stories are lost in the fog of pre-history.

Still, by the time we have 256 units and at least ten possible symbols for each unit, the Ifa symbolic system becomes very large, indeed. So the second part of the answer to our question is that Ifa divination does, to an extent, suffer from what we might call “symbolic overload.” The system of symbols is so large that it is very difficult to ever master.  There is a huge field of unique symbols, and to use the system, you have to know them all.

Ifa handles this (comparative) “symbolic overload” by making use of specially trained priests and priestesses. These people are so dedicated that they actually spend their lives memorizing the 25,600 basic symbolic units in the Ifa system! They are aided by the fact that the symbolic units come in verse form, and other memory aids probably apply, but still, coming even close to “mastering Ifa” is an amazing accomplishment.

Such prodigious feats of memory are often present in robust cultures that have oral, rather than written traditions, and have a body of knowledge they want to pass on. Something very similar has occurred in the Polynesian cultures relative to the body of knowledge having to do with navigation at sea, and the whole phenomenon of oral transmission has been much studied at the University of Hawaii.

In an actual Ifa divination session then, a priest or priestess always has to be present. The actual consultation is done with great ceremony. We might think that such an arrangement could lead to various forms of misuse, where the “client” for example is disempowered, and the religious figure who represents the oracle wields too much authority. If the system did break down into a “tell me what to do” relationship, there would be a bypassing of the Act of Interpretation, a non-recognition of the symbolic nature of the utterance, and an attempted transfer of responsibility away from the actual person who is acting onto someone else.

Such dangers are possible with any oracle, including the I Ching, Astrology and Tarot, and we always have to recall that no oracle can ever “tell you what to do” in the way that a general orders some private to go clean a latrine.  You can’t – ever – go do something like go buy a new car and then, when it turns out to be a lemon, go blame the oracle. No, it wasn’t the oracle that made the decision, it was you who made the decision.  Oracles don’t speak so directly that they give commands or orders and just reduce you to the poor little obedient servant. They are there to enlighten your understanding, so that you realize what to do, but not to just plain tell you what to do. This may seem subtle, but it is actually a huge and important feature of oracular practice.

In Ifa, because the priest or priestess must be present, you could also have other forms of misuse, like the priest having all the power and wanting too much money, or encouraging the client to be dependent and come to him again and again.

Yet Ifa avoids all these potential problems, and does so in a very charming, wise and instructive way. In Ifa, the custom is that once the answer has been received from the oracle, the priest or priestess does not recite one verse, but ten! Then the client must decide which of the ten verses was the “real answer” to the question! Here is the empowering of the questioner we were looking for, and the insistence on choice, and knowledge of choice, and responsibility for choice. This is why, like the I Ching, Ifa divination has been lifted above the level of mere fortunetelling and like the I Ching, the Ifa oracle has true ethical significance and is a great oracle.

Of course, like every other oracle, the Ifa is now entering the modern world, and so there is a process by which all these symbolic variants in Ifa divination are being written down, and even translated into other languages. With Ifa, we are able to see a great oracle actually crossing the line between an oral and a written presentation, right before our eyes, and this should be a very interesting process to behold.

We Are Africans!