It is important for Awo (Ifa priest in training) and Babalawo (Ifa priests) to know a great deal about the work of Awoloorisa (Orisa priests), especially Owo Merindilogun. And it is imperative for Awoloorisa to become educated in the tasks and deliberations of the Ifa priesthood, especially Ifa Divination. A degree of mutual awareness, knowledge, and understanding is absolutely critical to the development and progression of Yoruba Traditional Culture in this and future Centuries.

IFA TEACHES AND GUIDES US THROUGH LIFE’S TUMULTUOUS TIMES

African Traditional Religions (ATRs) are regaining their lost prominence by providing much needed counsel, direction, and magical intervention to improve the lives of twenty-first century men and women. Many persons of various ethnicities, nationalities, cultures, professions, religious affiliations, and interests routinely consult professional diviners to discover their fate, avoid calamities, prevent illnesses, cure debilitating diseases, increase wealth, cure infertility, restore virility, and communicate with ancestors.

There are a number of important occasions where divination can provide us with critical information about our lives. In West Africa, diviners and mystics called bokono or babalawo perform sacred divination rituals to determine an individual’s genetic composition and correlated biological and metaphysical traits. The primary system of divination in West Africa is called Ifa. Ifa divination is a complex and elaborate system, usually considered by many academic scholars, anthropologists, and metaphysicians to be one of the oldest and most accurate divination systems in the world. Ifa divination is performed exclusively by Ifa priests called Awo Elegan, Babalawo, Olodu, and/or Oluwo.

The sacred, oral divinatory text of Ifa is memorized and recited exclusively by experienced and highly educated Ifa priests. These esoteric texts called the “Ifa literary corpus,” “Oracle of Ifa,” or “Odu Ifa” are comprised of literally thousands of poetic utterances, chants, incantations, and rituals that provide an Ifa diviner with lessons and tools to educate, heal, and uplift humanity. The following excerpted text is transliterated from the ljebu Yoruba dialect and exists as a prime example of one of literally hundreds of Ifa’s oracular passages teaching us the need for divination in the search or quest for healing, wisdom, and spiritual advancement:

…If you are very, very poor,
Then you must seek much more wisdom.
If you are ailing with disease and your bones break easily,
Then you must seek more wisdom.
If your family life is unhappy,
Then you must seek more wisdom.
Ifa is the teacher of Wisdom.
Wisdom will show you how to gain more money.
Wisdom will teach you how to cure disease.
Wisdom will make you more capable to solve your family problems.
If you already have plenty Wisdom,
Then you should go and get more wisdom;
‘Cause with Wisdom you can always make life even better.
To acquire wisdom, you must come and seek divination with Ifa.
When you listen to the advice of Ifa,
Your backbone becomes sturdy-stronger than iron;
Your hands become large-filled with many possessions;
Your name grows like a vine in the mouths of many people-people wish you well;
Your house increases in size and value-filled with many, many happy children.
Sit patiently with the words of Ifa and,
Ifa will make your darkest day bright,
And your brightest day brighter.
Then and only then will you be at ease inside and out…

The West African divinity of wisdom, divination, and herbal medicine is commonly referred to as Ifa, ‘Fa, Afa, or Orunmila.

Ifa plays important roles in our lives. Firstly, Ifa exists as a system of holistic medicine, whereas, persons afflicted with various physical, psychological, social, and spiritual illnesses seek help from Ifa priests who use Ifa divination and Ifa medicine’s complex pharmacology of herbs, roots, and barks to diagnose, treat, and cure disease. Secondly, Ifa is a system of preventive medicine employing medicinal, dietary, and magical means to strengthen, cleanse, and rejuvenate bodily systems. Thirdly, Ifa is a social system of ethics, moral teachings, psychology, metaphysics, prophetic revelations, and personalized spiritual training.

Ifa has innumerable “praise names” that accurately and succinctly describe Ifa’s efficacy and magnitude.

Many of these praise names are used during magical incantations and chants during divination ceremonies, they include the following:

• Agboniregun (Hunter/Gatherer of Medicine);
• Lolotunla-pelue (Foreseer of the day after tomorrow); and
• Ajejuoogun (Stronger than Black Magic)

Agboniregun alludes to Ifa’s capacity to bring “Good Fortune” into our lives by treating and curing illnesses by magical and naturopathic means. Lolotunla-pelue underscores the fact that Ifa can see the realities of the present and potentialities of the future that escapes the shortsighted vision of modern man. Ajejuoogun confirms Ifa’s mastery over malevolent witchcraft. It also validates the parables declaring Ifa’s ability to solve any malady including aggressive envy, malevolent witchcraft, psychic negativity, et, al.

Ifa, both the divination system and divinity, teaches us important life lessons and problem solving skills by chronicling the collective experiences of the Yoruba Orisa (deities) and Eegun (ancestor spirits) within an oracular, poetic or proverbic form. Ifa diviners perform divination rituals that reveal an individual’s past lives, life purposes, strengths, and vulnerabilities. The sacred materials of Ifa divination simultaneously acts as the apparatus or tools of divination and the emblems and symbols of the divinity. In this vein, Ifa is called oke ipori, which means figuratively “the blueprint of destiny” or “the knowledge of life.”

Essentially, many West African divination rituals inform participants with pertinent information about their familial lineage and fate. This information plays an important role in forming solutions to present-day and future dilemmas. Ifa divination plays a significant role in the lives of many persons who want to lead lives free of the disillusionment, confusion, anxiety, and schizophrenia that is particularly apparent in modern life.

People seek the services of professional Ifa diviners to eliminate obstacles by opening the path to success in all types of endeavors.

Entrepreneurs use Ifa divination to lay a solid foundation in the launch of a new business. Prospective homebuyers employ Ifa divination to provide critical information to help them choose a financial plan, neighborhood, realtor, mortgage broker, and home.

There are a number of specific divination ceremonies that are used by Ifa diviners to provide a successful foundation for communal, familial, and personal enterprises. Two of the most prominent divination rituals related to an individual’s material and spiritual advancement are called Esen’taye (or lkose W’aye) and Imori (or Igbori). Esen’taye and Imori are prime illustrations of the value and necessity of Ifa divination.

Ifa divination provides one with a blueprint for living a prosperous and harmonious life on earth

In conclusion, in a modern world often consumed by lawlessness, chaos, confusion, family instability, violence, indifference, and disillusionment, Ifa communicates with one’s soul and most innermost intuitive consciousness to reveal a successful path for us to trod based entirely on our own personal histories, realities, capacities, and best interests.

Ifa is best known as the revealer of fates, supporter of the weak, and confidant to all. Ifa explains ways that we can maximize opportunities for prosperity and longevity, while mitigating and eventually overcoming our flaws and delusions. Ifa divination with a competent and experienced Ifa diviner teaches us the intellectual, instinctual, and intuitive capacity necessary for everlasting material success and long life.

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1. Ifa Divination

The divinatory arts are many and a broad understanding of them can only emerge from a survey of actual practices in various cultural settings. Men all over the world practice divination and device various methods of doing this. The Assyro-Babylonians have their Bam (seer and diviner) who employs hapatoacopy-divination by observing the liver of sheep which had been used for sacrifice. The Buddhists in India practice astrology and they use lots and oracles as means of divination. The Greeks had their oracular shrinks of Jupiter at Dodona and Apollo at Delphi. The Romans used the Sortes and the Japanese use Ornoplatoscopy. In Roman society, auspices (auspicia) are the means by which the Romans seek to ascertain the support of the gods.

Other forms of divination are palmistry, cream interpretation and astrology. Diviners of similar kinds include the many types of media who may communicate with the dead (necromancy process) as well as-crystal gazers, dream interpreters and diviners by automatic writing.

Like the other peoples of the world, the Yoruba employ various systems. Of all the methods of divination employed by the Yoruba, Ifa divination is considered the most reliable, and the most popular means of divination.

Ifa divination is both a body of knowledge and a system of social, emotional, pathological control, employing relevant historical and mythological precedents contained in the special divinatory verses to be recited, chanted or song by the Babalawo. lfa divination is the most complex system of divination both in its repertoire of verses and in its range of applications. To the Yoruba, divination or consultation with the supreme divinity (Orunmila) is of crucial spiritual importance. The oral tradition emphasizes the part played by Orunmila is guiding the destiny of man and divinities. One reason given for his intimate knowledge of matters affecting man’s destiny is that Orunmila is present when man is being created. Therefore he knows all the secrets of human beings and thus he can reveal what one has destined and if the destiny is an unfortunate one, Orunmila can prescribe remedies to avert the misfortune. This is why Orunmila is being described as Elerii-ipin (the witness of destiny or lot), ‘Obirikiti A-pa-ojo-iku-da’ (the great one, who alters the date of death).

Ifa divination is operated by means of the configuration called Odu. In the Ifa corpus are as many as 256 possibilities (16 principal and 240 minor Odu) each containing mythological stories which the Babalawo narrates in the process of divination.

Tags: Ifa Divination, Divination, Odu, Orunmila

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1. How Important Is Ifa Divination In The Practice Of Yoruba Traditional Religion

Mayan calendars are still used by a few cultures in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, and El Salvador and are said to be the most accurate ones in existence. They date the solar year accurately within minutes, taking account of the cycles of sun, moon, Venus, and other cosmic bodies and only have to add one “leap day” after 380,000 years. Mayan civilization was quite advanced, possessing technology that modern man is still trying to comprehend.

But will the year 2012 bring the end of the world?

Well, I think the end of the world as we “know” it will come to an end, but I do not see the end of man kind. From a spiritual perspective, I believe that the world is ready for an awakening which will end how we perceive the world and universe we live in. There is a collective consciousness which is about to be awaken, and this new state of awareness will bring an end to the world as we know it in the year 2012.

Will this be the end of time for man kind?

I don’t believe it to be so. However; those who persist to ignore the health or our planet will in deed find their actions counter productive not only to this planet but for their own existence. There will be an energy which will be felt, and it’s impact will resonate like a trumpet from the cosmos. We are an electronic society, and our medium of communication will be severely impacted. If you gauge our world to be one which can be returned to the era of the pony express, then for you losing your ability to text, to chat, to get and email, or see your favorite TV show etc., etc., etc., may seem like the end of the world.

Is the Year 2012 just a year of rebirth?

I think that the year 2012 will bring such sweeping changes that will force us to re-think our position and relationship with nature and the universe we are a part of.

I feel that two significant Orishas will be the protagonist of the changes to come; Oya, and Shango.

For far too long we have fooled ourselves into thinking that our industrial progress does not impact our world, and its capacity to regenerate and replace that which we have destroyed. This facade must, and will come to an end. Therefore, that which is no longer of use, and destructive to our relation with nature, and the universe we are part of must be destroyed, and it will.

This is the end and rebirth I feel the Year 2012 will bring.

But you may still have some questions like…..

1.) What will happen in December 21, 2012? Is the world really going to end?
2.) Is 2012 just another “End of The World” scare? What makes this date any different?
3.) Is there really a planet called Nibiru AKA (Planet X) that will get close to the Earth in 2012?
4.) Will there be a Galactic alignment in 2012?
5.) What does Nostradamus say about 2012?
6.) Does the Mayan calendar end December 21, 2012? Is the Mayan prophecies true?
7.) WIll a comet hit the earth and destroy everything?
8.) Is this web site an attempt to scare people to buy products through fear of global catastrophe?
9.) Why are you selling information about 2012?
10.) What exactly do I get when I join 2012 Official Countdown?

Get The 2012 Official Countdown

Survival Guide

The Truth about December 2012

Finally Exposed To The Public

Click Here To Download It Today!

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2. Ifa Divination For The Year 2011

Between 10,000 and 6,000 BC the Africans of the Nile valley and great lakes region devised the stellar calendar. In 4,000 BC the solar calendar would mark the era of a new age; a dynastic period extended its greatness through an entire millennium. The pyramid builders and monument architects erected monolithic structures that till this day continue to marvel modern architecture.

The foundation of a culture’s spiritual system influenced by the celestial bodies and their movement in the heavens inspired them to erect monuments that marked the solstices and the equinoxes as well as the transits of the planets.

The veneration of the ancestors was also determined by the celestial movements; as translated in “The book of the dead” and “The book of coming forth by day”, “The coffin text, and Pyramid text. These religious text or papyrus scrolls are cryptic descriptions of allegorical stories of the deities that resided in the heavens that have considerably influenced their daily lives to such a high degree that magnificent temples were erected in their honor that are still in existence today.

The descendants of this culture who migrated from the Nile valley and great lakes region over period of generations became known as the Yoruba of Southwestern Nigeria in West Africa whose cultural practices were and still are deeply submerged in ancestral veneration. Despite the emergence of Christian missionaries and Islamic Jihads there still resides within this cultural context the traditional Yoruba’s belief system is known as Ifa acknowledging the creator, Oludumare through the essence of nature. Oludumare` the creator force birthed the heavens into existence, thus bringing into existence the extensions of the creator; better known as Orisha.

A practice consisting of the acknowledgment of the creator through the forces of nature. Within the elements of earth wind water and fire there exist an entire pantheon of African deities known as Orisha, the indwelling spirit of consciousness that plays a significant role from the heavens in the daily lives of the practioners of the spiritual traditions of Ifa; The Yoruba believe that it is Orisha who guides the consciousness of an individual. It is said that there exist 400 Orisha; facets of nature which are earthly representations of the cosmos; heavenly energies, and therefore nothing exist or happens in the sky that does not have its influence or vibration on earth within nature’s elements and also in human behavior.

The traditional Yoruba believe that everything within nature on earth possesses a consciousness; plant animal mineral and man. The Orisha’s characters are based on the characteristic nature of the planets; their movements, such as oppositions, trines, sextiles and conjunctions in astrology and astronomy. These celestial events are interpreted from the Yoruba’s own cultural perspective.

The scope of this article is not intended to discuss the Ifa religious system in its entirety; only the major Orisha as their correspondence to the natal birth chart, the houses, inner and outer planets and transits.

If you could imagine the beginning and end of a circle you would come to understand the never ending cycle of creation, reincarnation transition and that all things created have a destiny that is influenced by the heavens. In traditional Ifa the Orisha or god of destiny is Orumila; also known as the oracle Orisha. Within the divination system of the Yoruba the Opan Ifa; divining board used in Ifa divination is similar to that of the astrological birth or natal chart that is divided into twelve houses equaling thirty degrees, the distance it takes the sun to travel in a day.

The twelve houses of the natal chart are areas of life governed by a particular planet, in regards to the traditional Yoruba’s cultural perception of ones existence these houses would be ruled by a particular essence in nature or Orisha; for instance:

The first house the self or outward appearance and surface personality is Aries the ram ruled by Mars, within the Yoruba tradition the Orisha of iron and steel, Ogun the warrior god possessing assertive and aggressive characteristics rules the first house. It is Ogun who is the patron of soldiers, police Officers, surgeons, railroad workers, welders, body builders, or anyone employed to work with iron and steel.

The second house the house of material possessions and money is Taurus ruled by Venus the goddess of love; within the Yoruba pantheon Orisha of the rivers lakes and all bodies of fresh water. Oshun the mother of abundance dominates this area of life; motherhood, wealth, and love.

The third house the house of duality, balance, communication, high energy is Gemini ruled by Mercury. The cosmic twins of the Yoruba pantheon the Ibeji; dominate in this area of life they are the ying and yang, positive and negative energies existing within all life.

The fourth house pertains to issues surrounding the home. Maternal, protective, nurturing and instinctive; qualities dominate in Cancer ruled by the moon. These are the attributes of the Orisha Yemoja, Orisha of the ocean, whose ebb and flow of the tides are a result of the moon which is an attribute of her as well.

The fifth house Leo ruled by the sun; a house of enjoyment romance, children, and most of all creativity in all aspects of existence. Here the illumination of the sun is reflectant of the wisdom of Orumila the Orisha of destiny who sits by the side of Oludumare the creator god of the Yoruba. It is within this aspect of existence where man chooses his or her destiny and it is recorded by Orumila in the presence of Oludumare at which time the breath of life is given to man upon his or her emergence on earth; hence the creation of man.

The six house Virgo a house of work, health, and service ruled by Mercury. Out of the Yoruba pantheon of Orisha it is Esu Orisha of the crossroads who is responsible for communication in every aspect of existence between the Orisha, the ancestors, man, and Oludumare. His realm of existence lies between the spirit world and the material world. His domain is within the crossroads; when the sun moon or planet crosses over into a various zodiac signs to assert a particular influence. This is an aspect of Esu, working to ensure that the other Orisha are able to serve their purposes. He is also known as the divine messenger the most important Orisha within the pantheon. His influence may also be found in the third house as well.

The seventh house of partnerships is a house of balance and harmony; a trait of Libra who is ruled by Venus. Here is another domain of Oshun that falls within the realm of love, romance and marriage. Oshun relishes in elegance, beauty, grace, artistry, charm charisma and refinement. She is the Yoruba goddess of love.

The eighth house of Scorpio ruled by Pluto this is a house of absolute power. Scorpio is one of the most powerful signs of the zodiac is it any wonder that the warrior Orisha Oya, also the storm goddess of the Yoruba dominates this eighth house of transformation, regeneration, death, sex reincarnation, and other peoples money; inheritances and financing. She is the hurricanes that form on the West coast of Africa traveling across the Atlantic with winds that generating anywhere from seventy to two hundred miles an hour, she is the tornados and twisters that uproots trees and houses. She is the only force within nature that has the ability to change the face of the earth from her destructive winds. This powerful Orisha is also responsible for carrying the spirits of the newly departed to the spirit world. In Nigeria it is Oya who dominates the market place. In some parts of Nigeria she is Oya of the Niger River; a force within nature to be respected, and a most formidable warrior attribute when invoked to fight for women’s rights.

The ninth house the domain of Sagittarius; a place of higher education, religion, philosophy, and divine law; ruled by Jupiter the planet of expansion, growth, and good fortune is the largest body in our solar system besides the sun. This would be the Yoruba’s planetary counterpart of Obatala the father of the Orisha; owner of the white cloth, he is the purity and illumination at its zenith, the Orisha of wisdom and intelligence, ruling the physical body his domain is all white fluids of the body, the skeletal structure, and the brain.

The tenth house of career status and reputation dominated by Capricorn is ruled by Saturn. The Yoruba pantheon of Orisha associates Babalu-Aiye with the planet Saturn, which is the taskmaster. Saturn is associated with patients, discipline, limitation, and structure. Babalu-Aiye is considered the Orisha of the earth. He can bring forth either prosperity or sickness and disease, for is also known as the deity of small pox, in Catholicism he is referred to as St. Lazarus.

The eleventh houseis the house of Aquarius dominated by upheaval, rebellion, and sudden unexpected events. Ruled by Uranus these characteristics of rebellion, upraises, sudden changes, and upheaval are traits of the warrior Orisha Shango the Orisha of thunder lightning and fire. During the course of history when Uranus was aspecting, or transiting Pluto this was a time of great change through acts of war and war, slave uprisings, and rebellions, especially in the Caribbean islands. The civil rights era was violent and turbulent as well bringing about great change. These historical events throughout history as violent as they were would be associated with the warrior aspects of not only Shango but the Orisha Ogun, and Oya. This fiery energy of the heavens denotes aggressive and assertive influences of the heavenly bodies. Within the Yoruba pantheon such Orisha would be called upon for protection from ones enemies.

The twelfth house of Pieces ruled by Neptune is deeply submerged in secrecy prone to illusionary facets of reality. This house is centered on seclusion and spirituality. This house of the subconscious is dominated by Olokun the Orisha of the ocean floor. Deep and mysterious his realm is; the old Yoruba proverb says that nobody knows what lies on the ocean floor. His aspects are reflectant in the dream time, the subconscious, and the altered state of consciousness when one enters spirit possession, ritual and various levels of initiations and numerous rites of passage. Olokun is considered to be the star of Africa; he would be considered the owner of the great mystery systems of Africa; known by many names. He sparks within us the genius within our being activating our super subconscious.

The interchangeable role played by the Orisha, and endless celestial bodies and their influence on one another can be somewhat overwhelming. As the study of astrology and astronomy becomes more advanced our comprehension of the Orisha and their planetary characteristics and similarities continue to remain a mystery to the uninitiated.

About the Author

Soyinka I Ogunbusola; currently a member of the American Federation of Astrologers. She has recently published two books “Ancestral Memories and Beyond Deceptions Myths and Lies.” She has been in Africa researching video recording, photographing and documenting various cultures. Please visit her at www.blackplanet.com

Tags: orisha astrology, divination

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Its History and Purpose in Divination

The concept of communication with the Spirits and Guardian Angels in the African Diaspora religions is an intricate part of the spiritual development of the practitioners, whether initiate or life long spiritual head of an ile (or “house of worship”). Obi divination is the methodology of obtaining an answer as guidance for movement in a situation or the outcome of current events.

Questions posed before Obi must be in a way to elect an affirmative or negative (“Yes” or “No”) answer, each answer will give clarity like a map, which way to turn and which option to take. Depending on the answer, various rituals as sprinkling water on the Obi or even taking the coconut out of the home when an extremely negative answer is given.

The Yoruba based religions have many branches with variations in their ways of worship but the religions and belief systems that have crossed the Atlantic Ocean with the Diaspora to the New World have given blessing for the opportunity and the permission to use Obi as a method of divination in the New World. From the highest ranks of the religions, the Babalawo (High Priest), to the Babalorisha (male priests or Santeros), Iyalorishas (female priestesses or Santeras) and Aborisha (those not fully initiated into the religion), Obi is available for all to use

The traditional method of divination with Obi instructs us to take a fresh coconut and split it into four equal parts by using a small mallet on the coconut while on a counter or tabletop. We are not to open the coconut by throwing the coconut against the floor, which is an insult to Obi. Obi is a basic tool of divination for any believer of Orisha-based religions and in Spanish it is called “dar el coco”. When using Obi for divination, most of the time the Orisha Ellegua (Elegua,Legba) will be consulted, as he sees what is down the “road” or “path” for you as Ellegua, guardian of the crossroads. Sometimes, the situation necessitates calling on any of other Orishas; the nature based gods and Goddesses of the religions. In lieu of fresh coconut, sometimes cowrie shells are used for divination.

Obi is used to ask “Yes” or “No” questions of the Orishas, the ancestors of the family of the querent or their Ori (Soul). Obi is also used to determine whether an offering to the Orishas to change or propiate the Spirit is needed or is an offering is sufficient and acceptable to the Orisha.

Are You Wondering What Kind Of Questions You Can Ask?
Following is a sampling of questions you can ask:

• Am I in alignment with my Destiny?
• Am I in the right field of work?
• Am I ready for a mate?
• Is now a good time for having children?
• Is there something I can do to prevent loss in an upcoming legal dispute?
• Should I take a stand on this political issue?
• Do the Ancestors approve of my political views?
• Do the Ancestors approve of my lifestyle choices?
• Would I learn something positive from making friends with so-and-so?
• Can so-and-so be trusted with my secrets at this time?
• Can you help me identify spiritual exercises that will help me be more disciplined?
• Am I in any immediate danger from others?
• Is this a good time to find a home I can afford and buy it?
• Is this home that I have picked out free of unseen dangers?
• Is so-and-so lying to me?
• Am I prepared for my upcoming exams?
• Should I share the results of this reading with anyone other than my spiritual advisor?

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