Ifa’s advice for this week indicates the coming of an influence. This may take the form of teaching from your Ori, an interaction with another, or a disturbing or pleasing event. In any case, there is good fortune if you meet the influence with proper thoughts and actions.
Ifa suggests that alignment with the flow of the universe is in demand for this week. This adjustment must be made before further action is taken, otherwise, you will begin to make mistakes. Ifa says that when actions that seem perfectly reasonable and clearly planned are executed, they will end in difficulty and confusion.
It is a good time to remember that like attracts like. If one gives expression to higher things, then one is surrounded by higher things. If one indulges in what is inferior, then one can expect to have the company of inferiors. Therefore, it is wise to cling steadily to humility, independence, gentleness, and openness.
If you are attempting at this time to make a decision or judgment concerning another person, pay particular attention to what he/she attracts. In this way, you can penetrate his/her nature and fate. By examining his/her energy, ideas and associations, you can begin to see what the nature of your involvement will be. Then you may determine if such an attraction will benefit you.
The same holds true in the judgment of any situation. By penetrating that which the situation attracts (people, problems, and possibilities), you can see the way it will affect your current position, well-being, and future.
We are also told to examine our motives because they will be the cause of our problems. This is a time for acting without ulterior motives and with complete rectitude. Ifa says not to look to be rewarded for your actions, nor direct them cunningly towards personal advancement.
With others, keep an open heart, free of desire, condemning no one, enjoying affinities while retaining your equanimity. Keep a clear connection with your Ori. Seek resolutely to serve as a conduit for truth and innocence and goodness.
If the influence is challenging, persevere incorrectness. If it is pleasing, also persevere incorrectness. Maintaining your devotion to higher things insures success during this week.
Ifa reminds us that the path to achieving our goals is now an indirect path. We must rely on our principles and inner virtue rather than clever strategies. This will not lead us away from success – on the contrary.
If you are a teacher, leader, or head of a family, use the insights and inspirations that will occur during this week to fulfill the needs of those who rely on you. Do this without thought of compensation or hope of a possible gain in statue.
It is important to keep in mind that the laws of the universe are divided and do not necessarily follow our desires. Therefore, when acting with an innocent heart, you will also experience the unexpected, the exceptional, the unpredictable. Be prepared for a surprising turn of events. What occurs will stimulate new ideas, even if at first this seems unnerving or full of complications.
Ifa says that a state of innocence/purity could be a refreshing interlude in your personal relationships. Spontaneity can bring great pleasures as well as reveal true feelings and motives, whereas intrigue would only yield perplexity and possibly disaster during this week. Bottom line is that maintaining an open heart my lead to surprising new areas of unexplored mutual interest.
For those of you who are puzzled or at a standstill in regard to a particular issue, a spontaneous method of action could lead to a highly creative and original solution. Ifa says to act without guile and do not attack the problem directly.
In the very center of each of us there dwells an innocent and divine spirit. If we allow ourselves to be guided by it in every situation, we can never go wrong. This week’s Odu (Irete Owonrin) comes to remind us that we must actively disengage our egos before we can obtain the vast rewards that come from living in a state of innocence.
The nature of the ego is that when we exercise it, it takes us out of the present. When we engage in ambitions, anxieties, or anticipations, our ego is skipping ahead, and we miss the guidance of our Ori in the present moment.
When we engage in anger, judgment, and condemnation (whether toward ourselves or others) our ego is looking backward, and we cannot see our Ori’s clear solution to the present situation. In either case, the result is misfortune. Only by stilling the ego and accepting life in its entirety can we have an open and innocent heart. In this state, we are receptive to the help of our Ori and can meet with good fortune wherever we go.
We are advised now to stop looking forward and backward, to abandon our ambitions, to disengage from judgments and critical thinking. If a thought, attitude, or action is not in accord with the principles of acceptance, equanimity, humility, and gentleness, do not indulge in it. Ifa encourages us to actively practice acceptance and innocence/purity. Because the ego is strong, we must make a conscious and conscientious effort to keep an open heart.
If you willfully un-structure your attitude, open your heart, and allow yourself to be guided by that which is innocent and pure (your Ori), you will meet with success in the coming week.
Sayings of this Odu:
- The toe is in the door. It is a good time to review your attitude and correct it if necessary. Only then can success arrive unhindered.
- Do no rush forward or allow yourself to be run over. Allow your quiet heart to lead you.
- Express your knowledge in your conduct rather than in your words. Trust the wisdom of your Ori and allow each person to come to his/her own understanding.
