Oshe Fun

The Santo must not be abandoned

In the land of Elupa there was always war among its inhabitants, and they did not know where that violence came from. A family called Oyoyoran lived there who always wanted everything done quickly, and because of their impatience they began to spread the belief of the Matombeo among the people of the town. As a result, the people abandoned the Santo and gave themselves over to the Matombeo, which in the end brought trouble upon the land, including illnesses of the throat, the stomach and the blood.

Oyoyorun realised what was happening and consulted Orunmila, who told him that this was due to the abandonment of the Santo and that they had to perform an ebbo in order to be saved. Oyoyorun performed the ebbo and afterwards went to live elsewhere.

The mat is for the bed; the figure is made by Elegbá; the path of oraniken is called Obaguere and is placed at the foot of Eshu and Iya, and if there is none, it is made. After the figure has been laid down for the days Orunmila marks — which may not be more than 16 days — everything else is asked as well. Whoever receives this Ifá may walk with nothing but the Santo, because if he changes, he loses.

Orunmila saved the people of Oshe Ni Fun

In the land of Oshe Ni Fun the situation was alarming because of a pact made between Shangó and Ikú (death). The god felt slighted and, to take revenge, agreed that each year he would kill part of the population so that Ikú could feed. That terrible slaughter brought unease and dread upon the people.

One day, while Orunmila was making osode, the omen was revealed that Oshe Ni Fun ofo (loss) intori Ikú. Orunmila knew what he had to do: he put the idefa on the whole population, and when Shangó saw it he was taken aback. Even so, he warned them that something more was still needed. Then Shangó showed them an ota and a necklace of quimbombo keke, and explained that they had to perform Orugboshe.

The following day Orunmila gathered the people of Oshe Ni Fun and marked ebbo for them, for which they needed a guinea fowl, an ota, ikoko, 7 small pieces of raw yam, quimbombo keke, eku, eya, epo, awado and aboran okan. Thanks to Orunmila’s intervention, the people of Oshe Ni Fun were able to put an end to the terrible consequences of the pact between Shangó and Ikú.

Orunmila made an osode and saw Oshe Ni Fun ofo intori Ikú. He then decided to make an ebbo to protect the population. The ebbo included a guinea fowl, an ota, ikoko, 7 small pieces of raw yam, quimbombo keke, eku, eya, epo, awado and aboran okan.

Afterwards, Shangó told them that something was still missing and gave them an idefa and a necklace of quimbombo keke to perform Orugboshe. The next day Orunmila marked ebbo with the guinea fowl for Obatalá, and the head, which went into the ebbo, was handed over to joro joro. With what remained over, an inshe of Ozain was made and an idefa of Orunmila or of Obatalá was placed on it, or it was covered with Orunmila’s beads.

The ebbo was made in a pot, taking care that it did not break, since that endangered the life of whoever was making the ebbo. An oparaldo was also performed with a chicken, a figure, a coconut, ewe of purple basil, artemisia, carob and aberikunlo. The chicken was hung up and the rest was buried.

Seeing all this, Olofin said: «To Iban Eshu».

The path where leukaemia was born

Orunmila was a pilgrim who came to a town where the people looked very poor and badly dressed. While he was there he saw a healthy-looking man pass by him and told him that he had to make an ebbo. The man, seeing Orunmila’s appearance, took offence and answered that Orunmila was the one who needed to make ebbo, since he himself was in perfect health. But Orunmila warned him that his legs would ache, that he would have circulation problems and that his body would be ruined.

The man ignored the warning and went on his way, while Orunmila continued his journey. In time the man began to feel all the symptoms Orunmila had foretold and decided to look for the old prophet. On examining him, Orunmila made an osode and this Ifá came out, and he told him he had to make a rogation to see whether Obatalá could save him. He instructed him to take two green coconuts and to seek out Obatalá.

The sick man followed Orunmila’s advice and took two green coconuts to look for Obatalá. One day, while he was on the road, he saw Obatalá coming with a monkey and with Ikú. He went up to him and offered him the green coconuts. Obatalá, being thirsty, took them and asked the man what was wrong with him. The man answered that he was ill and could barely walk.

Then Obatalá asked him whether he had carried out the task Orunmila had given him. The man answered that he had not, and for that disobedience Orunmila decreed his death.

Once the oparaldo has been done, it is asked ¿Si otan?; the green coconuts are to be drunk (do this often). When this Ifá comes out, the person suffers from these ailments and there is no longer salvation for him: through his disobedience, death is already on its way.
PATAKIN:

: What happened to this person is what happened to the boa, which does not eat anything sweet because its blood is not right. Scales may appear on the person’s skin; here leukaemia and cerebral amnesia are born. This Ifá is one of disbelief; a proud person may be left crippled. Diabetes speaks here, and the circulation of the blood is defective. In this Ifá one must remove the dead and the bad influences, which are what cause these ailments to settle into the body.

The path where the canastillero was born

Each Orisha lived in his own territory, and a king and a queen were known there. In those days no one could know more than they did, and death was feared by all. That entity dressed in black and moved about by night, blending into the darkness to carry off whomever it wished. The only territories it did not pass through, however, were those of Oggún and Oshún.

The other Orishas grew worried about this situation and decided to gather at the house of a wise man who lived in Ara Ife. There they discovered that the wise man used black seeds split in two and hooked onto a chain in order to divine, something they knew nothing about. Moreover, the wise man wore a necklace of green and yellow beads, which seemed to them similar to the entities of Oggún and Oshún, the ones death used to bind its victims.

None of the representatives of the peoples dared to speak out about the tests the wise man put them through, out of fear of him, for he was a friend of death and of the territory of Ara Ife Osha. Everything changed, however, when Obatalá arrived, made himself known and presented himself as the representation of Olofin.

Obatalá pointed out that he did not arrive late and that, as Olofin’s representative, it was his duty to uncover both the good and the bad. Despite the fear the representatives of the peoples felt, it was necessary for them to speak sincerely and say what they thought. Obatalá looked up to the sky and spoke of the 16 rays of sun that Olofin had given him in order to seek the unification of all the peoples.

Obatalá revealed that the house they were in was the sacred house of Ifá, the home of Olofin, and that the wise man present there was Olofin’s direct spokesman, sent to preach his commands and his powers. That wise man, whose name was Awo Orunmila, was the one charged with imparting divine wisdom and watching over harmony among the peoples. With Obatalá’s words the truth came to light and it became possible to move towards greater understanding and unity.

After Obatalá had presented himself and made clear who he was, Orunmila greeted them and registered a new Oddun; at once he ordered the green beads to be joined with the yellow ones and set a white flag on the house. He explained that green was his own identification and that yellow stood for Oshún, who is half of the world, of gold, of blood and of life. The black seeds with the chain, moreover, belonged to Oggún, who is the other half by Olofin’s command and is the God of death. Orunmila stressed that no one had died in Ara Ife Osha thanks to the presence of Oggún.

Orunmila reminded them that they had achieved what Olofin wanted: to acknowledge him and his role as Olofin’s direct spokesman. He handed them the idefa and told them that the doors of the sacred house of Ifá would always be open to all the children of Olofin. With this, the union and harmony among the peoples became plain, and the purpose that had been sought was achieved.

The idefa was born

There was an omo of Orunmila who lived apart from everyone else in a nearby town called Abile. One day Shangó, Elegbara and Oggún went out hunting and found themselves caught in the bush when night fell. They decided to seek shelter in the house of Oshe Coshe Feruru, who kindly gave them lodging and food.

At that very moment, however, Ikú was also out looking for someone to take away with her. She came to the house of Oshe Coshe Feruru and, on seeing a hairy man with sideburns — not knowing that it was he — decided to carry him off. Ikú began to open the door of the ile, but since she had not seen the other guests, Elegbara tripped her up and Oggún chained her while Shangó questioned her and set fire to her.

Ikú was forced to explain that she was there to take away the bearded man with sideburns, without recognising that this was Oshe Coshe Feruru. Shangó showed her who this man was and told her she could not take him. As punishment for her ill intentions, Shangó threatened to burn her and resolved to protect his friend Oshe Coshe Feruru. In this way it is shown how friendship and solidarity can protect people from the harmful forces that seek to hurt them.

By this path the awó must not be hairy or bearded, and you must also give unyen to Elegbá, Shangó and Oggún.

The owner of this Ifá must wear the idefa joined to a chain.

The path where Yemayá cursed the pig

This ebbo is made taking care that the ikoko does not break, so that the life of the one making the ebbo is not put at risk.

Here Yemayá cursed the elede (pig), saying to it: «I shall eat you only after you have been well plucked». For otherwise Yemayá’s hair stood on end and the meat gave her indigestion. Since then, all pigs are scraped clean before being eaten.

The idefa, the mark of Orunmila

Death was watching Orunmila in order to carry him off, but first she announced that she would do so within three days. When she went to fetch him, she slipped on the slime of the okra that Orunmila had poured at the door and fell. Eshu, Shangó and Oggún realised that it was death and asked her whether she knew who lived there. She answered that she did not.

Eshu then began to stuff her into a sack, but Oggún begged him not to harm her, since death did not know the place where they were. So they came to an agreement: death undertook never to carry off anyone marked with Orunmila’s idefa, unless he himself so ordered it or decided to hand that person over. With this pact, Orunmila’s followers and devotees were left protected, and peace of mind was assured for all of them.