Ika Sa

Here was born the mistake of taking one Santo for another

On this path, Oyá had a daughter who was very vain and proud of her mother’s great powers; everything she did turned out well. This daughter of Oyá was named Bumi. One day she fell ill and everything began to go wrong for her, but she did not want to tell her mother.

She went to visit Shangó to make ofikale with him, and Bumi was left aboñi. She went to the land of Teguarollo where her mother Oyá lived, who told her: «I do not know what has happened, but as soon as you have that child, he must be handed over to Shangó.» Oyá said to her daughter Bumi: «Let us go see Obatalá.» When they set out on the road so that Obatalá would receive them, they sang: «Babakua Leleo Ikasa Aguare Ifá Omo Bumi».

Along the way, they came upon Orunmila, who was passing by. They gave moforibale to Orunmila, and his opkele fell and marked Ika Sa, and he said to Oyá: «Oyá or Obatalá must be made on your daughter’s head; take care that there is no confusion, and the child she carries is the legitimate son of Shangó.»

Obatalá gave the daughter of Oyá 3 pieces of Oggún and called it Oggún Fomale — a round piece of iron, a machete, a sickle, an ota which he anointed with plenty of epó (palm oil) — gave her osiadie meta and one eyele, and said to Ayaguna: «Everything you do and ask at the foot of Oggún will be granted to you, and your resguardo shall eat with Oggún.»

At that moment, Bumi gave birth, and Obatalá said to her: «Leave this child here with me so I can hand him to Shangó, who will come to see me in 7 days, and I will deliver his son to him before you both.» After 7 days, Shangó arrived and, before Oyá and Bumi, Obatalá handed him the child to take back to his land, Tigua Yorokun.

Bumi, the daughter of Oyá, was deeply displeased because her son had been consecrated before her. Bumi and Oyá returned to their land, and everything Bumi did with her resguardo of Oggún turned out well. One day, Bumi decided to visit other lands and afterwards go to see her son Ika.

Eshu, who was always thinking of wars and of his powers against Oyá, planned to do Bumi a wicked turn and invited her to a great feast where Shangó was present, though he left before Eshu and Bumi arrived. Bumi saw the great feast and how beautifully Oshún danced.

The son of Eshu, called Ika Eshu, got up to dance, and Bumi fell in love with his dancing and his manner. He said to Bumi: «You cannot be here without me, otoku.» And they made yoko Oshún on Bumi. When Bumi returned to her land where Oyá was, her mother scorned her and cursed her, stripping her of the powers she had.

Bumi began to suffer hardship, and everything she did went from bad to worse. Each time she went to the secret of Oggún, it no longer answered her as before. One day, Orunmila met Oyá on the road, and she took him to see Bumi so he would read for her again. Orunmila said: «She will have to endure some hardship. Obatalá must be called to see what he can do.»

The Babalawo must pay great attention to this Oddun so as not to make a mistake; Oyá, Obatalá, or Oggún must be made on the person’s head.

The seller of Osha cowries

There was a man who sold cowries and other articles of the religion. He had a good wife and four children. When he earned 10 pesos, he wanted to earn 20, because he was never satisfied with what he made.

One day this man fell ill and decided to go to the house of Orunmila to be divined. In the osode, this Ifá (Ika Sa) came out, and Orunmila told him: «You must give adie meyi aperi to Oshún.» The man never returned to Orunmila’s house because he did not want to spend his money on such things. With each passing day his health grew worse, and he suffered from his stomach and his heart.

The man’s wife, seeing her husband grow sicker by the day, went to consult Orunmila. Upon learning who the person was that the woman wished to have read, Orunmila told her: «Not for his sake, but for yours, since you are a good woman, I will attend to it.» And he said: «It is no longer enough for him to give the adie meyi aperi to Oshún; now he must make an unyen to Gbogbo kalemo Osha if he wants to save himself.» The man had no choice but to carry out the work Orunmila had prescribed this time, and he had to spend all the money he had saved and was left with nothing.

He had to content himself with living on the little he earned each day, and Orunmila also told him: «For your disobedience to the word of Ifá, you will never again enjoy the health you once had, nor as much economic success as before.»

Disobedience to what Ifá prescribes over a person can cost them even their own life.

Here is where Oggún went to live in the 12 caverns

Here is where Oggún, having earned a great deal of money, went to live in the 12 caverns, withdrawing from society, thinking that because he was rich his money would never run out; and he came to find himself without even clothes, so that he had to wear a loincloth of maribó and became a cimarrón.

Greed for money can lead you to ruin.

The talking bird

OPARALDO: Akuko fun fun, asho fun fun, dun dun, ati pupua, eñi, adie meyi, ikoko keke of clay, resin of igui algarrobo and alamo, itana meyi, dried obí, inle elese algarrobo and elese alamo, ewe, ritual items, epo, eran malu meta, remaining ingredients, opolopo owo.

There was a man who had the bad habit of speaking ill of others and spreading rumors. One day, a person who knew him well told him that his words were hurting people and that he ought to change his ways. The man paid no attention and carried on with his poisonous behavior.

Later that same day, the man had a dream in which an orisha spoke to him and told him he had to make ebbó to cleanse his tongue and his mind of negativity. The next morning, the man decided to follow the instructions of the dream and went to see a Babalawo for a consultation.

The Babalawo told him that his dream was a warning and that he should make ebbó to avoid trouble in the future. The man agreed to do it, and after the ceremony he felt lighter, freed of the burden he had carried in his heart.

After making the ebbó, the man decided to change his behavior and be kinder to others. As time went by, people began to notice his change and his positive attitude. Eventually, the man became an example to follow, and many began to imitate him.

This is an example of how a person can change and become someone better if they are willing to do the work required. Life can be hard, but with the right attitude and the willingness to make the necessary changes, we can overcome any obstacle and become the best versions of ourselves.

Ifá OSORBO: With your tongue you have done harm to other people, and if you keep doing it, you will be killed. You have trouble with your feet.

Ifá IRÉ (good fortune): With your tongue you have done harm to other people, and although you may now regret it, there will always be someone who speaks unfavorably of you. That is what is represented by the resin that stuck to the feet of the talking bird.

Here the alpargata was born.

The ailing father and his three sons

There was a man who lived on the coast, where the wind blew hard, and he and his three sons often fell ill, especially the eldest. Time passed, and what worried him most was his poor financial situation, despite his efforts to earn a living and meet his family and social obligations.

At a critical point, this man began to lose strength and customers, because he could no longer gather the same quantity of cowries from the bottom of the sea. His wife was devoted to Yemayá and Obatalá, and kept Elegbá in her home, so she advised him to visit Orunmila.

In the divination, Orunmila revealed that the man’s troubles were inevitable because of his lack of faith in the santos. To resolve them, his wife and his sons each had to make ebó separately. After making ebó, they began to prosper and moved to a larger house closer to town. Later they received initiation in the religion of the orishas and attained health, peace, and success in life.

The orphan prince

In this story from the land of Ika Nile, there was a king named Orí Turufan who had a son they called Afadi, who was orphaned of father and mother at 16 days old. After the sudden death of the monarchs, the ministers of the kingdom agreed among themselves to do away with the crown prince, so that they could rule the kingdom themselves and prevent him from claiming his right to be crowned king when he came of age.

They took him to the wilderness and abandoned him to die of hunger or be devoured by some animal. However, near the place where he was abandoned there was a cave where an eure lived; seeing the child so small, she took pity on him and sheltered him inside the cave, nursing him at her udder and raising him as if he were her own.

When the boy was around seven years old, he left the cave and began to wander the world, enduring many hardships and learning to speak. At 16, he returned to the cave where the eure had cared for him, but no matter how hard he searched, he could not find her. Since he spoke well and had a fair amount of money, he went to the town of that land of Ika Nile and had himself read by an awo named Kele Kele awo opolopo awo, who told him he had to make Ifá so as not to keep suffering hardship in life, and so that one day he might recover everything that belonged to him by rightful inheritance. The orphan, who did not even know his own name, gave the awo money to consecrate him in Ifá.

During the atefa ceremony everything unfolded correctly, and the Oddun Ika Sa came out as toyale. When the awo returned from the river to begin the sacrifice to Orunmila, he saw that the eure they were going to sacrifice was the very one that had raised him in the cave, and he began to weep bitterly. His godfather asked him why he wept, when everything had gone very well and he himself was very pleased. He answered that this eure was the only mother he had ever had in the world, for she had raised him in the cave. Awo Kele Kele said to all the awos present: «From this day forward, whenever the Oddun Ika Sa comes out as Toyale in an atefa ceremony, the eure shall be blessed and shall not be sacrificed.»

Then all the kings present, from Baba Ejiogbe to Oragun, agreed that each of them would eat one adie dun dun, and with 16 adie dun dun the sacrifice was made to that Ifá, giving its owunko keke and its akuko and eyele to Elegbara, Oggún, Oshosi, and Osun. In time, that orphan won the crown of his land.

“Orunmila Adie Lereke Etile Adie Lere Ere Tashe Fadie Ika Sa Kele Kele Awo Adie Dun Dun Ina Tuto Ni Fawa”

Through this Ifá, no eure is given to Orunmila in the atefa ceremony, for that Ifá shall never eat eure; in pinado ceremonies it will eat 16 adie dun dun. When making that sacrifice, 8 balls of ishu must be placed on each hand of that Ifá.

The corrupted town

There was a town whose inhabitants were very disorderly and irresponsible, which worried the few honest families still living there. They complained to Olofin about the chaotic situation they were enduring because of the great number of wrongdoers, among them thieves, swindlers, and procurers.

Olofin decided to send Elegbara to govern the land and set it right. But when the wrongdoers learned that Elegbara had been sent to bring order to the town, they got him drunk, and he lost his standing before them. Olofin sent other santos to govern the land, but every one of them failed, letting themselves be bribed by the wrongdoers.

Finally, Olofin decided to send Oyá, who was known for her obedience and her upright principles. Orunmila, in the osode he made for Olofin, recommended Oyá for the task. Oyá went to the house of Orunmila to make ebbó with adie dun dun meyi, fruits, food, drink, a basket, yarako, a switch or whip, eku, eya, epo, and other ingredients.

Orunmila advised Oyá to cook the adie and carry everything in the basket, so that she would have food, drink, and something with which to defend herself from the wrongdoers.

When Oyá arrived in that land, the wrongdoers tried to buy her with everything they enjoyed, but she answered no thank you, for she had everything in her basket. Oyá set the town’s inhabitants right through her example and her authority, and soon good customs restored peace and well-being to the land.

That ebbó also carries ofa meta, and once it is done, one of those ofa is handed to the person for whom it was made, to place in the front room of the house, so that she (if a woman) may marry a man of good standing.

How Ika found his power