Ojuani Osa

Where oro came down to earth and is called orisha arufin

At the beginning of the creation of Odo Aiye (the earth), human beings lived in constant strife and killing, so a law had to be laid down that would bring them to their senses. The kings gathered and appointed a messenger to carry their complaints before Olofin. Before he set out, they consulted an awo named Arufin, who revealed to them the sign Ojuani Bosa and prescribed an ebbo with a shirt and various ingredients: okan jío jío, eku, eya, epo, orí, efun, otí, opolopo owo.

The king took his shirt and the ingredients and handed them to Orunmila, who performed the ebbo and told him that in order to appear before Olofin he had to be turned into an Irunmole. The king then bathed with the eye of the chick, adie and spider, so that Eshu Ode Orun would open the door to him. Afterwards he painted with efun the signs Oshe Tura, the 16 meyis, Irete Yero, Ogunda Fun and Ojuani Bosa on the back of his black shirt. Thus prepared, he set out on the journey.

When he reached the gate of Ode Orun, he gave the chick to Eshu Ode Orun, who opened the door and let him in. He spoke with Olofin and explained to him what was happening on earth.

Olofin, on seeing the shirt, recognised that Ifá had made him an Irunmole and said to him: «Ifá has granted you the power to be the executioner of injustice. You shall be the one who puts every criminal to death. All the eggun and the orishas will make use of you. You shall be Orunmila’s trust and, besides that, you shall be charged with taking the eggun to the igbo eggun. When you return to earth, besides orisha you shall be called Arufin Oro. Your word shall be law, and you shall have Ojuani Bosa as your secretary, the one who brought you here.»

On his return to earth, Arufin Oro buried his shirt together with the chicken and put every wrongdoer to death, cleansing the land of outlaws. Ever since, Ojuani Bosa is the one who calls upon him and reminds him of the mission entrusted to him by Olodumare. From that moment on, the principal chant of Ojuani Bosa is «del arriba», for with it Oro is consecrated.

Why the dog and the cat are enemies

There was once a married couple who owned a gold ring, held to be an amulet that would provide them with enough to live on. The couple, however, did not know the power of the ring and, in a moment of need, sold it for very little money. As soon as the ring left the house, the couple began to grow poor, with nowhere to find money to feed themselves.

The couple had a dog and a cat that went hungry along with them. The two animals decided to confer and see how they might help their owners and recover the ring, which was the source of their fortune. In the end the dog found a way to get it back. The cat said to the dog: «The ring is well kept in a box that cannot be opened.» The dog answered: «Get hold of a mouse to gnaw the box, and tell it that if it refuses you will eat it.» The cat listened to the dog’s advice and thought it a good idea. They went together to the river, and since the cat could not swim, the dog carried it on its back to the other bank.

The cat at last caught a mouse, and they returned to the house where the ring was kept inside a wooden chest. The mouse gnawed a hole in the chest and they managed to take the ring out. Then the cat and the mouse rejoined the dog on the riverbank. They let the mouse go and the dog crossed the river with the cat on its back. Reaching the other side, they set off back to their owners, but the cat ran ahead and arrived first with the ring.

When the woman of the house saw the cat with the ring, she exclaimed: «The dog may be very good, but the cat is cleverer, since it was the cat who brought our ring back.» The husband agreed and said: «The cat is a good animal; we will always feed it and care for it as if it were our own child.» Hearing this, the dog began to bark, but the couple insulted it and beat it, believing the dog had played no part in recovering the ring.

Meanwhile the cat sat there washing its face in silence, without speaking up for the dog. This enraged the dog, who understood that the cat had taken away his reward, since it was he who had devised the way to recover the ring. The dog chased the cat and drove it out of the house, and every time the cat tried to come back, the dog chased it away again. From that day on, the dog and the cat became enemies.

This story illustrates the case of a person who enjoys the achievements and the cleverness of others without acknowledging their effort and their contribution.

The rooster and the cockfighter

On this path there was a town where a cockfighter lived who had a fine rooster that was his fortune. He had won a great deal of money betting on his rooster.

One day the rooster had just won a fight, ending it worn out and exhausted because the combat had been very hard.

Osun and Orunmila

Osun lived with Olofin, who gave him the charge of watching over the health of all of Olofin’s children on earth. Osun set out on his way and came to the house of Orunmila, becoming his guardian and the protector of his children.

Orunmila, being a hunter, would kneel before Osun every morning before going out to hunt and pray to him: «osun Layere Ni Ifá, Osun Tiki Tiki Kashoro Shangó Awo Omo Osa Meta Ire Abiku». He would then give him an eyele so that Osun might feed, and would leave another roasted eyele in the bush, close to Igui Moruro, and take some herbs from that place for his rites.

On one occasion, while Orunmila was out hunting, his three sons, moved by curiosity, decided to look at the secret Osun was keeping. On opening Osun, the three sons died.

When Orunmila returned and realised what had happened, he begged Osun to save his sons. Then Orunmila took an eyele, an adie and a great deal of liquor, and offered them to Osun while singing: «baba Ilashe, Baba Lashe, Iba Osun. Agaga Lario, Osun Layere Ni Ifá«. With these offerings, Osun gave life back to the sons of awo omo Osa meta, but on the condition that, in order to open Osun, an eyele must be sacrificed.

This account underlines how important Osun is in Orunmila’s life, and how his secret must be respected and guarded. It also shows Osun’s power to give life and to take it, and how tribute is paid to him through animal sacrifice.

The two sons of Yemayá

There were two brothers, sons of Yemayá. The elder brother envied the younger and ordered him to leave that place. So the younger brother went to Orunmila’s house, and Orunmila saw this Ifá for him and instructed him to make a sacrifice with abo, eku, eya, awado, akuko, a sledgehammer, a mallet and owo Meyila tonti Meyila. Orunmila told him he could count on the backing of the orishas and that Olokun was working in his favour, so he must fulfil the sacrifice.

The younger brother went back to his mother’s house and began to help her in everything, working hard and doing business. He had such good fortune that he acquired more land, farmed it, and made greater profits than his elder brother.

The elder brother, for his part, had no liking for work and expected everything to be done for him. Not long after, war broke out and he had to take part in it. At that point he said to his younger brother: «I have lost everything, while you have grown rich.»

The younger brother sent the elder to Orunmila’s house, and Orunmila saw the sign Ojuani Bosa for him, but the elder refused to make the sacrifice Orunmila had marked. As a result, the biting ants ruined everything he had left. Full of grief, the elder brother died of sorrow.

This account shows how important hard work and the fulfilment of sacrifices are in reaching prosperity. It also underlines the consequences of envy and neglect.