Okana Ogunda

How Obatalá Deceived the Cat

In this path, the cat owned a black hen, and the two went down to the river to bathe. On the way back, the hen escaped from the cat and slipped into the house of Obatalá, who at that moment was washing his face. His hands being covered in soap, on seeing the hen he smeared her with lather. When the cat arrived to claim his hen, Obatalá asked him what color she was, and the cat answered that she was black. Obatalá called him a liar, since the hen he had in his house was speckled.

Where Oggún Chained Shangó

This is where Oggún chained Shangó while he slept. Finding himself in chains, Shangó remembered the great power he carried in his mouth and blew hard upon the chain; fire came out of his mouth, melted the chain, and set him free.

The person has fire in the mouth. Temper your way of speaking, so that it does not harm you. Your own mouth could get you killed. When this person gets angry, they answer in an unhinged way. Beware of binding spells.

Path 3

In the land of Aberi Beya lived an awo named Shayelorun, who governed in the belief that he held more power than anyone, thanks to his dominion over his godchild Omologu, also known as Awo Mayora. Because of this, Awo Shayelorun had everyone under his control.

In the land of Awayebe Ifá lived an awo named Oba Yeni Alare Lade Ifá, who had Elegbá as his trusted man. Although Elegbá intended to visit the land of Aberi Beya to see how its people were living, Awo Oba Yeni Alare Lade Ifá always prevented him, telling him to let Awo Shayelorun go on living as he had until then.

One day, Shangó arrived in the land of Awayebe Ifá and spoke with Elegbá, who told him how they lived in that land wanting for nothing, happy and content with everything. Shangó then asked him whether he had gone to visit the land of Aberi Beya, and Elegbá answered that he had not. Shangó grew very angry and decided to set out for the land of Aberi Beya, where people lived under the rule of force imposed by Awo Shayelorun and his godchild Mayora, who dominated the people through the inshes he worked on them.

This news greatly displeased Shangó, who sang together with Ozain and Waye Yeni Laye Ifá as they made their way toward the land of Aberi Beya. On the road, a woman named Waye Yeni Laye Ifá appeared before them, and the three swore an oath with their hands joined upon the earth to remove the evil that reigned in the land of Aberi Beya. When the woman reached the land of Aberi Beya, Awo Shayelorun told his son Omologu Awo Mayora to divine what she was bringing.

Omologu Awo Mayora looked into her at once and divined the reason for Waye Yeni Laye Ifá’s visit, and he worked an inshe on her, keeping her too in the land of Aberi Beya. Days went by and Shangó and Ozain received no word from her, which worried them greatly, so they decided to return to the land of Awayere Ifá. On the way, they thought of doing something for Elegbá, and Ozain proposed: «let us think by way of ile ibu, and there we will take an ayapa.»

Then Ozain noticed that Shangó was carrying an igon (bottle) in his hands and asked him what it held. Shangó answered that it was oti, which delighted Ozain, who said to Shangó: «now we shall surely triumph.» They invited Elegbá to eat, and he accepted, saying he was hungry because he had not eaten. Shangó and Ozain brought out the ayapa and the oti, fed Elegbá, and ate as well. While they were drinking the oti, Awo Oba Yeni Alare Lade Ifá arrived, and they invited him to join them, which pleased him greatly.

At once, Ozain and Shangó told Awo Oba Yeni Alare Lade Ifá that he too had to become master of the lands of Aberi Beya, and that to achieve it, the two lands had to be united. Awo Oba Yeni Alare Lade Ifá, obeying his instinct of self-preservation, asked how that could be done. Ozain and Shangó told him that to achieve it, the power of force with which Awo Shayelorun governed had to be stripped away, and that the only way to do so was for all of them to swear an oath — but that Elegbá already intended to leave the land of Aberi Beya.

The Lands of Aberi Beya and Awayebe Ifá Were United

Awo Mayora went to his secret and was stunned to find that it was not in its place, and he began to search for it desperately everywhere. Seeing that it was nowhere to be found, he went mad. When Awo Shayelorun realized what was happening, he buried the secret in the very spot where it had been before. At that moment, Shangó, Elegbá, and Ozain came in and, seeing what Awo Shayelorun had done to Awo Mayora, Shangó took an eyele mesan and carried it to the place where the secret lay buried, calling upon Eggun. Immediately, the lands of Aberi Beya and Awayebe Ifá began to join together, becoming one.

Shangó and Ozain, together with Elegbá, put Awo Shayelorun under oath and bathed him with iweweyeye, and he swore to obey every command. They then set out for the land of Awayebe Ifá, where everyone clasped hands and embraced. Elegbá was left responsible for making sure that Awo Shayelorun kept everything that had been agreed.

Where Oggún Tried to Trap Shangó

In those days, the Saints wished to gather as healers, but there were always wars and divisions. Faced with this, they went to the house of Orunmila, who sent for Oggún. During the gathering there was a woman with whom both Shangó and Oggún fell in love, which sparked an argument between them that reached the point of a challenge to fight. Oggún told Shangó that he would wait for him that night beside the caimito tree. Shangó went and told Asasi that he was going to place a doll at the caimito tree, and handed over a chain and a rope so that she would tie Shangó to that tree.

When Shangó arrived to wait for Oggún and stood beside the tree, Oggún, who was hiding, signaled Asasi to go over. She did so without a struggle, and Oggún came out of his hiding place and said to Shangó: «see how I tricked you.» He took the rope to bind him by the feet, and at that moment a lightning bolt fell and shattered the tree. Oyá arrived and told Oggún that this could not be — that even though she and Shangó were estranged, she would not allow such an abuse. Oggún took fright and fled into the bush, and that is how Oyá saved Shangó.

A woman saves him from a very great danger.

Maferefun Shangó, Oggún, and Orunmila

A jicotea is also given at the street door. If the person to whom this Ifá comes is a woman, she is given to ofikale por idi, for she suffers from constipation of nervous origin and must be careful with an operation. The jicotea is given if the person is an awo or has their saint crowned.

There was a man whose economic and social situation was dismal because of his poor relations with other people. One day, he decided to seek help from Orunmila, who read him and told him that his bad luck came from failing to acknowledge his father, Shangó. Orunmila instructed him to offer him three jicoteas cooked with flour and okra, and to take them to the foot of a palm tree, and then call upon his father.

The man did not believe what Orunmila had told him, and his situation grew even worse, until he came across Oggún, who reminded him that he was suffering for refusing to acknowledge that he was a son of Shangó. In his rage, the man challenged the Saints to prove to him that it was true. At that moment there was a mighty thunderclap, and a bolt of lightning struck down before him. Convinced that he was a son of Shangó, he knelt on the ground and begged his father’s forgiveness for having doubted him.

From that moment on, the man’s luck began to change. Those who had once wanted nothing to do with him began to pay him Moforibale.

In this path the plants and the heavenly bodies speak, chiefly the sun, the moon, and the rainbow. A ceremony is performed for the sun, the moon, and the rainbow. Saraeko must be set out to refresh the earth, and Elegbá must be fed. An oparaldo must be performed in the ile; the Saints must be fed, and so must the trash heap.