Oyekun Ofun

Shangó hands the rule of his town to Orunmila

On this path, Orunmila was travelling towards the town of oye. He slowed his pace to let some travellers go ahead of him. When the travellers reached the entrance of the town, the noise of thunder was heard and lightning flashed, and the travellers, frightened, turned back.

Orunmila asked them the reason for their alarm and explained that this had happened to them for not having made ebo. The travellers asked Orunmila to make the ebo for them and he marked the ebo. They then bought the ingredients of the ebo in a nearby town and Orunmila made the ebo for them at the foot of kukute.

They all continued on their way together, and on reaching the entrance of the town, three young men asked them whether they were going to their house. The travellers did not know what to answer, and the young men told them they would take them to the house of the king, who was Shangó.

When the group arrived, Shangó came out to see who had come, and on seeing Orunmila he prostrated himself on the ground and greeted him. At that moment it began to rain and lightning fell. Shangó told Orunmila that he was leaving and that Orunmila would rule, and that the people who came with Orunmila would be his servants.

On this path the twins are to be honoured, and Eshu; kaferefun Shangó.

That woman of possibility who needed a babalawo

One day, oyekun bedura went out into the street and met Eshu. Eshu greeted him and asked: «what have you brought me?» He took a piece of a mouse out of a sack and gave it to Eshu.

Eshu accepted the gift and gave him his blessing, saying: «just as you gave me a mouse, you shall have encounters with women of possibility».

The changing of the head

On this path, Elegbá came to a land and noticed that the omo orishas were stripping people of their guardian angel, which was not in keeping with what Olofin had ordained. Since Elegbá was a babalawo, he decided to go and tell Olofin of the complaints about what the omo orishas were doing.

On reaching the palace, Elegbá informed Olofin that the omo orishas were removing the guardian angel and even carrying out the sacrifices in the consecrations without the presence of Orunmila, whom Olofin had ordered to perform these acts in the consecrations of Osha.

Olofin sent for Oggún and ordered him to tear off the head of each of them and exchange them. Oggún took his machete and set out to carry out Olofin’s order, tearing off heads during a consecration of Osha that was under way.

While Oggún was doing this, Orunmila was making osode and saw this Ifá, which told him that a changing of the head was taking place. Orunmila went at once to where the consecration of Osha was being held. On arriving, he found that Oggún had already wrought havoc and was heading towards the last person remaining, who was the iyawó.

When Oggún tried to tear off the head of the iyawó, Orunmila stopped him and asked for mercy for the iyawó. He proposed to Oggún that he, Orunmila, should perform the changing of the head on the board for that last one. In the end, Oggún agreed to let Orunmila do it.

So it was done, and when they appeared before Olofin, he asked them why the iyawó still had his head. Orunmila answered that, since Olofin had granted him the ashé to settle matters upon the earth, and since he had not been aware of what was happening, he found that the iyawó was the last one and decided to save him, so that people would know that Olofin had given him the ashé needed even to perform a changing of the head.

Convinced by Orunmila’s words, Olofin said: «Orunmila, you are the one I commissioned to set things right in the world. If your wish has been to save this iyawó, I approve it. ¡to iban Eshu!».

It is for this reason that Orunmila is the only one able to draw out the guardian angel and carry out the sacrifice in the consecrations of Osha.

The heads of the rivers

At the beginning of the world, the rich ruled on their own, and each one performed his own cleansings, throwing the heads and other parts of the animal into a lagoon in a certain city.

In time, Eshu proposed to find out who was the foremost among them. They all went to Orunmila’s house, and Ifá marked the path towards where the heads and the parts of the animal were going, which were held to be the obe. From that moment on, the lagoons became the sources of the rivers.

The ebo to the lagoon.

The transformation of the earth

Eshu larufa was the son of inle and Ikú. He admired the great powers of inle who, when speaking of íku, would begin to pray:

«obara lele íku ofun mayekun fun aguayé berfun íku yeru okuadá layébè íku mafun íku».

And Ikú would turn into a shadow that no one could see, and would carry off everything it found in its path. It would come to where inle was, and Eshu larufa, who watched all this in hiding, lived greatly troubled, because he had no power to do the things his baba Ikú did.

When íku came to where inle was and sang to him, inle would be transformed. This was the song of íku:

«sugualeleye awa íku eggun sagualeleye adié inle awo íku eggun Eshu larufa awa ni lorun».

íku did this holding an adié in his hand. He would begin to dance with inle, believing that his son, Eshu larufa, was asleep; but it was not so, for the boy was awake, watching everything. When íku went to odubule, inle would place an obi under him as a pillow so that he might rest, for íku does not sleep, he only rests. To inle, íku was asleep, and Eshu larufa would say: «so many virtues my baba and my iyawó have, and I with none at all».

Eshu larufa saw that when íku was about to leave he would say to inle: «bury this», and would give him the obi. «You will see how you too will be transformed into different colours. Each transformation of yours will hold a virtue for the world». Íku also told him: «you must never speak of this to anyone, not even to your son».

One day Eshu larufa asked permission to go out walking, and inle granted it. Eshu larufa went to the land of bele, which was where Oyá lived. He arrived there very sad and troubled and told Oyá all that was happening. She said to him: «I am going to bathe you with certain herbs, which will serve you as scrubbers». Oyá bathed him with ewé erán, ewé anatí, chekeré and ewé carodo, adding to the bath obí, kola and eró as well. As she bathed him she sang to him:

«Eshu larufa omo leri awá íku obí leri, awo Ikú, Eshu larufa omo leri obá Ikú».

Oyá handed him an obí and an adié and told him: «when you go back to your house, without anyone seeing you, exchange your baba’s adié, the one he dances with alongside your mother, and exchange as well the obí your mother places under his lerí for the odubule, and bring them to me at once».

When Eshu larufa returned to Oyá, having made the exchanges she had ordered, she kept him hidden for three days, at the end of which she took the adié and gave eyerbale to Eshu larufa, and she ate as well. She drew out the secret of the obí and handed it to Eshu larufa, and then said to him: «come with me», and the two of them set out towards where Ikú and inle were. And as they went, Ikú began to sing to inle and saw that he was transformed into two figures, one a woman and the other half a man.

Ikú took fright and said to inle: «have you noticed the transformation our son Eshu larufa has undergone?» Oyá leapt forward and gave three cries, and inle and Ikú fell to the ground.

Then Oyá said to them: «to the children the virtue is given so that they may live and be great, and so that the respect between father and son may endure. And you, Ikú, shall respect Eshu larufa». So it was, Eshu.

Thus Eshu larufa became powerful upon the earth. The Elegbá of this sign stands apart.

On this path was born the transformation of the earth and of Elegbá.

Awo erawo

On this path, Ikú (death) was looking for someone to carry off, someone whose hour had come. Ifá erawo, for that was the name of the man Ikú sought by mandate of Olofin, was dressed in a black cloak and made his way to the marketplace.

Death, searching for him with determination, also came to the marketplace and asked who Ifá erawo was. Unaware of the danger he was in, he answered: «that is me». Death lunged at him and the people began to flee and shout. But Elegbá, who was watching it all, said: «let that man live». At that moment, Ifá erawo ran off and reached a nearby town. Death declared: «it matters not that he flees, I shall catch him».

On reaching the town, Ifá erawo knocked at the door of a house set apart and, when it opened, asked for a glass of water. He explained that he was fleeing from death and did not want to be caught. He told them his name was Ifá erawo.

The frightened residents decided to take him to the house of Orunmila, who lived nearby. On examining him, this Ifá came out, and Orunmila performed the ceremony indicated, sent him to have his head shaved and changed his name, telling him: «from now on you will be called oyekun berdura.

All this will serve as a disguise to elude death, but it is most important that you drink no alcohol, and if you do, only in moderation, for you must not draw attention to yourself in the places you go».

Oyekun berdura, which was the new name of Ifá erawo, left there with greater confidence. Meanwhile Ikú, who continued his tireless search, came to the same house where oyekun berdura had been and also asked for a glass of water, for he was thirsty.

Ikú said they should not be afraid, that he was looking for a man in a black cloak named Ifá erawo. The residents said nothing and death went on his way to continue the pursuit, though he later learned of the change of name from Ifá erawo to oyekun berdura.

While all this was happening, oyekun berdura felt more confident because of the change in his appearance and his manner, and so he decided to have a few drinks. But that day a great feast was being held in the town, and oyekun berdura decided to attend, and began to drink to excess, disobeying Orunmila’s instructions.

Oyekun berdura began to dance wildly, which drew the attention of the people there, who began to cheer him on and applaud so as to enjoy his movements. While this was going on at the dance, Ikú carried on with his search and, weary of looking for Ifá erawo without success, grew disheartened.

He remarked to himself that he had not been able to fulfil Olofin’s mandate regarding his errand. So as not to return empty-handed, he decided to take a turn around the town, and came upon the feast.

There he finds the shaven-headed fellow dancing alone, swaying, surrounded by a circle of onlookers. He decides to draw near and see what is really going on, and then decides to carry off that shaven-headed man, since he could not find Ifá erawo.