Ifa divination can be fun!

... or if it ain't fun, it ain't ifa!

Which is the exact reason why we begin this site with a useful Ifa text quote, which will help you to make your life fun! The quotes rotate either daily, hourly or with every new page view... depending on my mood as your friendly neighbourhood webmaster. After you have digested (or ignored) the quote, please read on... otherwise I will have lived in vain (wide grin)!

Wise men asked Ifa: "Why must Death kill people, and why has nobody yet conquered Death?" Ifa said: "Orishanla created Death for the well-being of humans. Stagnant water becomes a puddle: a puddle of spoilt water that can cause disease. Water easily takes people with it, and equally easily brings them back. Let the sick return home for treatment and renewal of the body, and the wicked for renewal of their character. The insane man is cared for by his family". Then the awo's asked: "What is so unpleasant about it?" The wise men bowed for Ifa, saying: "Orunmila! Iboru, Iboye, Iboshishe!" Then they dispersed, and never again saw Death as a problem. (Oyeku-Oshe)

Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 04:01
Everything is public now but... subscriptions are still appreciated!

Alright, ladies and gentlemen, I've put all the "secret" material op the public Odu pages now... simply because the software couldn't deal to my satisfaction with the restricted login names and passwords and such: I had to keep correcting and restoring it all, and I've got many MUCH better things to do with my time!
So what's the skinny now? Simple: all stuff here is free.... including some special parts of Odu texts, special experiences and special personal insights, not to mention the odd bit of Odu info that is usually considered "secret". I share it willingly with y'all, but in order to enable me to "keep it coming" (there are nearly a thousand paper pages that I still have to put online... may good old Olodumare help me - wide grin!), a monthly subscription of US$5 would be mightily appreciated. So you're cordially invited to hit the button in the left side column on this page!

Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 12:13
Changes in progress

The changes I mentioned in my previous message are in progress right now. It's a bit like shoveling things back and forth, and every now and then stuff will be in two places at once... because I don't remove anything from the old spot before it's firmly rooted in the new. So let's all have some patience, and all will be right in the end.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 04:00
Change regarding Restricted Pages.

I've noticed that this site's software simply "throws away" some subscribers to the "restricted pages" AKA "Ifa Insights" every now and then. I can't figure out the "system" behind it (if any), because some people's logins stay indefinitely, while others have to be re-entered by me every few days or so. Actually I have become sick and tired of it, so I started to transfer all the restricted information to the public pages. I hope that the present subscribers will continue their subscriptions even after the stuff has become public/free, because I would like the site to begin paying for itself, eventually.
Anyway, within a couple of days ALL Odu material will be on the normal Odu pages, and the restricted area will simply go "poof". It's all going on in the background at the moment, I haven't uploaded the renewed pages yet - I'll do that when it's all in place. That will take a couple of days, I think.
As for how long it will taken me to get all my Ese Odu Ifa translated into English and published here... I have made a quick calculation and I think it will take me between one and two years to get it all online. I've got an ENORMOUS Ifa Corpus, and only 24 hours in a day... not to mention some other things to do. Ain't life a pisser (wide and wicked grin)?!
Alright then, I'll keep you posted!

Monday, January 23, 2012 at 13:06
Back from Istanbul with a heart full of emotions!

It's already a week ago that my special lady friend Anita and I arrived in Istanbul for what would turn out to be some of the strangest, weirdest and most wonderful days of our lives! On the one hand it seems I'm still there, on the other it seems like it's ages ago. Oh, well... in a sense it is: five and a half centuries rolled back like an oriental carpet under the skilled hands of its cleaners!
It's still echoing in my mind though, and I know it does in hers too - loose parts of our lives fell suddenly into place, while others had been in the wrong spot and are now looking to fill their rightful slots. People call me round the bend, but if these are the wonderful things that happen there, then round the bend is the place to be!

Saturday, January 14, 2012 at 06:27
Off for a few days

Due to sudden but very pleasant circumstances I'll be offline from early Sunday morning to Tuesday afternoon - I'll be in Istanbul/Constantinople with a very special lady friend, for a lightning visit in order to deal with some reïncarnational issues there and finally solve some very, VERY old problems!
I have noticed that for some VIP members the logging in to the restricted pages can be difficult. I have kinda jury-rigged it for the moment, but if you can't get in, please give me time till Wednesday when I'll solve it all in a more effective way. Dontcha worry, you'll be alright!

Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at 04:08
The Awo Fa'Lokun Fatunmbi melodramatics

When it comes to fights, combat drama's, disagreements, schisms and exited gossip, our Religion(s) are far worse than any form of Christianity I ever encountered. Not that it mattters, on the contrary: the amusement value is great, and since I never considered myself "one of the guys" I can get along quite well with others who also think I'm not one of the guys (wide and wicked grin)!
Right now it's not so much me, but my teacher Awo Fa'Lokun Fatunmbi who finds himself (again) in the middle of a fine controversy. And of course I can't resist the urge to join the whole hullabaloo: hit the title link of this blog post and you'll be tkaen to the part of our forum where I will develop a discussion on the matter. Due to fundamental differences of opinion, early 1997 Baba Fa'Lokun and I split up. Nevertheless the godchild still has a sneaking fondness for his former godfather! I knew him well, and one thing is for sure: in contrast with many of his distractors he is NOT "in it" for the money!

Thursday, December 22, 2011 at 08:38
Free mini-readings discontinued

Oh dear, what did I do (wide grin)?! Offering free mini-readings, that's what I did! There are far too many requests coming in for me to handle, so the option is discontinued as from now. I'll work myself through the backlog, so those who have already send in their requests will receive the results, but then... it stops!
No sweat friends, in fact I'm mightily pleased with all the interest. It's simply that I can't handle the flood...!

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Ifa is an ancient, levelheaded religion and a way of life, grounded in the West-African Yoruba culture. Ifa recognizes complex combinations of spiritual and metaphysical forces called Orisha's, more or less (probably less...) comparable with the archetypes of Jung's psychology.

In the Ifa tradition, Orunmila is the spiritual force that was present when Olodumare (God) decided to create the earth and populate it with human beings. Orunmila knows all the secrets of creation, the forces of good and evil, and the possibilities to deal with those; he represents the moral and ethical order in the universe, in contiuous interaction with Eshu who represents the creative disorder behind all sorts of evolution.
Initiated persons, when using metaphysical techniques, are able to communicate with the Orisha's. This is called Ifa divination, a spiritual experience that helps lead a balanced life in a world that is full of conflicts and contradictory interests.

Ifa Divination, whaddayaknow?!

Ifa divination knows 16 metaphysial principles that may be combined in 256 ways. Each principle or Odu is a window on reality; through divination the Awo (Ifa priest) determines the window behind which the client stands, in order to help him or her see their situation in the right perspective. The Odu that is applicable to the client's situation of the moment comes out through the casting of an oracle chain (Opele), sixteen palm nuts (Ikin) or sixteen cowrie shells (Owo Merindinlogun); a second, sometimes a third cast supplies additional information on how to interpret the first Odu.

Each of the 256 combined Odu's contains several texts; those Odu's that are important during the consultation are clarified by one or more of these ancient myths and historical tales. The texts give, among other information, "prescriptions" for daily life, tailored to the client's specific situation. During Ifa divination all kinds of questions may be asked, preferably formulated in such a way that they can be answered with "yes" or "no". As it happens every question, even those containing multiple choices, may be divided into subquestions that can be answered with a clear yes or no.

Besides diagnosing problems, in most cases Ifa divination also offers their solution. Often this is pointed out by the texts, while in other instances the Awo's knowledge and experience give the first impulse to solution. The ultimate purpose of divination is to help the client live in harmony with his/her destiny, which is not a fixed and narrow path, but an extensive navigation map from which one may choose the very best road!

What the Awo thinks he's doing

Specialists in Ifa divination are called, depending on their initiation(s), Babalawo, Omolawo and/or Awolorisha. The translations would be something like "Father of the Mystery", "Child of the Mystery", and "Mystery of the Orisha". The position of diviner is not gender-specific; many Owo Merindinlogun (Dilogun) diviners both in Africa and in the diaspora are female, while mainly but not exclusively in Africa also female Opele and Ikin diviners are not unheard of.

The Awo is consulted on important issues in daily life, like spiritual development, material prosperity, marriage, health. Their advice is also asked for decisions or choices on making a journey, change of jobs, buying a house, or choosing a partner. It is not necessary to be a follower of Ifa to consult an Awo. Actually almost nothing is required by Ifa, except the development of good character. As an initiate in the mysteries of his/her Orisha the Awo speaks a universal language, communicating with the client's conscious and unconscious self, and with external spiritual forces.

The Awo never stops learning; their study is a lifelong process. The more the Awo learns, the better he/she is able to counsel, diagnose problems, prescribe traditional or non-traditional remedies, and perform rituals on behalf of those who consult them. Depending on where one lives, the rituals may get either less or more emphasis than in Africa. This should not be regarded as a deviation, but as an example of the remarkable adaptability of this ancient tradition, that for the Awo is a way of life as well.