The Fifteenth Truth of Ifa: The Orisa Live Within Us! Part I
July 2020
Homage To The One Who Sends and to those who are sent! Homage to Orisa and Egun!
Ifokanbale Omo Orisa! Peace of Mind from Olodumare Children of Orisa!
Ire ati Ayo!
Good Tidings and Joyfulness!
I honor your gods, I drink from your wells, I bring an undefended heart to our meeting place. I have no cherished outcomes, I will not negotiate by withholding, and I am not subject to disappointment. I am here! And They are all here with me! Ase! Ase! Ase!
Lord of my Ancestors, I have no knowledge except that which is given to me through inspiration, that which is sent to me by way of an angel, and that which I am blessed to acquire by way of some discipline. I thank you for guiding my words, my thoughts, and my actions so that all that I say and do may serve to point the seekers in the right direction. Ase! Ase! Ase!
Thank you for visiting our website and for reading our blog! We pray you find some of what you are seeking to remember.
On this day, like so many others in years past, the world is in chaos. Today, the institutional structures of nations and communities are being tested. The recent Pandemic, on top of everything else that was wrong with our husbandry of the planet, has turned much of the world upside down as major disruptions, challenges, and obstacles have swept across the globe like a tornado. Both because of the characteristics of COVID-19 itself, and because of a failure of leadership in many places, too many lives have been lost; economies and businesses have been constrained to the point of near collapse, and complete collapse in some cases. The mental and physical health of billions of people is being threatened with no immediate end in sight.
At the same time, the same causal elements are facilitating a global rise in consciousness, an awakening. And, without doubt, there will follow an eventual transformation. A brighter light has now been turned onto the dark secrets of global economic and political imbalances, and on the ugly face of racial injustice and inequality. Old and young alike have looked into the face of pain, fear, hatred, frustration, and determination. Things may appear to go back to ‘the way things use to be’, but it is a fact, ‘There is no going back!’ ‘Before the Pandemic’ cannot exist again. Some may wish to go back to sleep but the thunder of this present storm will not relent. Too much emotional energy and mental clarity has been driven to the surface. Many things will and must change. The change is not just about social and economic justice, but also about our relationship to Iya Ile (Mother Earth). This is the process of Isoki (contrast, contraction), Isopo (connectivity, interconnectedness), and Na Wa (expansion), the Spiritual Laws of the L’oja, operating in overdrive.
That brings us to the question of Who will be making the necessary changes?How will those changes come about? It is certain that the answer to these questions is YOU! The ‘you’ that will be engaged in the process of change, revolutionary change, will not be the same ‘you’ that you were in the past. It will be a more enlightened, more aware, and more powerful you. Some seeds and creatures can lay dormant in the earth for months, years, even decades, and then one day they emerge into the world once again. You and I are like that! We have talents, skills, abilities, gifts, and powers that may lay dormant for years and decades, and then, in the right season, in the right environment, under the right circumstances we emerge like a butterfly from its chrysalis, able to do things that we could only imagine doing before. Could this period that you and I are living in, this experience that you and I are sharing, be the very conditions for your and my transformation into a people who are capable of loving and caring for an entire world? Changed and evolved because we see, we choose (sha) to see (ri, ori), hence orisha, to choose to see. Transformed because of what we see more clearly and what we choose to do about it.
At the top of each of the pages of the Ile Awo Orisa website are links to the brief descriptions and prayers to the Principle Orisa in the Ifa Spiritual Tradition of Ancestor and Orisa Worship. When we think about the characteristics, domains, and powers of the various Orisa we need to see both sides of the idea of Orisa. On the one hand, for many of us, social conditioning has instructed us to put ‘spirit’ outside of ourselves. The angels and gods and spirits, Olodumare, Orisa, and the Imole are ‘out there’ somewhere. Yes! The Orisa are Sentient Energetic Entities that are a matrix of possibilities held in the Universal Consciousness (Ori) of the Ase, Olodumare. Their presence and responsiveness can be felt as something ‘real’ as far as the mind can assess. Yet, the objective reality, the substantive reality of the energies that we call Orisa is only one part of the idea of Orisa.
The broad complex of characteristics, domains, and powers of the various Orisa also represent the latent and dormant potentials that are the Ogun Ibi (birthright) of every human being. Hence,
Truth (15), The Orisa Live Within Us! Orisa ye ninu wa!
The importance of this Truth of Ifa cannot be overstated. Look at the condition of the world! The L’oja is out of balance! What the Orisa have been charged with, the responsibility to orchestrate and protect, is under assault. All of Iya Ile (Mother Earth’s) children, in all of the kingdoms, are suffering because of the ignorance and arrogance of man. Ifa speaks of a time like this and about what would happen. Many of us knew that a time like this was coming. Decades ago, Iya Oya spoke these words to my Ori, “When men become arrogant in their ways, I breathe on their world.” My Iyawo and Iyalode put these words on two quilts that hang in our Ile and in our living room. The words are imbedded in my heart and I have watched things unfold as man has become more and more arrogant in his ways. These words also echo the Ese Ifa that was given to me by the Isoro Council when I questioned them about the subject of the Return of the Orisa (Itunde Orisa!).
Do you remember this Ifa Saying that I shared in our last Post?
Awe ati Ebo ni muni ri bi Orisa! Fasting and Rituals transform you into the image of Orisa!
Now, think about that saying in the context of Truth (15):
Orisa ye ninu wa!
The Orisa Live Within Us!
And then, consider the possible implications of:
Itunde Orisa!
The return of the Orisa!
Can you put the pieces together?Can you see what I see? The prophetic nature of Iya Oya’ words are being revealed in this day and time, when man’s arrogance has ruptured all pretense of peace.
If not, don’t worry! We’ll look at it together in our next Blog Post, Truth (15): The Orisa Live Within Us! Part II.
We’ll discuss what the Ese Ifa says about Itunde Orisa and what all of this could mean for you and me.
To be continued!
I hope you will reflect on this message and share your comments and questions with me for our future Posts on this and other topics.
Support Ifa
If you would like to donate to any of the annual Festivals or to any of the Ifa Temples, Shrines, School, Electronic Communications Center Initiative, or general funds, please contact me by email and I will provide you with the bank transfer information so that you can make your donation directly and securely.
Karl Stone Art Collection
Another way that you can support the activities of the Ifa Community is by purchasing something from the Karl Stone Art Collection. These Art pieces make beautiful additions to your home decorations, and great gifts for special occasions. A portion of your purchase will be donated to the Isoro Traditional Council of Chiefs in Ile-Ife and a portion to Ile Awo Orisa. (View Art)
Modupe! Thank You!
Aajiirebi! May the Unblemished Cloth of Orunmila Continue to cloth us with the Wisdom Of the Here and the Hereafter!
Ase! Ase! Ase!
Click on the Contact Us link above or below to email your comments or questions.
Ki Olodumare, Orisa, ati Egun fifun e ni Itona, Imoye, ati Opo Ire!
My Olodumare, Orisa, and Ancestors bestow on you Guidance, Wisdom, and Abundant Blessings!
