No Babalawo should use his position to enrich himself in any way;
he must not refuse anybody his service on account of money - if any
person is too poor to pay the customary pittance for divination, the
babalawo must divine for him free of charge; or if the person cannot
afford the prescribed sacrifice, the babalawo must take whatever he
can afford and translate the will for the deed. It seems, in fact,
that the babalawo is under a vow of poverty, to spend himself in the
service of the community, making just enough to keep himself, his
real reward being in the service of Orunmila.
One important attribute of all Ifa priests, whatever their status
in the cult, is humility. Humility is manifest both in their appearance
and their manners.
Here than is another criteria of judgment for selecting your Babalawo
or Priestess. One evening Baba Adelekan and I were talking. He said
he's had people tell him about being charged as much as $10,000.00 to
be initiated here in the United States. He frowned. He gave me this
guidance on the babalawo or priestess, Ifa, and money.
A babalawo or priest should charge the client the cost of the
requirements for the divination and prescribed ebos. (What to
do if the client can not pay even this is addressed in Professor Abimbola's
statement above.) Then, the client should be asked to promise that
if Ifa works for them, they will return to the babalawo and thank
them and Orisa for their help. When the client promises, Ifa can proceed.
When Ifa works for the client they should return to the babalawo to
thank him and Ifa, and they should acknowledge Ifa's successful help
in the community. If they do not return to express their gratitude,
the ase of the reading and healing is withdraw by Orisa, and the client
may be left with nowhere to turn.
As Baba and I often say, Orisa WILL have their due! These qualities
and characteristics should signal to you if you are placing your trust
in a trained, reliable, and honorable Babalawo or Priestess. You may
not be able to verify a perspective Babalawo's or Priestess's knowledge
of the ese of Odu Ifa, but the above are characteristics that can be
evident to anyone, and they speak to the character of the servants of
Orunmila and Orisa. A Babalawo or Iyalorisa is a servant of their community
and of humanity - Obatala's children.
Iba se Orunmila
Iwo ni Iko Oludumare ati Orisa ati Egun! Iwo olupilese Odu Ifa!
Iwo ni Ifa!
