This might sound like
blasphemy. But the point is made! Omo-Oba Ayekonilogbon Olorunwa, a priest of
Ifa deity, says corruption in the country will be bygone if Nigerians will
agree to toe the path of Ifa. Ifa is a religion widely worshiped mostly by the
Yorubas in the South Western part of the country. Olorunwa, 45, from Ode-Erinje
in Okutipupa, Ondo State, believes that neither Christianity nor Islam –
Nigeria’s two most professed religions is superior to Ifa.
He wants Ifa to be embraced as a national religion,
maintaining that with the deity staring Nigerians in the face, corruption and
allied vices in Nigerians will disappear. And no one will have to worry about
them anymore. He admits, however, that getting Nigerians to reason with him
will not be as easy as breaking biscuit. And that is where he is prepared to
work and defend the cause of Ifa, even at the risk of his life.
He says all along, many people have been fighting
and castigating Ifa unnecessarily. He says the country will be better off if
the name of the deity is invoked while politicians are taking oath of office.
“Beginning from time, Ifa has been the deity that directs people on what to do
and what not to do. If somebody steals and Esu is commissioned to pass
judgment, it will do just that. But when the culprit realises his sin and
confesses, he can consult Ifa to help him ask what Esu will take to show
compassion.
In the olden days, if someone found an article on
the road, he would take it to the King or Baale’s palace from where they would
find the owner. Not anymore! Rather, what we are seeing is stealing and
corruption in high and low places. “Since the white people came here and stole
our culture, negative things had entered Africa. Very bad things have been
happening here. “Since Christianity and Islam came, evil things have been
taking place. In Ifa religion if you do evil or steal, the judgment is instant;
but in the two other religions, people enjoy grace. Judgment is always delayed.
That is why both religions are not superior to Ifa
. “We met Ifa in this world. In the olden days, if
a woman gave birth to a baby, our people would consult Ifa to know the mission
of the baby on earth. We call it Akosejaye (a ritual to tell the future). It is
through this that one would know the dos and don’ts of the baby. These would
serve as guiding principles for the said baby. “Now, if a pregnant woman is
approaching the ninth month, our mothers who specialise in midwifery will stop
the baby and call in an Ifa priest to know the mission of the baby – that is
what will make the baby succeed. “During this period, the spirit of the baby
will be analysed; what he or she wants to become in life will be known. They
will ask him things that may hinder his success.
These are the things Ifa priest will give as
warning to the baby’s parents. All these things will be observed to the letter
when the baby eventually arrives. “If you look around you, you will discover
that we are recording high rate of divorce nowadays. In those days, before a
couple would divorce, it took a long time. In fact, they rarely did.” Broken
marriages these days, he says, have become fashionable, whereas they were
abomination before the advent of Christianity and Islam. He explains that in
those days Akosejaiye would reveal the type of wife or husband a baby coming
into the world would marry.
“Some people,” he maintains, “are destined to marry
dark-skinned men or women; but they end up marrying light-skinned persons. At
the end of the day, the marriage would crumble. Many are destined to become
carpenters, but they ended up becoming bricklayers. At the end of the day, they
would not fully realise their destiny. “Many people today did not know that
such things are still in existence. Whatever would happen in the physical life
would first take place in the spiritual realm. We are having problems in the
country today because we’ve derailed from the right path. We didn’t have large
number of ‘area boys’ in the olden days as we have today. That’s why I say that
Ifa worship is the true way of life.”
Olorunwa also explains the relationship between Ifa
divinity and Ogboni fraternity, saying Ogboni is a society whereas Ifa divinity
is a religion. He added that he was into Ifa divinity alone and does not belong
to the Ogboni or any other society. “I am not against them; they are good in
their own ways. I concentrate on Ifa because I don’t want to be distracted.” In
Yoruba land, according to him, Ogun (god of iron), Sango (god of thunder), Oya
(Sango’s wife), Esu (Satan) and other deities are lieutenants of Ifa. “If we
are in a gathering, and wife to a member stands up from a chair, no male dares
to sit on that seat.
Any member who woos or befriends another member’s
wife faces dire consequences. Betrayal is highly detested in our religion up
till today.” On why the Ifa divinity is not widespread like Christianity and
Islam, he says: “In Christianity and Islam, grace allows everybody to misbehave
and walk away free. Before the repercussion comes, it takes time. But in Ifa, if
one commits evil, he is punished instantly. “If our politicians want to take
the oath of office, they use the Bible and Quran and still renege on their
promises to the people. They dare not try it with Ifa, Sango, Ogun and others.
The judgment of Ifa will be instant.” He reveals
that Ifa adherents worship everyday but like Christians and some Islamic
denominations, they also hold congregational worship on Sundays. According to
him, Ifa worshippers in Lagos State, converge on Ijo Orunmila Ato, in Oyingbo. The
worshippers have bought plots of land in Agbara too to open another worship
centre in the Badagry area of the state, he informs. “Christianity and Islam
believe nothing good can come out of Esu, but in Ifa we believe Esu can do both
good and bad, depending on the mission it is sent to achieve. Others work with
Orunmila to achieve common goals. They are deities on their own, but Ifa is
superior to them all. You can get to God through Orunmila. Jesus is the
intermediary between Christians and God, Mohammed is the intermediary between
God and Muslims while Orunmila is the intermediary between God and us.
“The popular believe that God sent Esu to the world
to torment us is grossly unfounded. How can God do something and destroy it by
Himself? No. Esu is a deity that performs both good and evil. If there is
allegation of stealing and nobody confesses to the crime, what we normally do
is to consult Esu to fish out the perpetrator. “Also, if someone is suffering
from an ailment and Ifa is consulted, his case might require sacrifice to Esu
and the problem will go afterwards.
In Ifa and Yoruba land generally, Esu is the police
of the land.” Olorunwa lauds the world spokesperson of Ifa (Awise Awo Agbaye)
and former Vice Chancellor of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Professor Wande
Abimbola as well as prominent traditionalist, Chief Yemi Elebuibon, for
propagating Ifa around the world.
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