Ifá
Ifá is a divination system and a religious text[1] in the Yoruba religion that originates in Yorubaland in West Africa.
Ifá is an ancient divination system originating from the Yoruba people of West Africa, particularly in present-day Nigeria.
Initially, Ifá was an integral part of Yoruba oral literature, passed down through generations via word of mouth.
However, over time, the oral tradition of Odu Ifá evolved into a sacred text, incorporating elements of religion and spirituality.
These oral traditions were passed down through generations of Ifá priests, known as Babalawo, who would recite and interpret the Odu for individuals seeking guidance, wisdom, or insight into the future.
[2] Ifá contain various kind of topic such as Offering, Civilization, Enlightenment, Knowledge, Science, Technology, Space exploration, Wisdom, Music, Prophecy, Divination, Philosophy, Theology, Metaphysics, Epistemology, Symbolism, Numerology, Astrology, Ethics, Ontology, Meditation, Ancestor reverence, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Astronomy, Mathematics, Logic, Medicine, Botany, Social Sciences, Humanities, Sociology, Psychology, Politics, Governance, Economics, Poetry, History, Story, Proverb, Truth, Religion etc.
The Odu Ifá poems contain a wealth of knowledge, including myths, legends, historical events, and philosophical teachings.
The Transition to Sacred Text As Yoruba society evolved, the oral tradition of Odu Ifá began to take on a more formalized and written form.
This transition was facilitated by the influence of morden society stranded, which introduced the concept of written scriptures to Yoruba culture.
The Odu Ifá text is considered a sacred scripture, containing the wisdom and teachings of the Yoruba ancestor and the gods.
The text is believed to contain the secrets of the universe, and its teachings are applied to various aspects of life, including relationships, health, wealth, and personal development.
Growing transnational links between Africa and the Americas during the 1970s also saw attempts by West African babalawos to train and initiate people in countries like Brazil and the United States.
[27] When a fásɛn is created, it is washed in specific leaves and the blood of 16 giant snails; this task is performed by women, secluded from the view of men.
[37] The restriction on female initiation is explained through the story that the òrìṣà Orula was furious that Yemayá, his wife, had used his tabla divining board and subsequently decided to ban women from ever touching it again.
[18] Once an individual is initiated as a babalawo they are given a pot containing various items, including palm nuts, which is believed to be the literal embodiment of Orula.
[41] Individuals approach the babalawo seeking guidance, often on financial matters, at which the diviner will consult Orula through the established divinatory method.
The selected sign indicates which spirits they should pay particular attention to and which taboos they must observe:[31] this may involve avoiding certain foods, the wearing of certain colours, or engaging in specific actions.
[54] Between circa 1727 and 1823, the kingdom of Dahomey was a vassal state of the Yoruba-dominated Oyo Empire to the east, thus resulting in much religious interchange.
[56] According to William Bascom,[57] "an indication of the importance of Ifá to the [Yoruba] religious system as a whole is the fact that the most striking religious syncretisms resulting from European contact are to be found in a church established in Lagos in 1934, the Ijọ Ọ̀rúnmila Adulawọ, which was founded on the premise that the teachings of Ifa constitute the Yoruba Bible."
[58] According to Erwan Dianteill,[59] the Church of Ifá is still active in 2024, in Nigeria and Benin, with around 2000 followers in Lagos, Porto-Novo and Cotonou.
[69] Following the Soviet Union's collapse in the 1990s, Cuba's government declared that the island was entering a "Special Period" in which new economic measures would be necessary.
[73] In 1978, Ifá ceremonies took place in Miami, Florida, overseen by the Nigerian babalawo Ifayẹmi Elébùìbọn Awise of Osogbo.
[74] Although surviving in Cuban Santería, Ifá did not remain part of a Brazilian religion that owed much to Yoruba traditions, Candomblé.
[76] One of the earliest practitioners of Ifá in Brazil was the French ethnographer Pierre Verger, who had become a babalawo in West Africa and who was also involved in Candomblé.
[77] As a result of growing links between Brazil and Nigeria, in the 1970s various educational efforts to promote understandings of Yoruba culture were established in Brazilian cities.
This included the Yoruba Culture Research and Study Centre, founded in 1977 by Fernandes Portugal, and which brought in Nigerian teachers to run a course teaching Ifá.
[79] One of these pupils, a Candomblé initiate named José Nilton Vianna Reis (Torodê de Ogun), later went on to become a babalawo nine years later, before setting out his own Ifá teaching course in 1984.
[12][81] Around 2002, the 256 signs of Ifá inspired American mathematician Frank "Tony" Dodd Smith Jr. to name the voudons, or the 256-dimensional hypercomplex numbers, after Vodun.
[82] Around 2002, the 256 signs of Ifá inspired American mathematician Frank "Tony" Dodd Smith Jr. to name the voudons, or the 256-dimensional hypercomplex numbers, after Vodun.6_Reviews/Entries/2008/6/1_Ifa_Didaa_-_Ifa_Consultation_for_the_Beginner_%26_Professional_.html (EjiOgbe - Orangun Meji)], ISBN 978-0-9810013-1-9
