Ebo or what we call sacrifices are fundamental tools to induce heavenly or spiritual action and benefits to our lives. The second reason we offer Ebo is to send messages to the unknown and we call Ebo a great messenger of word and action. Sacrifice carries a lot of messages from the doer to the spiritual point of manifestation and bring back a message of victory, success, happiness and harmony back to us.
Sacrifice go beyond physical realm to meet with the spiritual host of heaven and bring back the messages of light. Love and wisdom to the doer. We read from ifa verses where most divinities sent. Message to heaven to induce total freedom from sickness, death and negative vibrations of all forms. Orunmila use sacrificial step to wrestle the life of his son from the hand of Iku, one of the agent of ajogun orun (that is death , the agents of the punitive knight of heavenly doom).
According to ifa verse under ode iwori
Ese ifa labe ose iwori
Ose papa bi oko
Iwori jowolo bii radun
A difa fun orunmila
Yoo raan akirinbiti Ebo lo si Ajule orun nitori omo re
Ebo mo gbogbe o jiyin
Akirinbiti
Mo mo gbagbe o jiyin
Akirinbiti
Boo ba dorun too ba ti jiyin aje
Ka raje rere Ni
Akirinbiti
Mo mo gbagbe o jiyin
Translation
Ose papa bi oko
Iwori jowolo bii radun
Cast divination for orunmila
He would send a breakthrough sacrifice to heaven for the sake of his child
My sacrifice do not forget to deliver my message
Akirinbiti
Do not forget to deliver my message
Akirinbiti
When you reach Heaven deliver my message of wealth
Let us have good wealth to pocket
Akirinbiti
Do not forget to deliver my message of victory
Akirinbiti
It should be noted and realised that a particular Ebo is an arrangement and presentation of many articles as specified by the particular verse or verses of ifa as chanted by babalawo or ifa priest to the client or devotee in question. It is the natural force of this article that ifa priest would combine based on the instruction of ifa verse for the spiritual message to be delivered to Heaven. The content of the sacrifice must be the favourite foods or articles of the deities or divinities whose blessing or favour are or is being sought. At time taboo may be suggested by ifa oracle to trigger quick action of such deities if divinities. The taboo wake deities up to their full responsibility, but it must done under discipline and experience ifa priest so as not to backfire .
Hence Ebos are messengers .
Alafia