The male and the female nature of this great entity called OLOKUN has created a lot of controversy among the devotees of OLOKUN and IFA pratictioners world wide, but what may be said on OLOKUN , must be taken from ODU. the energy and the vibration that create all things therein , in the universe, and this same energy has continued to create a lot of things , which are yet to be seen in both the physical state of existence and in the spiritual state of being. In fact, the male and female characteristics of IRUNMOLES or divinities should not be a subject of debate , it must be seen that Sex classifications are only peculiar to human beings in the lower caste of life , while in the spiritual realm , nothing of such nature has any significance . Divinities assume both the male and female attributes depending on the level you want to use them . It is once averred that ODU herself was from the womb of OLODUMARE, and it is the word of GOD to reshape and to create life and non living objects in the cosmos. ODU comes from OLODUMARE , just as man comes from his mother with the help of his father . The coming together of two living generates another living obejcts , according to EJI IDI .
ifa jeko ebo naa o fin
ela je ko ebo naa o rode orun Gbure – gbure
njo nla ta di sasa
a difa fun won ni di kunrin
a bu fun won ni di obirin
nijo ti won nmekun oju rahun omo
idi ni a apa asa
igba idi ba di meji
ni la di olomo
IFA orunmila ma ma jeki a yagan bayi
Ase
Translation
IFA , let our sacrifices go to the heaven above
Ela accepts our rituals
success depends on perseverance ,
see how rain drops in time
wear out the stone
this declare IFA oracle to the husband
and also declare IFA oracle to the wife
when they are weeping all days for not having children
commence your effort
from bottom upwards
for when two male and female meet
A life is born in the physical state of existence
IFA Orunmila deter barrenness from our life
Ase
Since , the vegetative body can only been born in this way , that is the coming together of man and woman to create life through the powerful hand of GOD , while Divinities does not assume sex or sex categories from the source of energy -OLODUMARE , on reaching the physical life , to avoid confusion , sex was attributed to them . We have seen many times where most or all divinities have been classified as male and female respectively. Just like Oduduwa , Erinle , and the topic of the day OLOKUN have been attributed to female and male attributes.
Olokun as the name implies, is from the word OKUN , according to Yoruba cosmology means the ocean. Whenever Yoruba used the word OLO, as in case of OLODUMARE , it means , the owner , the controller , the authority in charge and the absolute power in control or in charge of something . While OLODUMARE is in charge of all that is created and to be created and exist in the cosmos, HE , the infinite being in the Yoruba conception of this authority as designated his authority to many levels of consciousness and unconsciousness , so to feel his presence. In case of OCEAN and it inhabitant , OLODUMARE manifests HIMSELF through OLOKUN and empower this IRUNMOLE, vested in him or her the absolute authority to be in charge and in control and relate to him all the time concerning matters about ocean . The reincarnation of the OLODUMARE energy in the ocean form is called OLOKUN — meaning the owner and the power behind the ocean and its habitant . However the word OLOKUN has a symbolic and spiritual connection with IFA ADIMULA , that is while most babalawo says , ”ifa olokun a soro dayo ”, that is “ifa olokun that speaks of happiness and fortune”. In fact, Odu was called from the beginning of creation as ODU OLOKUN , in the place of ODU OLOFIN which is revealled in a verse under OYEKU OTURA .
According to the Odu
ifa jeko bo naa o fin
ela je bo naa o rode orun gbure gbure
baba ba komo eni
omo eni o moo gbon sara sara
a difa fun aje tii somo olokun
baa si komo eni
omo eni a go
a go ju isu lo
a difa fun obawinni
nijo ti nsukun oun o lobirin
aje omo olokun n sunkun alai loko
Translation
if we train our child
one child would be sharp
they are the one cast divination for Aje the child of Olokun
if we refuse to train our child
one ‘child would be foolish
his stupidity can be compared to a dead yam
they are the one that cast divination for Obawinni
on the day he was crying of having no wife
Aje the child of OLokun was crying as well because she had no husband(1)
STORY
The two personalities had gone to meet their respective IFA priest for divination , about the their lack of mates . They were advised to take their sacrifice to different places. As fate would make a reality , the duo met and married. Although the stories of people meeting under circumstances which can only be said to be divine appear in many verses of IFA , the peculiar nature of how this one occurred makes it worth examining . OBAWINNI is another name or one of the various names of ORUNMILA BARA AGBONIREGUN . After the meeting with AJE ( the goddess of riches and wealth ) they started living together as husband and wife . They had one child without Orunmila asking for the hand of the woman in marriage , not to talk about paying her dowry . On a particular day , they both decided to take a trip to see the parents of his wife, so that the marriage could be formalized and also show them the new child.
Aje knowing the set up of her parent’s house , warned her man about some rules in the realm they were visiting and how to cope with them . My parents are discreet , exclusive and divine . They are not the kind of person anyone can see just anyhow. They have formations along the way to warn any visitors of the danger . When you get to the first station , you will see a person holding on enormous crown in his palms . His name is IRIN, he does not wear it , he must not drop it , and neither would he sit down . He is an enormous figure , his stature tower above many giants and his dressing surpass that of hundreds of earthly kings put together. But you must not prostrate to greet him , as he is a slave of my parents. Aje said and warned Orunmila, Obawinni .
After we may have walked for a long distance again , you will meet another being holding a staff in his hands. The staff is so tall that nobody can see the end . The person holding it is adorned with expensive ornaments , but he is equally a slave of my parents. You must not prostate to greet him . All these warnings are to prepare you for the sacredness of the place you are going, and to give you an idea of what the real person we are visiting may look like , AJE warned.
Orunmila in great awe , decided to consult IFA according to his habit to know about the trip. ”What do I do about these intricate observations along the way to see the parents of my wife ?” In the verse of the same Oyeku Otura above , we have these
oro lana
enikan kii ri ana fin
a difa fun orunmila
nijo ti nba Aje aya re lo sile Olokun Seniade
Translation
in laws are comparable to sacred rites
no one disparages his in law
cast diviantion for Orunmila
on the day he was visiting with Aje his wife in the house of OLOKUN Seniade
One important materials of sacrifice which IFA asked Orunmila to offer was a puppy . After sprinkling the puppy with the powder of IFA, that is iyereosun , the babalawo returned the dog to him and instructed him to raise her as a pet . Some weeks after the sacrifice , he called AJE , so that they could begin their trip to the realm of OLOKUN . Orunmila did not forget his dog. He carried it while his wife strapped the child to her back upon their arrival at the netry of the enormous home. Orunmila saw the first person , IRIN , exactly as described by AJE . The sight was awe inspiring and he quite forgot the warning of his wife. He has almost prostrated in greeting, mistaking him for OLOKUN. Aje stopped and bursts into the song of IJASI to bring him back to his sense.
Obawinni , mo dobale ki o
Obawinni , mo dobale ki
irin to gbade lowo
eru obi mi ni
Obawinni mo dobale ki
Translation
Obawinni do not prostrate to greet him
I warn you not to prostrate
Irin whom you see carrying the beaded crown
is actually the slave of my parents
Obawinni do not prostrate to greet him
The same things almost happened when they got to the second one carrying the staff. Again, Aje reminded Orunmila not to prostrate to greet him. Finally they arrived at the close quarter of OLOKUN, who spoked from afar. The voice of the person speaking sounded like a thousand canons blasting at the same time. However, Aje had warned her husband to close his eyes before entering into the close quarters, which he did. With the eyes closed, she introduced him and the new child which they have . “Aje, you are back”. The voice has said , if not all for all the messages you have , been sending back home, I would have been apprehensive but I am happy that you are back ”. For a long time , the voice continued to speak , greeting his i-law, his wife and the child , praying that they would not lack again in life .
Orunmila was unsettled. Being the inquisitive person, he had always been , he bent his head to one side and stealthily opened one of his eyelids to have a glimpse of OLOKUN , despite having been warned by Aje. According to the details given by the verse , what he saw was startling . He could not help heaving deep breaths to contain his amasement in the presence of his wife and of OLOKUN. He ultimately opened his two eyes wide in bewilderment at the creature in front of whom they stood. OLOKUN did not rebuke him neither did she stop taking to the couple and their child.
After a time , she allowed them to leave so that the woman could go into the inner rooms to greet the entire household. As soon as they left the place , Orunmila’s eyes became swollen and reddish . Aje did not say anything neither did she sympathized even as he scratched his itchy eyelids. He had willfully broken the taboo and was the reason for the eye troubles. When they got to the quarters where OLOKUN told them to lodge, she left the child with her husband and proceeded to greet her people. With the eyes troubling him , the child in his hand , the dog on the ground , he became highly uncomfortable but did not complain . Orunmila decided to lie on the mat so that he could at least be sure that he would not collapse when walking with his eyes almost blinded. It was while he was lying down that the new baby defecated on his face, compounding his troubles . The mother was not around and Orunmila did not know how to get anything to clean the mess. It was then the dog which he offered the last time came to his rescue. It started licking the feces off his face . He licked all of it and did not stop until he licked the gum on the eyes. Abruptly , the eyes opened and orunmila could see again.
Olokun herself realized that her in-law had eye problems as a result of the breaking of the taboo. She called Orunmila and had an accord with him by giving him and his male children the opportunity of seeing her in a veilded form. Also given to Orunmila was the neutralizer which would soften the effect of seeing the odu with naked eye (2).
Odu in conjuction with initiations may be said to be a way through which one may have spiritual rebirth. Odu may also be said to invoke a kind of spiritual affinity on the new initiate so that he can tap from the vast esoteric energy of the universe flowing freely in space . By this , he may be said to have empowerment for astral travelling . This apart from its bringing one spiritually closer to OLODUMARE ‘s spiritual pedestal, gives the human the ability to become Babalawo . All these are however possible if the human is spiritually docile and vulnerably presents himself before he can become fully encapsulated in his spiritual realm . What is seen and the extent of spiritual contentment is not describable in the pages of a book as there are diverse spiritual satisfaction . This experience is better left for anyone willing to go through the Igbodu.
It was since then that sighting of the odu has been the final rites of a full initiation into the cult of ifa . This was one of the promised of OLOKUN to Orunmila . Also by being exposed to the ODU , one becomes empowered and insulated from attacks of force which may usually have negative impact on the life of the man.
The odu is usually covered in a wooden bowl and is not exposed unless there is the need to offer sacrifice to her or when someone wants to experience her. She is venerated and sacrifice offered to her regularly . The design of the bowl takes different forms and these days , some people are improvising by using leathers bags as containers(3).
SOURCE—
(1) “YORUBA THEOLOGY AND TRADITION,THE WORSHIP” AYO SALAMI. PUB NIDD 2008. PAGE 559
(2) “YORUBA THEOLOGY AND TRADITION,THE WORSHIP” AYO SALAMI. PUB NIDD 2008. PAGE 561
(3) “YORUBA THEOLOGY AND TRADITION,THE WORSHIP” AYO SALAMI. PUB NIDD 2008. PAGE 564
Olokun as ocean divinity is frequently coupled in IFA verses as an embodiment of aquatic vibration radiating the entire cosmos with power to enrich men and women’s destiny and improve their lives in a greater proportion. One of the various verses of IFA pointing to the expanse power and greatness of Olokun is shown below under ejiogbe
Gbogbo ola omi ti nbe laye
ko le to ti Olokun
Gbogbo iyi odo ti o se ni isale
iyi won ko le to ti osa
olokun mo pe ooo
olosa mo pe ooo
to ba too sanni , sisan nii san ni
to ba to yeni , yiye ni i yeni
ewo ni keni sowo sowo
keni ma rona koo dele
a difa fun orunmila
ifa nsawo lo apa okun elakeji osa
ni wan ran ola nibi ojumo ti mo wa
Yoo gba gun okun
Yoo gba gun ide
yoo gba gun olginniginni aso irada
orunmila yoo kokun oro wa nwu -ile
Translations of eji ogbe
the greatness and the importance of the world can not rival the quantity of the water in the oceans
the greatness of the streams cannot rival the importance and the greatness of the sea
the divinity of Ocean , I give my obeisance
the deity of the sea , I give my obeisance
there should be time enough
there should be time
time to succeed , time to prosper
hard would it be , forver to bear
a life of struggle without success
a life of commerce without profit
thus declare IFA oracle for Orunmila
when he intended going to the city accross the ocean
to practise ifa divination in that prosperous land full of opportunity
the land full of prosperity , and wealth of higher proportion
ifa will receive in that land the reward of beads , gold and other ornaments of higher value
presents of various cloth in high quality
orunmila will return with riches and wealth of higher proportion back home
ifa let all our steps attract the spiritual and physical gifts and presents of higher proportion
Ase
Olokun here is seen as the energy responsible for blessing of wealth, riches and prosperity of higher proportion . However some tradition refer to Olokun as a male energy in the universe according to IFA verse
“olokun nii gbogbo awon obirin re lo yagan ni won a loyun , un , lo da fa pe awon obirin wonyi le bimo fun oun “
Translation
“there was this client olokun with a problem , his wives were infertile , so OLOKUN consulted the diviner asking , would his wives become fruitful and bear him children !!! (4)
Olokun as a male energy is a symbolic representation of IFA , as a surbodinate and coadjudant of Orunmila to enrich his devotees in a miraculous manner . The energy of wealth , riches and prosperity embedded in the deepest part of ocean manifesting in the surplus enrichment of the people in the universe. Olokun enjoys the surbordinate role of IFA in the universe. He is divinity of wealth , symbol of large and abundance surplus of riches in the cosmos
Moreso her female role as one of the greatest, favourite, and closest wife of Oduduwa could be seen in the most of Ifa verses, according to the story . Olokun was the wealthiest woman of her time. She started the trade of making beads and other precious ornaments of greater value. Till the present date , there is a grove attributed to OLOKUN as IGBO OLOKUN , where traditions believed that she strived to initiate the habit of making beads which consequently enrich her in the world.
(4) ifa festival – abosede emanuel pg 192