Mogaji and popular Ifa Priest, Chief Ifalere Ifagbenro of Osho Adegboye compound in Ibadan was our guest on our recent Radio Show, Parrot Xtra/Ayekooto anchored by Olayinka Agboola on Splash 105.5FM, recently. During the interaction, he insisted that all Yoruba Kings must embrace the African Traditional Religion (ATR). He also spoke about Yahoo-Boys and other salient issues… Excerpts:
Can you give us a lecture on the differences or relationship between Ifa, Orunmila, Obatala and Iyemoja…
The Whiteman will say one-step before another. The first step in this is to know the process. You see, when our Creator did His thing to create the earth; he called it “Ode-isalaye”. Heaven is the home of all but when His creatures get to the earth the pleasure of eating, drinking and enjoying turned the earth to home ignorantly. The creator at first sent Orunmila, a distinct being to the earth after its creation, but when he was about to leave heaven, he requested not to go alone to the earth because he felt being alone would not be honourable, therefore he was accompanied by Eegun, Orisa-Nla, Osun and others, their total number being 17, and the only female with them was Osun.
When they got to the earth, they connived together leaving out the female amidst them, they rendered her to nothing, when you look at this situation and the present day situation in Nigeria, then you shouldn’t be surprised at all. It was after they all went back to the Creator that he cautioned them and ordered them to include the female among them in all they do in order for peace to be restored to the earth. This means, for everything to work out in our nation we all need is unity. To answer your question, all the 17 gods have the same legacy in the beginning with Orunmila being their leader.
Can you shed more light about the horoscope of our children because modern day parents don’t really care about what their children love to do? What is your take concerning this?
Ifa has made us understand that it is right if we desire to know the fate or destiny of a child. In the past, three or five days after a child is born, it was mandatory to check the horoscope of that child from Ifa because then, a new born baby is always named on the sixth day and they call them “Ifalomo”. But if there were occurrences that prevented the horoscope to be checked on the fifth day, it can be checked on the ninth day.
Even now, a matured man who wishes to know his horoscope can still check it. This is needed to know the kind of child you have been gifted from God. A good example is late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, whose father was a Babalawo and after the Ifa was consulted to know his horoscope, it was revealed that child will be great in life and must not sleep where other children are sleeping, he must always sleep separately, and that was what birthed the invention of baby cot.
Secondly, they mustn’t spank him on his head and we all see that the man eventually fulfilled his destiny and his legacy still continues, even till tomorrow. If you can check the horoscope of your child, it saves a lot, some children – their destiny affirms that they must never leave their place of birth while some are meant to live far from home. If you can check the horoscope of your child, they will not miss their ways nor do another man’s job.
Are you shocked about the current situation of our country? Or were you and others forewarned you and others by Ifa about this?
Yes, it was revealed and we even said it when campaigning for the current regime. What we need now is patience, Ifa has said everything will turn out to become good, very soon things will become easy again in Nigeria.
Ifa said it is indeed the turn of the Yorubas to lead this nation, and what we need to know is that a lot of things went wrong under the previous government, and what has been spoiled in twenty years cannot be corrected in six months, we need to be patient.
Many of our past leaders have ruled this land without the fear of the Creator, which has brought untold hardship to our people. What we need to learn as individuals is that there is always a reward for everything one does, some of these people stored up riches with lies and deceit but the child they brought up with these riches has always brought them shame and unrest, isn’t that enough of a reward? Some are even nursing sicknesses, some in jail with their future shattered. Let us always be truthful, no matter how scarce truth is in the world, Ifa stood firm on the need to always be truthful. You must be truthful at all times.
As an Ifa Priest, are you not intimidated by other more acceptable religions, Islam and Christianity?
As the Whiteman will say, “This world is rolling like a ball”, as the world moves, let us move with it. The world will end with what it began with, the Creator is the Word, and the Word is the Creator who created the world. The world began with the traditional religion, before the Christian religion came in; I remember then when I wanted to be enrolled in school, I was asked to change my name to Matthew or Joshua before I could be admitted into school and this was why my studies were delayed because my father disagreed. Later Islamic religion came in; I was even taught by a Muslim teacher. Even though these religions came, now everyone is returning to where it all began, they now know that the truth, which is “Truth”, can only be found in Ifa. That is why we sing in our sect that “The way of truth and fairness is in the house of Ifa.
People assume that you and your Ifa worshippers are the godfathers of those we popularly refer to as Yahoo Boys, how true is this?
This is not so because the Ifa we hold in our hands has abominations. We do consult Ifa always to know the taboos of it, some of the taboos of Ifa is that a Babalawo must not sit on the seat of his wife or friend’s wife, we must not look into the eyes of our boss’s wife or the eyes of our boss when he is angry. None of us give our supports to Yahoo Boys. So when these boys come for help, sometimes they don’t disclose their job, what they always say is that they are graduates with no job but only running online businesses which they want to blossom, and there is no other help we render them than to do a spiritual charm that brings them luck and their desired outcome (Awure).
Even if a labourer does “Awure” he will take in so much laboring offers that he can even become a laborer that employs laborers. If this was done for an educated student who claims to be a computer expert, is it wrong? If not because of the prevailing decadence in our society now, at least there was no news on yahoo (online fraud) some 30 years ago.
Moreover, even now, you can’t go to an Ifa Priest as a fraudster for help and he will help you, he will rather advise you against such. You can’t come to me as a Yahoo Boy and request for help, I won’t offer it.
Even if they tell a lie, Ifa will reveal it and we will tell the consequences of what they are requesting for, anyone who doesn’t work, sweat to make wealth, or buy nor sell and is collecting money should know that it is a cursed wealth. If we tell them these consequences and they go on to do it, don’t you always see the outcome, sometimes they get drunk and drive themselves to death, get jailed and pay a lot of money to be released.
There are some misconceptions about African traditional religion especially on Esu. Can you shed more light on it?
Firstly, Esu is not Satan, it was during the translation of English to Yoruba by Bishop Ajayi Crowther that a mistake was made and he called Esu-Odara Satan, so that is wrong. The reason why Esu is called Satan till today is because that knowledge has stuck with them. Esu-Odara is a messenger of Olodumare, he is the one involved in every man’s action, in fact, every one of us has Esu at home, actually, the heart of every man is Esu, a man that stab his neighbor to death did that because of the Esu in his heart, the one doing good to people does that by the command of the Esu in his heart.
Esu is a messenger who is a merciful one, he does good, knows words and gratitude. He is the first security of the earth and the town and because he resides at T-junctions and creatures like death, sickness, troubles move mostly in the midnight and must always pass the T-junction where the Esu resides before they head to their destinations and when they get there, he can divert these evil from getting to those who had served him, even though the evil is meant for them.
Our politicians too do come to you for fortification, how do you know if their motive is right or wrong?
We always advise intending political contestants that they should always do good because of what lies ahead tomorrow, it always pays to do good because it speaks to the future. A former Councilor can become a commissioner, a commissioner can become a governor and even a governor can become a president, but what will make this a possibility is your record of accomplishment. There is reward for everything, but now on earth and in the world beyond, everyone will give account of what they lived on earth to do.
As a Mogaji hoping to become the Olubadan one day, can you discuss the processes involved when a Yoruba king joins his ancestors and how new ones are installed…?
Back in those days, during the time of our ancestors, the Mogaji used to be a very powerful person, they call such a person “Waa Ku” which means come and die. They do this because in the olden days they always have a large family, a minimum of 80-100 in an extended family, so to pick one person in the midst of hundreds, that person should be ready to face anything, even death, because a “Mio le wa ku” (I am not ready to die) cannot be installed as a chief.
After being installed as a Mogaji, the next cadre is to become a king, if God wills. Definitely, there are spiritual rites to be carried out before installing a king; these rituals are what qualify a king to be indeed, called a king, the one with authority. There is a king whom I know and was indeed a king, the late Alaafin of Oyo, we call him Sango, Adeyemi Atanda, omo Iku, omo aarun, omo ofo, omo adanu, omo ejo ile. If you look at him closely, you will see a picture of the god of thunder, Sango in him, there are no real differences.
Before he transited to be with his ancestors, his eyes were always red like blood, if he shouts at a woman suddenly, even if it is not yet the period for her menstruation, she will immediately start menstruating or if he shouts at a man, such a man will pee on his body, that is a king who was endowed with much authority. Not now that a king will frankly refuse to be associated with our cultural traditions, or cancel every ritual process in a town.
Our father, Fayemi Elebuibon even said recently that anyone who is not ready to be associated with the African traditional religion is not qualified to be a king. Well, there are thrones in Saudi and Israel that such individuals can ascend as kings, where such requirements are not needed.
There is great honour, and even glory on the body and appearance of a king. These spiritual rites and rituals endow them with these and this is why it is impossible to confront or battle with them. In those days, if there was evil outside, the spirits would alert the king not to go out.
Is there anything-called ‘money ritual’?
If anyone tells you there is money ritual, such a person is a liar, there is no money ritual but there are rituals that bring luck, we call it “Awure”. A person who has no work and intends to do a lucky charm is just wasting his time.
What advice will you give our politicians?
I will urge him or her to be truthful, do good works and always have the motive to be a servant who is ready to serve the public and if he or she has ulterior motives, everything has consequences.
