SELF-AWARENESS IN IFÁ

There is no one who knows you more than you know yourself. The real self awareness is not read in a book, you experience it as you journey through life. 

In Yoruba cosmology and spiritual life, Ìtẹfá is an initiation into the self-awareness experience.

Ìtẹfá reveals the information that formed you before time based on the purpose for which you were formed thereby arming you with the information that reveals to you the reasons for your character traits and the management of same for optimum performance during your time in Ìkọ̀lé Ayé - material universe.

Odù Ifá Èjì Ogbè, the first and the king of the 256 Ifá chapters makes us understand that it is not appropriate to wake up each day without knowing one's Odù Ifá.

Jíjí ni mo jí ni mo ko ire, 

Ọ̀nà ni mo rìn ni mo ko ìfà,

A kìí jí ni kùtùkùtù òwúrọ̀ ká má mọ Ifá tó bíni;

A dífá fún Olúìpó Ẹ̀là-elú

Èyí tí ó fi ìlànà bàbá rẹ̀ sílẹ̀

Tí ó lọ ń tọ ìlànà bàbá òní bàbá.

Translation:

I woke up (in the morning) and encounter goodness, 

Walking on my path and I come across freebie,

It's an abberation to wakeup in the morning and not know one's spiritual path;

These were Ifa's declarations for Olúìpó Ẹ̀là-elú who abandoned his ancestral path to thread on another's ancestral path.  

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Ifá is saying to us in this verse that one's path is originally laced with goodness as Olódùmarè intended for each one of us, but the neglect of our own ancestral path is bound to result into hardships. 

This is the wisdom that the full story in this Ifá is teaching us.

Self-awareness therefore starts from knowing your own Odù Ifá which is your ancestral path; it tells your story from before you were born into the material universe; its corpus - scripture - contains the essence of your creation, the trajectory of your life, your challenges, strengths, weaknesses which together make a divine combination that activates your inherent authority/Àṣẹ. This you'll be helped to attain through the mentorship of your Oluwo (Baba).

In summary, it is impossible to fulfill your own essence without a deliberate navigation through life. A deliberate navigation through life is impossible without a knowledge of your authentic essence. This is what is contained in your Odù Ifá.

Any Questions?

By Ayobami Ogedengbe.