IFA VERSES & STORIES YORUBA VOCABULARY ARTISTIC & CREATIVE ACTIVITES PRACTICAL APPLICATION FOLLOW UP EXERCISES

OBATALA DEFIES

DEATH

ODU STUDY

GUIDESchool o f Orisa Studies

03OgbeOgunda

The Odu Study Guide is designed to help you follow up on

your  interest in learning the sacred texts of Ifa. You don't

have to be a babalawo to enjoy Orunmila's wisdom. All you

need is to get familiar with some of the stories and their

symbolism.

ALWAYS refer to the Odu Study Guide and complete the

activities before you listen to the story. It is filled with

activities and best practices for planning your study.

The activities are not done until you complete the FOLLOW

UP exercises. This is where you will make the connections

with others and the study becomes meaningful.

SIX LEVELS OF TRAINING

School o f Orisa Studies

Salt of the Earth: Reflection & vocabulary building

Copper: Visual & creative expression

Brass: Psychological, social & cultural implementation

Silver: Prayers & spiritual exercises

Gold: Affiliated orisa, rituals & offerings

Amethyst: Medicines, charms and preparations

For each main lesson, there is a particular set of educational

exercises. These exercises correspond to the various

CLASSES within the School of Orisa Studies:

Get trained before you get initiated... Obafemi Origunwa, MA

HOW TO USE THIS GUIDEorisa l i fes ty le .com

School o f Orisa Studies

JOURNALS

Having a special Odu

Studies Journal is a

perfect place for you

to accumulate

drawings, ideas and

questions. I suggest

you start an exclusive

Odu Studies journal

and fill it with your

learnings.

FOLLOW

UP

Once you have

completed the

exercises and

activities, share your

experiences with the

community. See the

back page for

sharing instructions.

O R I S A L I F E S T Y L E . C O M

HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE

Pre Activities

Odu Main Lesson

Class-Specific Exercises

Salt of the Earth

Copper

Brass

Silver

Gold

Amethyst

1.

2.

3.

4. Follow up Activities

.

There are six classes within the School of Orisa Studies, each with its own

focus. When you enroll in the Amethyst Class, you have access to ALL

educational resources within the School of Orisa Studies. As you move from

Amethyst to Salt of the Earth, you have less access.

All participants will be able to complete at least FOUR learning objectives

associated with the Odu Study Guide:

02

BEFORE YOU STARTRead the Story Summary and Main Themes for an overview of the

most important ideas . You may discover others as well .

s t o ry s u m m a ryOlodumare gave Iku and Obatala four

eggs each to bring to the earth . Iku

gave his eggs to Obatala while he took

a 16 year journey . Olodumare advised

Obatala to boil his own eggs , peel the

shells , and sprinkle them on the

surface of the earth . The crops that

grew fed the people . When Iku

returned to demand his eggs , Obatala

explained what happened . Iku said he

would kil l the people , to compensate

for his eggs . When Obatala protested ,

they returned to Olodumare for

direction .

MA I N T H E M E S

Manage what is given to you

Giving people ownership

Does responsibility constitute ownership?

Responsibility

Delegation

Ownership

Standing for what you have made

Conflict resolution and neutrality

Death is inevitable , unpredictable

Advocacy

Deliberation

Arbitrariness

Complete this activity

before listening to the

Main Lesson.

This activity is designed

to build curiosity and

familiarize you with the

symbols and characters

in the story. It will also

enable you to use what

you already know in order

to learn more about the

wisdom of this particular

verse of Ifa.

I N T R O D U C T I O N

DEFINITION: What does uncertainty mean to

you? What comes to mind when you think of

uncertainty? How do you manage

uncertainty? On a scale of 1 - 10, how

comfortable are you with uncertainty? What

is your first response to uncertainty? Are you

more curious or anxious about it?

List everything in your Odu Studies Journal.

U N C E R T A I N T YEXPERIENCE: Recall a specific

time when you were subject to

something that was inevitable, but

at the same time uncertain; that is,

you knew something would

happen but you did not know

when. Maybe it was in school or

the armed services or in your

neighborhood. How did you

manage the experience?

TIP: It could be a positive or

negative experience.

S C H O O L O F O R I S A S T U D I E S

OR I S A L I F E S T Y L E . COM

L I S T E N T O

T H E S T O R Y

S C H O O L O F O R I S A S T U D I E S

OR I S A L I F E S T Y L E . COM

EXERCISESSchool of Orisa Studies

Odu Study Guide

orisali festyle .com

School of Orisa Studies Odu Study Guide

EXERCISE 1

If you had to pick out one message to be learned from this verse,

what would it be?

Why did Obatala oppose Iku?

In which way was Iku justified?

Why do you think Olodumare gave the final order?

QUESTION:

Record your responses in your Odu Studies Journal

Ogboni - Respected elders

Oosanla - Contraction of Orisanla,

the great orisa

Iku - Death

VOCABULARY

Olodumare - The supreme being

School of Orisa Studies Odu Study Guide

EXERCISE 2

Recall the way the story unfolded. If it were a movie or a play, how

many major parts or scenes were there? Now, recall the most

memorable portion of the story. What happened? Who were the

characters? 

Draw a detailed picture of the most memorable scene.

QUESTION:

Make entries in your Odu Studies Journal

1.

2.

Use pencil first

Take your time

Focus on visualizing the scene, not on realism

TIPS

School of Orisa Studies Odu Study Guide

EXERCISE 3

Divide the story into four parts as follows:

Setting: Where does the story start?

Development: What happened to create uncertainty?

Culmination: What happened to shift the dynamics?

Solution: How did the story resolve?

QUESTION:

Record responses in your Odu Studies Journal

1.

a.

b.

c.

d.

2. List the major symbols in each part of the story (e.g., Iku, Eggs, Earth, etc)

3. What does each symbol represent to you, personally?

4. Review the ways in which the various symbols interact in each part.

If, for example, the eggs represent LIFE and Obatala represents

ARTISTRY, explore the relationships between LIFE and ARTISTRY.

Do not use outside resources when assigning meaning to the symbols

Try mapping the story on paper to show relationships in each part

TIPS

School of Orisa Studies Odu Study Guide

EXERCISE 4QUESTION:

Transcribe this verse in your Odu Studies Journal

A youth is having a secret love affair with the wife of an Ogboni elder

They heard of it, but were not to speak about it

Even the consequence of doing so must not be pronounced

This was the message of Ifa for Iku (Death)

The same was also declared for Oosanla (Obatala)

When coming from heaven to earth

They were advised to offer ebo

They complied

Before long, not too far

Come and see how the Ifa that was cast on that day has manifested

- Holy Odu OgbeOgunda

Recite it 8 times a day for 16 days

Pray for the capacity to work collaboratively and create win/win outcomes

Memorize this verse

School of Orisa Studies Odu Study Guide

EXERCISE 5

Do this ritual first thing in the morning

Pour honey onto a white porcelain plate

Mark OgbeOgunda onto the honey

Recite: An uncontrolled temper creates nothing

good for anybody/Patience is the father of

character/The elder who has patience has all good

things/Like someone tasting honey

Pray, Ifa, let my life be as sweet as honey. Ase!

Breathe 3X over the plate

Lick the honey

RITUAL:

Write this ritual in your Odu Studies Journal

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Only pour a dallop of honey, the sixe of a quarter

TIP

Honey

OgbeOgunda

White Plate

MATERIALS

1.

2.

3.

School of Orisa Studies Odu Study Guide

EXERCISE 6

Grind ooyo leaves to fine consistency

Pound together with black soap

With your right index finger, make 8 holes in the

soap

Fill the holes 1/3 shea butter, 1/3 palm kernel oil, 1/3

palm oil

Let it sit in the sun 30 minutes

Spread iyerosun powder onto white plate

Mark OgbeOgunda

Recite: Oloyonu says that when they see me, they

should love me/As soon as shea butter sees the

sun, it melts/As soon as palm kernal oil sees the

sun it melts/As soon as shea butter sees the sun it

melts/When people see me let them love me/Ase

Mix soap with iyerosun and bathe every Saturday

BLACK SOAP FOR GOOD FORTUNE:

Write this ritual in your Odu Studies Journal

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

Leaves of Ooyo

herb

Black soap

Mortar and pestle

Palm oil

Shea butter

Palm kernel oil

Iyerosun

MATERIALS

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

FOLLOW UPO P E N I N G T H E S T OM A C H

The sacred text of Ifa is filled with

wisdom that facilitates mental,

emotional and spiritual healing.

Traditionally, once the babalawo has

shared the messages of Ifa, he will

say, "Ifa has opened his stomach for

you. Now, it is time for you to open

your stomach to Ifa.

"Opening one's stomach" is what

African American Christians call

testifying. It is when you share how

the message resonates with you and

speaks to your condition.

Opening your stomach is an integral

part of the healing process.

What does this story mean to you?

Why do you believe this story

revealed itself to you at this

particular time?

If there was one lesson you

learned from this story, what

would it be?

What is one thing you can do

immediately in response to this

lesson?

INSTRUCTIONS

Make a 3-5 minute video response to

the following questions:

Share the responses at:

facebook.com/groups/OrisaStudies