THE HAND OF ORULA: meaning, what is it for?, benefits and more

The hand of Orula is a ceremony carried out in the Yoruba religion, which aims to receive Orula and deliver knowledge about her destiny to those who are being initiated. If you are interested in learning more about this topic, continue reading this article.

What is Orula’s hand?

It is an initial rite or ceremony that aims to receive Orula, through the consecration of Ifá, a religious system organized from the teachings of Òrúnmìlà, a spirit of the Yoruba belief called Elérì Ìpin Ibìkejì Olódùmarè.

At least two babalawos must participate in this, in charge or responsible for the entire main part of the ritual. In addition, the so-called warriors must be included, which are: Eshu, Oggun, Oshsi and Osun. This ritual lasts three days, whether it originates from Nigeria or Cuba.

Who is Orula?

In Yoruba belief, Orula is the deity of divination and wisdom.

He witnessed the creation of the Universe by God or as he is called in this religion, Olodumare, which is why Orula is knowledgeable about all living beings, including their origin, situation and destiny.

This divinity allows those who receive or consult it to know in a certain way their destiny on the physical and spiritual plane, the difficulties that may threaten them and the way to avoid them or free themselves from them. (See article: Mama chola)

Orula is also known as Orunmila, Orunla, Ifá, Eleri Ikpin Ode.

Orula is considered by the Yoruba religion to be the first leader whom Olodumare commissioned to inspect and check the births and development of humans and other species.

While he was on earth he was accompanied by the sixteen heavenly ancestors, known as the Meyis of Ifá. That occurred between 2000 and 4000 BC.

He is a fortune teller, owner of the Oracles and interpreter of Ifá. His cult originates from Ilé Ifé, the ancient Yoruba city, located in the southwest of Nigeria and his name from the Yoruba Òrúnmìlà, which translates Only heaven knows who will be saved.

Orula Day

Orula’s day is October 4. To celebrate it, it is necessary to take to your Ifa godfather’s house:

Two coconuts One yam Two candles One right Gift of food, fruits or cakes of your choice.

Ifá and the Babalawos

The sect of Orunmila, also called Orunla or Orula, is known as Ifá. This orisha is considered the deity of divination who knows how destiny advances and develops. There are those who practice the religion and know Orunmila by the name Ifá.

However, Ifá is specifically called as a group separated by sects; The functions in the rituals within this sect are carried out only by priests of Orunmila, known as Babalawos.

Some of the exclusive functions of the Babalawos are:

Read Also: MOST POPULAR JAPANESE LEGENDS AND MYTHS

Give the Eshu that is received in Ifá. Give the Idé or Orunmila bracelet to keep the spirit of Ikú away. Divination with the okuelé or fortune teller’s chain and the ikín. It is important to emphasize that both are the only divination tools used in Ifá. Give Kofá or Awofakán (Hand of Orula), giving a small sanctuary of Orunmila to maintain balance in the home and recognize one’s own destiny. Consecrate other babalawos as priests. It is important to know that this is only carried out by a babalawo and not a santero.

However, it is also true that there are many things that a babalawo cannot do, that a santero or santera can. Among these things that you should not do, we find:

Do not grant addimú Orishas or symbolic orishas to others, with the exception of the Warriors: Eshu, Ogun, Ochosi, Osun, Osain, Olokun and Oduduwa, and however only those of the Ifá type can be given, these should never be transmitted. They do not read Diloggún (snails, shells), they simply and exclusively use the divination chain and palm nuts, okuelé and ikin. They cannot give the initiation of Elekes, but they can grant the eleke of Orunmila to the person. People are not initiated into the Kariocha ceremony, this is to be priests of other Orishas. In any case, if they wish, they can perform sacrificial rights and entrance readings that lead to a kariocha, but they must avoid being in the sacred room during the initiation. It is indicated that orishas are not born.

In many ways, the Ifá sect is considered to be a section or subdivision of Santeria. A sect, which focuses on divination, the science of Ifá and the knowledge of Odu.

Furthermore, it does not have many practitioners and is limited to heterosexual men, who dedicate their lives to the mastery of divination, the science of Ifá and the knowledge of Odu.

Clarifying, babalawos are not high priests of the religion, they are fortune tellers focused only on the function of Ifá.

Lines that work with Ifá

There are several spiritual lineages that work with Ifá, and they will include Babalawos or turn to them when it comes to ritual functions.

To determine the tutelary orisha of a person, they are generally consulted, with at least three Babalawos participating in this type of ceremony, who group together and use the ikin and the Opón Ifá or the Ifá table.

This with the objective of determining the Orisha guardianship of the individual. It is proper to perform this type of ritual when the person received his Kofá or Awofakán, that is, the hand of Orula.

Ifá indicates and affirms that only the Babalawos can determine someone’s tutelary Orisha, since Orula witnessed the development of destiny.

Read Also: THE MYTH OF MORPHEO, CALLED THE GOD OF DREAM

In this particular it was Orunmila and Elegguá who contemplated destiny together and that Elegguá really came first than Orunmila. Therefore, Elegguá can also provide information about a person’s tutelary orisha.

The houses or lineages that work with Ifá also employ Babalawos to be in charge of the sacrificial rites in the ceremonies, the entrance reading and the Ebó Até or the cleaning on the mat, in the reading of the life of an individual. .

Only those who are told become a Babalawo, since they have a destiny in the Ifá sect through divination, meaning that not everyone can become one.

Generally this information can be delivered through:

-The reading of life when receiving Awofakán.

-Reading of life after his Kariocha.

Among the limitations to being a Babalawo are being a woman or a homosexual man, this is a strict prohibition.

In some cases it happens that the individual becomes an Aborisha to the Ifá sect as a priest of Orunmila.

Normally the majority are initiated as an Olorisha, for their tutelary orisha, be it Elegguá, Ogún, Oshun, Yemaya, etc. and then over time they go to Ifá and are ordained as priests of Orula or Babalawo.

Oluwos or Oluos, is the name given to these people who pass to Ifá, being clear that they no longer function as an Olorisha and therefore the rituals that an Olorisha officiates are prohibited: elekes, ocha warriors, kariocha, among others.

That is to say, these people dedicate their lives to the Ifá sect, therefore to the ritual functions that are their own and to which they are limited.

What is an Osha-Ifá Sign or Letter?

Known as Odum, a sign or letter represents the vital part of the Osha-Ifá divination system.

This system divided into subsystems: Ifá, Dilogún and Obí, each one with its particular characteristics are interrelated, since they have a unique ideological, mythological and sapiential source, to carry out predictions with the accumulated knowledge of Osha-Ifá.

The oracular subsystems are integrated with each other for a common reason, this triggers the religious act in which the Oshas, Orishas and Egun, protectors and actors, make an appearance.

In addition to prophecies, riddles, proverbs and popular sayings. It also determines the character and complexity of rituals, ceremonies and consecrations.

When referring to the oracular subsystem of Ifá, the latter mentioned is known as Odun; for Dilogún it is Letter and for Biange and Aditoto’s it is called Sign.

It is for this reason that the Odun, Letter or Sign, being the common element in the three subsystems, represents the fundamental and indispensable cell of the divination system, regardless of the particular aspects of each one.

The Odum, Letter or Sign carries a varied and rich literary content and body, which in addition to referring to and covering mystical and religious aspects, also includes references to historical events, places and subjects.

Read Also: Do you know the TRIQUETA symbol? Find out all about it here

On many occasions they are presented in the form of legends, myths and fables that maintain aspects and reflections of the reality of different moments in history. The interpretation of information and its essence, which allow or make prediction possible.

This common element has the same source of wisdom, ideology and mythology to make the predictions, and it is nothing other than the knowledge that has been accumulated over the years in the stories, legends and myths of Osha-Ifá.

They all usually address the different interpretations that Osha-Ifá makes about nature and its elements, being, thought and society.

This accumulation of knowledge is obviously linked to the way of seeing, thinking and interpreting life and situations of those ancient people who inhabited the western south of the Sahara.

The predominant culture was the Lucumí, however, with the passage of time and contact with other cultures and nations, I managed to enrich it.

In Osha-Ifá it is considered that human beings have a unique energy in each individual, representing the basis of their harmony and internal balance.

This energy usually influences and gives a certain particular characteristic in the ways and behaviors of each individual, which of course is affected and influenced by the environment that surrounds them and where they develop, in addition to some other factors.

They also affirm that each person has a number of Oshas, Orishas, Egun and different spiritual radiations linked to the person’s spiritual and material energy.

Therefore, when consulting any of the divinatory subsystems, the individual’s energy is identified with a common element, Odun, Letter or Sign. The content of these allows the priest to predict or predict the fate of the person concerned.

This element transmits the message of the Oshas, Orishas and protections, through the Osha or Orisha that governs each oracle.

This message must be deciphered and transmitted by a priest consecrated to the service of the oracular subsystem that is used, Ifá, Dilogún and Obí.

The interpreting priests of the different oracular subsystems are:

Ifá: they are the Olúos and the Babalawo,

Dilogún: the Oloshas, Babaloshas, Iyaloshas, Obases and Oriatés

Biange and Aditoto: all the priests of Ifá, Dilogún and all the consecrated ones that the Warriors received, through Osha or Ifá.