Irete-Ogbe - How Odu Became Orunmila's Wife Part 7

"Odu used this power to gain access to the house of Orunmila."

This I believe is a key point in understanding Irete -Ogbe.  Here the verse is saying Odu initiated the association with Orunmila.  It was Odu that wanted to align herself with Orunmila.

Commentary:

The relationship between Odu and Orunmila is a fundamental polarity in Ifa Cosmology.  Again like Ifa references it is a metaphor that applied to various realms of Creation.

Let’s revisit the meaning of these two important words.  Odu the womb of rebirth.  I say rebirth because after the moment of Creation all birth is rebirth.  The is the great awo or mystery of the Holy Odu Odi Meji from the elision O idi meaning the Spirit of a woman’s root chakra or pelvic area.  The idi contains an Odu.  Idi incubates the process of rebirth while Odu is the portal through which rebirth enters the world of manifestation.

The word Orunmila is commonly translated to mean Heaven is my salvation.  I would translate it a little differently from the elision Orun mi ala meaning the invisible realm is my light.

With the words Odu and Orunmila we are dealing with the fundamental polarity between contraction and expansion.  In Nature this polarity is the contrast between gravity (gravity) and expansion (electromagnetism).  According to Western Science and Ifa Science this polarity creates physical reality.

Ifa is a expression of Nature worship, so all aspects of Ifa ritual reflect the fundamental elements of Creation.

On a personal level the polarity between Odu and Orunmila is the polarity that integrates right brain and left brain.  This integration is the basis for the Egyptian discipline known as the mystic eye.  In traditional Ifa this integration is accomplished through Tefa for men and through Iyaami for women.  In Tefa men receive right brain ase to balance the ase of left brain male energy by being presented to the feminine ase of the Odu Pot.  In Iyaami Osoranga women receive the right brain ase of what can be described as the male energy of becoming a warrior.

The relationship between Odu and Orunmila in the personal real is the foundation for the ideas associated with proper conduct in marriage in traditional Yoruba culture.  The marriage relationship is rooted in gender equity that in fact reflects the nature of reality in the Universe.

In the Earth Realm the light that comes through the Portals of Earth called Igbodu from the elision igbo odu meaning womb of the forest is the light that shapes the Earth.  It is also the light that allows humans to communicate with the Ori of the Earth manifested as Spirit of Orisa.

In the Universe the metaphor of the relationship between Odu and Orunmila is a reference to the light that comes through the womb of pulsar to create new stars and new galaxies.

Awo Falokun