S’otito, S’ododo, S’otito O Si Tun.
The Spirit Protects Those Who Speak The Truth.
I painted this entry red for you…listen.
To those of you who are venturing into and/or currently practicing the ancient traditions of African Spirituality, it is imperative to over, under, inner, and around-a-stand these things I am about to mention in order to avoid undue chaos and confusion. These traditions are designed to bring peace, harmony, healing, balance, clarity, understanding, liberation, strength, and prosperity into your lives. Knowing these things can help you avoid the attracting the opposite.
It is important to have competent and balanced spiritual teachers to assist you on your journey through African Spirituality, as this is an oral tradition. Much of the wisdom you wll not find in books. Your Baba/Iya, or spiritual teacher should be focused ONLY on guiding your path in terms of positive spirituality. These things include:
- Performing divination/ritual works and/or initiations to get you on the path to your highest destiny according to the messages received from readings that you consented to.
- To help change negative situations in your life into positive ones
- Teaching about Ori, Egungun, Orisa, and Ifa, and how you can connect to them for yourself so that you can and will be efficient without them one day. This is how the traditions are carried on through generations.
- Teaching the importance of Iwa Pele while striving for it themselves
- Sharing the knowledge/wisdom of the ancient traditions with the community, so as many as possible can be aware of their power and wonders.
What these things do NOT include:
- Imposing sexual acts. What you choose to do sexually is completely YOUR choice. Be advised that sexuality is a powerful gateway to your spirit and soul. NEVER let anyone, and I mean anyone (I don’t care who they say they are) tell you that you have to participate in sex acts to receive blessings or appease deities. If Olodumare gave you free will, it is not in any priest or priestesses’ place to try to take it away, especially in your sacred space of sexuality.
- Demanding large sums of money, or trying to keep track of your finances. While initations and certain ceremonies do come at a cost, this culture is not designed to leave you destitute or void of financial privacy or freedom. What the spirit world puts in your purse or pocket is none of your Iya/Baba’s business. Period.
- Controlling who you can and cannot associate with. This is a control mechanism used to keep their lies and manipulations to you from being exposed. When imbalanced priests try to impose this, they don’t want you to cross paths with someone who can bring clarity to their untruths. It is also a way of involving you in their personal problems with others that has nothing to do with you. It is a way of creating enemies you really don’t have. Unfortunately, there are those who are too weak to dislike someone alone, so they recruit others in their beefs and blur the lines of loyalty and control. This is how discord is continued throughout generations.
- Invoking unnecessary fear of things that supposedly can happen to you, or negative work they can perform on you if you don’t submit to their demands that have NOTHING to do with fulfilling your highest destiny. This is another control mechanism use to mentally enslave you when traditional customs are supposed to bring freedom in balance, not to mention that living in fear is a direct taboo of our culture. Strive to live in good character, and you automatically become an asset to the spirit realm, and spiritual intelligence far supersedes human pettiness. Know that there is much ase’ in innocence(Kikan Mase Oluwo Ifalade). They (Ifa, Orisa, Egungun) will protect their assets if you would be wise enough to become one. You can take that to the bank and cash it.
- Using your ase for their personal intents. Should you become Aborisa and/or initiate to an Orisa or Ifa, then you are responsible for establishing a consistent relationship with your Ori, your ancestors, and the Orisa/Ifa you initiated to, and allow THEM to guide your path, and direct your ase. What your Iya/Baba intends to use YOUR ase for is not included or mandatory.
- Creating a codependency in which you are to worship THEM and not the Spirit. We are all OMO(children of) the Orisa not the Orisa themselves. Priests who try to make you feel as if you must worship them are severely imbalanced and are secretly holding you accountable for their unhealed issues. This is where the “I am God/ess” mentality is taken far out of context. Don’t drink the kool-aid.
- Making you feel as if you cannot trust your own Ori. Your Ori, or your personal spirit of consciousness is the most powerful deity per se, that you have. Trust it first and foremost. Anyone who tries to make you feel as if you have to trust them over yourself is trying to imprison you, the very antithesis of what this culture is about.
Remember. Your ancestors did not endure 400+ years of oppression to see you, their dream come true, be enslaved by a black overseer because they have a title and ilekes. Let not your Ori be hijacked by Baba-Weirdos and Iya-God-Knows-Whats! Stay beautiful, black, and aware!
Regards,
Iyalosa Odujimni Oyabunmi Funimole Abimbola
AKA
iiiYansaje T. Muse
Iworiwofun Ire
P.S. If you would like to hear the audio version of this article, infused with old skool grooves, then beam up to my 24/7 Mystic Radio Station, 222.9 The Mothership Internet Radio!
