The Multidimensional OSUN (Oshun, Ochun, Oxum)

Awo Fategbe Fatunmbi

Iba Osun sekese

Praise to the Goddess of Mystery

Latojoku awede we mo

Spirit that cleans me inside out

Iba Osun Olodi

Praise to the Goddess of the river

Latojoku awede we mo

Spirit that cleans me inside out

Iba Osun ibu kole

Praise to the Goddess of Seduction

Latojoku awede we mo

Spirit that cleans me inside out

Yeye kari

Mother of the Mirror

Latojoku awede we mo

Spirit that cleans me inside out

Yeye jo

Mother of Dance

Latojoku awede we mo

Spirit that cleans me inside out

Yeye opo

Mother of Abundance

O san rere o

We sing your praises

Ase

The child of Ife where the sun rises

The mother who gives a bounteous gift

The tender hearted one

The source of water

The child of Ijesa

The water to whom the King prostates to receive a gift

Yeye O, Osun, Osun O, aare me Osun waa se kumara!

(chant to be sung to Osun, inviting her to come)

Most people, when they think of Osun, think of her as a river Goddess, or a fertility Goddess, the
Afrikan Venus. However, she is much, much, more than that. Osun is central to Yoruba
thought and praxis. Her power is multidimensional. Osuns name means source. from the word
orisun. The source of a river, a people, of children, of wealth, of life. Osun represents the
perpetually renewing source of life. As the elemental power of water, she makes life possible.
Osun is the child-giving and curative power of water. She is Odo Aro, the blue river, the birth
canal where our ori is developed. What some people forget, is that Osun is also the owner of
Eerindinlogun sixteen cowrie divination. She is also the source and condition of political
power, as leader of the Aje (the Mothers, Iyami). As such, she is a founder of the Ogboni
Society, the council of elders that bestow kingship. Like Esu, she can change at will. She can be
the loquacious and beautiful young flirt who succeeds by killing you with kindness, or the deadly
serious old woman, owner of the spiritual eye (mystical power); she can be rich or poor, loving
or vengeful. She is the Benevolent Mother and the Fierce Warrior. She heals with her cool waters
and destroys indiscriminately with her raging floods. She is the creator of children, fertility
squared, yet she is the leader of vengeful spirits (Aje) who will take any child away at the drop of
a hat. She is the fierce defender of her children (priests and priestesses). She cries when she is
happy, and laughs when she is sad. To accentuate her dual natures, Osun carries a brass cooling
fan in one hand and a brass cutlass in the other. Strength and compassion; brass and honey.
In Lucumi, there are five different caminos or roads of Ochun. These are distinctively different
Ochuns, each with their own narratives, rituals and songs. There is Ochun Yeye Moro, the
beautiful dancer, Ochun Ololodi, the diviner, Ochun Ibu Kole, the powerful buzzard (Aje), etc.
But there is only one Osun, a dynamic, multifaceted Orisa.

In Yorubaland, Orisa serve as the glue that holds communities together. Each town or city has a
founding narrative that includes the founding Orisa and intertwines facts, myths and metaphor.
These mythistories create community-ship, which is at least as strong as the larger sense of
citizenship. Ijesa country in Osun State, Nigeria, is the center of Osun worship. It is the place of
the largest annual Osun festival. People come from all over the world to attend the festival and
be blessed and/or healed by the sacred waters of the Osun river at the city of Osogbo. In the
Osogbo mythhistory, it is said that a prince (Olarooye) from Ilesa, went out to found a new city
due to a water shortage in Ilesa. He set out with his buddy, a hunter named Timehin (an
incarnation of Ogun), and they led the expeditionary group in search of a water source. They
came upon the Osun river. To make a long story short, they settled there with the blessing and
protection (she and Timehin ran off the invading Tapa warriors from the north) of Osun. This
Itan (story from Odu corpus) is speaking to the sacred nature of this town. It sits on a curve of
the Osun river that is one of those spots on earth that serve as portals. Here is an invocation given
at the start of the annual Osun festival by the Oba:

Aladekoju, I am calling on you

Hail my Beloved Mother Aladekoju

The Beloved one from the town of Efon Ekiti

Hail the powerful Mother Aladekoju

The descendent of the one who uses the crown made of brass

The one who dances with the jingling brass

My Wondrous Mother!

Who owns plenty of brass ornaments in the town of Efon

She moves majestically in the deep water

Oh spirit, Mother from Ijesaland

The land of the tough and brave people

Men who would fight to secure their wives

Even to the point of killing themselves

Along with their wives if everything fails

Hail the Great Mother Osun

Whose whole body is adorned with brass

She joins the Owa (Ijesa Oba) to celebrate his festival

She shares her holy day with Sango

My confidante

She waits at home to assist barren women to bear children

Osun has plenty of cool water to cure diseases

Death to the Tapa

Osun adorns her whole body with Edan

With the shining brass as a lantern at night

She very quickly moves around the house

To fetch her sword, ready for battle

Hail the Mother, Osun Osogbo

My mother the marvelous cook

My mother, who makes succulent akara, olele and ekuru

Those who refuse to hail my Mother

will be denied tasteful bean cakes and corn cakes

my Mother who provides bean cake for the Efon people

When my Mother wakes up, she prepares food for her household

My Mother will then proceed to the kolanut stall

As she trades in kolanut

She is also carrying her corn to the mill to grind

At the same time, she is also dyeing clothes by the sideway

There is no task my Mother cannot do

She even keeps a stable for rearing horses!

My Mother lives in the deep water

And yet sends errands to the hinterland

Aladekoju, my Olodumare (supreme goddess)

Who turns a bad Ori (destiny) into a good one

Osun has plenty of brass ornaments on her shelf

Orogun, Orogungunnda,

The favorite wife of Orunmila

The owner of the indigo pigeon

In vivid colors of the rainbow,

Her image appears brightly dressed on the riverbank

Aladekoju, the owner of the mortar made of brass

Osun fights for those she cares about

Eniyan do not want us to eat from a china plate

Ogbonmele, do not allow the evil world to change our good

Fortune into a bad one

Do not let the wicked overcome us

Once, Osun was plucking medicinal leaves

Osanyin was also plucking his own leaves

Before Osanyin turns around,

Osun had taken Osanyins leaves from the grinding stone

Only Osun can mold my Ori

So that it becomes as strong as a rock

Osun Osogbo, I greet you

Osogbo Oroki emerges from afar off,

And the crowd in the market went wild with joy

The Obas Beloved Water, do not forget me

Osun who stands on the hill

And beckons at the kolanut seller in the market to bring kolanut

Ladekoju stands on the river bridge

And calls to the seller of honey in the market

She beckons at the palm wine seller to bring her wine

The palm wine sells at an exorbitant price;

But my Mother does not buy overpriced goods

The mighty water is rushing past

It is flowing to eternity

Osun, as leader of the Iyaami, is much involved in the politics of kingship. The kings crown is
topped by a bird, symbol of the eleiye, owners of birds, the Aje who are members of the
Iyaami Osoronga cult. The Oba rules at the discretion of "the Mothers" and under their watchful
eye. Medicines that activate the Kings spiritual potency, his ase, are placed inside the crown. It
is said these medicines are so powerful the mere sight of them would leave him blind. In Cuba,
she is the patron saint, La Caridad Del Cobre. It is said that she appeared and led the fight for
independence. In Brazil, the rhythms of Carnaval are Ijesa rhythms. She has been behind black
movements in Cuba and Brazil. A piece of Oriki illustrates her masculinity, bravery and
prowess, and her dual nature as both benevolent Mother(Osun is a cool Orisa like Obatala,
Yemoja, etc. as opposed to hot Orisa like Ogun and Sango) and Punishing Warrior:

Obinrin gbona Okunrin n sa

The woman who blocks the road (by flooding it) and causes men to flee

O tori ogun O da rungbon si

Who keeps her beard (warrior masculinity) because of war

Agegun soro

One, who in fury, causes mayhem and chaos

Ogbamugbami, obinrin ko see gbamu

The powerful and huge woman who cannot be attacked

Eegun gbadagba ti i gbe ti i ji fon bi erin

Mighty Masquerade (ancestor) whose way it is to trumpet on awakening like the elephant

Akeke orisa, Ijesa Osore

Scorpion Orisa, Ijesa woman from Osore

Ijesa mo fosi na mi, omo oro lEfon

Ijesa woman, dont strike me with your left hand, Child of Wealth at Efon

ase

Many Odu speak to Osun as the Benevolent Mother, who bestows money and riches on people.
An example can be found in Odu Irete Obara. Osun had gone to a poor Ifa priest named
Ojiyaomegun when she was childless. Ojiyaomeguns work made it possible for her to have
children. Osun wanted to reward him and his two apprentices, Ifon, ifa priest of Ido, and Duuru,
Ifa priest of Liki. So, she took money, beads and expensive clothes to Ojiyaomegun and his
apprentices, but Ojiyaomegun was not around. She waited a very long time, but he didnt show
up. So she left gifts with the apprentices and went home. She ordered her servants to dig a deep
pit (along the river bank), and put Ojiyaomeguns gifts there. That is why we have oriki which
contain the words:

Osun alade okin

Osun, Goddess with fantastic crown of peacock plumage

Ooni mole odo

Goddess of the river

Oore yeye Osun

Hail the benevolent mother Osun

O wa yanrin, wa yanrin

She who digs up sand, digs up sand

Kowo si

And keeps money there (for her omo children)

Yeye o, a fi ide re omo

Oh beloved Mother, you pamper children with brass (riches)

Oyeye ni mo eni ide kii sun

Wise one, owner of brass who never sleeps (eternal energy)

E gbenu imo fi ohun tore Ota were were ni ti Osun

You live with wisdom and give it away freely (through eerindinlogun)

Osun ke kowo temi fun mi o

Osun, please give me my own money

E ma ri owo temi mo yanrin

Do not bury my money in the sand

Ore Yeye O!

Oh! Thank you dear Mother!

In the above opening invocation for the Osun festival by the Oba, one of the stanzas says, only
Osun can mold my Ori. We know that Ajala Mopin is the molder of heads as he works with
Obatala in the molding of humans, so what is Oba referring to? Osun provides the water that
Obatala (and Ajala Mopin)uses to smooth the clay with which he molds human beings. Osuns
traditional occupation is hair-plaiting, which is a mark of honor to Ori. The hair plaiting style of
Osun is similar to the pattern weaved into the making of Ile-Ori, house of Ori, a cowrie covered
structure that serves as a shrine, or pot to ones Ori. The oriki stanza, Osun owner of the beaded
hair comb for beautiful women alludes to Ori. This aspect of Osun is often overlooked, but is
important to her role as owner of sixteen cowrie divination (eerindinlogun, or dilogun), and the
efficacy of ebo (no divinity can bless one without the consent of his/her Ori).

Odo gbogbo lagbo

All rivers are Osuns medicine

Obatala molds the body, Ajala Mopin molds the head, Olodumare supplies the breath . Osun
supplies the water, Thus Osun is integral to human creation itself. The Osun pot contains stones
(ota Osun) from the Osun river. Alongside the pot is a special pot for water drawn at dawn
(before anyone else gets there) from a spring and containing one of the stones. This water is
called Agbo and is used for healing, fertility, security, success, protection, progress, etc. In the
Diaspora we use oriki and ese Odu to invoke the spirit of Osun in the water.

Ase gbere wa aye

The one who unexpectedly comes into the world

Omi lo maa gbaa

Will be admitted by water

Arinrin gbere lo sode orun

The one who slowly goes back into heaven

Omi lo maa gbaa

Will be received by water

Omi labuwe

It is water that we bathe with

Omi labumu

It is water that we drink

Enikan ki I bomi sota

No one makes an enemy of water

Ase

In the following itan from Odu Osetura, we are introduced to the real power of Osun. Osun (as
leader of the Iyami, the mothers) holds a special place in Yoruba thought, and is indispensable to
successful and harmonious political, economic, religious, and social life.When Olodumare sent
the first Irunmole (God's task force) down to earth, he sent 16 male Orisa and Osun. In
accordance with Olodumares instructions, they started to set up the world, but they didnt
include Osun in any of their activities. The result was that everything they did was a total failure.
Rain did not fall, women were barren, illness prevailed, there was bitterness and restlessness all
over the world. The sixteen male Orisa went back to Olodumare to find out what was going on.
They said they were living on earth in accordance with the instructions of Olodumare, but
nothing they did was good. Olodumare asked them if they had included Osun in all they were
doing. They said no, they hadn't bothered with her; after all, she's just a woman.

Olodumare ni danidani loun, oun e e dani leemeji

Olodumare said that he was the Creator, but he would never create any person or thing twice

O ni e pada sohoun, o ni e ree be e, ko maa yin lowo si nkan. O ni gbogbo nnkan yin o si maa
gun.

He told Orunmila to go back to his colleagues and that all of them should go and beg Osun for
forgiveness, so that she would agree to to be involved in their affairs. He assured them their
affairs would then be good. So the sixteen male Orisa went and begged Osun for forgiveness, but
she didnt yield until Orunmila made his personal appeal. She said:

E maa be ori yin ateledaaa yin pe oyun ti n be ninu oun yii, koun o bi I lokunrin, nnkan yin
oogun. Amo toun ba bi I lobinrin, e kangun.

Begin to beg your Ori and your Creator, so that the fetus which is in my womb be delivered as a
male child.

She assured them that if it was a male child, their matters from then on would be straight, but if it
was a female child, war would begin in earnest. Obatala used his powers to peer into Osuns
womb, and saw that it was a girl. He (Obatala is androgynous) pointed his ado asure at her womb
and commanded that the fetus change into a male. Orisanla was the first to hold the baby when
born. Then Orunmila, the father, carried the baby and named him Osetuura, who became Odu
Ose Otura, the Odu that imparts ase and invokes Esu.

They said, If someone is pounding yams without the knowledge of Osun, his or her pounded
yam will not be smooth. If someone is preparing oka without involving Osun in it, the oka will
not come out fine. We will involve Osun in whatever we do. We will involve Osun in all our
deliberations. Our Great Mother, who must be present at every important deliberation.

Ose'Tura

It was divined for the sixteen Odu

Who were coming from heaven to earth

A woman was the seventeenth of them.

When they got to earth,

They cleared the grove for Oro,

Oro had his own space.

They cleared the grove for Opa,

Opas abode was secure.

They prepared a grove for Eegun,

Eegun had a home.

But they made no provision for Osun,

Also known as Seeges, the preeminent hair-plaiter

with the coral-beaded comb.

So, she decided to wait and see How

they would carry out their mission successfully;

Osun sat quietly and watched them.

Beginning with Eji-Ogbe and Oyeku mej,

Iwor mej, Odimej, Irosun mej

Owonrn mej, Obara mej, Okanran mej,

Ogun-da, Osa, Orangun mej and so on,

They all decided not to countenance Osun in their mission.

She, too, kept mute,

And carried on her rightful duty,

Which is hair-plaiting.

She had a comb.

They never knew she was an aje

When they were coming from heaven,

God chose all good things;

He also chose their keeper,

And this was a woman.

All women are aje.

And because all other Odu left Osun out,

Nothing they did was successful.

They went to Eeguns grove and pleaded with him,

That their mission be crowned with success.

Eegun, it is you who straightens the four corners of the world,

Let all be straight.

They went to Adagba Ojomu

Who is called Oro

You are the only one who frightens Death and Sickness.

Please help drive them away.

Healing failed to take place;

Instead epidemic festered.

They went to Ose and begged him

To let the rain fall.Rain didnt fall.

Then they went to Osun

Osun received them warmly,

And entertained them,

But shame would not let them confide in Osun,

Whom they had ignored.

They then headed for heaven

And made straight for Olodumare,

Who asked why they came

They said it was about their mission on earth.

When they left heaven, And arrived on earth

All things went well;

Then later things turned for the worse,

Nothing was successful.

And Olodumare asked

How many of you are here?

They answered, Sixteen.

He also asked,

When you were leaving heaven, how many were you?

They answered, Seventeen.

And Olodumare said, You are all intriguers.

That one you left behind

If you do not bring her here,

There will be no solution to your problem.

If you continue this way,

You will always fail.

They then returned to Osun,

And addressed her,

Mother, the preeminent hair-plaiter with

the coral-beaded comb.

We have been to the Creator

And it was there we discovered that all Odu

were derived from you Osun,

And that our suffering would continue

If we failed to recognize and obey you.

So, on their return to the earth from the Creator,

All the remaining Odu wanted to pacify and please Osun.

But Osun would not go out with them.

The baby she was expecting might go out with them,

But even that would depend on the gender of the baby

For she said that if the baby she was expecting

Turned out to be male,

It is that male child who would go out with them

But if the baby turned out to be female,

She would have nothing to do with them.

She said she knew of all they had eaten and enjoyed without her,

Particularly all the delicacies and he-goat they ate.

As Osun was about to curse them all,

Ose covered her mouth

And the remaining Odu started praying

That Osun might deliver a male child.

They then started to beg her.

When Osun delivered, She had a baby boy

Whom they named Ose-Tura.

ase

Nothing moves without Osun!! Ore yeye O! Ogun cant even begin his evolutionary work
without Osun.

A fimo jo tOsun

We will involve Osun in all are deliberations

Agberegede, ajuba

Ajuba Agberegede

A difa fun Osun Sengesi

Agberegede, ajuba

Ajuba Agberegede

Divined for Osun Sengesi

Olooya yun

Owner of the hair comb decorated with iyun

O gbe koko

When she was in a secret place

O n bebo Irunmole e je

She spoiled the ebo of other divinities

Ta ni en rubo

Who is performing ebo

Ti o ke selebo

Without involving the owner of ebo?

Osun Ewuji

Osun, whose other name is Ewuji,

A kunle
We are all on our knees

A be o

We are all begging you

E wole fobinrin

Let us all kneel and prostrate before women

Obinrin lo bi wa

We are all born by women

Ka too deniyan

Before we become recognized as human beings

Ase

Osun completes the Female-Male principle in the universe. Osun as aesthetic beauty, a reminder
of the wonders of creation, and all that is good in the universe. Osun the fertility goddess,
protector of children, soothing healer, bestower of wealth. Osun as Leader of the Iyami, and the
potential for destruction. She can destroy at night, with the awesome power of the eleiye, or
during the day, with the awesome power of the flood. Osun as fierce warrior, defender of her
people, leader of revolutions and revolts. The Water Goddess, the perpetually renewing source of
life. Osun transforms through water and through the blue canal, the mystery of birth. Osun,
from Orisun The Source.

Osun is the embodiment of womens mystical power, the real power in Yoruba cosmology. The
ability to control physical and spiritual forces, to create life through procreation, and the
sustenance of life, are considered to be the ultimate power in the Yoruba worldview. It is this
secretive power, that men can never understand, that has driven men to try and control women
throughout the ages. It is the power of the Iyami.

Iyami Osoronga

My Mysterious Mother, Osoronga

Apanimahaagun

Vulture who kills without sharing

Olokiki oru

The dominant force at midnight

Ajedo eniyan ma bi

One who devours human livers without vomiting

Eyi tii lo nigbaoja bat u

One who vacates only when the market closes

A-le mo loju ala wiriwiri

One who terrifies in dreams

Ase

Another facet of Osun energy (no, she aint done yet!) is her ownership of Eerindinlogun, sixteen
cowrie divination, the seeing eyes of Orisa. Osun priestesses are the best diviners, hands down.
Another Itan from Odu OseTura tells the story of how Osun became the owner of sixteen cowrie
divination. We learn much about Osuns intimate connection with Ifa divination in her own right,
as well as through her son , Osetuura.

Osun was married to Orunmila, the prophet, and keeper of the oracle. He was leaving town on
business, and told Osun to tell his many clients that he would be back in a couple of weeks. Well,
Osun, being Osun, got tired of sending away all of Orunmila's clients so she figured out his
divination system and started divining for his clients! So when Orunmila comes home, he finds
his house full of people; What's going on! "We're waiting for Osun to divine for us," he was
told. "Say what!" So he was angry with her for a little while, but no one stays angry at Osun for
long. He was actually quite amazed with her ability to learn so quickly. Orunmila then gave
Osun the eerindinlogun and told her that from then on, she would own the cowrie system and he
gave her the oracle. Osun shared her knowledge with other Orisa, starting with Obatala.

Although Osun receives the Eerindinlogun system from Orunmila and he created it, another
verse of Odu OseTura tells how this system of divination received its own ase from Olodumare,
thus making it independently Osuns. Every sixteen years, Olodumare would subject the earthly
diviners to a test, to find out whether they were telling lies or the truth to their clients. When
Orunmila finished his turn divining for Olodumare, Olodumare said, Whos next? Orunmila
said, She is. Olodumare asked if this woman (Osun) was a diviner at which point Orunmila
answered, Yes, she is. Olodumare asked, Who is this one? Orunmila explained how he had
given her eerindinlogun. When Osun divined for Olodumare, she hit on all those things in his
mind. But she did not say it in full. She mentioned the gist, but she didnt tell the root of the
matter, like Ifa. Olodumare said, Its all right. He further said that even though she did not go
into details, he, Olodumare, gave his assent to it. He added, From today on and forever, even if
what eerindinlogun says may not be detailed, anybody who disbelieves it would see the
consequences instantly. It must not wait until the following day. This is why the predictions of
eerindinlogun come to pass quickly, even though the stories might not be impressive.

Bi eerindinlogun se gba ase Lodo Olodumare nu un

That is how eerindinlogun received Ase directly from Olodumare

Before the diviner starts the divination process, she pays homage to Onile, the Earth diety,
pointing to the ground, and to Iyami (eleiye) pointing to the sky.

Ibaa yin o!

Your Worship!

Eyin lawo,

You are the custodians of mysteries

Emi logberi

I am ignorant

E foro yii han mi o

Reveal this secret to me

E ma fire pe bi

Do not reveal good instead of evil

E ma fibi pe re o

Do not reveal evil instead of good

ase

The connection between Osun and Esu is interesting. Esu controls the Ajogun, malevolent
spiritual beings. Osun is the leader of the Aje, even more feared than the ajogun. Yet both are
capable of bestowing the greatest of blessings; Esu bestows ase, and Osun fertility. As revealed
in Odu Osetura, the Odu that incarnates Esu and contains much information about Osun, Osun
is Osetuuras mother. Like Esu, she has a central role in the maintenance of creation. Aje, also
known as Iyami, are powerful. Olodumare has committed the universe to their care. He has given
them power and authority over its affairs. They strongly hold the universe together. They
maintain the order in the world. Osun is not only one of them, she is their leader. Osun, through
the Iyami, and Esu, preside over ebo, and support or empower the efficacy of herbal preparations
and ritual elements. Osun is a complex, dynamic, and powerful energy. Osun, wife of Orunmila
and subsequently Sango, spirit who cures with water, one of the founders of the Ogboni society,
partner of Orunmila in the establishment of the Ifa corpus, and fertility Goddess.

Mo ke mogba lodo omi!

I cry for deliverance through water!

To understand Osun is to know the intelligence, vitality, caring, and nourishing abilities of
womankind. Long-suffering, cheated, overlooked, and overworked, but always committed to the
survival of humanity. Besides signifying wealth, brass never rusts, it is eternal. In Osun we have
the embodiment of wealth, prosperity, love, beauty, elegance, sexuality and sensuality and a
divinely sanctioned feminist. Ase.

Omi o!

Oh sacred water!

Ota o!

Oh sacred stones!

Edan o!

Oh sacred Edan (symbol of Ogboni)

E kore Yeye Osun o

All hail the Benevolent Mother

Ase

Osun Foods

Eko a corn product made from ogii powder.

Yanrin and tete Osuns favorite vegetables

Adiye agagda fowl with the feet tied together

Eyin adiye chicken egg

Oti sekete corn wine

Yellow and orange fruits (pumpkins, bananas, oranges, mangos), vegetables and flowers

Sacred implements

Osun pot containing five consecrated stones, among other things

Agbo pot containing Osuns blessed water

Osuns ileke

Brass bracelets

Brass bells

Osun carving

Peacock crown

Brass fan

Brass cutlass

Mbe, mbe ma Yeye

Exist, exist always, Mother

Mbe, mbe lOro

Exist, exist always in our tradition

Osun Awuraolu

The Spirit of the River, Turtle Drummer

Serge si elewe roju oniki

Open the path of attraction, Mother of Salutations

Latojoku awede we mo

Cleansing Spirit that cleans me inside out

Eni ide ki su omi o san rere

The maker of brass does not pollute the water

Alose koju ewuji o san rere

We are entitled to wear the crown that awakens all pleasure

Alode koju emuji o san rere

We are entitled to wear the crown that awakens all pleasure

O male o dale o san rere

The Spirit of the Earth that wanders freely

Mo juba o mo juba o

Ase, ase, ase o!

*The material in this paper was derived from multiple sources, including but not limited to, the
book Osun Across the Waters.