Council for Ifa Religion (ICIR) Code of Ethics

Ethics and Behavior expected of all Ifa and Orisa followers and priests

Below are the general rules set by the International Council for Ifa Religion (ICIR) that govern the practice of Ifa and Orisa worldwide for followers and priests. These provide a moral map and ethical framework that can be used to find our way through difficult issues in the practice of Ifa, Orisa, and herbal medicine.

Below are the 8 traits that every follower and priest of the Ifa and Orisa tradition must incorporate into their daily lives and hold as his/her foundation of ethics. These are the code of ethics that all must imbibe and pass on to their godchildren, biological children, family members, extended family, temple members, community, etc. These are the character traits that support every individual in achieving his/her destiny and also affects positively the destinies of others around him/her. To not imbibe these traits is to place oneself off the path of achieving one’s destiny.

1. Truthfulness: the ability to speak all those words which after being verified are found to be as they were spoken.

2. Honesty: the ability to do things with sincerity of purpose, without cheating or hidden agendas, lies or deceit. Doing things with purity of purpose without blemish.

3. Benevolence: the ability to act generously and with the desire to do good at all times without any selfish consideration.

4. Understanding: the ability to know and appreciate how others feel under any circumstance or to be able to know the details of how something occurred in any situation. The ability to put other’s feelings into consideration at any given time or circumstance.

5. Hopefulness: the ability to know and be certain that what one is seeking, as long as it is reasonable, will come to pass. The belief that tomorrow will be better than today and that yesterday was not as good as or will be as rewarding as today. 

6. Patience: the ability and willingness to wait or defer gratification or a result. The ability to wait something out and possibly experience pain, suffering, irritation, grief, etc in the process of waiting. Not forcing something to occur but doing one’s work and allowing the work to bring about fruits at its appropriate time.

7. Dedication: the ability to be totally devoted to any course without looking back. Being able to give oneself completely to a cause, belief, or project after deliberating fully before starting.

8. Humility: the ability and willingness to express a moderate opinion or view of one’s abilities, virtues, or worth.

Apart from the 8 character traits all followers and priests are expected to display in their everyday lives, the following are the 8 character traits that all followers and priests must avoid displaying. The following 8 traits are what destroys a person’s destiny and affects negatively the destinies of others.

1. Anger: This is a bitter and violent feeling against others and/or what they represent. This is a negative and unproductive feeling against other people based on real or imaginary reasons.

2. Hatred: Having a great dislike for others and/or what they represent. It is a very bad or unpleasant dislike for others.

3. Envy: The inability or refusal to accept another person’s good fortune or success. It is the feeling of discontent at other people’s luck or success.

4. Wickedness: The art of thinking, speaking and doing evil and/or wicked things against other people based on real or imaginary reasons.

5. Pride: This is a vain or personal dignity. This is an exaggerated feeling of pleasure and subjective satisfaction at one’s possessions or achievements often times at the expense of other people’s feelings or disposition.

6. Intolerance: This is the inability or refusal to bear or endure other people or certain situations or attitudes. It is the unwillingness to allow others to air their views or express their feelings in any way and/or on any issue because of those views or feelings being different from one’s own views or opinions.

7. Selfishness: The thinking and planning of one’s own personal pleasure, satisfaction, achievement, aspiration, etc without any consideration for other people.

8. Greed: The desire for all the good things of life for oneself often at the expense of others. It is the desire to convert what belongs to many to one’s own alone without any consideration for the feelings or needs of the others.

Now that the 8 positive character traits we should follow and the 8 negative character traits we must avoid have been clearly stated above, we shall now share various examples of how the 8 positive character traits should be incorporated into the various aspects of a follower and priest’s daily life during this sojourn on earth.

1. Community/Work Place:

a. Respect must be shown to all individuals living in one’s community and work place. This includes people not only older in age living in one’s community or who are at one’s work place, but those who hold positions of authority over one such as: one’s boss or supervisor and those entrusted to protect and serve our various communities such as fire fighters, the police, doctors, judges, teachers, counselors, public officials, military, etc. This respect must also be reciprocal in that those who are older in age or hold certain positions of authority must also demonstrate respect to those they are caring for, support, are serving, and of whom may be younger in age. Every follower and priest must be seen displaying respect to everyone, especially those of other religious traditions, cultures, nationalities, races, and gender.

This respect extends itself to our non-human communities as well which includes the communities of various animals, insects, birds, plants, trees, water, mountains, deserts, forests, etc. A follower and priest must display respect for these life forms and their environments as well. Why? Because if these life forms and their various environments are not given respect, we as humans will suffer eventually because we are all interconnected and need each other to live well in this world. Respect therefore is not just something that should exist from human to human society but from human to all other types of non-human societies. As a matter of fact, we all live on the mother earth so we in reality are all sharing the same home so respect MUST be given to all those sharing this beautiful planet. We must therefore see everyone and everything as our family member living under the same rooftop. 

If one truly imbibes and places into practice the 8 positive character traits, one will see that to show respect will become something of simplicity even when one may have differing views than another person, culture, race, creed, etc. In imbibing the positive character traits one will also truly understand the greater picture in that it is necessary we all learn to respect one another for all of our betterment and well-being. We must always keep the big picture in mind in that our sole purpose here is to do good and leave this world better than we found it. If you find yourself doing something that is causing more harm than good or no good at all, then some self-reflection may be in order and a new course or action must be taken. No follower or priest must be engaged in any work or activity that causes imbalance, chaos, or social ills of any type in society or that oppresses anyone or anything. Respect is key for these things to be avoided.

2. Marriage/Family/Extended family:

a. According to Ifa, marriage is the union between a man and a woman and the man and woman’s families and of which the relationship must last well beyond the gestation period. In other words, it is not an individual affair or a short lived venture. Furthermore, followers and priests must be aware that marriage is something that should not be jumped into. Ifa should always be consulted before any marriage takes place. Why? It is Ifa that will give the final approval of whether the man’s and woman’s destinies are compatible or not. All followers and priests must understand that destiny compatibility is the most important factor to consider before marriage and especially when having children. Why? If two people’s destinies are not compatible, rest assured that their lives, those of their children, those of their families, and by extension the community will be impacted negatively in one way shape or form because of the incompatibility. When two people’s destinies are incompatible this signifies that the two people are NOT meant to be with one another as spouses and to go against this would lead to very severe consequences, the most severe consequence being placing oneself off the path to one’s destiny . All followers and priests must ensure that there is destiny compatibility before marriage to ensure that each person involved in the marriage will be able to achieve his/her destiny and by extension affect positively the destinies of their future children, their families, extended families, and community.

*Although Ifa consultation is the best way to ensure destiny compatibility between two people, Ifa does provide us with a general list of people, supported by Odu Ifa, whom we should not have sexual relations with let alone marry. These people are:

-one’s mother
-one’s father
-one’s biological sibling
-one’s biological cousin to the 7th generation
-one’s biological aunt or uncle
-one’s biological grandparents
-those of the same sex
-children or prepubescent youths or youths not yet of marrying age or mature enough for marriage
-one’s spiritual followers, students, or apprentices
-house servants, maids, butlers, etc
-any children or youths under your care or supervision

To have sexual relations let alone marry one of the above is to engage in something called Oko Akiikoo or the farm that is a taboo to cultivate. Serious consequences concerning the person’s destiny are affected by having sexual relations with let alone marrying any of the above. 

b. Ifa expects all couples, once the above has been complied with and confirmed before marriage, to support, love, and work hand in hand in being good spouses to one another, being good parents to one’s children, and being individuals who contribute to the betterment of each other’s families and the community they belong to.

c. The man and woman must show mutual respect for each other’s roles within the nuclear and extended family structure, and the community. The couple must strive to always find peaceful means of resolving conflicts between one another, must not hold grudges, must learn to truly forgive one another when one has erred, must promise not to bring up past offenses especially those that had already been resolved, must promise not to embarrass or demean their partner in private let alone in public or around others, or cheat or lie to their partner in any way. The relationship must be fortified with honesty, humility, compassion, truthfulness, love, understanding, and respect for the other’s destiny and role in life. Each spouse must support the role and purpose of the other spouse’s destiny. One must never do anything that would cause his or her spouse from getting off path in their destiny. The couple must support each other in achieving each other’s individual destiny because in doing so, he/she will be supporting his/her own destiny, that of their children, that of their families, and that of their communities. 

d. Children must be taken care of, socialized, and be allowed to be disciplined by not only the biological parents but the extended family and the community. This is mentioned because although it is very important for every child to have their biological parents in his/her life to train them, the extended family and community also needs to assist in raising such a child to ensure the best possibly trained child who will one day be a shining example of a community member. Through the parent, extended family, and community raising the child, the child is ensured to receive the best orientation of life and truly feel connected to the community they live in. This care and support of children by one’s biological parents, extended family, and the community also ensures that no child will be given up for adoption or that no pregnancy is terminated because of lack of parenting skills, lack of maturity, lack of support, or lack of money.

e. Elders, especially those who have reached an age where they may not be able to fend for themselves, feed themselves, bathe, cook on their own, clean their homes, change their own clothes, etc MUST be taken care of by their children, those in the extended family, and those in the community. All followers and priests are responsible for caring for those who once cared for them. To place one’s father or mother in an institution for strangers to take care of them is NOT what Ifa or the Orisa will support. Why? One’s father and mother took care of you when you could not change yourself, feed yourself, bath yourself, fend for yourself, or do anything for yourself. Ifa and the Orisa implore all children and family members to care of their elders, the same way that those elders once took care of you. Not having the time or money is not an excuse for I’m sure one’s parents also struggled with time and money, but they made a conscious choice to still raise you and not give you away for others to do the work for them. 

3. Religious Community:

a. All followers and priests are obligated to demonstrate respect to their elders and seniors in their respective religious communities but not only this, but of those not within their own respective religious communities. Respect must be demonstrated to all religious elders and seniors irrespective of the region they come from, their language, dialect, variation in ritual or ceremonial practices, color, creed, etc. Elders too within these various communities are obligated to respect the youths within their own groups and the youths in other religious groups. These guidelines are not just to be applied from one Ifa or Orisa group to another but to those who practice other faiths and religions as well. 

b. Within our own tradition however, Elders, regardless of years of initiation, experience, knowledge, or no initiation whatsoever need to be given the most respect, even before a youth or middle aged person who has more years of initiation or knowledge than the elder. Elders must be treated with respect firstly simply because of their age. In saying this, one’s grandmother and grandfather, for example if not initiated would be attended to firstly and be given their due respects first even before a priest who is younger in age than one’s grandparents. Age is what should be given respect to first and all others will fall in line after this.

c. There must be mutual respect between all Mentors and their students within our religious communities. Students must be humble, patient, honest, truthful, disciplined, committed, and hardworking. It is these virtues that one’s mentor will respect and it is those students who will be taught rituals, rites, medicines, etc that will distinguish them among other future priests. Because a student is bright and learns quickly or has the money to pay for or the time to acquire the knowledge does not automatically mean that the mentor will give it to the student. No student must ever demonstrate entitlement. All students must realize that what they are taught will match with the character they demonstrate to their mentor.

Mentors too must respect their students and treat them and teach them according to how they behave. If a student is mischievous, lies, cheats, steals, is disrespectful, is not loyal or committed, appears to be in a rush to acquire knowledge, is not reliable, is impatient, is eager to achieve titles, begin working alone, or making money, etc. The mentor has the full right and duty to reprimand the student and discipline them accordingly in which the end result may be dismissal from studies. If however, a student is honest, truthful, hardworking, committed, serious, humble, patient, and truly sacrifices to learn, the mentor is obligated to teach this type of student those rituals, rites, ceremonies, medicines, etc. that will distinguish them among other priests. Mentors must not abuse or take advantage of their students in any way. Mentors must not cheat, lie to, lead on, sleep with, misinform, or give misinformation to their students. They are obligated to also be honest, humble, patient, truthful, compassionate, and be like parents to their students. They must also serve as role models to all their students. The following message is for all students to understand and put into practice. 

According to the Late Baba Awo Ifa;mu;yi¾i;wa; O®ke¾mu;yi¾i;wa; Aki;nyo;ômiloô, the first A®pe;si¾n Awo of E®Ùgba;land, under whom I, Solagabde Popoola, was privileged to study extensively, there are four types/groups of elders among Awo. These elders are:

i. Those who have extensive knowledge of Ifa; but who have bad character. We need to study their Ifa; and ignore their bad character.
ii. Those who have poor knowledge of Ifa; but who have good character. We need to study their good character and ignore their poor Ifa; knowledge.
iii. Those who have extensive knowledge of Ifa; and at the same time have good character. We must become their slaves and disciples.
iv. Those who have poor knowledge of Ifa; and at the same time have bad character. We must give them their due respect as A®gba¾ Awo but maintain our social distance from them.

4. General Lifestyle:

All followers and priests are expected to live by the tenets of Ifa and the Irunmole/Orisa in particular the philosophy of Alasuwada. What does Alasuwada require all of us to do? Let’s first take a look at what the word means as well as other phrases connected to Alasuwada.

a. Alasuwada: He who molds destinies together
Ala: owner, Asu: molder, Iwa: destiny, Da: together
b. Eniyan: the human race
c. Alasuwada Eniyan: He who molds together the destinies of the human race
d. Asuwada Eniyan: The molding together of the destinies of the human race

Now that we know what Alasuwada means and particularly what Alasuwada Eniyan and Asuwada Eniyan mean, how does this apply to us as practitioners? 

Ifa, which knows how nature functions, implores each and every living thing here to work together in harmony and respect each other’s roles/destinies. Many scholars and academics who have studied African Culture and many Indigenous cultures from other parts of the world have discovered that most early humans lived according to something called Communalism or Communal living. In Osa Ogunda as well as many other Ifa verses, we can find that Communalism or Communal living was the basis of ethics, morals, values, and Iwa Pele for Ifa and Orisa followers and priests. This is a lifestyle of living that implores all devotees to learn how to coexist in harmony with all around them both animate and inanimate life. 

It is ONLY through working together, applying the teachings of Alasuwada, and imbibing the virtues of Iwa Rere or Iwa Pele that we will all achieve and maintain equilibrium here in the world and achieve not only our individual destinies but those of our family, community, nation, and the world. Alasuwada teaches us that through communal living, the individuality of a person does not disappear but actually emerges stronger because that person’s role/destiny will be seen clearly by others and respected for the betterment of all. Let all followers and priests follow Alasuwada as their foundation for living so that each and every person’s destiny and other creature’s destinies will complement and be in balance with one another. 

Below is a verse from Osa-Ogunda that shares with us how each and every follower and priest should be interacting with all forms of life during this sojourn.

Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili-wili
Koo tu reke-reke
Dia fun Origun
Ti nloo s’eda ibu orun ati aye ni’gba ijinji
Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili-wili
Koo tu reke-reke
Dia fun Olu-Iwaye
Ti nloo p’ero si ibu orun ati aye in kutukutu owuro
Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili-wili
Koo tu reke-reke
Dia fun Baba-Asemu-Egun-Sunwon
Ti nloo yan ipa fun ibu orun ati aye ni’gba iwase
Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili tu wili
Iri tu wili-wili
Koo tu reke-reke
Dia fun Olofin-Otete
Ti yoo tuu iwa wa si’le aye
Ni’jo to nloo gba ado iwa l’owo Olodumare
Ni’jo ti won yoo tu iwa s’aye
Horo eepe kan soso
O wa di agbon eepe kan 
Agbon eepe kan lo da aye
Iri tu wili tu wili
La fi da aye
Oun la bu da ile
Ki ire susu o waa su piripiri
Ire gbogbo wa d’asuwa
Origun lo bi Olu-Iwaye
Olu-Iwaye lo bi Baba-Asemu-Egun-Sunwon
Baba-Asemu-Egun-Sunwon lo bi Olofin Otete
Olofin Otete lo ru agbon eepe wa sile aye
Olofin Otete gbe agbon eepe da Ile-Ife
Ire gbogbo wa d’asuwa
Sikan ni Mogun
Agiriyan ni Morere eerun
Asuwa ni Morere eeyan
Asuwa da Aye
Asuwa da Orun
Asuwa da sile
Asekun-Suwada ni’gba iwa a se
Asekun-Suwada ni’gba iwa a gun
Asuwada ni’gba iwa a ro
Irun pe susu won gb’ori
Irun agbon pe susu won a di ojontarigi
Omi pe susu won a d’okun
Odo pe susu won a d’osa
Igi pe susu, won a di’gbo
Eruwa pe susu, won a d’odan
Irawo pe susu, won a gb’orun 
Agbon pe susu f’owo t’ile
Ita pe susu bo’le 
Giri-giri o tan ni’le aladi
Giri-giri o tan l’agiyan eerun
Asuwa ni t’oyin
Asuwa ni t’ado
Asuwa l’eeran nhu ni’nu oko
Asuwa ni ti osusu owo
Asuwa l’eeran nhu ni’nu ahere
Asuwa ni ti Elegiiri
Opo eniyan tii la a pe l’ogun
Asuwa laa b’odan
Asuwa l’esu fii je’ko
Asu opo suu laa ba yindinyindin ni’nu ile e won
Asu opo suu laa ba yaya l’agiriyan
Asuwa opo suu laa ba ikan ninu ogan
Asuwa opo suu la ba ekunkun l’eti omi
Asuwa opo suu laa ba labelabe l’oko
Asuwa opo suu laa ba oore l’odo
Asuwa opo suu laa ba lamilami
Ewe adosusu kii duro l’oun nikan
Asuwa opo suu laa ba ebe
Asuwa opo suu laa ba Igi Erimi
Asuwa opo suu laa ba eja egbele l’okun
Asuwa opo suu laa ba egungun
Akaraba egungun
Bo ba si je l’odo
Gbogbo eja ni te lee
Alasuwada mo pe o o
Ki o ran iwa susu wa 
Ki o ko ire gbogbo wa ba mi o
B’ori kan ba sunwon
A ran Igba o 
Ori Origun-Aseda sunwon 
O ran mi
B’ori kan sunwon 
A ran igba
Ori mi to sunwon 
Lo ran yin
Ori i yin to sunwon 
Lo ran mi
B’ori kan ba sunwon 
A ran igba
-Osa Ogunda
Translation:
May the dew burst out quickly
May the dew burst out rapidly
May the dew burst out continuously
And be vast throughout the expanse
These were the declarations of Ifa for Origun
When going to coordinate the creation of the vast expanse of the universe during the dawn of time
May the dew burst out quickly
May the dew burst out rapidly
May the dew burst out continuously
And be vast throughout the expanse 
These were the declarations of Ifa for Olu-Iwaye
When going to sooth and pacify the hotness of the universe during the dawn of life 
May the dew burst out quickly
May the dew burst out rapidly
May the dew burst out continuously
And be vast throughout the expanse
These were the declarations of Ifa for Baba-Asemu-Egun-Sunwon
When going to assign roles and provide order to the vast expanse of the universe during the dawn of creation
May the dew burst out quickly
May the dew burst out rapidly
May the dew burst out continuously
And be vast throughout the expanse
These were the declarations of Ifa for Olofin Otete
When going to steer the boat of existence to the earth
And when going to collect the miniature gourd of destiny from Olodumare
When going to steer the boat of existence to the earth 
A grain of sand
Transformed into a basket full of sand 
A basket full of sand is what was used to create the earth
May the dew burst out quickly
This was the command used to create the universe
It was also used to create the land
So that clusters of goodness and wellbeing would gather henceforth
All goodness and wellbeing clustered in harmony
Origun begot Olu-Iwaye
Olu-Iwaye begot Baba-Asemu-Egun-Sunwon 
Baba-Asemu-Egun-Sunwon begot Olofin-Otete
It was Olofin Otete who carried the basket of sand to the earth
Olofin Otete created the land of Ife (for habitation)
(Olofin Otete- Primordial name for Oduduwa)
Indeed, all goodness and wellbeing clustered in harmony
Sikan insects swarm around Ogun shrines
The anthill is the abode of ants
Groups of human beings cluster together
The creation of the planets were manifested in clusters
Likewise that of the heavens
Likewise that of the earth
To multiply and arrange during the dawn of life
To multiply and organize from the very beginning of existence
All creations have been occurring in clusters since the beginning of time 
Human hair clusters together and situates itself on the head 
A man’s facial hair clusters together and becomes thick and bushy
Drops of water cluster together to become mighty seas
Brooks cluster together to become lagoons 
Trees cluster together to become forests
Grasses cluster together to become savannahs
Stars cluster together and situate themselves in the heavens
Hornets cluster together to reside on the wall of a house
Red ants cluster together on the ground
The nests of Aladi insects are never bereft of occupants 
An anthill is never bereft of ants
Bees cluster into swarms
Ado insects cluster into swarms
To act as a group is the character of the eeran grass on the farm
To act in multitude is the attitude of the broom
Eeran grass grows in clumps in the farmhouse
Elegiiri usually fly in flocks 
A large number of people moving together is an army
Banyan plants are found in tufts 
Esu (locusts) devour plants in swarms
Maggots are found clustered in their abodes
Yaya insects are found clustered in anthills 
White ants are found clustered in large anthills
Ekunkun are found clustered in water
Blade grasses are found clustered on the farm
Oore plants are found clustered by the riverside 
Dragonflies move in swarms
Adosusu plants do not grow in singles but in tufts
A heap of earth for planting is seen in clusters
In clusters do we find Erinmi trees
In clusters do we find baby fish in the ocean
In clusters do we find the Egungun (ancestors)
The Akaraba fish 
When it eats in the water
All other fish will follow it in droves
Lo, the maker of this perfect order, Alasuwada, I beseech you
Please send a conglomerate of good essences
And bring abundant blessings and Ire to me
If one Ori is good
It will extend to 200 others
The Ori of Origun the creator is blessed 
And it affects me positively 
If one Ori is blessed 
It will extend to 200 others
My Ori that is blessed 
Has affected you positively
Your Ori that is blessed
Has affected me positively
If one Ori is blessed
It will affect 200 others

---