Ori says it is time to excel

Onibata igan
Olele ngan
Odi-seere mese, the awo of Ori
They cast Ifa for Ori
When lamenting that he had not be able to site any Ire with his eye
He was advised to offer ebo
He complied
Ori it is high time for me to have financial success
It is financial success that one needs to possess
Ori it is high time for me to have compatible spouse
It is compatible spouse that one needs to possess
Ori it is high time for me to have good children
It is good children that one needs to possess
Ori it is high time for me to have all Ire of life
It is all Ire of life that one needs to possess
It is through the power of 200 Akisan leaves
All my matter shall not but turn to success
- Holy Odu ObaraIrete

Mental energy is the matrix for physical, emotional and spiritual energies. It is symbolized by orí, the head. Here, it is important to note that “the Yorùbá do not use orí in entirely the same way as the English word head is conceived of by [the native] speakers of English. In fact, apart from its conceptual meaning of head, orí has no direct translation in English. Thus, any understanding of the ‘phenomenon’ beyond the physical and literal meaning would be achieved only through recourse to the cultural perspective – the viewpoint of the present description.”

Thus, there are two dimensions of orí, which are known as orí ode and orí inú. Orí Ode is the physical head. It is highly valued because of its social and biological importance as a site of perception, communication, and identity. Orí ode is regarded as the outer shell for orí inú, the inner head. While orí ode governs everything anatomical and psychological, orí inú governs every- thing subtle, energetic and metaphysical. Likewise, orí inú is synonymous with ìwà, or nature/character. Ultimately, òrìsà lifestyle seeks to establish and maintain harmony between the two aspects of orí. However, there is a frequently recited prayer that reminds us that orí inú is the greater of the two; it says Ori inu mi ko ma ba ti ode je, which means “May my inner head not spoil my outer one.”

Orí organizes mental energy primarily through images that carry meaning, facilitate imagination and enable learning. Images provide frameworks for perception. We hold mental images of how we want to perceive ourselves and our environments. Similarly, we hold mental images of how we want to be perceived by other people. Here, it’s important to note that orí ode gathers and organizes images from the external world. Likewise, orí inú images gathers and organizes images from the internal world. [1]


Obafemi Origunwa, MA | ObafemiO.com

[1] Origunwa, Obafemi. Fundamentals of Orisa Lifestyle Pg 40