One of the first steps to Ifa is getting a Hand Of Ifa. It’s reception marks a turning point where an individual begins to line up with their destiny, While a hand of Ifa is not a full initiation to Ifa, it is an advanced step beyond general interest and before you Initiate fully. Many practitioners at this level find themselves lost, not quite being a beginner and not an initiate either. A book like this has never been done specifically for practitioners at this level. It is a guide for people who have received a hand of ifa, gone through an Isefa ceremony, intend to initiate to Ifa, and also for people who are initiated but have had little instructions on how to manage and work with their Ifa. It can also be very valuable for people who are ready to take the next step in their Ifa journey as they prepare to receive a hand or initiate. Hand of Ifa is a workbook with exercises to further the Onifa and devotee development. It also offers an introduction to the 16 Meji Odus, their verses, and significance with soul development and personal growth. The individual will learn key foundational skills for success in Ifa such as: How to utilize Oriki for invocation and even create an Oriki How to care for Ifa and Esu shrines How to perform Ose Ifa How to assess our spiritual debts and cress through a Spiritual Balance sheet How to understand and interpret Ifa verses How to read Ifa signatures How to prepare some Ifa Akose (Spiritual Medicines) How to gain a personal understanding of Odus via their psychology and practical expressions. And more… One of the first steps to Ifa is getting a Hand Of Ifa. It’s reception marks a turning point where an individual begins to line up with their destiny, While a hand of Ifa is not a full initiation to Ifa, it is an advanced step beyond general interest and before you Initiate fully. Many practitioners at this level find themselves lost, not quite being a beginner and not an initiate either. A book like this has never been done specifically for practitioners at this level. It is a guide for people who have received a hand of ifa, gone through an Isefa ceremony, intend to initiate to Ifa, and also for people who are initiated but have had little instructions on how to manage and work with their Ifa. It can also be very valuable for people who are ready to take the next step in their Ifa journey as they prepare to receive a hand or initiate. Hand of Ifa is a workbook with exercises to further the Onifa and devotee development. It also offers an introduction to the 16 Meji Odus, their verses, and significance with soul development and personal growth. The individual will learn key foundational skills for success in Ifa such as: How to utilize Oriki for invocation and even create an Oriki How to care for Ifa and Esu shrines How to perform Ose Ifa How to assess our spiritual debts and cress through a Spiritual Balance sheet How to understand and interpret Ifa verses How to read Ifa signatures How to prepare some Ifa Akose (Spiritual Medicines) How to gain a personal understanding of Odus via their psychology and practical expressions. And more…

An inspirational overview of the West African Yoruba traditional indigenous religion and tradition of Ifa, which has spread to worldwide importance. Related to Orunmila, Orisha, Ifa, Odu, Esu, Olodumare, and so on.

A comprehensive guide for Isese Ifa devotees on taking care of a shrine. This work includes exercises to help the practitioner develop and deepen their relationship with Ifa. One of the first steps to Ifa beyond a general interest is to receive a consecrated shrine of Ifa from a Babalawo or Iyanifa. This is called receiving a Hand Of Ifa. While it is not an initiation, it is an advanced step that can help to prepare one for full Initiation. This book includes advanced material to support these devotees and helps to develop competencies that will further their growth as an Onifa. This book is also for new initiates and those who may have had inadequate instruction due to language barriers, distance from their Oluwo, or situational barriers that prevent development. This work will prepare the Onifa to learn about the Ojo Odus, the primary chapters of the Ifa literary corpus and includes some traditional verses and practical and metaphysical interpretations to lay a foundation for understanding.

This book is written for the benefit of the Yoruba people and others who appreciate Yoruba Traditional Religion but do not know how to go about the acquisition of knowledge pertaining to it and all African Traditional Religions. This holy book is a pointer to all the 256 Odus in the Ifa literary corpus. This book is therefore written to bridge that gap. I am quite certain that this book will be of immense benefit to whosoever reads it, for this book is an exposition to African Traditional Religions, particularly the Yoruba Traditional Religion in which Ifa occupies a pride of place. This book is recommended to all lovers of knowledge, the Yoruba Traditional Religion and Ifa.

The goal of this book is to simplify the concepts of Ifa view and practice, and to empower the practitioner. Written by one of the leaders of the modern Ifa tradition, Practical Foundations of Ifa is a primer for those readers interested in a pragmatic introduction to the Ifa tradition and a blueprint on the caring and maintaining of an Ifa shrine. This handbook is suitable both for those who have already received a hand of Ifa (Isefa) or initiation to Ifa (Itefa/Itelodu), and also offers a fair and balanced view of what to expect for those who may just want more information, before deciding if Ifa practice is right for them. Written from a flexible point of view, and with full color illustrations on high-quality paper, this handbook is an excellent resource. Notable topics include: Cultivating a healthy view and practice on the Ifa and Orisa traditions The core concepts of Ifa practice at the entry level, and a template for a sustainable home practice for personal use Introduction to the Orisa pantheon and West African cosmology How to propitiate and care for an Ifa shrine at home, including divining for yourself and making basic offerings Illumination of some of the underlying threads that make for successful interfacing with fellow Ifa worshipers and devotees Over 100 Ifa verses to support and inform various topics There is no substitute for a formal teacher or guide in the practice; rather this handbook will effectively supplement training provided by a competent teacher, and provide an example of one iteration of Ifa practice.

This book is an in-depth, comparative study of two of the most popular and influential intellectual and spiritual traditions of West Africa: Tijani Sufism and Ifa. Employing a unique methodological approach that thinks with and from—rather than merely about—these traditions, Oludamini Ogunnaike argues that they contain sophisticated epistemologies that provide practitioners with a comprehensive worldview and a way of crafting a meaningful life. Using theories belonging to the traditions themselves as well as contemporary oral and textual sources, Ogunnaike examines how both Sufism and Ifa answer the questions of what knowledge is, how it is acquired, and how it is verified. Or, more simply: What do you know? How did you come to know it? How do you know that you know? After analyzing Ifa and Sufism separately and on their own terms, the book compares them to each other and to certain features of academic theories of knowledge. By analyzing Sufism from the perspective of Ifa, Ifa from the perspective of Sufism, and the contemporary academy from the perspective of both, this book invites scholars to inhabit these seemingly “foreign” intellectual traditions as valid and viable perspectives on knowledge, metaphysics, psychology, and ritual practice. Unprecedented and innovative, Deep Knowledge makes a significant contribution to cross-cultural philosophy, African philosophy, religious studies, and Islamic studies. Its singular approach advances our understanding of the philosophical bases underlying these two African traditions and lays the groundwork for future study.

"The sacred texts of Ifa, repository of the accumulated wisdom of countless generations of Yoruba people, are an invaluable source not only for all students of African oral literature and Yoruba civilization, but also for future generations interested in the continuing vitality of Ifa divination and a Yoruba way of life and thought." —Henry Drewal This landmark study of Ifa, the most important and elaborate system of divination of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, remains a monumental contribution to scholarship in anthropology, folklore, religion, philosophy, linguistics, and African and African-American studies.