We have been overrating food Rituals in the African Traditional Religion. It is time for us to start expressing the true principles of the ÒRÌSÀ, especially the key ones.
If you have been told to always feed Òrìṣà ogún, IFÁ is not telling you to feed Ògún with food alone. IFÁ also want you to resurrect or invoke or Nurture the force of “COURAGE TO TAKE ACTION” that lives within you.
There is a reason why ÒGÚN is being described as the “King of Pantheon”, it is because he is the force behind “The COURAGE TO TAKE INSPIRED ACTIONS”.
The force of Ògún plays an important role in the lives of humans. The other irunmole wouldn’t have experienced ìkọ̀lé ayé (earth) without ÒGÚN, yes! He cleared the way for them to walk through. He is a PATHFINDER!
This speaks about COURAGE TO TAKE ACTIONS!
Nobody succeeds without courage. In order to achieve success, every being must have the courage to take required actions.
The force of Ògún must be invoked when you begin to notice that you are becoming too lazy to take actions that will enhance your being. For example:
i. When your goals are sleeping right in front of you and you are too lazy to take actions that will bring them to reality.
ii. When you always procrastinate without a genuine reason.
iii. When you are too weak to live above a false nature(IRỌ́)
iv. When you are too weak to Embody the nature of ORÍ
v. When you are too weak to enhance the universe.
If you notice the above, please the Ògún inside of you must be invoked and nurtured.
In ÈJÌOGBÈ, IFÁ told a story of a man named Olokira who experienced Àsetì because of his inability to align with Ògún. He experienced Àsetì because he wasn’t managing his Life in ways that corresponds with his Orí(The Divine Self). His “Ìwà àì bìkítà”(Unexamined attitudes), birthed factors that affected his growth. Procrastination, Lack of focus and Fear were part of these factors, and as a result of this, he experienced Àsetì.
Àsetì is a yoruba word that is used to describe a situation whereby, you start a project and you stop halfway without a genuine reason, and then you begin with another one, you stop halfway again, you pick up another one, you stop half way again, again and again… And at the end of the day you are not successful with any of these projects. Olokira experienced same situation in this verse.
So Ifá advised him to align with ÒGÚN. Also, he should feed Ògún on a walkway.
When you feed Ògún on a walkway, it is known as “Bíbọ Ògún ojú ànà”. Olokira was told to do this with fish, rat, Kolanut, cutlass, Palm oil, and other items. He was also told to cultivate some spiritual discipline as well, and he compiled. Thereafter, the force of Ògún within him was activated and Olokira became successful in everything he laid his hands upon.
WHAT IS THE SPIRITUAL SIGNIFICANCE OF FEEDING ÒGÚN ON A WALKWAY?
A walkway is a busy place and what makes it a busy place is series of passers-by. It is less busy when everyone had gone to bed.
A walkway is never a dull place, therefore the spiritual significance of performing the rituals there, is to keep your mind & body awake. When the Mind is awake it will influence the body, and strength will be released. When this happens, you will have the courage to always act upon what matters to you. As long as people walk on the walkway, your mind and body will always be awake. This is the significance of Bíbọ ogun ojú ànà.
If you are always feeling lazy to do what is right for yourself, this type of ritual will enhance you if done properly.
If you have goals, and you are willing to make the right move in order to manifest them, it means you are willing to ALIGN with “ÒRÌSÀ ÒGÚN”. In this case, if you offer food or other material offerings to Òrìṣà Ògún through the Ògún icon in your shrine, it means you recognize his divine essence and you want him to possess you fully so that you can start to express COURAGE in every aspect of your life. The courage to Eat right, the courage to do the Will of ORÍ all the time, the courage to live above a false nature and so on…
Offering food or other material rituals to Ògún when you don’t have the desire to express the very essence of ÒGÚN is a pure waste of Money and Time. Use your money for something else.
No matter how much ideas you have within you, if you lack the courage to take the right actions they can not become a reality.
INVOKE THE ÒGÚN WITHIN YOU.
Message: Efe Mena Aletor
IFÁ PSYCHOLOGY
AUGUST 25-2021