What Is Ori All About?

"WHAT IS ORI ALL ABOUT?" excerpt by Baba Falokun Fatunmbe
The emphasis on the head (Ori) in Yoruba goes beyond its biological importance as the seat of the brain that controls the body. It reveals the nature which identifies the Supreme Being, Olodumare, as the head of a of deities called òrìsà, who act as the agents of its enabling power (àse). This Supreme Being is sometimes called Oba Orun, the King of Heaven, and Olu Iwa, Lord/Head of Existence.
Olodumare is reflected in the common sayings Ori lo da ni, enikan o ' d'Ori o (It is the Head that created us; nobody created the Head) and Ori eni, l'Eleda eni (One's head is one's creator). As these sayings indicate, the position of the physical head resonates in the traditional Yoruba system of government. For example, all members of an extended family living together are under the authority of the head of a compound (Baálè ilé) in which they live, and all compound heads are responsible to a district head (Olori adugbo). Any matter that the latter could not resolve would be referred to a higher authority such as the village head (Báálé or Olu). At the top of this hierarchy is the Oba, a divine king, high priest, and the ruler of a given town, who is assisted by a council of elders or chiefs. Thus the head is to an individual what Olodumare is to the cosmos and a king to the body politic-a source of power in order to fully understand the significance of this metaphor, it must be noted that the Yoruba creation myth traces the origin of the human body to an archetypal sculpture (ere) modeled by the artist-deity Obatala and then activated by the divine breath (emi) of Olodumare, located in the sculpture's head. This creative process occurs inside a pregnant woman's body and takes about nine months to mature. According to the myth, every individual, before being born into the physical world, must proceed to the workshop of Ajalamopin, the heavenly potter, to choose one of several undifferentiated, ready-made Ori Inu, or "inner heads" on display in Ajalamopin's workshop. Each inner head contains Olodumare's àse (enabling power), and the one chosen by an individual predetermines his/her lot (ipin) in the physical world. Hence the popular Yoruba slogan, Orilonise, "One's success or failure in life depends on the head."

Image of Ile Ori (Ori Shrine) at our home in Santa Rosa.

Ifa says that if we are not happy in life, it is our own Ori that we must turn to. We must not be jealous of our peers, because it is our Ori that will bless us, not the Ori's of our peers.
On this Ifa says:


Orunmila lo dohun a-dun-hun-un
Emi naa lo dohun a-dun-hun-un
Orunmila ni begbe eni ba n lowo
Ba a ba a ti i ni in
Ifa ni ka ma dun huun-huun-huun
Ori elomii mo
Ori eni ni ka maa dun huun
Orunmila ni begbe eni ba n n’ire gbogbo
Ba a ba a ti I ni in
Ori eni ni ka maa dun hun-un
Orii mi gbami
Mo dun huun aje mo o
Orii mi gbami
Mo du huun ire gbogbo mo o
Ori apere
a-sakara-moleke
eni Ori ba gbebo re
ko yo sese
Ase


Orunmila said complaint, complaint, complaint…
I said it is all complaint
Orunmila said if ones colleagues are rich
If we are not yet rich
Ifa said we should not complain
To another person's Ori
We should complain to our own Ori
Orunmila said if one's colleagues are getting
all the good things of life
If we have not got...
We should complain only to our Ori
My Ori, deliver me
I complain of money to you
My Ori deliver me
I complain of all the good things of life to you
Ori nicknamed apere. Nicknamed A-sakara-moleke
Whoever’s offering is accepted by their Ori
Should really rejoice.
Ase

Aboru Aboye Abosise
What is Ori?
Ori is the "Head". Ori is an Orisa, and a very powerful and important one.
Odu Ifa Ogunda Meji teaches us: Ko s'orisa ti i da ni i gbe lehin ori eni -- no Orisa help an individual without the consent of his or her Ori.
Also in Odu Ifa Ogunda Meji, IFA teaches us that Ori is the only Orisa that can be with us and accompany us through all of life's journeys.
Odu Ifa Irete Ofun teaches us:
Ko si Orisa to to nii gbe
Leyin Ori eni
Ori gbona j'Orisa

No other Orisa can give support
Outside of one's Ori
Ori is higher than all Orisa.
Ase

We are born with Ori, but we also can (and should) receive the physical shrine for Ori. Receiving Ori is a very powerful ceremony. I received Ori in Nigeria. It was profound. I feel that receiving Ori helps align one with their inner self (Ori Inu) and with their higher self (Iponri).
Here is a very good video on concepts surrounding Ori: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v​=SAtHw8cNfNE
Also here is a very good article on Ori worship: https://www.rootsandrooted.org/​?p=27

IFA also says about Ori:
Orunmila lo dohun a-dun-hun-un
Emi naa lo dohun a-dun-hun-un
Orunmila ni begbe eni ba n lowo
Ba a ba a ti i ni in
Ifa ni ka ma dun huun-huun-huun
Ori elomii mo
Ori eni ni ka maa dun huun
Orunmila ni begbe eni ba n n’ire gbogbo
Ba a ba a ti I ni in
Ori eni ni ka maa dun hun-un
Orii mi gbami
Mo dun huun aje mo o
Orii mi gbami
Mo du huun ire gbogbo mo o
Ori apere
a-sakara-moleke
eni Ori ba gbebo re
ko yo sese
Ase

Orunmila said complaint, complaint, complaint…
I said it is all complaint
Orunmila said if ones colleagues are rich
If we are not yet rich
Ifa said we should not complain
To another person's Ori
We should complain to our own Ori
Orunmila said if one's colleagues are getting
all the good things of life
If we have not got...
We should complain only to our Ori
My Ori, deliver me
I complain of money to you
My Ori deliver me
I complain of all the good things of life to you
Ori nicknamed apere. Nicknamed A-sakara-moleke
Whoever’s offering is accepted by their Ori
Should really rejoice.
Ase

Please do check out that video and the linked article. If anyone would like to further discuss Ori, feel free to contact me here on WaccoBB or via email -- [email protected]

Ire O
Awo Fagbemijo Amosun Fakayode