Irete Fun

Also called Irete File, Irete Ofún

nº 226 of 256 · Edited by Ricco Ledesma

Where Shangó decreed that there is no complete happiness: the youngest son of Ikú, builder of the Añá drums, wins by being intelligent.

23 patakíes 7 eewó 14 ebbós and works 14 proverbs

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Irete Fun is Odù number 226 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Irete family. It is also written as Irete File or Irete Ofún. This page brings together its prayer in Yoruba, 23 patakíes (3 in full in plain sight, with their teaching, ebbó and chants), its proverbs, 14 ebbós and works and the signs it shows in the consultation — with the full eewó in plain sight; the rest of the iré and osogbo and the full recipes open with The Notebook, in English.

The sign at a glance

Order in Ifá: Odù 226 of 256
Composition: Irete over Ofun
Orishas that speak: Shangó · Odduduwa · Oyá · Elegbá · Orunmila · Ikú · Orishaoko · Egun · The Moon

What Ifá says in this sign

Irete Fun, also known as Irete File and Irete Ofún, is the sign in which Shangó, hurt because he was not happy in his marriage, declared that no one in this world is ever fully happy. Also born here were elephantiasis and hernia, the healing power of the gumbo limbo, the tree that Oduduwa blessed, and the taming of the beasts. Its ruling is twofold: complete happiness does not exist, but with intelligence and with your ebbó fulfilled you can inherit, prosper and win what others give up for lost.

It is an Ifá of the wanderer, of travel and of inheritance. Seek your fortune far from your homeland, because there you will find a home, a name and a position, just like the awó who won a wager against the king's favorite without any blood being shed and ended up succeeding him on the throne. When you find yourself in trouble, almost always through your own fault, what saves you is your wit. Your religious house is going to grow: clients, godchildren and initiates will arrive, and abundance overcomes need when the sacrifice is made without delay.

«Shangó decreed that there is no complete happiness, but Awó Mayere won the throne through intelligence, not by complaining.»The pulse of Irete Fun

But whim is your downfall. The youngest son of Ikú refused to pay what he owed, believing his lineage protected him, and ended up shut away in the service of others. Do not be stubborn or boast of knowing, because that stubbornness can cost you dearly, and do not drink. Watch your tongue, which wounds and is paid for dearly, and avoid street corners, parks and bars, where fights break out. Even your own people envy you and close your paths, but Oyá and your dead, well cared for, open them again. At night you will feel the Egun: do not be afraid.

In love, tragedies in marriage are foretold here. You are very jealous, you fight with your partner, and blood can even be shed in the home: a man must never strike a woman. The woman, for her part, should not busy herself with other people's affairs or neglect her home. Be grateful to your mother, who protects you from any harm and comes to save you at the worst moment.

In health, this odu points to scrotal hernia, which brings shame and keeps you away from your partner, elephantiasis, with swelling in the legs, and madness caused by a curse. Ifá can cure them if you have faith, even if you doubt at first, like the king who was healed with the gumbo limbo. Do not let the rain fall on you and beware of prison. Complaining and crying change nothing; fulfill your duty to Ifá when you leave and when you return from each journey, and you will come back great.

The sign in one line

Go out to look for luck with your two female goats, never hit your wife and thank your mother, for Irete File wins through intelligence what whim enslaves.

The prayer of Irete Fun · Yoruba

Irete File Kase Leli Ewe Ni Kasu Leli Omó Kafiliere Asho Funfun Era Ara Adifafún Orunmila Gbogbo Unló Ayonile Obbá Olueshi Omó Odduduwa A Okó Lakao Oun. Irete Ofundí Eye Korupale Adifafun Eta Tinla Igbaya Kaferefun Iya, Eshu y Orunmila.

Súyere
Asho Pa Agua Ni, Asho Pa Aguaniyo, Asho Pa Edun Awo, Asho Pa Agua Ni, Eni Unyen Eyele, Eye Eyike, Eyeguese Edun, Emi Omo Omi.

Ifá says — what Irete Fun tells you

This is a traveling Ifá: leave your land to seek fortune.
There are tragedies in marriage and blood may be shed; there is no happiness. The okuní (man) beats the obiní (woman), and this must be avoided.
Your own relatives envy you and block your path to keep you from moving forward.
You suffer from a scrotal hernia or a similar condition, and you cannot ofikale trupon (have sexual relations).
It speaks of madness caused by a curse.
Whim is your ruin: because of your whim you end up enslaved.
Although you sing and dance, getting ahead will demand effort from you.
The woman who drinks and the shame brought upon the King speak; be careful of suffering a public embarrassment and a fright.
The conflict between the Awó's obiní and the Palero speaks: the woman must not meddle in matters that are not hers nor neglect the chores of her home.
The Egun are felt at night: do not be afraid.
It speaks of the builder of Añá and of the Tinga drum, sealed on both sides, with two openings so that its sound rises above the others.
Eshu Bi speaks, who lived in the forest: he helped Awó Mayere and made the King's favorite end up losing.
The young bull speaks, the one with which Awó Mayere won the bet at midnight, riding like lightning.
The dove speaks, which is respected for life because of this Ifá.
The live jutía of the drinker's ebbó speaks, the one that distracted the King's soldier.
The mastic tree (Adama Moye) speaks. It serves as a stomach tonic and is used for colds and diarrhea. The tender top calms spasms and is a diuretic; the bark acts as a purgative; the resin and the tender top cause sweating. An infusion of the leaves stops stomach bleeding, and the seeds and young shoots work against snake bites. This whole tree is used: root, bark, wood, tender top, leaves and resin.
The Cape jasmine (gardenia) speaks: its flowers and fruits are emollient, soften tumors and reduce inflammation; it also helps against dysentery.
Elephantiasis speaks: a part of the body swells and grows, with episodes of lymphangitis and high fever; it attacks the legs and the genital organs. If it develops on its own the outlook is poor, although surgery can cure it; for treating filariasis the ají guaguao is used.
The herbs (eweses) of this Odù are the gardenia, also called Cape jasmine, and the mastic tree.

Proverbs of Irete Fun · Òwe

“Nobody can happily be the judge of his own conscience.”
“He wins the wager by being intelligent.”
“Through his own stubbornness, he ends up enslaved.”
“For a disobedient child, punishment from the parents.”
“The mother is always the child's shelter.”
“Whoever knows and says he knows is a boaster; whoever knows and does not say he knows is modest.”
“Whoever fights against drink ends the same way as whoever drinks poison.”
“The foolish ruler increases the crackdown out of greed and shortens his own days.”
“Whoever knows his own weaknesses does not take chances.”
“Position is the enemy of cheating.”
“He was left with neither the rope nor the goat.”
“Wisdom is the father of success, incapacity the mother of failure.”
“There is no happiness without honesty, and no wickedness without misery.”
“Whoever works his field does not lack food; the idle man has poverty to spare.”

11 proverb interpretations in this Odù, locked.Every proverb explained: which road it comes from and how it applies.Unlock →

Iré and Osogbo

Three iré and three osogbo of this sign, open to everyone.

Iré · what the sign brings

He wins a bet through his intelligence, and cunning gets him out of difficulties.
If he goes away from his land in search of fortune, he finds it and comes to have a house and titles.
He inherits a post or a throne, or receives an inheritance.

Osogbo · what the sign warns

Happiness does not exist in this world, and he does not manage to be happy.
There are tragedies in the marriage, with quarrels that can end in blood being spilled and people turning against one another.
The man beats his wife.

29 more iré and osogbo readings in this Odù, locked.The rest of the iré and osogbo of the sign, sorted by subject — health, money, love, death, loss…Unlock →

What is born in Irete Fun · Ìbí

That Shangó sentenced the world to unhappiness.
Since his marriage gave him no happiness, he withdrew to the forest and there formed a place of war.
Elephantiasis and scrotal hernia.
From the Obá Olueshi, omó Odduduwa, whom Orunmila cured with the little gourd and the resin of the almácigo.
The ashé of the almácigo (Adama Moye), a wood blessed by Odduduwa.
With its power Orunmila cured the madness of the Obá's Babá Tobí.
To offer a white eyelé (dove) to Odun at the door of the Igbodu of Ifá.
The Father of Irete File asked the Moon for a dove instead of the 101 heads he did not bring.
The ankle rattle.
From the road of Awó Mayere and the young bull; nine bells should be worn on the left foot for playing and dancing.
That Awoses and Santeros do not take a seat in parks.
From the road of the wager: on corners, in parks and in bars, blood can run.
The cazuelas, one green and one hollow.
The two clay cazuelas that the godchild brings to the Oluo when he is about to receive Ifá.
That the beasts were tamed.
Men tamed horses and cows as beasts of burden and of transport; Awó Mayere rode the young bull.
That the dove is respected for life.
From the ebbó of the eyelé with white cloth on one leg and red on the other that is let go to fly.
That the Awó makes their own Agayú Añá Añá.
Irete File is the builder of the Añá drums.
That Orunmila blessed his Awó children.
For the good they did him with the ebbó before the journey to the land of Ayó Nile.
That abundance denied need.
From the sacrifice of Animo-Ola with everything edible and the pumpkin.

What is forbidden · Eewó

The full eewó of this Odù, open to everyone — with the road each ban came out of.

You must not get wet with rainwater.
Rule of the Irete family that this odu shares.
Do not drink alcohol.
The drinking woman speaks here: drink leads to humiliation and to the danger of paying with your head.
Never say that you know; do not be argumentative.
For that reason you could lose your life.
Do not stand on street corners, and do not linger in parks or bars.
Blood may be shed and clashes may break out between one side and another; for that reason Awoses and Santeros avoid sitting in parks.
The obiní must not visit Paleros or get involved with them.
Something was forbidden to the Awó's wife and she did not obey: the Palero disrespected her and beat her.
Do not be so jealous and do not fight any more with your partner.
There are tragedies in the marriage and blood can run.
Do not be stubborn or disobedient.
Irete File refused to make the ebbó out of stubbornness and ended up enslaved: a disobedient child receives the punishment of his parents.

Ebbós of Irete Fun · The sacrifices that open the road

LossEbbó of the drinking woman (the King's humiliation)🔒 The Notebook MoneyEbbó of the wager of Awó Mayere🔒 The Notebook LoveEbbó of Shangó's unhappiness🔒 The Notebook HealthEbbós for elephantiasis🔒 The Notebook Keeping death awayEbbó of the youngest son of Ikú🔒 The Notebook Overcoming enemiesEbbó of Oyá to open the roads🔒 The Notebook

6 ebbós in this Odù, locked.Each full recipe: ingredients, preparation and where it goes.Unlock →

Works of Irete Fun · The workings of the sign

LoveWork to avoid the unhappiness🔒 The Notebook MoneyWork so the owó comes in🔒 The Notebook Overcoming enemiesWork to uncover the enemy🔒 The Notebook Overcoming enemiesWork of Oyá with the five etú🔒 The Notebook SpiritualA dove for the Moon🔒 The Notebook SpiritualEshu Afra Lole🔒 The Notebook SpiritualEshu Aka-Dere🔒 The Notebook SpiritualFoundation of Irete File: the drum🔒 The Notebook

8 works in this Odù, locked.Each full recipe: ingredients, preparation and where it goes.Unlock →

Patakíes of Irete Fun · The roads of the Odù

1Ainune Adaba and the King’s red clothes

Ainune Adaba, a very poor woman fond of drinking, ran into the King one day and assured him that the clothes he was wearing were red and that she would give them back white. Ashamed, the King gave her the garments and set a deal: if she failed to whiten them, she would pay with her head.

The King assigned a soldier to accompany her to the river without taking his eyes off her. Eshu, who was witnessing everything, went to the house of the girl’s mother and explained the grave trouble her daughter was in.

The mother ran off to consult Orunmila, who prescribed an ebbó: a live jutía, mashed yam and red clothes, to be taken to the river where her daughter was held. Once on the bank, the mother set down the ebbó. The jutía ran off, climbed over the soldier’s feet and he, on seeing it, went after it to catch it. At that moment, the mother replaced the King’s red clothes with white garments she had brought.

When the soldier returned to the bank, the clothes were white. They presented the girl before the King, who ordered her freed and given money.

What it teaches

Promising the impossible, out of pride or because of drink, can cost a life. An attentive mother, Orunmila’s advice and a clever move at the right time save from the sentence and even turn shame into well being.

Ebbó of the story

A live jutía, mashed yam and red clothes are taken to the river, along with white clothes for the swap.

Ebbó of this path

A rooster, two hens, red cloth and white cloth, a live jutía, a cowbell, beef, ekó, eyá, palm oil, awadó and a lot of money.

Another ebbó of this path

A live jutía, two doves, a rooster, a bottle of liquor (otí), cloths of all colors and the rest of the ingredients.

Reserved works and ebbó

This path has works against unhappiness and to attract money, and a secret ebbó for Egun; their elements and steps are in the full treatise.

This path keeps 4 awó secrets in the complete treatise.🔒 The Notebook

2Awó Mayere Wins the Bet and Inherits the Throne

Awó Mayere was an awó who lived in a place where his life did not move forward. He wanted to leave and could not find a way. He visited Orunmila, who did the consultation and found this Ifá, the one that belonged to him. He ordered an ebbó with a young bull, a rooster, a white cap, jutía, fish and all the drinks, and told him to take it to the place where he planned to move.

When Mayere arrived there, he met Eshu Bi, who lived in the wilderness. Eshu wanted the cap that Mayere was carrying. Mayere greeted him with moforibale, and Eshu Bi asked the reason for his trip, which Mayere told him.

Just then the Obá's favorite passed by with his companions. Eshu Bi explained that he was a great fighter, the Obá's preferred man, and that he had never lost. Mayere said he would like to face him. Eshu Bi took him to meet his friend Shangó, who agreed.

The next day, Mayere and Eshu Bi went to the Obá's house to set the terms of the contest, and the Obá accepted them. The prize would go to whoever managed, over fifteen days, to bring more people into the street without any bloodshed.

The Obá's favorite began. Then Eshu Bi went out into the street: on a corner he found jutía, fish and awadó, farther along cane liquor, and on reaching the café a great fight broke out. Often the women left their tasks to watch the favorite pass, and that caused conflicts with their husbands that sometimes ended in blood. It went on like that until the Obá ordered his favorite to stop going out, because too much blood had been shed.

Then it was Awó Mayere's turn. At midnight he went down the street with his young bull, fast as lightning, so fast that no one managed to see him. People were alarmed by the noise in the night, not knowing who was passing, and even the Obá became uneasy.

Later, Mayere went out again, this time on the young bull, slowly and in broad daylight. An endless crowd walked behind him, and no misfortune happened in the town. So he won the bet through his intelligence, and the Obá rewarded him by naming him his heir to the throne.

This Ifá is one of inheritance. From it come the change of lerí and the anklet. In its story the animals were tamed, among them the cows. The norm also begins here that awó and santeros avoid sitting in parks.

What it teaches

Victory comes from intelligence and good allies more than from strength. Whoever does his ebbó and moves ahead calmly achieves more than the one who provokes fights and spills blood, and that prudence makes him the heir.

Ebbó of Awó Mayere

Rooster, young bull, white cap and cowbell; jutía and fish; cane liquor; every kind of food; a lot of money. It is taken to the place where the person wants to go. The young bull may be replaced by an inshé of malú, whose content is not published here.

Work of this path

A young bull is offered to Shangó, at the riverbank, and the Ogue are loaded.

Cap and cowbell

A red and black cap is worn, and a cowbell is hung behind the door.

Prohibition

Awó and santeros must not sit in parks.

Prayer that opens the path

Adifafun Awo Malu Mayere Sokin Imbowa Ni Olofin Unlo Ni Ile Awo Belegun Oyu Miniosi Orunmila Un Soro Kowa Dudu Igbo Eshu Bi Ini Fila Foribale Awo Delele Oba Awo Mayere Odun Awo Malu Ade Oba Orisha Aso Oba Ilu Lodafun Orunmila Maferefun Eshu.

3In the world there is no happiness

In Takua, Shangó proclaimed that he would prove that the world lacks happiness. Yet everyone there lived contentedly, and he met with a strong disappointment. He repeated the same thing in every place and nobody believed him, which brought him many quarrels.

He ended up setting twelve days as the deadline to prove it. On understanding what he had promised, he exclaimed that he had gotten himself into a great mess and went in a hurry to where Orunmila was. He told him what had happened: he had to prove his word. Orunmila performed osode, this Ifá came out and he prescribed an ebbó, which Shangó carried out.

From then on, every day at noon he rode around the place on horseback singing a song. The women, busy washing or cooking, interrupted their tasks and told each other that the man on the horse was coming. So, when the husbands came back to eat, they found the table empty.

After six days, the men were irritated. Shangó passed again, with a different song. They complained: they were fed up with the man on the horse, because when they got home there was no food or clean clothes and everything was dirty.

On the ninth day he appeared with a cowbell tied to the horse’s head, and on it he also placed basil, nine candles and a hen, singing another song. Then the men began to hit the women.

On the twelfth day he returned with a rooster and a dove hanging from the horse’s head, and with another song. All the men came out into the street. Shangó began to shout, asking them whether they did not see that happiness does not exist in the world. Right away he ran to pay moforibale to Orunmila and greeted him with Ifá’s formulas of respect.

What it teaches

The joy of a place depends on simple things, such as food, cleanliness and calm at home, and it breaks quickly when they are missing. Nothing in the world is entirely stable or free of conflict.

Ebbó of this path

A rooster, a hen, a dove, akuaró meyi, beef, pink cloth, a cowbell, nine candles, ekú, eyá, awadó and a lot of money.

Work to uncover the enemy

This path has a work to uncover the enemy; its procedure is in the full treatise.

What Shangó sang each day at noon, riding his horse

Kere Kito Kere Shango Olokua Neloguere

What Shangó sang on the sixth day

Alamo Feye Shango Lambela Alamo Feye.

What Shangó sang on the ninth day, with the cowbell, the basil, the candles and the hen

Maloribo Dere Shango Takua Moloye

What Shangó sang on the twelfth day, with the rooster and the dove hanging from the horse

Adashe Adamashe Ayewese Umbalowo Biada Ashe Ayewese Umbalowo Batilide Yami Aye Bere Bokua.

Shangó's greeting to Orunmila when he paid him moforibale

IBORU, IBOYA, IBOSHISHE, ELERIKUIN AGUEDE WEYO OMOLE YEKUN BAMBAN

This path keeps 1 awó secret in the complete treatise.🔒 The Notebook

4Orunmila gets Shangó out of the bush🔒 The Notebook 5The elephantiasis of the Obá, son of Oduduwa🔒 The Notebook 6Orunmila cures the hernia of the Obá Olueske🔒 The Notebook 7The youngest son of Ikú🔒 The Notebook 8When Oyá opened his roads🔒 The Notebook 9Orunmila had many godchildren🔒 The Notebook 10The abundance of the town🔒 The Notebook 11The awó's wife who went to see a palero🔒 The Notebook 12The Gan of Olofin🔒 The Notebook 13The pots of the godfather and of the initiate🔒 The Notebook 14The stubbornness between Ikú and Irete Atefun🔒 The Notebook 15Why Ikú eats everything🔒 The Notebook 16The trader and the donkey🔒 The Notebook 17The eagle and the owl🔒 The Notebook 18The ring that Ikú gave to his son🔒 The Notebook 19The balloon, the straw and the loincloth🔒 The Notebook 20The fox that lost its tail🔒 The Notebook 21The fruits of hatred and of love🔒 The Notebook 22The horse that lost its freedom🔒 The Notebook 23The mockingbird and the cotumbo🔒 The Notebook

20 more patakíes in this Odù, locked.Read every road in full with The Notebook.Unlock →

The full treatise is in English. With The Notebook, the whole sign opens on this page in English: the full text of every patakí, the recipes for the ebbós and works, and the iré and osogbo readings. · This page is also available in Spanish: See Irete Fun in Spanish →

Frequently asked questions about Irete Fun

What does the Odù Irete Fun mean in Ifá?

Where Shangó decreed that there is no complete happiness: the youngest son of Ikú, builder of the Añá drums, wins by being intelligent.

What number is Irete Fun among the 256 Odù of Ifá?

Irete Fun is Odù number 226 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Irete family.

Which orishas speak in Irete Fun?

In the Odù Irete Fun these orishas speak: Shangó, Odduduwa, Oyá, Elegbá, Orunmila, Ikú, Orishaoko, Egun, The Moon.

What is a proverb of the Odù Irete Fun?

One of the proverbs of Irete Fun says: «Nobody can happily be the judge of his own conscience.».

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