Irete Oba

nº 218 of 256

Ifá orders you to move house in order to prosper, and to have the rogation done by a daughter of Yemayá — the poor woman of this sign became a Queen.

19 patakíes 4 eewó 8 ebbós and works 15 proverbs

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Irete Oba is Odù number 218 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Irete family. This page brings together its prayer in Yoruba, 19 patakíes (3 with the full text), its proverbs, 8 ebbós and works and the signs it shows in the consultation — with the full eewó in plain sight; the detail of iré and osogbo and the full recipes open with The Notebook, in English.

The sign at a glance

Order in Ifá
Odù 218 of 256
Composition
Irete over Obara
Orishas that speak
Shangó · Oyá · Yemayá · Obatalá · Babaluayé (Da Soyi) · Agayú · Oshún · Elegbá

What Ifá says in this sign

Irete Oba was born of a great spell: Oyá put a spell on Shangó while he went about in the shape of a buffalo and threw his brain out of joint — and Yemayá cured him with the rogation of the bull's sinew. Out of that comes the secret of this odu: the head rogation is done by a daughter of Yemayá — the one who cured the king cures his children as well.

Its order is one of movement: Ifá tells you to go out into the street to look for your luck and to move house in order to prosper — however much you do, you will not get your head up unless you move. The teacher is the savanna bird: every year they burn his children in the same place — the happiness of this odu is in another land.

«The savanna bird watches his children burn every year in the same place — the luck of Irete Oba lives in another land.»The pulse of Irete Oba

Its weather is a jackal's: the animal that rests hidden by day and comes out at night — there is jackal work and abuse around you, and they throw you out of everywhere, like the bird. And there is a shadow with a name: a woman who is after you with real malice and stirs up trouble in your personal life and your marriage — the great shadow of Irete Oba: she is beaten with a work, not with a war.

The body wants medicine and restraint: nerves and organs out of joint — the rogation of the bull's sinew sets them right —, syphilis and catching diseases are watched for, impotence has its work — turtle with Shangó, sweet wine and hawksbill egg — and excess in intimate life destroys you in body and in name: this Odù approves the use of medicine to keep the difficulties in hand.

Its ending is a humble crown: the daughter of Oshún became a Queen after being poor — that is how this odu pays whoever keeps their word. Ifá assures you victory over your enemies, and the two stones — white and black — with their rooster master disaster in the house: Irete Oba brings many good things: good things come to your hands — but it hands them over in the new land.

The sign in one line

Move house, have your rogation done by a daughter of Yemayá and rein in the excess — the poor woman of Irete Oba became a Queen in the land where life does not burn.

The prayer of Irete Oba · Yoruba

IRETE OBABIYE TELEWELE AWO ABLODE ADIFAFUN OSHA OKUNI NINA TINLOSILE KIYA TIOLO BIMU WERE WERE.

Ifá says — what Irete Oba tells you

Proverbs of Irete Oba · Òwe

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

Iré and Osogbo

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

What is born in Irete Oba · Ìbí

What is forbidden · Eewó

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

Ebbós of Irete Oba · The sacrifices that open the road

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

Works of Irete Oba · The workings of the sign

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

Patakíes of Irete Oba · The roads of the Odù

1The daughter of Oshún becomes a Queen

A daughter of Oshún, held back and with no luck with men, made the ebbó of fruit Orunmila marked her; out walking she met the King's son, they married, and when the King handed over the throne, the daughter of Oshún became Queen.

Nothing went right for a daughter of Oshún. The setbacks piled up, every matter she took on went bad, and none of the men who came near her turned out to be any good.

Tired of living that way, she went to look for Orunmila. In the reading this Ifá came out for her, and it marked her ebbó with fruit. Not long after, walking the streets of her town, she ran into a young man who turned out to be the King's son. They fell in love with each other, they had a love affair, and in the end they married.

In time, the King handed the rule of the throne to the young prince. She rose with him and, being the King's wife, she became Queen.

2The bird and the savanna

A bird could not get his head up because every year the owner burned the savanna and scorched his young; with Orunmila's ebbó he moved to the bush, and there he prospered — there is jackal work and abuse: they throw you out of everywhere.

In a savanna there lived a bird that could never get ahead: every year the owner of that land set fire to it, and its children burned in the fire.

Tired of so many setbacks, the bird went to be looked at by Orunmila, who saw this Ifá. He told him to make ebbó and to move away from there without delay.

Once the ebbó was done, the bird left for the bush, and it was in the bush that he finally prospered.

Note: here there is predatory behavior and abuse; they run the person out of everywhere. No matter how much he does, he will not get ahead unless he moves.

3This is where Babaluayé made Dada ill

Babaluayé, rich but corrupt, did not respect Dada, Agayú's adopted daughter and Shangó's sister, and being ill himself he passed it to her; Eshu discovered the hairpieces Dada used to cover her baldness, Agayú threw Babaluayé out of the town, and Shangó, who had been helping him out of pity, withdrew his help when he learned the truth.

In a certain land under the rule of Agayú lived Babaluayé, whom everyone loved and respected because he was a merchant of great fortune. Inside, though, he was a man of the worst kind, wicked and corrupt to the extreme; so much so that he had no respect for Dada, Agayú's adopted daughter and Shangó's sister. He talked her into it and, even though he knew he was sick, he had contact with her and passed his sickness to her.

As the days went by, Dada's hair began to fall out and, to replace it, she used horse hair. None of that escapes Eshu, who sees everything and knows everything: he saw her put on the horse hair and then cover herself with the headscarf. He then went to look for Agayú and told him what had happened. Agayú sent for Dada, and she explained the situation to him. When he learned that Babaluayé was to blame, he took away all his standing and threw him out of the town; that is how Babaluayé ended up living on the outskirts.

Shangó was out hunting when he came across him. The sickness was already taking away his speech, and all that came out of his mouth was "ARA" (earth). Seeing him in that state moved Shangó to pity, so he went down to the town, got him food and looked after him for a while, until Eshu came and told him what had happened.

Once he knew everything, Shangó took his help away and sent him to keep walking the world, for not having respected his sister.

Note: Shangó was giving water to his horse when Babaluayé passed by the stream. In this Odù, Shangó and Babaluayé can come one standing in for the other.

16 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 Oba in Spanish →

Frequently asked questions about Irete Oba

What does the Odù Irete Oba mean in Ifá?

Ifá orders you to move house in order to prosper, and to have the rogation done by a daughter of Yemayá — the poor woman of this sign became a Queen.

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

Irete Oba is Odù number 218 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Irete family.

Which orishas speak in Irete Oba?

In the Odù Irete Oba these orishas speak: Shangó, Oyá, Yemayá, Obatalá, Babaluayé (Da Soyi), Agayú, Oshún, Elegbá.

What is a proverb of the Odù Irete Oba?

One of the proverbs of Irete Oba says: «Go out into the street and look for your luck.».

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