Odù 59 of 256 · Iwori family

Iwori Rote

Where the four seasons and the miracles of San Lázaro were born: the guardian of the Atepon Ifá, a sign of whims and shifting luck.

Iwori Rote is Odù number 59 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Iwori family. This page brings together its prayer in Yoruba, 18 patakíes (3 with the full text), its proverbs, 7 ebbós and works and the signs it shows in the consultation; the detail of iré and osogbo, the eewó and the full recipes open with the Babalawo plan — that locked part is still written in Spanish.

The sign at a glance

Order in Ifá
Odù 59 of 256
Composition
Iwori over Irete
Orishas that speak
Orunmila · Azowanu (Osajuano) · Oduduwa · Olokun · Oshún · Osain · Eshú

What Ifá says in this sign

Iwori Rote is the guardian of the Atepon Ifá — it took over that keeping from Ogbe Weña — and the sign where the four seasons of the year and the miracles of San Lázaro were born. Its first lesson is one of humility between generations: the rooster pecks the chick because he sees his future rival in him — do not be the rooster, and do not stop growing for fear of being one.

Its symbol of living together is perfect: the hair protects the flesh, and the flesh feeds it — neither lives without the other. That is why this odu forbids living as a lodger or by halves with anyone: forced living with someone you cannot bear makes you ill — settle that situation. And it paints the tyrant without mercy: the man who mistreats his wife and comes back alone to go on mistreating her loses this whole odu.

«The rooster pecks the chick because he sees his rival in him — Iwori Rote teaches you to grow without pecking and without giving way.»The pulse of Iwori Rote

Its dangers are exact: fire in the house — do not play with fire —, heights (one slip can break a bone), the street after midnight (you run into people from another world) and the corner: do not turn it hugging the kerb but out in the middle of the street, because they are watching to take your footprint. The enemy lives at the back of your house, egged on by another.

There is an Egun that goes with you playing at being good without being it: Oparaldo. And a sleeping treasure: stones put away that belong to a Saint and can solve everything for you — look into them with Orunmila. San Lázaro, owner of the miracles of this odu, is waiting for your offerings for your health: the parasites and the stomach are asking for regular tests.

The promises: a godchild who brings you luck and money through the Saint or from the countryside — and Oshún nursing you at her breast. Three bad things can come at once (illness, a trap, a falling-out): the ebbó takes them apart one by one — like the four seasons, here every bad spell has a date on which it turns.

The sign in one line

Do not live by halves, guard against fire and send away the dead one who plays at being good — the seasons of Iwori Rote turn, and yours is coming with luck and money.

The prayer of Iwori Rote · Yoruba

Iwori Rote adan abi oma dudu ekun fibi kurumu tele ijo shewe irin shewe adifafun akuko magalaja ako tolofe anegue omo Olokun gbogbo awo eranko eiye igbo shugbo Olokun eniku ni eja oko abele abele ikoko meta adifafun Eshu.

Súyere
Akuko akuko gerebale gere · Akuko gere gere bale.

Ifá says — what Iwori Rote tells you

Proverbs of Iwori Rote · Òwe

15 proverb interpretations in this Odù, locked.Every proverb explained: which road it comes from and how it applies. Written in Spanish for now.Unlock →

Iré and Osogbo

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

What is born in Iwori Rote · Ìbí

What is forbidden · Eewó

5 eewó (taboos) in this Odù, locked.What the child of this sign must not eat, do or wear. Written in Spanish for now.Unlock →

Ebbós of Iwori Rote · The sacrifices that open the road

IréEbbó for Iré Umbo🔒 Babalawo
Beating enemiesEbbó so they do not beat you🔒 Babalawo
LoveEbbó to go back to the husband🔒 Babalawo
Protecting the brideEbbó so the bride is not killed🔒 Babalawo
4 ebbós in this Odù, locked.Each full recipe: ingredients, preparation and where it goes. Written in Spanish for now.Unlock →

Works of Iwori Rote · The workings of the sign

ProtectionInshé Osanyin of the sign🔒 Babalawo
Beating difficultiesWork with Oggún of the yagruma tree🔒 Babalawo
The hair and the fleshInshé of the hair🔒 Babalawo
3 works in this Odù, locked.Each full recipe: ingredients, preparation and where it goes. Written in Spanish for now.Unlock →

Patakíes of Iwori Rote · The roads of the Odù

1The whipping of the Iyoye

Akala, son of Oduduwa, tormented Orunmila while he was staying in his house. When Akala fell ill, Orunmila made Ifá for him to save him, and on the day of the Iyoye he took his revenge, striking him across the back all through the bush.

When Aideju Awó — Orunmila's name in Orun — was about to come down to earth, he made osode and saw this Ifá, which told him: «once in the world, do not try to avoid suffering». He came down to the land of Oduduwa, who had one single son, Akala, who spent his time tormenting Orunmila: at night he woke him, shook him about and pricked him, and Orunmila kept quiet, being a stranger in that house.

A few days later Akala fell ill and within fifteen days he was dying. Oduduwa, at a loss, called Orunmila, who saw this Ifá for him, asked for many animals and took Akala into the bush, where he made Ifá for him. On the day of the Iyoye, Orunmila thought: «this is the moment for my revenge»; he took the switch, sang «Akala Awó Nifá, Ifá mabinu», and struck him hard across the back, running after him all through the bush. Healed, Akala went back to Oduduwa, who was delighted. This is where the harshness of the Awoses at the Iyoye is explained.

2When the rooster married Olokun's daughter

Olokun would give his daughter Are Ege to whoever first sowed his row of yam. The rooster made ebbó; Eshú buried three posts that gave him the advantage, and with his charm he beat all the birds and won Are Ege.

All the animals were in love with Are Ege, daughter of Olokun, who would give her to whoever first finished sowing the row of yam assigned to him. The rooster went to Orunmila, who saw this Ifá for him and marked him an ebbó with three posts, three hoes and six doves. Eshú took the three posts and buried one at each corner of the farm. The other birds started ploughing before the rooster woke, but he, with his charm «plough the earth with the hoe», worked at dizzying speed; every time the parrot said «you will break», his hoe broke, and he took another.

Eshú helped him by striking one post: the queen ants came out and the other birds set about eating them, and the rooster took his chance to get ahead. He finished his furrow first, and Olokun handed him Are Ege. The other animals, envious, pushed him into the river, and the rooster, with his wife in his beak, swallowed her by accident; she became the long feathers of his tail. That is why, before marrying, ebbó must be made so the wife is not killed.

3The tyrant king

A tyrannical king left the government to his ministers to travel; the people celebrated his absence. When he announced his return, the ministers set traps at the entrances to the kingdom; his horse fell into one and the king was killed.

There was a king who ruled with an iron hand, of changeable and tyrannical temper. One day he left the government to his ministers — who hated him — to travel through several nations, and the people, free of the tyrant for a while, held great feasts, though fearing his return. The king sent a messenger ordering a grand reception; the ministers agreed to make ready to beat him, setting traps camouflaged with grass at every entrance to the kingdom. As he came back riding his white horse, on reaching one entrance the horse fell into a trap and the king was killed. So the people were rid of the tyrant. It speaks of the tyrant who leaves the house and comes back to go on mistreating his own.

4The offerings, or miracles, of Osajuano were born🔒 Babalawo
5The Opipi rooster🔒 Babalawo
6The hair and the flesh🔒 Babalawo
7The four seasons of the year🔒 Babalawo
8When the vulture made ebbó🔒 Babalawo
9When Oshún helped Iwori Rote🔒 Babalawo
10The power of the atare🔒 Babalawo
11The crocodile and the wealth of Olokun🔒 Babalawo
12The young man who humiliates his elder🔒 Babalawo
13The two hills🔒 Babalawo
14The opposites🔒 Babalawo
15Hatred and love🔒 Babalawo
16A conversation between an omo Ifá and an unbeliever🔒 Babalawo
17The therapy of the mariwo🔒 Babalawo
18The godchild's claim🔒 Babalawo
15 more patakíes in this Odù, locked.Read every road in full with the Babalawo plan. Written in Spanish for now.Unlock →
Before you subscribe: everything you read on this page is in English, but the locked part of the treatise — the full text of the other patakíes, the recipes for the ebbós and works, the iré and osogbo readings and the eewó — is still written in Spanish. We are translating it. · This page is also available in Spanish: See Iwori Rote in Spanish →

Frequently asked questions about Iwori Rote

What does the Odù Iwori Rote mean in Ifá?

Where the four seasons and the miracles of San Lázaro were born: the guardian of the Atepon Ifá, a sign of whims and shifting luck.

What number is Iwori Rote among the 256 Odù of Ifá?

Iwori Rote is Odù number 59 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Iwori family.

Which orishas speak in Iwori Rote?

In the Odù Iwori Rote these orishas speak: Orunmila, Azowanu (Osajuano), Oduduwa, Olokun, Oshún, Osain, Eshú.

What is a proverb of the Odù Iwori Rote?

One of the proverbs of Iwori Rote says: «The world is held up by four corners.».

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