Obara Lorí

nº 109 of 256

Obara Wereko, the Ifá of experiments: to become great you have to go through poverty and disaster — and here the sick person is saved.

23 patakíes 4 eewó 8 ebbós and works 16 proverbs

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Obara Lorí is Odù number 109 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Obara family. This page brings together its prayer in Yoruba, 23 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 109 of 256
Composition
Obara over Iwori
Orishas that speak
Eshu / Elegba · Oduduwa · Yemayá · Osanyin · Oshún y Obá · Ogún · Orunmila

What Ifá says in this sign

Obara Lorí — also called Obara Wereko — is the sign where a comforting truth was born: to become great in life, human beings have had to go through different stages — poverty, disasters, hardship. Your record of hard times is not failure: it is the official road to greatness.

This odu sets out its order of values: money matters, but never as much as wisdom, knowledge, health and good character — put the emphasis on your spiritual growth and your emotional balance, and the rest comes along with it.

«To become great you have to go through stages — the hardship of Obara Lorí is a résumé, not a punishment.»The pulse of Obara Lorí

You come armed from the factory: a sixth sense that keeps you safe from dangers and traps — and Eshu has protected you since you were born, by Oduduwa's order. Someone is setting a dirty trap for you: with the sacrifice you will beat it and get to the bottom of everything. But watch your memory: someone is working on it — yours and your wife's.

Your risks come from the company you keep: bad company can destroy you physically or morally — through vices, women or theft you drift away from the religion and can end up running from the law. This is the Ifá of experiments (the guinea pig was born here): experiment with ideas, not with your life.

The promises: when this Odù comes up for a sick person, they are saved — that is its most beautiful signature —; you will come across a stroke of money luck (ebbó so you do not throw it away), and prosperity is waiting for you outside your own town if you sacrifice. And the household advice that opens everything up: give a woman what she asks for, if you want to enjoy your luck

The sign in one line

Value knowing over earning, trust your sixth sense and choose your company — the sick person of Obara Lorí is saved, and the one who is tested is crowned.

The prayer of Obara Lorí · Yoruba

Obara Iwori Obara kori anko niye eranko eku igba ewefalebo Obara Wereko adifafun Eshu.

Súyere
Ifá wa Oba nire Awo Obanire, Awo Elegba moyeo Obanire.

Ifá says — what Obara Lorí tells you

Proverbs of Obara Lorí · Òwe

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

What is born in Obara Lorí · Ìbí

What is forbidden · Eewó

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

Ebbós of Obara Lorí · The sacrifices that open the road

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

Works of Obara Lorí · The workings of the sign

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

Patakíes of Obara Lorí · The roads of the Odù

1The four sisters from heaven

The Tigress, the Leopardess, the Zebra and the Wildcat came down into the world; only the Cat made every sacrifice. The Tigress, who did it halfway, stepped on her kills with her left paw and could not eat them: the hunter killed her, and her cubs died with no milk; the hunter killed the Leopardess too. The Zebra sacrificed with borrowed money — and her seven creditors devoured one another when they came to collect, leaving nobody to pay. That is why cats are not sacrificed or eaten, and raise their young without trouble.

Four sisters agreed to be born into the world at the same time: the Tigress, the Leopardess, the Zebra and the Wildcat. Obara Iwori marked what they had to offer —a hen, a turtle and rotten materials—, told them to hold a feast for their animals so they would earn everyone's respect and, above all, to cover themselves against the danger of misfortune; each one would also feed her head: beef for the Tigress, plenty of meat for the Leopardess, guineas for the Zebra, and rats with fish for the Wildcat. Only the Wildcat did all of it and, because Orunmila insisted, she left her head on top of a hill. The Tigress barely fed her head and neglected the rest. The Leopardess and the Zebra did not want to offer anything.

One morning the Tigress went out to get food for her cubs and brought down an antelope; while she was opening it, fruit fell from the tree, the fright made her step on it with her left hand, and tigers do not eat meat they have stepped on with that hand. She left the prey, then brought down a deer and the same thing happened again. She came back hungry and, already close to her house, the hunter finished her off; with no milk to suckle, her cubs died. The same hunter also killed the Leopardess, when she was out looking for food for her young.

Seeing that, the Zebra ran to Orunmila to be read again, and asked for the money for the materials on credit, promising to pay it back as soon as the first rains passed. The Worm, the Hen and the Fox lent to her; so did her brothers-in-law —the husbands of the Tigress and of the Leopardess—, the Hunter and the Boa. It rained, and they all came for what was theirs; she left them waiting outside with the excuse of counting the money. There the Hen ate the Worm; the Fox ate the Hen; the Leopard ate the Fox; the Tiger killed the Leopard; the Hunter shot the Tiger; and the Boa, who was right on the Hunter's heels, ended up under his foot when he stepped back, and bit him: he cut her in two with his machete, but the poison reached him and he died. The seven creditors wiped each other out and there was no one left to pay. The Wildcat, the only one who sacrificed, came out without a scratch: that is why cats are not used in sacrifice, their meat is not eaten, and their young grow up small without trouble. If this Ifá comes out in Igbodu, you must find out whether the person is one of four siblings: each one has to feed Eshu a goat, bread and ekó, give a turtle to Ogún, and hold a feast with the whole family.

2The sorcerer who saved his son from the cult

A sorcerer held his cult's meetings at his house without his family knowing; his mischievous son spied on them, and the sorcerers punished him by taking a piece of his intestine and his liver after every meeting: the boy developed a chronic stomach illness. With the boy about to die, Ifá revealed the cause to his father: he called another meeting, begged for his son's life, and paid for the trespass with the clay figure, a goat, eggs and palm oil. The boy recovered — and he never held another meeting at his house.

That man was a witch and his cult met often under his roof, and the family did not know what kind of meetings they were. One of his sons, very sly, took up the habit of spying on them. When they found out, the witches decided to make him pay: after each meeting they took out a piece of his intestine and a piece of his liver, until the boy was left with a stomach illness that would not let go of him.

With the boy already close to death, the father had himself read with Ifá, and there he learned that it was the people of the sect who were finishing him off. Ifá told him to call another meeting with all of them and to beg them for his son's life. Once they were gathered, they told him that the boy was spying on them and that was why they meant to empty his stomach. The man pleaded with them and wanted to know how he could make it up to them: they asked him for a figure of the boy made with clay taken from behind a hill, plus a goat, eggs and plenty of palm oil. He handed everything over at the next meeting and the son got well. From then on he no longer let the cult meet in his house. When this Ifá comes out in Igbodu, the person probably belongs to the cult of Iyami Oshoronga: they must feed a goat to the Night right away so their children do not suffer, and must not gather the cult in their house; in an ordinary reading, a rabbit for the Night.

3The fairies of the Other World (the Abikú)

Obara was warned to build his house on the border between heaven and earth, near the Other World — the land of the Abikú — and to serve Eshu where two roads meet. The Abikú passed through his house before visiting the earth, but they would not sacrifice; Orunmila learned how to tie them down and told the parents how to keep them. When the Abikú found out he was blocking their plans, they decided to come into the world through the children of Ifá's priests: that is why Awoses are prone to having Abikú children.

Obara ba le ra Ogun, Babalawo of Imere, was the one who read for the people of Imere. Before he left heaven, he was told to build his house right on the border between heaven and earth, next to the Other World —that land of fairies or elves which is the land of the Abikú—, and to feed Eshu a male goat where two roads meet, adding two hundred plantains, yams, pieces of meat and grains of corn. He made the offering and raised his house next to the crossroads, a short way from the country of the Abikú.

So the Abikú who came down to visit the earth had to pass by that house first to be read, to learn how to get the most out of their short stay; but they wanted nothing to do with sacrifice, and Orunmila found the way to tie them down here below: to warn the parents of those children and teach them how to keep them. As soon as the Abikú noticed that Orunmila was knocking down their plans, they chose to come into the world through the children related to the priests of Ifá; that is why the priests of Ifá get so many Abikú children. In an ordinary reading, this Odù warns: a dirty trap is being set for you, but with sacrifice you beat it and get to the bottom of the matter.

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 Obara Lorí in Spanish →

Frequently asked questions about Obara Lorí

What does the Odù Obara Lorí mean in Ifá?

Obara Wereko, the Ifá of experiments: to become great you have to go through poverty and disaster — and here the sick person is saved.

What number is Obara Lorí among the 256 Odù of Ifá?

Obara Lorí is Odù number 109 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Obara family.

Which orishas speak in Obara Lorí?

In the Odù Obara Lorí these orishas speak: Eshu / Elegba, Oduduwa, Yemayá, Osanyin, Oshún y Obá, Ogún, Orunmila.

What is a proverb of the Odù Obara Lorí?

One of the proverbs of Obara Lorí says: «In this world, do not want what you do not deserve.».

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