Odi Wori

Odi Oro, an awó, lived in Obá Oju Inle. He had given himself to wickedness and, if he was paid, did not hesitate to do the worst harm, so the whole region hated him. Yekun, his wife and the daughter of Inle, loved him in spite of everything, although at his side she had no rest from pain. Every day she went down to the riverbank to find relief, and there she told Inle and Olofin about her sorrows. Even so, she never begged them to punish him, because her affection for him was still alive.

One morning she saw that her tears, on touching the river, turned into beautiful plants with white and lilac flowers. From among them rose a figure of changing colors, who introduced herself as Ina, the ancestral spirit of Inle, Yekun's father, and said she was fed up with seeing her suffer. Singing, she made her enter the water with her and told her that from then on no one would see her or harm her. From there Yekun would represent her father and Ina herself on earth, and her spirit would take the form of the water flower.

When he found out, Odi Oro hurried to the river and cursed her, but his curses turned back on him and left him without sight. Feeling his way, he performed Osode, recognized which odu was his, and wept inconsolably when he realized all the harm he had done. Yekun's spirit saw that he was truly repentant and granted him her forgiveness; she also revealed to him the secret of Ojuero, which would give him back his eyes, and Ina blessed him, consecrating him. From that day Odi Oro left wickedness behind and traveled through all the lands healing people and doing good.

Yemayá was going through a complicated time and consulted Orunmila. In the consultation the odu Odi Oro came out. Ifá explained to her that, in order to come through her present difficulties and those to come, she had to avoid any complaint and any protest. He also indicated an ebbó, and she did it.

As she was leaving, Orunmila repeated that three setbacks awaited her and that she should keep calm. Yemayá followed the path toward the hills. At the start, a boy came up to her and begged: “My mother, help me carry this basket.” It was Eshu in another form. He emptied the basket, full of palm oil, over her and soiled all her clothes. Yemayá recalled what Ifá had warned her and went on, although her only dress had been stained.

Shortly afterward she met an old man leaning on a staff who also asked for her help. When she came near, he threw over her what he carried in a sack and ran off laughing. Once again it was Eshu. Yemayá kept walking and crossed paths with a third character who repeated the prank; again she said nothing.

Already exhausted, she came out into a clearing and, not far off, saw a beautiful city of enormous buildings. She approached the entrance of a magnificent palace, but the guards lowered their spears crosswise and would not let her pass. Yemayá sat on the ground and wept, thinking that her effort had been worth nothing, until tiredness overcame her and she fell asleep.

When she woke up, nobody was left at the gate. She went in and walked in wonder along the great hall of the palace. At that moment, the ruler of that kingdom, religious guide of the nearby kingdoms, was deliberating with their chiefs. On seeing the newcomer, he left his seat, went to greet her, knelt and asked her: “My mother, give me your blessing.” When he had it, he ordered her to kneel, took off his crown and placed it on her head. Those present, astonished, bowed down before Yemayá and paid her moforibale. From then on they regarded her as queen of the place. In that kingdom the king never walked, because he was carried on shoulders wherever he went. That king was Shangó.

Odi Oro, a blind Awó, supported his household by selling ojuro, the water flower used to treat problems of the eyes. The flowers were kept in a tub of water, and each customer paid fifty cents for one.

He set his earnings aside in a spot near the tub and, since he could not see, someone stole them again and again.

He wanted to find out the thief's identity, so he went to Orunmila. Orunmila consulted him and found that the odu of the consultation was Odi Oro, the very one that was his patron odu. To solve the problem he pointed out an ebbó made up of rooster, dove, rope, dregs of the eko and other ingredients that completed the work.

After carrying out the ebbó, Odi Oro left the rope and the eko dregs beside the tub. When the thief arrived to take the money from among the dregs, Odi Oro hurled the rope, which closed around the intruder's hand and held him caught. In this way, with the ebbó and with his cunning, a blind man discovered the one who was cheating him.