Odi Kana

Oba Kete held a good position, but dissatisfaction ruled him: he aspired to have more and watched everything in the hope of being named a superior. His boss noticed and dismissed him from the job, and from then on Oba Kete was in a very bad situation.

One day he visited the babalawo Awó Inshola, a man of great kindness. When he consulted him, the odu Odi Kana came out. The Awó said to him: “You are an ungrateful man: when things go well for you, you forget the one who helped you get ahead and you do not thank him. You will do the same with me. Even so, there is no problem: I will make an ebbó for you all the same.”

Oba Kete carried out the ebbó and immediately began to trade. Soon he was full of pride over his money and no longer thought of the Awó who had helped him.

A long time went by. Once, Oba Kete recalled Awó Inshola's prediction and said to himself: “How right he was. I am going to show him my gratitude.” He arrived at the Awó's dwelling and set it on fire on all four sides. Awó Inshola, surrounded by flames, hurriedly looked out of a window and managed to see Oba Kete walking away. He begged Olorun to save him, and Olorun sent a torrential rain that put out the fire before the Awó was burned. So he escaped the disaster. On learning that Awó Inshola had saved his life, Oba Kete lost his reason from astonishment.

Obatalá had two sons and put them in the charge of different guides. Layebe Omo Lalara stayed with Elegba, so that Elegba would guide him and teach him; Ifa Yewa stayed with Shangó, for the same purpose. He sent the four of them together.

Shangó and Elegba settled in the land of Oni Fawa, a place of hills and dense bush. Shangó informed Obatalá that Ifa Yewa would live above, on the hill, and Elegba informed him that Layebe would live below, among the undergrowth.

Time passed and one day Obatalá announced: “I will go and see how my sons are doing; they must be well guided by now.” Shangó spotted him from the top, called Ifa Yewa to propose that they go out and mark Obatalá's path with cascarilla and with slug shells. They came down and told Elegba and Layebe. Shangó immediately took Elegba's cowbell, and all began to ring it and to sing.

Obatalá heard the voices of Shangó and Elegba and was very glad. He saw Ifa Yewa tracing the path with cascarilla and slugs, and also Layebe pouring hot water to kill the slugs. Ifa Yewa, at the same time, was pouring cold water mixed with cascarilla on them, so that not all of them died. At first this bothered Obatalá, but then, seeing that the slugs were being saved by Ifa Yewa's cold water and cascarilla, he became pleased.

On arriving where Shangó and Elegba were, they greeted him with the moforibale and served him a banquet of beef, and also cascarilla and cocoa butter. Layebe, thinking that it would anger Obatalá, added palm oil to it; however, Obatalá was glad. He told Shangó that he was very grateful to all of them and to his sons, and asked them to wait for him outside, since he wanted to leave in their company.

They went out onto the road. While Elegba and Shangó walked on, Obatalá took a cowbell and an agogo and began to sing. Then he took Layebe aside and spoke to him alone: “From now on, the only thing that sprouts in you is envy. A day will come when you are left alone in this land, and all who imitate you will end up the same.” So he cursed him. Next he took out a sack of mice and set them free. He warned Ifa Yewa not to kill them because they would be his salvation, that he had his blessing and that he must not be afraid of them. Then Obatalá left.

Layebe knew an omologu living in the land of Omoniwa. He went to see him and confessed that he wanted to wipe out his brother Ifa Yewa. The omologu prepared a sorcerer's pot, an ikoko ogu, and gave it to him with these instructions: he was to dig a deep hole under the hill where Ifa Yewa lived and light many lamps there, for that would destroy him.

Ifa Yewa found out about everything. With his odeban at hand, he poured water and put out the lamps one by one. Meanwhile, the loose mice went into the caves and began to breed. Seeing the hill turned into a hollow, Ifa Yewa became frightened; he lay down to sleep and dreamed that he must go to where Obatalá and Shangó were.

He woke up and ran toward them, scattering cascarilla and slugs along the way and calling Obatalá. When he reached Obatalá, Shangó and Elegba, the three received him happily. Obatalá, in tears, told him to wait for news.

It rained for three days, and the hill of Omoniwa collapsed. Just then the omologu and Layebe were doing a bad work with palm oil, and both of them perished. On receiving the news, Obatalá pronounced: “This is how every envious person ends who wants to achieve what is not his.” He ordered Shangó and Elegba to put Ifa Yewa to safety with plenty of palm oil, that he should never again inhabit the summit of the hill and that he should always count on them.

Ifa Yewa answered Obatalá and Shangó that, since they were his fathers, he wished them to live at his side so that he might find his happiness. And so it was done.

In this path there lived an awó named Mosara Kiku, a man of many virtues: he respected his father's Egun, obeyed Elegba and had Shangó's protection.

His brother was Awó Abiti, who boasted of causing harm and destruction. They lived in a place where Tente Orun also dwelled, and Abiti invoked it by singing at noon and at other hours of the night. Abiti never remembered that he had a brother, Mosara.

One day Elegba went out for a walk and decided to see what Abiti was doing. He reached Abiti's town at midnight and waited on the outskirts. From there he confirmed the enormous power Abiti held over Tente Orun and heard him invoking it. Elegba planned to enter when it was four in the morning.

At that hour he rang a small bell he carried and sang a song for Tente Orun. It heard him, came closer, greeted him with moforibale and explained what Abiti did with it and for what purpose. Elegba demanded an oath from it: that it would never again obey Abiti. Tente Orun answered that it would, but only when it finished fulfilling a pending commitment to Abiti; after that it would be under Elegba's orders. Elegba accepted without noticing the scope of those words. Tente Orun went to hide so that Abiti would not see it talking with Elegba.

Elegba sat down in the middle of the town. When Abiti got up, he found him and they began to talk; meanwhile he served him jutía, smoked fish, palm oil and chicken, and cane liquor to drink. Elegba listened to Abiti and agreed to everything, very pleased. He left the town half drunk, and after a few steps he began to understand what had happened.

He hurried to find Mosara and ordered him to make, without delay, an ebbó and a paraldo meta with three young roosters and three small bananas. He was to place three gourd bowls of food at three points in the town, so that Tente Orun, sent by Abiti, would find something to eat. He also had to put on many necklaces and three kinds of leather, and leave the ebbó at the exit of the town, so that Elegba could speak with Tente Orun when it arrived and it would not ruin either Mosara's land or Mosara himself. Mosara did what Elegba asked.

Elegba hid in a corner. Tente Orun arrived and began to eat everything; Elegba saw it and sang to it with the small bell. When it heard him, Tente Orun ran out toward him, greeted him with moforibale, and both broke into tears. Then Elegba said to it: “Mosara lives in this place, who only does good and is poor. You came sent by Abiti to harm him. You will go with Agueday, who will take you all over the world; you will be everywhere and you will harm only whoever deserves it. You were destined to do good, but since you deceived me, you will serve only for Ofo.”