Ofun She

Also called Ofun Oshe, Ofun Pakioshe, Ofun Shewe, Ofun Owewe, Ofun Pakishe

nº 256 of 256 · Edited by Ricco Ledesma

The last Odù of Ifá, where the Okín is born, the heron of the Kings' crown: three fortunes have been lost, but another, greater one is coming.

21 patakíes 8 eewó 10 ebbós and works 15 proverbs

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Ofun She is Odù number 256 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Ofun family. It is also written as Ofun Oshe or Ofun Pakioshe or Ofun Shewe or Ofun Owewe or Ofun Pakishe. This page brings together its prayer in Yoruba, 21 patakíes (3 in full in plain sight, with their teaching, ebbó and chants), its proverbs, 10 ebbós and works and the signs it shows in the consultation — with the full eewó in plain sight; the rest of the iré and osogbo and the full recipes open with The Notebook, in English.

The sign at a glance

Order in Ifá: Odù 256 of 256
Composition: Ofun over Oshe
In the Diloggún: 10-5 · Ofún tonti Oshé
Orishas that speak: Obatalá · Oshún Ololodí · Azojuano · Shangó (Ogodó) · Oshumaré (the Rainbow) · Yemayá · Oggún · Agenrón (the parrot) · Eshu Atilú y Eshu Osiká

What Ifá says in this sign

Ofun She, also known as Ofun Pakioshe, closes the odus of Ifá, and the awó listens very carefully to what it says. In it were born the art of public speaking, clothing, the four directions of the board and the rainbow that represents the turning of the world, and also the loss of memory. Its bird is the Okín, the white heron with a red collar that adorns the crown of kings. Its ruling: you came to interpret Ifá and to carry its message to the people, and you have the dignity of a king, which is why you are envied everywhere.

Bad luck has pursued you and three strokes of luck slipped away, but another, greater one is coming that will pull you out of all your troubles. Remember the child left in a basket by the river, whom Oshún raised and Obatalá took as his secretary: the envious gave him poison, and with the very thing they prepared to kill him he ended up ruling over them. After going through need, a blessing comes to you as well. But on your path there are traps, thefts and rights denied, and they throw powders wherever you go.

«Ofún Shé is the last Odù: here Ifá came to an end. Three fortunes were lost, and the one that is coming is greater than all of them.»The pulse of Ofun She

You think yourself very wise, and those who truly know are God and Orunmila. There is a contradiction between your saint and your spirit. Do not do saint work without being crowned, because you could go to prison and someone could die because of you. Fulfill your duties and your promise, because through carelessness you can lose your position and an enemy can take your place. Do not lend your jewelry, flee from gossip and pay attention to children: a warning from a young one can save you from a tragedy.

In love, fights can lead to separation: do not argue in your marriage. The woman has difficulty having children, and the man can get involved with a woman who does strong witchcraft and then leaves him. If the father forgets his children, they suffer that lack; do not abandon them, for your luck goes with them. Do not raise other people's children: the girl who is not yours will bring you problems. The woman who lives in sexual excess because she was not raised well and was rejected while pregnant must not leave her child helpless, because her luck would go with him. If you are a woman, beware of a man in yellow trousers and a spotted shirt who seeks you out on a street corner: he could wound or kill you.

In health, this sign brings strong headaches and even blows to the head. You can suffer from tuberculosis and spit blood, and your stomach and bowels twist because of what is put in your food. Great suffering can cause you a heart attack, and someone sick in your family may fall out of bed. Make your ebbó in time so as not to be left without a home.

The sign in one line

Make your three ebboses, do not abandon your child and listen to the warning of the minors, for at the end of Ifá, Ofún Shé crowns the one who kept faith to the end.

The prayer of Ofun She · Yoruba

Ofún Pakioshé Omó Pakioshé Efururú Lokukú Okuó Odé Kolé Bonatú.

Súyere
Ebbó Sheké Sheké Akukó Lebó / Ebbó Sheké Sheké Eyelé Lebó / Ebbó Sheké Sheké Adié Lebó / Ebbó Sheké Sheké Eyá Tuto Lebó...

Ifá says — what Ofun She tells you

Bad luck follows the person closely; to counter it, three ebbós must be performed one after another.
You lost three lucks and need to perform orugbó to move forward, but an even greater luck will come to you and will bring you out of all your difficulties.
This is a person who harms himself: do not be envious or proud. You believe you know a lot, but those who truly know are God and Orunmila.
Put on the collars and receive the Warriors.
The nursing baby gets an upset stomach: the mother does not wash her breast before nursing him, and the baby swallows the germs.
The obiní lives in excess: her parents did not know how to raise her in the best way and, when she became pregnant, they rejected her.
This Ifá brings intense headaches and even blows to the head; tuberculosis may also appear, with blood coughed up through the mouth.
The woman has trouble conceiving.
You must not take charge of other people's children, because they disturb your peaceful life, as happened with the girl of Ofún Shé and Ananagú.
Deep grief can bring on a heart attack, as happened to the wife of Ofún Shé.
The announcement of the minors must be heeded: they can save you from tragedies and from death, like the skinny piglet.
The man carries on romances with a mayombero person who works very strong witchcraft and who later abandons him, like Iyalashé.
The father forgets his children; they live with worry and have a painful childhood, without his warmth, just like the son of the Hunter King.
If you do not comply and do not do things as you should, your position is in danger: an enemy can snatch the post from you, as happened to Olobutú.
This Odù is associated with two ewé: the river carnation and the pomegranate.
It speaks of the Awán of Azojuano. The basket with the large paper is set out, surrounded by plates with stews, tubers, meat, fish, bread and herbs. Following the order of rank, each person walks around it, cleanses themselves and places an offering in the basket, while the vonduncí rings the bell and sings Awán Awán Awán Nowayá Awá Eró Gasesé. A chicken (or a suckling kid) is sacrificed, seasoned with epó, ekú, eyá and awadó; the juján is prepared with liquor and dry wine; coconut is offered; the shakuanasís dance with the basket on their heads and the akerú carries it to the bush. Someone who does not have Azojuano can still perform the Awán if the Awó of Orunmila marks the atena with these signs: Oshé Turá, which calls the ashé; Obara Turá, through which Azojuano comes to the Earth; Obeyonó, who represents his life; Okana Sá, who acts as messenger; Otura Shé, which carries the ceremony up to Heaven; Ojuani Meyi, who is the ajará; and Irete Meyi, the resurrected spirit of Azojuano, Eyelemeré.
It speaks of the Okín, the great heron. The treatise is based on the purple heron, with a black head and plumage between brown and reddish, which lives alone beside rivers, lakes and marshes; it is melancholic and easily frightened, and when it returns from its migrations it always comes back to the same places.
It speaks of profanation: Erebé put himself in the place of God in divination without being a certified Babalawo, and the person who consulted him died.
The bastard speaks: the child of the river basket who rose to become secretary and governor.
The room of mystery speaks: the white staircase of 16 steps and the bust covered with a white cloth that no one could see.
It speaks of Ogodó (Shangó), the Shepherd of Sheep, and the Abalashé, an oracle of divination that does not belong to Orunmila. Orunmila represents sight and the office of adifá: he sees and knows everything, the past as well as the present and the future.

Proverbs of Ofun She · Òwe

“Living with a humble person cools the mind.”
“Whoever gives bread to another man's dog loses the bread and loses the dog.”
“If the Orishas give me nothing, I can do nothing for them.”
“Your head takes you where your destiny ends.”
“When Shangó throws his word, no one can stop it.”
“Nature is so wide that no one knows its secret.”
“The spirits take away everything you neglect in your religion.”
“Blood inheritance is the only one that is never lost.”
“Obatalá is the only one able to make a human being out of two drops of blood.”
“Everyone who does good enjoys the gifts of Olorun.”
“There are truths that bring shame, but they are truths.”
“In a trial not every witness is questioned.”
“The big fish eats the little one.”
“The hot-tempered have no place among the upright.”
“Whoever goes searching in old palm husks finds cockroaches.”

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

Iré and Osogbo

Three iré and three osogbo of this sign, open to everyone.

Iré · what the sign brings

After going through need and eating little, a good comes to them.
They have lost three strokes of luck, but a greater one comes to them and they get out of all their troubles.
They are born to interpret the signs of the oracle of Ifá and to pass messages to people.

Osogbo · what the sign warns

Bad luck pursues them, and they have lost three strokes of luck.
They are a counterproductive person, with a contradiction between their saint and their spirit.
They think they know a lot, but those who know are God and Orunmila.

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

What is born in Ofun She · Ìbí

The Okín: the heron.
The bird that wears the crown of the Kings: a heron with white plumage that wears, around its neck, a collar of red feathers. The birds named her Queen when Olobutú lost the kingship for not sacrificing his red cloak.
The Awán of Azojuano.
The cleaning ceremony with the basket surrounded by plates, which is done first in every ceremony of Azojuano.
Public speaking.
From the bastard Ofún Shé, the only one who understood and read the word of Obatalá.
Clothing.
From the road of the room of the mystery of the modest one, who had everything lined in white.
The four directions of the Oracle of Ifá.
Taking the 365 days of the year and dividing them among 256 Odù, a remainder of 109 is left. When that remainder is divided among the 21 rings of the rainbow, each receives 5 and 4 are left over. Those 4 are the roads of the board of Shangó, which govern the signs of Ifá.
The loss of memory.
Because he had traveled so many roads and kept so much in his mind, Obatalá's memory began to fail. The secret is to pray over the head with the petals of the river carnation and to place a parrot feather in the cap.
That the Moon visited the home of Obatalá.
It happens in this Odù.
That the guts twist.
From the powdered dish the envious ones gave Ofún Shé.
That the rainbow symbolizes the turning of the world.
One half of Oshumaré's body can be seen above the Sky; the other half passes beneath the ground, ruled by Agbón Niregún, who is the God of Ifá and is identified with Irí (Elá), the Savior.
That the chinimá is prepared with pomegranate, coal and a dove.
Obatalá grated the pomegranate with charcoal into a gourd bowl; then he offered the dove and performed the chinimá, starting with Ofún Pakishé, and everyone was healed.
The family of the wild pigs.
The sow broke down the fence and the skinny piglet went after her; in the wild they had offspring together with the wild boars.

What is forbidden · Eewó

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

Do not lend your jewelry to anyone.
Rule of this Ifá.
Do not argue in your marriage.
Quarrels with your okuní may lead to the end of the marriage.
Do not be envious or proud.
Olobutú lost the kingdom for not giving up his red cloak.
Do not raise other people's children.
They destroy your rule of peace, and it can end in tragedy, as it did with Ananagú.
Do not abandon your child.
So you do not lose your luck: the abandoned bastard son was the salvation of the town.
Do not do work of Santo without having it crowned.
Erebé ended up in prison for practicing without being a certified Babalawo, and the person who consulted him died.
Do not think that you know a lot.
Only God and Orunmila know the truth: nature is so vast that no one can discover its mystery.
The mother should not give the breast without washing it.
The nursing baby gets sick in the stomach from swallowing the germs.

Ebbós of Ofun She · The sacrifices that open the road

LossEbbó of the three pieces of luck🔒 The Notebook SpiritualEbbó of the memory (Obatalá and the parrot)🔒 The Notebook Overcoming enemiesEbbó of the wild pigs🔒 The Notebook LoveEbbó of Iyalashé (the mayombera)🔒 The Notebook MoneyEbbó of the King's son🔒 The Notebook SpiritualEbbó of Oggún (the otá of the banquet)🔒 The Notebook

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

Works of Ofun She · The workings of the sign

HealthThe chinimá of the pomegranate🔒 The Notebook SpiritualPocket Ozain🔒 The Notebook SpiritualInshé of Ozain of the banana stalk🔒 The Notebook HealthSecret of the river carnation🔒 The Notebook

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

Patakíes of Ofun She · The roads of the Odù

1The Boy Who Understood Obatalá

A princess and a man from the common people fell in love, and she met him every afternoon without her parents knowing. After a time she became pregnant, and although she did everything she could to prevent the birth, she did not succeed. When the child was born, she wanted to hide her shame: she laid him in a basket, left it next to a river, and declared that the child was a bastard.

Oshún Ololodí took the child and undertook to raise him.

In another place there was a village whose people believed only in spiritism and paid no attention to the Saints. Misfortunes came to them one after another. They went to consult Orunmila, who explained that what they lacked was the Saint: he had to arrive for their troubles to end. Orunmila then sent Obatalá to the village to make everything clear, and Obatalá went.

Obatalá gathered the villagers, took out a book he carried under his arm, and read. When the reading and the explanations were over, he said that perhaps they had not understood him. A boy stepped forward and said: “Yes, father, I understood your words.” On hearing him, Obatalá confirmed it and named him his secretary.

When Obatalá left, the others, envious of the boy, began to throw powders on him to harm him.

Obatalá returned to see how everything was going. He gathered the people again and looked for the boy, who was sitting apart and looked dizzy from the powders. He spoke to the villagers again and, when he finished, remarked with discouragement that nobody there understood.

When he turned his eyes toward the boy, Obatalá noticed a nearby pomegranate tree and a dove pecking at one of its fruits. He exclaimed that the solution was right there and asked them to catch the dove and bring him a pomegranate. He obtained a gourd bowl and a piece of charcoal, grated the pomegranate, gave it to the dove, and performed chinimá, beginning with Ofún Pakishé. He improved at once, and with him all the people of the village were healed.

That is how the Saint saved them.

Note: the person must make Santo.

What it teaches

A person who was rejected at birth and raised with love can understand what others cannot grasp. Other people's envy harms the one who stands out, but the solution is sometimes close and simple, even if no one sees it. Where there is no Saint, troubles do not end.

The work that healed the village

A dove, a pomegranate, a gourd bowl, and a piece of charcoal. The pomegranate is grated and given to the dove, and chinimá is performed, beginning with Ofún Pakishé.

When this odu comes out

The person must make Santo.

The closing chant after the Santo saved them

IBORU, IBOYA, IBOCHICHE

The Ofún Shé prayer for this path

OFUN SHE: ADIFAFUN CHINTOLO, TINCHOLO UNLARO, AKUKO LEBO

2The poisoned secretary who dictated the legacy

A young woman was mistreated by her family every day. Her boyfriend was Okana Lobé, but she also kept company with two other men. She became pregnant without knowing who the father was and, not daring to return to her family, went to see Orunla, who warned her that she must not get rid of that child.

When the baby was born, the young woman laid him in a basket and let it go down the river hoping that it would sink. But the current carried the basket away, with the child inside.

Farther along, beside a town called Ofún Shé, a woman was washing clothes on the bank. As she struck a garment against a stone, she saw the basket and the child in it. She began to call out, very agitated, “Ofún Shé, Ofún Shé!”, and all the people gathered to see her find. They picked up the child and together took on the task of raising him.

The people of Ofún Shé were of extreme spirituality, and with it they hoped to reach Olofin. He knew it and sent Obatalá so that he would speak to them and so that they would tear down the walls they had put around the town.

At that time, the rescued child was already an adult and lived apart from the others. Nobody knew where he came from, and for that reason, and for the sadness of his story, he had been given the same name as the town: Ofún Shé.

Obatalá arrived with Olofin's charge. The young man appeared very elegant, with parrot feathers on his head, and already knew by heart the first of Olofin's three legacies. Obatalá gathered the people and spoke to them about their fanaticism and what they believed. When he finished he remarked that it was astonishing that, among so many adults, nobody had understood his words and only the boy had managed to. Then he left.

Some time later he came back and gathered the town again. When he finished his speech, he asked whether anyone had understood him. As before, only Ofún Shé answered. Obatalá, displeased with the others, resolved: “Since only Ofún Shé interprets what I say, from today he will be my secretary.” They began to work together, and envy toward Ofún Shé grew.

As the day to explain the third and last legacy approached, Obatalá noticed that his memory was faltering and sent a message to Ofún Shé with a dove. The dove stopped on the way to eat from a pomegranate tree. Meanwhile, balls of mud were thrown at Obatalá that stained his clothes, and he had to hide behind a cotton plant. He condemned the dove to pay with her life for her disobedience. Then he took three pomegranates, a melon and a gourd, crushed it all, traced a cross on his forehead and continued on his way to the town.

There, the townspeople wanted to destroy Ofún Shé and served him a meal with powder. He devoured it greedily and became sick in the stomach. Bent over with pain, he made his way to Obatalá, who had a gray parrot on his shoulder. Seeing the young man like that, the parrot ruffled its plumage, which turned red. Obatalá took off his cloak and threw it over Ofún Shé. He stood up straight, came closer leaning on his staff, the pauyé, and began to whisper to Obatalá the legacy of Olofin, which Obatalá went on explaining.

When they finished, Obatalá gave him river water to drink. Ofún Shé brought up, in the shape of a bag, the harm he had swallowed, and Obatalá named him governor of the town. He gave him the bag with these words: “With this your enemies wanted to kill you. Blow this toward the four winds and you will rule them with their own afoshé.” From that day, the people of that town keep transforming, and Ofún Shé governed in complete calm.

The path warns that here the guts twist and that three luckies are lost. As a remedy, one ebbó is made after another, up to three times.

What it teaches

Whoever grew up apart because of his origin can come to understand what others do not grasp. Envy poisons him, but with the help of an elder he rises and governs with the very thing his enemies used against him.

Ebbó of this path

Three akukó, three eyelé, a small three pointed stick, a plantain stalk, ofunfun and dundun.

Another form of the ebbó

A portion of plantains, one akukó, two eyelé, mist and ewefá.

When three luckies are lost

The ebbó is repeated three times in a row.

Remedies to drink

This path carries two remedies to drink, one for health and another taken every morning, prepared with elements of the sign. Their ingredients are in the full treatise.

This path keeps 2 awó secrets in the complete treatise.🔒 The Notebook

3The Birth of Memory Loss (Obatalá and Agenrón)

Obatalá lived in the city of Aké and was a prophet: he went from town to town with messages of wisdom. So much walking and holding everything in memory made it begin to fail him.

Accompanied by his assistant Agenrón, the parrot, he went to consult Orunmila and Ofún Shé came out. Ifá warned him to take care: from knowing so much he would lose his memory and, with it, his ashé. He prescribed a rogación with the flower of the ewaró odó, called river carnation, which he was to carry under his hat whenever he went out to give messages.

Obatalá did so, but one day when he had to give a message in Adowá he forgot the carnation at home. His enemies knew about his memory problem and gathered in Adowá to wait for him to forget the message, so they could denounce him before Olofin, have him jailed and take his post.

Without the flower, Obatalá could not remember the message well in Adowá, and the enemies were already preparing to seize him. Agenrón noticed that the secret had been left at home, took it and ran to Adowá, and arrived just in time to place it in Obatalá's hands. With it, Obatalá remembered the message, which was none other than one from Olofin for the people of that city, and they seized Obatalá's arayé enemies.

To thank him, Obatalá decided that Agenrón's colors, that is, his feathers, would appear in his crown.

What it teaches

Whoever knows a great deal by memory may come to lose it, and it is wise to take care of what sustains that knowledge. The help of a faithful companion arrives in time when the essential is forgotten, and that service deserves gratitude.

Ebbó of the path

Two osiadié and two adié; ashó timbelara and oguedé, besides ewé eleguedé, omi ilé ibú and oñigán, plus ekú and eyá, awadó and óbi, itaná and opolopo owó. Distribution: one osiadié is given to Elegbara and the other to Ebbó Paraldo; with the two adié the unyen of Oshún with Orunmila is made; with the eleguedé a small lamp is prepared for Oshún.

Secret of the odu for memory

This path has a secret of the odu for memory; it is in the complete treatise.

This path keeps 1 awó secret in the complete treatise.🔒 The Notebook

4The profaning (Erebé, the false diviner)🔒 The Notebook 5The ragged old man who healed the King🔒 The Notebook 6Orunmila heals King Obatalá🔒 The Notebook 7The girl who entered Ofún Shé's white room🔒 The Notebook 8Ananagú and what was behind the sheet🔒 The Notebook 9The ebbó of tools that saved the pigs🔒 The Notebook 10The sow and the skinny piglet who fled with the wild boars🔒 The Notebook 11The son of Orunmila who raised the boa🔒 The Notebook 12The son of the hunter king and the dancer's ring🔒 The Notebook 13Olobutú did not want to give his cloak and lost the kingdom🔒 The Notebook 14Oshumaré and the count of Shangó's four paths🔒 The Notebook 15The honorable Bomun🔒 The Notebook 16The rock of punishment🔒 The Notebook 17The daughter of the giant egg🔒 The Notebook 18The treasure of the ewe platanillo🔒 The Notebook 19The fox and the hens🔒 The Notebook 20The red carnation🔒 The Notebook 21The power of the stranger🔒 The Notebook

18 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 Ofun She in Spanish →

Frequently asked questions about Ofun She

What does the Odù Ofun She mean in Ifá?

The last Odù of Ifá, where the Okín is born, the heron of the Kings' crown: three fortunes have been lost, but another, greater one is coming.

What number is Ofun She among the 256 Odù of Ifá?

Ofun She is Odù number 256 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Ofun family.

Which orishas speak in Ofun She?

In the Odù Ofun She these orishas speak: Obatalá, Oshún Ololodí, Azojuano, Shangó (Ogodó), Oshumaré (the Rainbow), Yemayá, Oggún, Agenrón (the parrot), Eshu Atilú y Eshu Osiká.

What is a proverb of the Odù Ofun She?

One of the proverbs of Ofun She says: «Living with a humble person cools the mind.».

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