The yam, the corn, the plantain and the cocoyam were coming from heaven; only the cocoyam sacrificed its machete. The others were beheaded by Death at the border; the cocoyam, held up cutting chewing sticks with its hands, missed her. That is why its fruit is pulled up and not cut.
When the yam, the corn, the plantain and the cocoyam were leaving heaven, they were told to sacrifice their machete and not to travel early, to avoid a sudden death. They all thought their machete far too necessary; only the cocoyam made the sacrifice.
In the morning, on the road, the others used their machetes to cut chewing sticks and went on their way, refusing to lend theirs to the cocoyam. Eshú, who had benefited from its sacrifice, made it almost impossible to cut the sticks by hand, and the cocoyam fell behind.
Meanwhile, the others reached the border between heaven and earth, where the King of Death, frustrated, took their machetes and beheaded them. When the cocoyam finally came through, people were amazed that it had tricked Death, and they called it Ekoko. That is why the yam, the corn and the plantain are beheaded with a machete to take their fruit, but the fruit of the cocoyam is pulled up without cutting.
Fowo lo tun, foshe losin / Adifafun Lesu / Abufun agbado / Atun bufun ogede ati laakpa.