Oshé Trúpon

nº 238 of 256

Where Babá Ashó taught men to clothe themselves: you do not curse, because what you ask for happens — do not mock another's trouble, since yours is walking behind you.

26 patakíes 10 eewó 10 ebbós and works 17 proverbs

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Oshé Trúpon is Odù number 238 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Oshe family. This page brings together its prayer in Yoruba, 26 patakíes (3 with the full text), its proverbs, 10 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 238 of 256
Composition
Oshe over Otrupon
Orishas that speak
Shangó · Oshún · Ogún · Eshu · The Ibeyis · Osun · Babá Ashó · Egun

What Ifá says in this sign

Oshé Trúpon — also called Oshé Tupo — is the Ifá of the loan shark: the grasping lender who only gives on terms that favor him, feared, greedy, foul-mouthed and mocking of other people's troubles. Its mirror is the parrot on the slave ship: «They are done for!» he shouted from the mast — until the water reached him and he shouted «We are done for!»: do not mock anyone's trouble, because yours comes walking behind.

Its words carry gunpowder: you do not curse, because what you ask for happens — and they blame you for it. And one severe ritual rule: when this sign comes up for whoever is to receive something religious, it is not given to them — Orula says you will not be their Godfather, because that godchild even steals the godfather's own godchildren.

«The parrot shouted «they are done for!» from the mast — until the water rose and he shouted «we are done for!»: Oshé Trúpon does not mock.»The pulse of Oshé Trúpon

Its wars are lost before they start: over the offense and death of a brother you hire experts — and in the end you lose; through your love for a woman you lose everything you stand for; in your dealings, sellers and buyers get the better of you. Even with the dead you lose: there is an Egun who argued with you while he lived — and the Egun was in the right: admit it and send him on his way. Ikú is looking for you and cannot find you: the ebbó keeps you from killing or being killed on a corner.

Its shelters are of the greatest: here is the great power of Shangó, unbeatable warrior, joined with Oshún — Maferefun Shangó, Kaferefun Oshún — and Babá Ashó here taught men to clothe themselves: wood-carving and carpentry were born: your hands know how to make things — use them for that and not for shark's work. The beggar whose poverty shocks people, Orula and Elegbá get him out of that state.

For the woman, this odu speaks plainly: have your children with the man who makes you happy — otherwise your marriage tends to fail —, look into why your period is held back, and your partner's slight will do you good: another will come with better ways — the gourd Ozain looked down on, dressed in the beads of all the Santos, won Orunmila's love. The skin is cured with what is like it — the ají guaguao and the hierba mora —: harsh cures harsh — but the mocker drowns with his own ship.

The sign in one line

Do not curse, do not lend like a shark and do not fight wars Ifá gives up for lost — Shangó and Oshún together lift Oshé Trúpon off the mocker's wharf.

The prayer of Oshé Trúpon · Yoruba

Ikabagun Mayalayala Aun Yagunlo Olowo Tule Adifafun Piti Aretinlo Leyo Tinshe Arema Boga Ounko Lebo Ologun Kante, Eyele, Akuko Lebo Kaferefun Shango Eshu Ati Orunla Oshe Trupon Ire Ni Ifa Wi Lodafun Eshu. Oshe Trupo Talaba Ni Yibite Dara Yeye Mi Ogo Ni Guoguo Ibu Laye Nilo Guoguo Omo Orisha Lo Ewe. Adifafun Eshu, Adifafun Orula, Maferefun Oshun.

Ifá says — what Oshé Trúpon tells you

Proverbs of Oshé Trúpon · Òwe

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

Iré and Osogbo

8 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 Oshé Trúpon · Ìbí

What is forbidden · Eewó

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

Ebbós of Oshé Trúpon · The sacrifices that open the road

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

Works of Oshé Trúpon · The workings of the sign

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

Patakíes of Oshé Trúpon · The roads of the Odù

1The great power of Beko Bense (Shangó) and the joining with Oshún

The allied tribes invaded the town of Osumo; Beko Bense showed his power by eating a whole ram and a bunch of plantains alone, drawing water in a basket full of holes and splitting a plantain fiber with his spear; he killed the four invading chiefs with his spears and put out with the water from the basket the fire with which they meant to destroy the town.

Ebbó: two akukó, abó, two adié and a turtle, three plantains, a fiber from a plantain trunk, a spear and a basket, water from the river, a burning ember, dirt from the house and from the woods, owó medilogun.

There was a warrior with fame like no other in his time. In a clash with the neighboring tribe, that man —named Ngema Eshugo— killed one of the main chiefs of the other side. The dead man's brother took command of the tribe and from that day he had no other idea in his head than to destroy the powerful town of Osumo.

He looked for support among the best known warriors of the friendly tribes and he got it: the feared Ekang Ngomo, of the Bisha Bifos tribe, joined him; Buere Sue Sue, of the Esheg tribe; and the very well known Ohomombue, of the Obang tribe, and N-Nanlel Milak, of the Yebon family.

Four days later, each one leading his own troops, they came together to draw up the battle plan, and with that the great offensive against Osumo started. They set up camp near Ngema Eshugo's town and, as custom required, they sent messengers with the warning that, if there was no surrender within a short time, they would come in and loot by force.

The news went around Osumo, and a warrior of remembered fame, Beko Bense, gathered the people and promised to face the invasion by himself. Besides his skill with weapons, Beko Bense was famous for the wonderful secrets he had in his power. Since the people listened to him without believing, he wanted to show what he had and he did these tests. He asked them to bring him one of the biggest abó, a bunch of the finest plantains, a turtle and a pot big enough. He shut himself in a house, with nobody to keep him company and a guard at the door, and there he prepared the ram and the bunch; he ate them that same night and no trace was left of such a banquet. Unbelievable was the shock of those who came in at dawn.

Then he asked for a big basket and they all went down to the river. He sank the basket and lifted it full, without a single drop escaping through its countless holes. With that water he ordered everyone to wet their arms and legs, and the crowd did as he said, already convinced that this powerful man would hold off the invasion alone. He went even further: he took a very fine plantain fiber, stretched it across the middle of the street tied up high from one end to the other, moved a good distance away and threw his spear at it, which split it into two exactly equal halves.

The next day the invasion arrived and it was stopped by the thick fence that surrounded the town. Olofonbue demanded that Beko Bense open the gates; he answered that first they had to move back a safe distance. The invaders did it, and Beko Bense opened one of the narrow passages, where barely one person fit across. When they tried to go through one by one, the four foreign chiefs at the front were pinned from far away by spears, aimed with the same accuracy with which he had split the plantain fiber. That is how the chiefs of the invasion died. The warriors who were left ran to the forest and, thirsty for payback, seeing that they got nowhere with weapons, they decided to set the town on fire and escape.

When night fell they carried out their plan, but Beko Bense, using the water that the basket held, put out the flames that were going to finish the town and defeated those who wanted to destroy it.

Maferefun Shangó, Kaferefun Oshún. This road is about the great power of Shangó and his union with Oshún.

2The slave who sold out his own people

The King trusted his business to an intelligent slave; the neighboring King set a beautiful enslaved woman before him with the promise of marriage and freedom, and the slave, for her love, handed over the secrets and the riches of his own tribe, leaving it in ruins.

A certain King owned many slaves. One of them had a remarkable intelligence, something the King did not know: he gave him his trust without suspecting how much ability and how much wisdom that man had. Since the ruler kept many trade dealings with another tribe, he made that slave his trusted assistant, and that is how he came to know where the goods came from.

One day he had to carry a message to the King of the neighboring tribe. That King was no fool: he had one of his slave women dressed up with care and told her: "If you make a visitor we are expecting fall in love with you, I will give you more freedom, you will not work and you will stay to help my wife, giving orders to all the others. But you have to make him give up the oath of that tribe and tell you his secrets in exchange for your love. That way you will be his lawful wife, if you manage it."

That is how the slave sold out the King of the land where he was born: he revealed to his lover's King every secret and the exact place of the riches that for so long had given his tribe its greatness. Being a traitor, he left it in ruins.

3The loan-shark King and the slave

King Oshé Trúpon, powerful, feared and greedy, gave only in exchange for gain; the neighboring King, more cunning, set a very beautiful woman before his favorite slave to draw his secrets out of him, and Oshé Trúpon grew poorer and poorer until he was left with nothing.

Prayer: Bagun Maya La Yaya Aun Yakubo Yawo Tula, Adifafun Titi Afinushe Oba Agoni Abebe Abaniye Un Afotuba.

Ebbó: akukó, five eyelé and ten obi, a yellow skirt, ekú, eyá, epó and oñí, awadó, opolopo owó.

Note: the loan shark speaks here; whoever brings this Ifá lets go of nothing unless it brings him a bigger profit.

In a certain kingdom there was a King with slaves in quantity, and one of them was his favorite: he knew each one of his movements, each one of his secrets and the place where his powers rested; he gave nothing away if it was not in exchange for profit.

He was a powerful King, feared and ambitious; that is why he had enemies to spare, though none of them managed to defeat him. In the neighboring land there was another King, of less power but more cunning, and nothing he had tried so far had worked to beat King Oshé Trúpon. One day he decided to get to that King's favorite slave using a very pretty black woman, so that she, with her charms, would draw the secrets out of him and with that make him lose his powers.

That is how Oshé Trúpon went on getting poorer until he fell into misery, because by then nobody asked him for anything or came looking for him.

23 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 Oshé Trúpon in Spanish →

Frequently asked questions about Oshé Trúpon

What does the Odù Oshé Trúpon mean in Ifá?

Where Babá Ashó taught men to clothe themselves: you do not curse, because what you ask for happens — do not mock another's trouble, since yours is walking behind you.

What number is Oshé Trúpon among the 256 Odù of Ifá?

Oshé Trúpon is Odù number 238 of the 256 in Ifá, part of the Oshe family.

Which orishas speak in Oshé Trúpon?

In the Odù Oshé Trúpon these orishas speak: Shangó, Oshún, Ogún, Eshu, The Ibeyis, Osun, Babá Ashó, Egun.

What is a proverb of the Odù Oshé Trúpon?

One of the proverbs of Oshé Trúpon says: «Whoever thinks he can fool God fools himself.».

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