Otura Airá

There was a hunter who supported his family. He went several days without catching anything, so he brought nothing home.

One day he went out and hunted an elephant. After killing it, he leaned against a tree and myrrh dripped into his mouth, and he was filled with satisfaction, since that catch meant so much money to him, and he cried out: «Not even the King is more than I am!» Just then the King's soldiers were passing, and hearing that cry, they did him honors and handed him a large sum of money.

IFA FORE AYE... Turtle and parrot feather.

Eshu, in the land of Orundo, had a brotherhood made up of the Iguaté Eni (the fox-men), whose pleasure was in mischief. They gathered in Odé's woods.

One day, Odé saw in the woods two foxes who, leaning against a tree, were talking and scattering strange signs of their secret religion. One of them had a paper in his hand.

Odé fired at the fox who had the paper, wounded him and kept the paper, which was the secret of the beyond. When he got home, he went into a tavern to drink aguardiente and told everyone there about his adventure. Among them was a strange figure, who was wounded, and who asked about the paper. And when Odé was going to show it to him, the tavern keeper saw that he had a tail and shouted: «He is an Iguató!», at which he turned into a fox and fled.

Odé then went to be read by the town's Awó, who made osode for him, and this Odù came up, Otura Airá, and marked him ebbó, where he had to give food to Eshu to calm him, since he had been trying to learn secrets that were not his.

Odé made the ebbó, but he did not give Eshu what Ifá had marked, and he decided to go back home. On the road he met his whole family, on their way to another town. They said he had ordered that journey to his mother, and gave him the letter in which he asked them to sell all his property and go to another town to join him.

Odé looked over the letter and saw that it was a blank sheet. Although he no longer had a roof, he decided to go back. The next day a younger brother appeared, whom everyone had given up for dead, and asked about the misfortunes that had happened. Odé told him everything.

When Odé was telling him the tale of his adventures with the Iguatós, his brother said: «Ah, there is the whole root of the trouble: you took an interest in mastering and directing secrets that are not yours, and you cheated Eshu!»

Odé showed his brother the paper with the secrets. His brother snatched it out of his hands, put it away quickly and said: «EBORU, EBOYA, EBOSHISHE, at last I have got back what I was looking for.» And, turning into an Iguató, he left: he was Eshu.

And so Odé was left with neither secret nor direction.

In the land of Onibari lived an Awó who was a son of Ogún and was called Omó Otura Airá. He bothered with nothing but his work, which was selling and doing business, and he was hounded by the law and did not prosper, living in poverty. He did not bother to go to where Orunmila was, or to his father, whom he had never seen since he was born.

One day, Eshu was coming along with Shangó and they saw Awó Otura Airá sitting on a corner, weeping. Eshu said to Shangó: «Look at that one sitting there weeping!» And Shangó said: «That one bothers with neither Orunmila nor anything else.»

Time passed, and one day Eshu came by again, saw him in the same state, and asked him: «What is the matter with you?» And he told him everything that was happening to him. Eshu passed his hand over his head and prayed: LERI ARALA OMO NIYE ARALA OGUN KAPOSI ONIRE EWA NILODE OTA NI OSINI IFA ORUNMILA KOBEO.

Then he poured bee honey on his head and told him: «Go home, and later I will come for you to take you to Orunmila's house.» So he did. Afterward, Eshu took a cowbell, came for him and told him: «Go along sounding it, and I will sing»: YALEREO LEDEO IFA MUYORDE YALERE LADEO IFA GUALODE OMO OTURA AIRA NI SHANGO GOGONI IFA LADEO IFA MORALA.

Shangó appeared suddenly and Eshu told him: «He has to be saved! He has to be taken to the foot of Orunmila to see what can be done.» Shangó was carrying two black hens and handed them over, so that when they reached Orunmila's house, he would give them to Ifá.

Eshu, Shangó and Awó Otura Airá reached Orunmila's house, gave him foribale and knelt. Awó Otura Airá gave him the black hens, to give them to Ifá. Orunmila cleaned him with the hens and, as he did it, sang: IFA YA NIFA, IFA LODE MOYABA.

Eshu and Shangó tore his clothes and gave him a bath of Ifá's herbs, handed him a change of clothes and gave the hens to Ifá. They made rogation for him with a piece of tiger skin and told him: «Go to the bush, and right now you will find your luck.» Nobody but Orunmila could go into that bush, since there were great secrets there.

In that bush was Ogún, who was Otura Airá's father. When he arrived, Ogún took up his machete and said: «What have you come here for?» Then he showed him the piece of tiger skin and Ogún said: «Who sent you?» And he said: «Orunmila, because you are my father and I am going through great hardship for no reason.» Ogún said: «I am going to forgive you, because Orunmila sent you, but you can never come again. Take these airá pods and, when you leave here, hand one to Eshu, for him to break open for you; another to Shangó and the other to Orunmila. You have to take them, and they will know what has to be done with them. With that your luck will change and you will not be hounded by the law.»

Ogún sat him on a stone and said: «Wait.» He took a piece of tiger skin, made him an Inshé and handed it to him.

When Otura Airá came out of the bush, he did everything as his father Ogún had told him. Eshu took his pod, Shangó his, and Orunmila the other. And from then on came the prosperity of Otura Airá.

Note: the Awó who has this Odù should be sworn into Osanyin and should reinforce Ogún, and Ogún will eat beef.