Otura Pompeyo

On this road, Yemayá Asezú was so caught up in parties that she neglected taking care of the orishas. One day she felt sick and went to Orunmila to be read. When he saw this Odù, he let her know that the orishas had turned their backs on her and none of them answered for her any more; the only one who still faced her was Olokun. She had to make ebbó and big ceremonies.

Orunmila did all those ceremonies for Asezú, and with them everything she had done was being erased: she lost her memory. That way she would be able to go later to Olokun, get along with him and stay living in Olokun's world once and for all.

From that moment Asezú's life changed completely: she became the favorite and inseparable daughter of Olokun and, from living stuck to him, a very powerful egun attached itself to her.

From then on, anything Asezú took on she talked over with her father, because she had already broken the alliances and commitments she brought from the world of the earth, and what she had done as a santo there was erased. With the work she did, she lost her memory.

Note: this road explains why she is the Yemayá closest to Olokun. She lives in a jar, she carries an Osain and she is the only one among the Yemayá that eats duck. In this Odù you have to receive Olokun from the hands of a Babalawo to beat the difficulties and reach the power that is missing; whoever already has it should give a white ram to Olokun to get past problems.

On this road, Odideo, the eagle, was very bold and everyone was afraid of her. Orunmila sent for her to make ebbó, since a trap had been set for her, a scheme to bring her down, and with the sacrifice she would come out the winner. She refused to do it, sure that nobody failed to respect her.

A little later the birds went, all together, to ask Orunmila to make ebbó for them. At first he did not want to; then Eshu showed up and asked him to do it for them. Orunmila listened to Eshu and made the ebbó for them.

As they came out from doing it, the birds saw the eagle coming. They gathered sand and cotton and, when the eagle got there, a huge gust of wind rose; then they threw the cotton with the sand at her. She went blind on the spot and dropped down, and the birds took the chance to beat her.

On this road, Yemayá Asezú and Yewá crossed the sea always together, aboard a huge boat that was theirs and was carved from jocuma wood. They went up and down the coast handing out ayo herb among the men who liked to gamble with them. The two had agreed to use that game to control them all, because the vice made them drop everything.

Little by little they took over all the riches there were in that land, and they put Elegba in as chief. They picked up the guacalotes in the land of Omó Ayo, very prosperous and with a way out to the sea; only its people were not happy with what they had or with what was happening there, since the guacalotes — the seeds of the ayo plant, in every color — were the greatest treasure of the place.

Awó Alayo Otá lived there, and everyone thought well of him because he was an Awó of Orunmila, a man of much wisdom who never stopped giving advice to the people of Omó Ayo, where everyone was very stubborn.

So they went to see him. He read them, saw this Odù for them and told them to wait for Asezú and Yewá to arrive in their boat for the guacalotes: as soon as they got there, they were to feed the two of them with a ewe and a guinea, and while they ate, take the boat, put on board all the men who were waiting for them and for the guacalotes, and carry them to his land of Omó Ayo, where he would make Ifá for them. That is the way they did it.

While Awó Alayo Otá was making Ifá for them, he took the guacalotes, put together an Ifá with them and set it to eat next to the Ifá he was making, and he fed Yewá. When he started to draw the Odù toyale, Otura Iwori came out.

When Elegba learned what had happened he got angry and started working on the heads and the sight of all the men born in the land of Omó Ayo. Then Awó Alayo Otá took Alayonifa and washed them, and told Yewá and Asezú that they had to go for Elegba, bring him to that land and consecrate him.

They took the boat, went to Oni Okun, where Elegba lived, and called him with this song: "Elegbá mota bi ayé Omó Ayo obani sokun, iré alayo Yewá kaniwaye alayonifa, Asezú moki otá". When he heard them, he got on the boat, and Yewá and Asezú went along singing to him: "Yewá Yewá Omó Ayo Yewá Yewá, Yewá Yewá oyu elese Yewá Omó Ayo Asezú".

Very thankful to the two of them, Elegba calmed down and went with them to the land of Omó Ayo. Everything was ready already, and Awó Alayo Otá made Ifá for him, and Otura Iwori came out as his Odù. Right there he was given Alayonifa and Adelenifa; a rooster was given to Asezú and a virgin she-goat to Yewá, with her Ifá, and they put together an ilekán head for him and set eyes and a mouth of dilogún on it. When they handed it to him they warned him: "You will always keep this next to your Ifá, and it will serve you for great powers and secrets in this land. And you must worship Asezú and Yewá, and their godfather Awó Alayo."

Besides being Olofin's game on earth, the guacalote held the secret of that place: the progress and the health of its children depended on it.