My thanks to Dele A Sonubi for this translation into English of a poem from the verses of the Yorùbá religious corpus, Odù Ifá.
Although frequently mythologised as a deity, Òrúnmìlà appears to have been a historical figure. Some histories claim that he was born in the town of Òkè Igèti within Ilé-Ifẹ̀, the ancient Yorùbá city in south-western Nigeria, around 500 B.C. As an adult, Òrúnmìlà became known as an exceptionally wise sage who took on sixteen apprentices. The names of these sixteen disciples became the titles of the 16 Major Odù of Ifá, with each Odù recording the teachings of Òrúnmìlà as expressed through discussion with his students. (1)
Over time, each of the 16 Major Odù were assigned values through a binary coding system, possibly to help with the memorisation of the oral teachings. This led to Ifá becoming used for divination, with practitioners seeking solutions to their problems in life by using a divining chain known as Opele, or using sacred palm or kola nuts called Ikin to identify which verses could address the situation they face.
Later generations contributed their own interpretations of the 16 Major Odù, expanding the teachings into a vast corpus of classical Yorùbá philosophy containing over 400,000 verses.
The poem that follows is a translation of one of these verses. Òrúnmìlà advises that individuals should always follow their own true nature, but points out that acting with kindness to others is in itself inherently rewarding. The story of how ‘Délé was introduced to this Odù is a fascinating example of how Ifá is preserved through oral tradition and transmitted through everyday interactions. This story is included in the footnotes below the poem. (2)
Kindness Is Inherently Rewarding
Those who are kind should be ceaseless in kindness,
Those who are unkind should be ceaseless in their unkindness,
It is kindness and not unkindness that is inherently rewarding.
Thus Ifá divination was performed for Òrúnmìlà,
On the day he decided to embark on a journey to the land where he had no friends,
On the day he decided to embark on a journey to the land where he had no relations,
On the day he decided to embark on a journey to the town where he had no acquaintances.
People observed and said;
“Òrúnmìlà, you are going to a town where you know no one,
Òrúnmìlà, you are going to a town where you have no relations,
Òrúnmìlà, you are going to a town where you have no single acquaintance.”
Òrúnmìlà answered them thus;
“Those who are kind should be ceaseless in kindness,
Those who are unkind should be ceaseless in unkindness.”
They inquired further from him why he persisted that,
“Those who are kind, should be ceaseless in kindness,
Those who are unkind should be ceaseless in unkindness?”
Òrúnmìlà then provided further clarifications thus;
If he is kind to people, when he gets to a town where he knows no one, friends would be drawn to him,
If he is kind to people, when he gets to a place where he has no relations, he would build relations
If he is kind to people, when he gets to a place where he has no acquaintances, he would be attracted to countless of them!
Those who are kind should be ceaseless in kindness,
Those who are unkind should be ceaseless in unkindness,
However, it is kindness and not unkindness that is inherently rewarding.
Here is the same verse in the original Yorùbá.
Ore L’ópé
Se’re se’re, k’ó máse d’ékun ore síse,
Sè’kà sè’kà k’ó máse d’ékun ìkà,
Ore l’ópé, ìkà ò pé.
L’ódífá fún Òrúnmìlà,
L’ójó tó l’óun n lo ìlú àìl’árá,
L’ójó tó l’óun n lo ìlú àìl’éèyàn,
L’ójó tó l’óun n lo ìlú àìl’énìkankan.
Wón ní: “Òrúnmìlà, ìlú àì l’árá lòó nlo,
Òrúnmìlà, Ìlú àì l’éèyàn lo n lo,
Òrúnmìlà, Ìlú àì l’énìkan soso lòó nlo.”
Òrúnmìlà wá ní:
“Se’re se’re, k’ó máse d’ékun ore síse,
Sè’kà sè’kà k’ó máse d’ékun ìkà.”
Wón ní, “Òrúnmìlà, kílódé tó fi wípé,
“Se’re se’re, k’ó máse d’ékun ore síse,
Sè’kà sè’kà k’ó máse d’ékun ìkà?”
Òrúnmìlà wá ní:
T’óbá se wípé rere l’òún n se,
t’óun bá dé ìlú àì l’árá, òun á l’árá,
T’óbá se wípé rere l’òún n se,
t’óun bá dé ìlú àì l’éèyàn, òun a l’éèyàn,
T’óbá se wípé rere l’òún n se,
t’óun bá dé ìlú àì l’énìkankan, òun a l’éèyàn l’éyìn repete!
Se’re se’re, k’ó máse d’ékun ore síse,
Sè’kà sè’kà k’ó máse d’ékun ìkà,
Ore l’ópé, ìkà ò pé.
Translation by Dele A Sonubi
from the Odù Ifá.
See also Lion Refused to Perform Sacrifice, How Leopard Got His Honour and The Importance of Ori for other examples from the Odù Ifá.
Bio
‘Délé A Sónúbi is a writer based in Lagos, Nigeria. He learned the art of philosophy from Professor Sophie B. Olúwolé who held a chair on African Philosophy. He researches mostly on Yorùbá indigenous drive, particularly the Yorùbá religion, oral legacies, and socialization principles through Yorùbá culture and its practices. He is utterly flabbergasted and fascinated by the sheer sagacity of the words and proverbs in the Yorùbá language, particularly when they are translated from Yorùbá to English. As a result, he is always eager to engage in exchanges over the enhanced meaning of Yorùbá phrases and world views.
Footnotes
- See Socrates and Ọ̀rúnmìlà: Two Patron Saints of Classical Philosophy by Sophie Bọ́sẹ̀dé Olúwọlé, Ark Publishers (2017).
- On my way for an official event outside Lagos, I stopped to pee and met a man who wanted to get a lift to where he was going. He was surprised that I accepted his request because mine was a private car and usually, it was uncommon for private drivers to just pick anyone up, in the darkness, and on the side of a highway. When he got to where he wanted to go, he offered me some money for bringing him there. When he got to where he wanted, which was a bus stop from my event center, he offered me money for the ride. I smiled happily and perhaps arrogantly, saying that “I do not collect money to help people. The personal joy I derive from helping was enough payment for me.” The man looked curiously at me to be sure I was not pulling his legs or crazy. What he saw was that I was not lying but truly content with knowing that I had helped someone in need. He shook his head in appreciation and said he wanted to give me something—a gift that was not money. Then he started to recite an Odù Ifá. Initially, I thought he was reciting an incantation, When he went to the second level of the Odù, I realized that I was experiencing a strange moment of intellectual eruption—an advancement in my intellectual search, a peace that would take me donkey years to find. I was under a spell of oral discovery of a desired oral legacy, and I started to panic with my hands shaking and my brain scattering. This was because I had no pen to write, no tape recorder to capture, nothing to capture what he was saying, and I was not even prepared to hear something relevant like this. My brain became the only instrument I had, and it was already feeble and tired from the long day’s work and drive. I studied the movements of his mouth; I processed his words, suspended my rationality so that I could memorize them. My mind was going wild as I listened. And when he had finished, he got out of my car and left. I started to panic; how would I remember all that he said? My hands shook. I tried to scribble a few things down as much as I could, which would act as navigation for my recollection of the complete Odù. Then I restarted the car, raced towards the hotel, collected my room keys, and went to the room. I struggled to remember those words of the Odù Ifá, until they were completed before I stopped panicking. The core reason for my panic was because I had just completed a book that depended on authentic oral legacies like this one. It would enhance the book a lot. And it just landed on my lap, so unsolicited and so incredibly useful.
