PRELUDE
Before the stories were changed,
Before our fathers' wisdom was given foreign names,
There was a way to ask,
A way to listen,
A way to know yourself.
Ifá did not begin with fear.
It began with wisdom.
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INTRO
Orúnmìlà, Ẹlẹ́rìí Ìpín,
Witness to destiny, keeper of ancient wisdom.
Baba Ifá, ọ̀rọ̀ rẹ̀ kún fún ìmọ̀,
You teach the human being to understand the road they carry.
Not every destiny is the same,
Not every person walks the same road.
Orí kọọkan, ìpín kọọkan, ọ̀nà kọọkan.
You teach us to ask before we act,
To understand before we judge,
To know our Orí before we blame the world.
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Verse 1
Orúnmìlà is the voice of wisdom,
The witness who understands the mysteries of Ìpín.
Through Ifá Dídá, we seek understanding—
What is happening?
What is my responsibility?
What can I correct?
Ifá ń kọ́ wa láti mọ Orí wa,
Ifá ń kọ́ wa láti mọ Ìwà wa.
It does not promise that life will have no problems.
It teaches us how to face the road with knowledge.
When the path is unclear,
Ifá gives counsel.
When character needs correction,
Ifá points toward Ìwà.
When imbalance calls for restoration,
Ẹbọ may become part of the prescription.
Orúnmìlà kì í ṣe ọlọ́run tí ń gba ipò Eledumare.
Eledumare ni Ọba tó ga jù.
Orúnmìlà is the teacher of wisdom,
not the owner of the universe.
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Verse 2
Then they told us:
“Ifá is darkness.”
“Ifá is evil.”
“Those who follow Orúnmìlà serve evil.”
They took a system built around wisdom
and made it sound like the worship of fear.
They told us not to ask questions.
They told us not to listen.
They told us to abandon the knowledge
before we ever understood it.
Wọ́n ní kí a ju Ifá sílẹ̀,
ṣùgbọ́n wọn kò kọ́ wa ohun tí a ń ju sílẹ̀.
They judged the book
without learning the language of the book.
They feared the name Ifá,
while our ancestors saw guidance, discipline,
character and responsibility.
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Verse 3
We forgot how to know ourselves.
We forgot that destiny and character must walk together.
We forgot the value of seeking counsel before major decisions.
We forgot that every person has their own path.
Now we copy another person's journey
and wonder why our feet are hurting.
A ń wo Orí ẹlòmíràn,
a gbàgbé tiwa.
We abandoned the discipline of reflection.
We abandoned the wisdom of consultation.
We abandoned the language of our ancestors.
And perhaps the greatest loss—
We stopped asking,
“What does my Orí require from me?”
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CHORUS
Orúnmìlà, Baba Ifá,
Ẹlẹ́rìí Ìpín, speak to us.
Teach us wisdom, teach us Ìwà,
Let us understand the road beneath our feet.
Ifá ni ọgbọ́n, Ifá ni ìmọ̀,
Ifá ni ọ̀nà tí ń kọ́ wa láti mọ ara wa.
Not fear, not darkness,
Ọgbọ́n ni a ń wá!
Orúnmìlà, guide our understanding,
Kí Orí wa má bà a sọnù!
Àṣẹ! Àṣẹ! Àṣẹ!
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OUTRO
Orúnmìlà…
We are learning again.
Not to make Eledumare small,
Not to place man above the Supreme One,
but to remember the wisdom our fathers carried.
Mọ Orí rẹ.
Mọ Ìwà rẹ.
Gbọ́ Ifá.
Kọ́ ẹ̀kọ́.
Ṣe ohun tí ó tọ́.
The wisdom was not dead.
We simply stopped listening.
Orúnmìlà, Ẹlẹ́rìí Ìpín…
Àṣẹ.