WHO IS A BABALAWO.

A Babalawo is a trained Ifa priest and diviner in the Yoruba traditional society,they are also healers and herbalist.A babalawo is the link between the physical and the spiritual and he employs different means of readings and consultation to communicate with the spiritual world,some of the following are means of divinations used by babalawos,ERINDINLOGUN(the sixteen cowries),AGBIGBA(a string with four distinct marks)IYANRIN TITE(sand reading),OMI WIWO(water gazing),OWO WIWO(palmistry),ABOKUSORO(necromancy),OPELE(eight string divination chain). There are two types of Babalawo, BABALAWO OLODU and BABALAWO ELESINJE.BABALAWO OLODU is the most recognised babalawo because of his profiency in the verses and chants of Ifa and his deep knowledge of consultations,he mostly offers sacrifice and atonements to the orisas and makes recommendation to the seeker,ELESINJE on the other hand is mostly versed in the area of roots and herbs and the cure and prevention of a wide range of diseases and afflictions,his knowledge of Ifa is mostly specialised in roots and herbs and the uses of such,Elesinje is also known as SAWO SESEGUN(the initiated herbalist). A babalwo who is not proficient in the verses of Ifa may cause alot of damage by interpreting wrongly which may have adverse and irreversible effects on the seeker hence the saying OPELE O SHE'RU ENITI NKI NIO GBOFA NITORI OHUN TIA ABA BI IFA NI IFA NSO(Ounmila is not deceptive,it is the chanter that is not well versed in Ifa,it is whatever Ifa sees that Ifa reveals.It is must be stated here that it takes a minimum of 10-15 yrs to become a versatile and well versed babalawo to be able to meet the responsibilities attached to being one,in addition to the knowledge of Ifa and the process of divination,he must know the appropriate ritual/sacrifice for each of the ODU,he must also acquire a vast amount of herbal preparations with its accompanying utterances of charms and incantations.It therefore follows that those who qualify as practising babalawos are men of intellectual strenght and judgement,the babalawo is not only a diviner but a custodian of the Yoruba cultural heritage as given to orunmila by Olodumare,Odu ikalogbe gave a warning about trying to make mockery of Ifa,it says''Ifa kii sohun amusere opele kii sohun amusawada adifa fun arerinku tin fi awo se yeye''(Ifa is not a thing of mockery,opele is not a thing of jest,that is the lot divined for he that laughed to death(arerinku) who was mocking the babalawo).ABORU ABOYE