It's about results...not reputation or ethnicity

The reason you are here, and reading this, is because the religions and philosophies that you grew up with, failed you. It wasn't that they didn't promise all kinds of goodies if you adhered to their rules, it was that they didn't deliver! They talked the talk .but they couldn't help you walk the walk!

They told you they had the exclusive in the religious business.and you believed them.at least until your lives didn't get better. Now that you are finally looking to actually experience the love, fulfillment, health and protection that religion is supposed to deliver, you have only one thing standing in your way: Your inability to free yourself from the shackles of their thinking!

IF.You still want religion to be a result of unexplainable magic.rather than a logical system created by a benevolent God; IF. You still want the paternalism of being taken care of rather than the empowerment of taking care of yourself; IF. You still want to believe that Truth can be frozen in time, and that it's expression in the written word is absolute; IF.you still believe that God's Truths are restricted to a specific ethnicity, gender or type of sexual orientation and best expressed by a particular group, or a particular skin color, then you just don't get it.and you might as well stay where you are!!!

The biggest frustrations involved in the Foundation's work stems from those that would take the beauty, freedom, and eternal living energy of the orisa, and attempt to freeze frame it into their own Christian/Judaic prejudices and limitations. Whether it is super imposing a Devil - which Ifa does not recognize - or attempting to view the priest as infallible and the historical Pataki as unalterable truths, rather than contextual observations, the result is the same. You have castrated and minimized the real potential and power of the philosophy.

This diminution of the power and potential of the orisa can occur in many forms.but, without exception, all these forms spring from the well of illogical thinking. Be it the illogic's of nationalism, racism or gender discrimination, the results are the same.the philosophy simply cannot work effectively.

Ifa is a philosophy of results! If you were content with promises, or hanging out with a group of like minded, culturally similar individuals, you could have remained in the structure of whatever Western religion into which you were born or had come to practice. But, if you want results, the kinds of positive change, achievement, love, fulfillment and joy that the other's promise but cannot deliver on, you will need to be logical and analytical in your choices and behavior.

A recent example that was brought to my attention illustrates how this works.or fails to.

A light skinned Latin Priest of Ogun went for a divination being performed by a famous African Babalawo. The group, with the exception of the young Latin man and his friends, was composed entirely of Black American and African men and women. They were there, undoubtedly, for a host of reasons. Among these, were the respect, adulation and pride of sharing with a famous member of their basic ethnicity. Unfortunately, all those feelings have little to do with results.

Upon reading the young Latin man,the famous African Babalawo declared that he "needed to receive Ori." This was quite astonishing as the young man explained he had already received Ori. The response from the Babalawo was " what did your Ori look like?",, and he proceeded to have one of his followers bring forward an Ori he had received from the Babalawo. The young man suggested that while his Ori did indeed " look differently", that it seemed quite logical that an Ori made by a western Babalawo might look differently, but be just as real. The famous Africa Babalawo refused to accept this, exhibiting the classic Western Christian Dogma that " it's my way or the highway." Finally, the young man, unintimidated in the presence of this supposedly illustrious figure, offered a final logical solution to the problem. " Why don't you simply cast and ask Orunmila if my Ori is proper?" He had hoisted the theoretically brilliant Babalawo on his own Petard. After all, no matter how arrogant or pompous you may be, there is NO Babalawo of right mind that would not accept Orunmila as the final arbiter!

So, the African Babalawo was faced with a dilemma He had already said that his reading indicated the young man needed to receive his Ori. But, the young man countered that he had already received his Ori. The Babalawo countered that his "Ori must not be correct" and sought to support that contention by the difference in looks of an Ori he had given and the young man. The young man had replied that it was quite possible an American Ori would look culturally different that an African one. Unable to resolve the issue, the young man had turned to the logic of Ifa for a decision."ask Orunmila.".But the African Babalawo refused. Why?

Frankly, there is no acceptable reason for not asking.. Unless you are afraid of contradicting yourself in front of your followers. Instead, the Babalawo simply told the young man he needed to give a hen to his head, and moved on.

These kinds of situations, where a priest acts illogically, occur daily.and, for the most part, the followers of the priest deny their own intelligence by accepting these situations. They do it for some, or all, of the reasons I referred to earlier. But the end result is always the same: they diminish their personal growth and results!

For those of you that are curious, I would suggest a more logical explanation for the famous Oluwo's behavior. Seeing a Latin man in front of his Opon, and knowing that Ori was virtually lost in the Diaspora, it never occurred to him that the young man would know, let alone have, his own physical Ori. So, when he presented this solution for the young man, a solution which came from his head, not from Orunmila, he was shocked by the reality, and sought a way to muddle the issue rather than look dishonest in front of his followers. When pinned in the corner of logic, by being asked to "ask Orunmila" he retreated further.

This is not an indictment of African Babalawo. The same kinds of behavior are, and can be, expressed by Latin, European, Asian, or any other individual Priest. This example was used simply because it was an actual event recently brought to my attention. Within the specificity of this event, there are certain other warning flags that should be noticed. For example, over and above the natural reticence you brought with from your Western Religions regarding never "questioning the priest," or "accepting The Word as gospel" despite it's sometimes illogical conclusions, is the reputation and fame of the individual involved. Here, we fall into the Western trap of believing if you are famous, you must be worthwhile. This leads to an even more destructive idea.the person must ALWAYS be right because he/she is held in such esteem. Nonsense. The individual I wrote about has indeed accomplished some wonderful writings on the philosophy, and may very well be an excellent diviner in the context of interpreting the energy within the cultural realities of how he was raised. But, in this instance he was, dishonest, arrogant, or badly behaved.or all three. It also brings to light our reticence to criticize someone we culturally identify with, as if similarities in nationality, culture, sex, or skin color should influence or judgment and analysis.

Ifa is about improving our lives. It requires our best efforts to achieve this. These efforts include using our God given intelligence to see the Truth.

In every one of our dealings within this philosophy, we must apply the gifts that Oludumare has given us, to our journey. Among these is the gift of logic and the refusal to disregard it. It's about results!

Blessings,

Oluwo Philip Neimark

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