Contemplation on the Odu Ogunda Meji

We are not born alone
We can not stand alone
We will not survive alone
and yet we stand in solitude
unwilling to give up
the very thing that destroys us
because of the belief that it is a means of salvation
We do not own the gun
the gun owns us
keeping us in a state of fear
desperately trying to control
the inevitable moment of our death
when in reality
it comes to us all
the unenlightened mind
will always cling to the belief
that there is something to control
we are born in tribes
we stand together
we survive shoulder to shoulder
a community united
without guns
will last an eternity

Contemplations on the Odu Odi Iwori

Close your eyes
open your heart
melt into the sound
as your ears drift
on a sea of notes
that speak
of a thousand journeys
filled with adventure
heartbreak
sorrow
love
redemption
and joy
a symphony of emotion
dancing on the vibrations of strings
that fill the air
with the music of your life

Contemplation on the Odu Ogunda Ogbe (Ogunda bede)

When approaching the seed of a sunflower
one is left to ponder the burning question
what is the best way to consume such thing?
If done with fingers
it's not such an easy task
each shelling
without correct pressure applied
may crack both shell and morsel of goodness
and leave a mess
If approached only by using the mouth
a tangle of tongue and teeth can sometimes
coax the seed from its shell
but leaves one with a slimy mess
a combination of mouth, hands and teeth
can also work
loosening the diamond from its crater
but is a tedious and slow process
Each way
with its own merits
and drawbacks
can solve a problem
leaving us to contemplate the next quandry
Ifa is life
life is a bowl of sunflower seeds
waiting to be consumed

Contemplation on the Odu Okanran Irosun (okana rosu, okana irosu)

We are the accumulation
of millions of tiny decisions
whose cumulative affect
makes us who we are
like sand castles on a beach
built with a cup full of sand each day
Wind and water forever eroding
the creation that is our self
slowly building
some with moats to defend
others open for all to see
each one unique
sometimes finished
sometimes incomplete
we inevitably meet the end
brought by a rogue wave
crashing down
returning us whence we came
our sand to be used again
to build other castles
-- Marcos Ifalola Sanchez --

Contemplation on the Odu Ofun Ogbe

To move in stillness
allows the mind to exist
without expectation
adapting
like water in a pitcher
that takes on form without resistance
changing seamlessly when poured into a glass
the still mind wraps itself around eternity

contemplation on the Odu Otura Meji

Though a raindrop becomes one with the pond it lands in
it's impact creates a ripple
felt even at its edges
As human beings we often forget
Even the smallest of gestures
can sometimes ripple across the world
stirring something deep within our humanity
We are all one
and yet
we can each make a difference
in the world that is around us.

Contemplation on the Odu Ika Meji

A society built on the backs of many
for the benefit of a few
is not sustainable
beyond even questions of moral duty
One can only surround themselves
with so many walls
until one day
they realize
they are alone
and as the powerless and poor grow in numbers
there will be no walls that can withstand
the tidal wave of pressure
as nature recalibrates itself
finding balance
as the ants devour the elephants carcass
the only sustainable path
is the middle way