accompany Orisha Nla wherever he went in his
workoforganizingthewastelandintoanordered
world. The task was difficult because to bring
order from chaos is not an easy activity.
Nevertheless,OrishaNlathrewtheEarthdown
on the marshy wasteland, and the hen and pigeon
begantoscratchituntiltheseaandlandweresep-
arated. The work of Orisha Nla was investigated
by a chameleon who reported to Olorun. It was
approved and accepted by Olorun, and Orisha
Nlawas givenpermissiontocontinuehistask.Of
course, the first place that was made was Ilé-Ifè,
the house of Heaven, the most sacred city of the
Yoruba people.
OrishaNlaworkedfor4fulldaystocreatethe
Earth and then on the fifth day he took a rest.
Thus,theYorubaculturerecognizesa4-daywork
weekandafifthdayofrest.OnceOrishaNlahad
completed the task of bringing order out of chaos
to create the land, he was ordered by Olorun
to plant trees on the Earth. Soon Orisha Nla was
plantingseedsthatgrewintotreesandmadehuge
forests. He sent rain to ensure the continued
growth of the forest.
Thiswasnottheendofcreation.Peoplehadto
be made, and so Olorun created the first people
in Heaven. Orisha Nla followed the model of
Olorun and created people on Earth according to
the pattern shown by Olorun. Once people were
made on Earth, Olorun gave them the breath of
life.SoonOrishaNlawantedtohavethesecretof
giving life. He hid in the forest that he had made
and watched from afar to see how Olorun gave
the breath of life. However, because Olorun was
almighty and omnipotent, he knew that Orisha
Nlawashidingandcausedhimtobecomeuncon-
scious so that he was unaware of Olorun’s gift.
Thus, even until now only Olorun has the ability
to give life.
Molefi Kete AsanteSee alsoOduduwa; Olorun
Further Readings
Bascom, W. (1969).The Yoruba of Southwestern
Nigeria. San Francisco: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Idowu, E. B. (1962).Olodumare:God in Yoruba Belief.
New York: Wazobia Press.
Mbiti, J. S. (1990).African Religions and Philosophy
(2nd ed.). London: Heinemann.
Meyerwitz, E. (1951).The Divine Kinship in Ghana and
Ancient Egypt. London: Faber & Faber.
Olupona, J. K. (2001).African Spirituality,Forms,
Meanings,and Expressions. New York: Random
House.
Opoku, K. A. (1978).West African Traditional Religion.
Accra, Ghana: FEP International.ORUNMILA
Orunmila is the Yoruba deity of wisdom, knowl-
edge, and omniscience who is also known by sev-
eral cognomens that further highlight his nature
and role in the Yoruba pantheon. Thus, Orunmia
isknownasEleriIpin,thatis,the“witnesstocre-
ation and destiny,” and as Ibikeji Olodumare,
“second to the Creator, Olodumare.” From this
position, Orunmila speaks to the complexities of
life.Renownedforhiswisdomandunderstanding
of humanity and divinity, he is also called
Agbonniregun,“a wise man withoutbones (in his
body),” thus emphasizing his omniscience and
compassion. Consequently, he is knowledgeable
of all human and divine matters, the ways of the
world, and all related phenomena. Orunmila is
one of the major orisa or IrunMole in the Yoruba
pantheon, and indeed he is considered the
spokesperson for all orisa. Most significant,
Orunmila is the patron and guardian of Ifa, the
extensive oral tradition of Yoruba knowledge
and thought, a responsibility given to him by
Olodumare. As the master diviner, he is patron of
allbabalawo(maleIfapriests)andiyanifa(female
Ifa priestesses). The philosophical complexity and
meaning of Orunmila is revealed through many
Odu Ifa (Ifa chapters) and through Orunmila’s
interactions with other orisa, including his several
wives,especiallyOduIwapele,Apetibi,andOsun.
Orunmila also consults Ifa as well as guards its
integrity; hence, he is the avatar of Yoruba ways
of knowing and being.
Ilé-Ifè, the cradle of Yoruba civilization, is
known in the oral tradition as the original site of
human habitation. In Yorubaitanor narratives,
the IrunMole or the 17 premier deities, Orunmila
among them, are charged with the preliminaryOrunmila 507